Local AdventHealth University Dean Arrested for Embezzlement

Laura Jean Fero, the dean of nursing at AdventHealth University, has been arrested on embezzlement charges. She is accused of misappropriating over $400,000 from her previous job at St. Catherine’s University in St. Paul. Fero, 54, from Apopka, faces six felony charges of theft by swindle. She was arrested last Wednesday at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport after arriving from Orlando.

Fero joined AdventHealth University in Orlando this past August. She allegedly arranged university contracts for a company owned by her boyfriend, Juan Ramon Bruce, which reportedly provided little or no services. These contracts were worth $412,000, and Bruce has also been arrested on similar charges.

Initially, Fero told investigators she met Bruce through a business call about medical supplies, but later admitted they met on a dating website. She also concealed how she authorized the contracts.

St. Catherine’s University has a strict conflict of interest policy, which Fero reportedly misunderstood as only applying to married couples. This misunderstanding contributed to the alleged embezzlement. AdventHealth University has not commented on the ongoing legal situation.

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