Hempstead journey agent booked fraudulent cruises, vacation spot marriage ceremony, birthday journeys, Nassau police say

A Hempstead lady faces a number of grand larceny expenses for allegedly scamming greater than $50,000 from quite a few shoppers who reported they’d booked and paid for nonexistent worldwide excursions — together with a vacation spot marriage ceremony — by way of her East Meadow journey company, Nassau County police stated.

Tavia Thomas, 47, the only real proprietor and journey agent of Destiny Travel, at 1936 Hempstead Tpke., was arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead on Tuesday and charged with three counts of grand larceny, three counts of first-degree scheme to defraud and two counts of fourth-degree grand larceny, police stated.

An investigation discovered on July 8, 2024, Thomas accepted $35,753.98 from 9 individuals who had booked what they thought was a Royal Caribbean cruise departing from Bayonne, New Jersey. When they received to the port, the victims have been notified their tickets have been fraudulent and the cruise they’d booked didn’t exist.

Later that month, Thomas charged two folks $5,000 for a vacation spot marriage ceremony by way of ALG Vacations. The venues have been by no means booked, police stated.

Several members of the marriage occasion additionally paid Thomas $2,660 for the journey.

Then, in early September, one other would-be consumer booked a seventy fifth birthday journey to the Dominican Republic for her mom by way of Destiny Travel, paying Thomas $10,034.16 for her and her 50 members of her household.

Thomas, although, by no means paid for the lodging, police stated.