A 76-year-old North Miami Beach woman is accused of turning a longtime favor into a felony case after police say she pawned about $5,000 worth of jewelry belonging to an 87-year-old friend she had been driving to medical appointments for roughly two decades.
According to investigators, the woman offered to hold the older friend's bracelets during a hospital visit in December, then never gave them back. Instead, detectives say, she pawned the pieces. The 76-year-old was booked this week into the county jail, where records list her bond status as "to be set."
According to Local 10, jail records identify the suspect as Zonia Beatriz Reatgui, 76. Detectives told the station she was arrested Tuesday by the Miami Police Department after they matched pawn-shop photographs and the unique configuration of charms on the bracelets to pawn slips dated Dec. 9 and Dec. 20, 2025, each listing the jewelry at around $500.
In a recorded interview, investigators say Reatgui admitted pawning the bracelets and confirmed she never went back to retrieve them.
Charges And Legal Context
Records show Reatgui faces one count of third-degree grand theft, multiple counts of dealing in stolen property and several violations tied to secondhand dealers failing to verify ownership of items valued at more than $300.
Under Florida law, third-degree grand theft generally covers stolen property worth $300 or more but less than $20,000 and is classified as a felony. Dealing in stolen property also carries felony penalties and is charged separately at a prosecutor's discretion, as outlined in Florida Statutes, Chapter 812.
A Pattern That Preys On Trust
South Florida law enforcement has repeatedly investigated cases in which caregivers, cleaners or neighbors allegedly pawn or sell valuables taken from older residents, a reminder of how fast family heirlooms can vanish once they hit the resale market.
Last year, one report detailed similar caregiver scams, and earlier this month Local 10 covered another case in which a neighbor was accused of pawning a burglary victim's valuables.
Next Steps And Community Takeaways
Miami police say the case remains under investigation and will proceed through the local court system, where prosecutors will decide which charges to formally pursue.
Detectives and elder-advocacy groups continue to urge families to document valuable items with photographs, appraisals and inventories to make it easier to track them if they disappear. Anyone with information related to similar crimes can contact Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at the number listed on the county site, per Miami-Dade County.
