Coral Springs woman and Parkland man accused of diverting more than $2 million from their company through alleged fraud scheme
Coral Springs, Florida – A Coral Springs woman and a Parkland man have been accused of taking more than $2 million from a company where they held management positions, according to arrest reports. Investigators say the alleged scheme involved missing inventory, unauthorized payments, personal purchases and money transfers to a vendor.
Karina Dos Santos, 37, of Coral Springs, and Steven Kase, 45, of Parkland, surrendered at the Broward County Main Jail on Aug. 19, records show. Each was booked on five charges related to the investigation. Both later posted $250,000 bonds and were released.
The investigation began after the president and owner of Chris Lapi Moving Supplies Inc. received anonymous letters in May 2025 warning that two managers were allegedly funneling company money through vendors that did not exist or were being used improperly, according to the arrest reports.
At the time, Kase was the company’s general manager and Dos Santos was its operations manager. Investigators later examined company financial records, transactions and inventory movements as they worked to determine where the money and merchandise had gone.
The affidavit alleges that the company suffered several significant losses. Investigators attributed $888,471.46 in missing inventory to the alleged activity. They also identified about $570,000 in wire transfers to Flex Packaging & Printing.
Another major part of the investigation involved a company credit card. According to the affidavit, $369,936.64 was spent on personal purchases using the company’s card. Those purchases allegedly included a cold-plunge tub, landscaping services and a Mercedes-Benz maintenance bill.
Investigators also identified $285,815.94 in payroll payments that they say were made without authorization. In addition, authorities allege that $23,150 was obtained through the unauthorized sale of two company-owned vans.
According to investigators, some of the payments were presented as lease expenses connected to a Kiwi Coders printing press. However, detectives contacted the manufacturer and learned that the machine had been purchased outright in 2021 for $86,747.72, rather than being leased as investigators said the payments suggested.
The investigation also extended beyond financial records. GPS data showed that a company truck traveled five times to Safebound Moving & Storage in West Palm Beach, according to the reports. An employee also told detectives that a forklift valued at about $13,000 was loaded with merchandise at the direction of Kase and Dos Santos.
The various transactions and inventory losses outlined in the affidavit formed the basis for the charges filed against the two former managers. Both are accused of scheme to defraud, first-degree grand theft, grand theft through fraudulent use of a credit card, uttering a forged or false instrument, and criminal conspiracy.
The combined figures listed by investigators total more than $2.1 million, including the missing inventory, transfers, personal credit card purchases, unauthorized payroll and proceeds from the vehicle sales.
Dos Santos and Kase have both been released on bond while the case proceeds through the court system. The accusations remain allegations, and the two defendants have not been convicted of the charges.
