Northeast Ohio woman owes victims over $90,000 in puppy scheme, is banned

Yahoo

05-06-2025

YOUNGSTOWN ‒ A Beloit-area puppy scam that defrauded more than 80 people has come to its legal end.
April Waidman, 41, of Goshen Township was sentenced April 24 in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court after her guilty plea in February.
She pleaded guilty to 48 felony counts of theft and 32 misdemeanor counts of theft for running a large-scale puppy scheme across the United States and Canada.
More: Puppy 'Ponzi scheme.' Former clients accuse Ohio dog breeder of bilking them of thousands
Waidman − also known as April Simon − advertised puppies for sale on social media, collected payments from buyers and failed to deliver puppies.
Her business used different names, including Simon Doxies, Simon Bulldogs and April Doxies, and it offered mini dachshunds or English bulldogs.
Mahoning County Prosecutor's Office said in a news release that Waidman was ordered to pay more than $90,000 in restitution to more than 80 victims.
Her attorney Jeff Jakmides said Waidman has paid at least $13,000 into the restitution so far, but Mahoning County Clerk of Courts handles victim recovery.
Additionally, she was sentenced to:
A year of house arrest and five years of community control probation.
A ban from engaging in the sale, advertisement or breeding of animals or animal-related products.
A 180-day jail term for the last six months of her probation.
A mental health and drug assessment, maintain employment and participate in job training to ensure she repays victims.
No contact − directly or indirectly − with victims.
Should Waidman violate any conditions of her community control probation, a 35-month prison sentence has been reserved, the release said.
Jakmides said there have been numerous "false reports" made that she is still in business. The false claims got his client fired from at least one job, but she has two jobs now.
But, "all were debunked to the satisfaction of the prosecutors and probation department," he said Wednesday. She also has settled several small claims cases.
The investigation into her crimes was conducted by the Goshen Township Police Department, and Kyle Hilles was the assistant county prosecutor assigned to the case, the release said.
Jakmides said he and his client worked with prosecutors to identify all victims and verified what they paid and were owed, "saving state and court many hours of work, and court time."
"She's making the payments," he said.
This article originally appeared on The Repository: April Waidman banned from selling animals after puppy scheme in Ohio