BROOKSVILLE -- The former director of a Florida Humane Society is facing a charge of money laundering.
The Hernando County Sheriff says Susana Arneson transferred a million and a half dollars from the Nature Coast Humane Society's coffers into her accounts since 2018.
Arneson and her husband, Douglas O' Berry, are facing charges of grand theft, organized fraud and money laundering. Arneson ran the office until 2020. Officials believe she may have kept the operation going after she left.
The sheriff says Arneson stole food out of the mouths of puppies... and calls her "heartless"... the word Arneson used in a channel 8 interview after the society's shelter was burglarized in 2020. In fact, the investigation into Arneson and O'Berry is titled "Operation Heartless." Arneson used the word heartless in a News Channel 8 interview to describe crooks who broke into the Humane Society's animal shelter, even as she, according to detectives, had already ripped off $300,000.
Sheriff Al Nienhuis says the Humane Society board found that money was missing from its accounts, and called deputies January 21st. He calls the case "a very big and busy investigation." Nienhuis says Arneson and O'Berry "stole food out of the mouths of puppies" and are "good actors" who had people fooled.
Nienhuis says the Humane Society found out about the charges just before the news conference. The NCHS doesn't have a statement but plans to respond to the public in a few days. In the meantime, it says it's putting procedures in place to make sure this never happens again.
The sheriff says the NCHS may end up getting only "pennies on the dollar" for their losses. Nienhuis said the pair spent the money on items including a boat, a Jeep Wrangler, and a house with no down payment. Arneson might also have spent money on a makeover.
State Attorney Bill Gladson says the two are being held on $750,000 bond, facing three counts including grand theft and money laundering.
Photo: HCSO/Canva