TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Hillary Bello, owner of the now-shuttered Cox Pools of the Gulf Coast, was taken into custody by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday.
The sheriff’s office charged Bello with one count of contractor fraud. According to the sheriff’s office, a victim paid more than $54,000 for a pool that wasn’t finished.
Customers of Cox Pools of the Gulf Coast turned to Better Call Behnken for help earlier this year. In February, Hillsborough County officials suspended the company’s permitting privileges. Bello told Behnken at the time that she had finished all 50 pools in Hillsborough County.
Then, in September, the company’s phone was disconnected and the website was taken down.
Back then, both the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Attorney General’s Office said they were looking into customer complaints.
Bello was released hours after her arrest. Her bond was listed at $7,500.
