Former Liberty Twp. woman faces more theft charges for vacation scheme

A former Liberty Twp. resident already convicted for forgery charges and facing felony charges in Warren County for allegedly cheating a Mason family out of their Disney vacation has been indicted on multiple charges in Butler County.

Lisa M. Andres, 39, formerly of of 7278 Airy View Drive now living in Marengo, Ohio, was indicted Wednesday by a grand jury on 39 charges including theft, grand theft theft from an elderly person or disabled adult and engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity.

A warrant was issued for Andres on Wednesday, but she was not in custody. A court date on the new charges has been been set.

Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser said Andres set up shop as a freelance travel agent and took money from people with the promise of booking trips but did not follow through. The cash in some cases was used for trips to gambling boats.

“The message here is where there is an entrepreneurial spirit among many who seek to engage in new small businesses, there is a need to be careful to engage in good business practices and be accountable for the receipt of money from business clients,” Gmoser said, noting a lack of responsibility can result in criminal indictments.

According to the grand jury report, Andres is charged with eight counts of theft from an elderly person or disabled adult, 20 counts of theft, seven counts of petty theft, two counts of grand theft, one count of misuse of a credit card and one count of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity.

Andres was arrested in December after Mason police received a report from a woman who said she had not received payment for a botched family trip to Walt Disney World Resort.

In addition to that charge, Andres is also facing a first-degree misdemeanor for taking $425 to reserve rooms in a Lexington, Ky., hotel, but failing to book the rooms, according to Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell.

A victim told police Andres told her she could book vacations at a discounted rate because she belonged to a Disney Vacation Club timeshare, according to the Mason police report.

After paying Andres $14,305.80 for her family’s Thanksgiving trip to Disney’s Wilderness Lodge that included a deluxe dining plan, park hopper passes and airfare, Kristina Martinez learned on the way to the airport there were no reservations.

Although Andres said she would refund the money, the total amount was not returned to Martinez, according to the police report. A trial for Andres has been scheduled for June 23 in Warren County.

Andres also pleaded guilty in January to four counts of forgery, fifth-degree felonies, in Butler County Common Pleas Court for forging signatures to withdraw $1,600.20 from her disabled sister’s Social Security benefits account, according to court documents.

Butler County Common Pleas Judge Patricia Oney placed Andres on five years community control for the forgery charges.

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