Former dental employee charged with deleting files, shredding documents.
It’s a case of shred and fled.
May 28, 2026 – WELLINGTON, Fla. – A former employee of a Wellington pediatric dental office is facing felony charges after deputies said she deleted computer files and shredded office documents before leaving work and never returning.
Illiana Sacerio, 20, is charged with destroying computer intellectual property and criminal mischief causing more than $1,000 in damage, according to a Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office arrest report.
Deputies said the incident happened Jan. 19 at It’s a Smile World Pediatric Dentistry, 190 Professional Way. According to the report, Sacerio reported to work about 8:20 a.m. and left for lunch around noon, but did not return or notify the dentist or staff that she was leaving the job.
The office later discovered that between about 10 a.m. and 11 a.m., Sacerio had deleted computer files from office computers and shredded documents without authorization, the report said. Deputies said the actions were captured on surveillance video.
The practice’s owner told investigators the deleted files included patient consent forms, front office documents, tax forms, insurance files, marketing and website branding, patient communication software, dental software files, patient X-rays, voicemail system files, employee records, inventory lists and evaluation forms, according to the report.
The owner told deputies the deletions disrupted business operations and patient care. The report said the loss of some software required outside intervention to restore functionality, and the office was unable to access patient voicemails for about a week.
Investigators said Sacerio also removed paper documents from front desk drawers, shredded them and discarded them in a trash bag outside the business. Deputies said the bag was later recovered from a dumpster.
According to the arrest report, information technology workers attempted to recover the deleted files, but some data had been overwritten by the server before the damage was discovered, making recovery impossible.
The owner estimated the minimum cost of the damage at $9,000, including about $4,000 for logo design recovery, $3,000 in employee overtime, $1,000 in IT expenses and $1,000 for website recovery, the report said.
The report said investigators reviewed surveillance footage showing Sacerio working alone at the front desk with access to two computers. An investigator wrote that the video appeared to show Sacerio deleting files, looking at her phone and turning around repeatedly while at the workstation.
Deputies said the owner later identified Sacerio from a driver’s license photograph as the employee seen in the office on the day of the incident.
The arrest report said the case was initially documented as a civil matter before investigators determined there was probable cause for criminal charges.
Source: Former dental office employee accused of deleting files, shredding records
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