RIVIERA BEACH, FL — A Riviera Beach woman has been arrested after Palm Beach County sheriff’s investigators say she pretended to be a real estate professional and siphoned off escrow money meant for a first-time homebuyer. Detectives say the buyer trusted the woman to help with the purchase of a home, then wired nearly $48,000 into an account tied to the woman’s company over three months.
According to a probable cause affidavit, 41-year-old Cherisse Louidor is accused of taking money that was supposed to cover closing-related costs on a Palm Springs home. Investigators say the buyer later discovered only a fraction of the funds had reached the title company. Deputies say Louidor cut off contact, and bank records showed the money moving quickly through accounts and into personal spending.
Investigators say the buyer hired Louidor in May 2024
Deputies say the victim first contacted Louidor in May 2024 while looking for help buying a first home. The buyer reportedly did not know that Louidor’s broker license had been revoked by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation in April 2023. That earlier action followed administrative complaints tied to unreturned deposits.
Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office investigators said the woman was operating without a valid real estate broker license when she took on the transaction. The case began moving forward after the buyer went to authorities in October 2024 and reported that escrow money was missing. That complaint triggered the investigation that ultimately led to an arrest warrant.
Three wire transfers totaled nearly $48,000
Detectives say the buyer sent three wire transfers between May and July 2024, totaling $47,985, into a PNC Bank account linked to Succor Realty Services. Those funds were meant to be held safely in escrow while the home purchase moved toward closing.
Instead, investigators say the account did not function like a proper escrow account. A licensed broker who came across Louidor during a property listing reportedly noticed problems with the paperwork and warned the buyer that Louidor was working illegally. That warning helped confirm concerns that the money was not being handled as promised.
Title company received only a small portion of the escrow money
When the buyer was finalizing the purchase of a home on Arabian Road in Palm Springs, the title company said it had received only $10,779 of the escrow money. Deputies said those funds arrived in small, suspicious wire installments, not as the full amount the buyer believed had been secured.
After that, Louidor abruptly stopped communicating, according to investigators. Subpoenaed bank records reportedly showed the deposits moving out of the business account soon after they arrived. Authorities say the records raised immediate red flags about whether the money was ever being preserved for the closing process at all.
Bank records show personal spending and money transfers
Palm Beach County deputies say the money did not stay in the business account for long. Investigators found large transfers into Louidor’s personal accounts, along with spending on food, clothing, fuel, Cash App and Zelle transfers, and purchases through Crypto.com.
In the end, detectives say Louidor misappropriated $37,205.09 from the buyer. The difference between the total wire transfers and the amount recovered by the title company became a key part of the case. Investigators say the funds were treated as personal money rather than protected escrow deposits.
Arrest warrant and charges filed in late August 2026
Court records show an arrest warrant was signed on August 28, 2026, before Louidor was taken into custody on Saturday. She faces charges of grand theft of $20,000 or more and operating as an unlicensed real estate broker.
The case is being handled through the Palm Beach County criminal justice system, and the sheriff’s office affidavit lays out the sequence of transfers, license issues and account activity that led to the arrest. For the buyer, the case centers on money set aside for a home purchase that investigators say was diverted instead of protected during escrow.
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