Florida woman convicted for falsifying rabies vaccine records

By Gulf Coast News

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    LABELLE, Florida (WBBH) — A woman from Lehigh Acres was convicted Monday in LaBelle after she used a veterinarian’s office without permission to forge rabies vaccination certificates for dogs that had not been vaccinated.

According to the Hendry County Clerk of Court, Latoya Latrese Carey, 37, was found guilty of three counts of fraudulently creating or using counterfeit veterinary inspection certificates after a two-day trial.

In 2023, Carey gained access to a Hendry County veterinary office where she used the doctor’s signature stamp to create three fraudulent rabies vaccine certificates.

The certificates falsely indicated vaccinations had been administered on September 30, 2023, even though the veterinarian had been hospitalized days earlier and could not have performed the procedures.

Carey later submitted the falsified documents to Lee County Animal Services as proof of vaccination.

Gulf Coast News reached out to the State Attorney’s Office regarding a sentencing date.

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