On Wednesday, February 18, 2026, Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested 31 year old Ashley Hernandez of Lakeland following a theft investigation involving thousands of dollars in stolen jewelry.

The investigation began on Friday, February 13, 2026, when deputies responded to a Lakeland residence regarding a reported grand theft. The 67-year-old victim told deputies she believed her house cleaner, Hernandez, had entered her master bedroom during scheduled cleanings and stolen approximately $11,500 worth of jewelry.

Hernandez, who owns her own cleaning business, was hired to clean the victim’s house three times since December 2025. During each visit, she had full access to the home and was often alone inside the residence.

On February 11, the elderly victim discovered several high value items missing from her jewelry box, including:
• an 8 inch diamond bracelet valued at $2,000
• a pendant valued at $3,000
• an 18 carat gold men’s ring with a Medusa imprint valued at $3,000
• a 7 inch 18 carat gold ID bracelet valued at $3,000
• a pair of 18 carat gold panther earrings valued at $500

Detectives located several of the stolen pieces at Quick Cash Liquidators, and confirmed that Hernandez had completed 12 separate fraudulent pawn transactions. In total, she is accused of stealing at least $12,180 in jewelry. Unfortunately, some of the jewelry has already been sold or melted down.

Hernandez was arrested and charged with dealing in stolen property (F2), providing false owner information to a pawnbroker (F2), and theft from a person 65 years or older (F2).

During the investigation, the victim reported that others on Hernandez’s social media page had accused her of similar thefts. A friend of the victim, who also used Hernandez’s cleaning services, confirmed that items totaling $350 were missing from her Brandon home. The theft portion of that investigation is being handled by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, but PCSO detectives responded to the jail and added on a dealing in stolen property charge, and another charge of providing false info to a pawnbroker, after confirming the jewelry Hernandez stole from the victim in Brandon, she pawned here in Polk County.

“When you invite someone into your home to work, you’re placing a great deal of trust in them. This suspect took advantage of that trust, and our detectives, who are the very best, wasted no time uncovering the truth. I would suggest that anyone who allowed this suspect into their home do a full inventory on their valuables, and report any suspected theft to your local law enforcement agency.” - Grady Judd, Sheriff