Cape woman accused of misusing ‘Lights for Layla’ donations
A Cape Coral woman has been arrested after police say she misappropriated funds of a non-profit charity intended to better help illuminate city bus stops in the wake of a local child’s death.
Randi Romanoff, 31, was charged by the Cape Coral Police Department on Wednesday with grand theft ($20,000 or more, but less than $100,000), scheme to defraud ($20,000 or more, but less than $50,000) and four violations of the Solicitation of Contributions Act.
Romanoff, who created Lights for Layla, Inc. after 8-year-old Layla Aiken was fatally injured in a hit-and-run at her bus stop in March of 2019, is accused of using charity donations for her own personal use.
“None of the Lights for Layla, Inc. donations were used as they were intended and instead were used for personal spending,” the CCPD said in a statement announcing the arrest.
Romanoff, a close friend of Layla’s mother, solicited funds for the charity from March to June 2019, advertising that the funds would go towards improving lighting at bus stops throughout Cape Coral. Through online donations and events, Lights for Layla, Inc. generated approximately $72,804, according to the CCPD.
“A portion of the raised funds went toward the intended purpose of supporting the Aiken family, however, the remaining donations were misappropriated and were not used toward bus stop safety improvements,” CCPD stated.
According to CCPD, funds were used for attorney’s fees, large cash withdrawals, an Xbox, expenses at the Diamondhead Beach Resort, utility bills, toll violations, retail shopping, restaurants, and other personal spending.
The case was presented to the State Attorney’s Office and an arrest warrant was issued. Romanoff was served the warrant while in custody at the Lee County Jail on charges of probation violations she taken into custody for on Aug. 28.
Layla was waiting at a northeast Cape stop with her two brothers shortly after 6 a.m. on March 25, 2019. The street has no sidewalks and she was struck while sitting near the roadway by a pickup truck police say turned the corner too sharply.
Logan Tyler Hetherington, 20 (19 at the time), was arrested in May of 2019 in connection with Aiken’s death.
He took a plea deal in February of 2020 for a two-year sentence as a “youthful offender” and in March was transferred from the Lee County Jail to the Department of Corrections facility in Doral.