Suspected squatter reportedly told police she had just bought the home
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Lt. Mikiya Barber's dream home was seized by a tenant to whom Barber rented her house while she was on active duty. (GoFundMe.com)
A suspected squatter who allegedly moved into a multimillion-dollar home in Bonita Springs, Florida, was arrested after authorities found her eating a sandwich and wearing the real homeowner's clothing.
Lee County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Luisa Villa, 54, on Monday afternoon while the home’s owner was away, NBC 2 reported.
Authorities were called to the swanky beach home along Hickory Boulevard on Monday after a maintenance worker who was taking care of the house saw a suitcase in the kitchen and heard a dog barking inside, NBC 2 reported.
Deputies surrounded the home before making their way inside, where they reportedly found Villa eating a sandwich.
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Lee County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Luisa Villa, 54, on Monday. (Lee County Sheriff)
The suspect was wearing one of the homeowner’s Athleta dresses, according to authorities, and had also brought her small dog with her into the home.
Apartments in the area are sold for around $1 million, according to Zillow listings reviewed by Fox News Digital. The sheriff's office described the property where the crime took place as a multimillion-dollar home, according to NBC 2.
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This view shows homes along Hickory Boulevard in Bonita Springs, Florida. (Google Maps)
Villa has a home in Fort Myers, according to the outlet, but told deputies she was the homeowner of the beach house and showed them forged documents that she recently purchased the property.
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Authorities called the real homeowner, who said she did not know Villa, and the suspect was arrested.
This view shows the beach along Hickory Boulevard in Bonita Springs, Florida. (Google Maps )
Neighbors expressed shock over the police presence, noting it is a safe area, let alone that someone tried to fraudulently move into the house.
"I don’t know where she thought she was going to stay or how long she thought she was going to stay because all these houses have people that check in them all the time," Bruce Broskie told NBC 2.
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Villa was charged with resisting an officer, larceny, fraud and burglary, according to Lee County Sheriff's Office's arrest database.
The arrest comes just months after law enforcement in Fort Lauderdale removed 10 squatters from a million-dollar property that was left riddled with bugs and damage. Other law enforcement near Port Orange, Florida, in June dismantled structures on an island known for its drug use that was overtaken by squatters.
