ORLANDO, Fla. — A woman facing felony charges, accused of tricking Central Florida families out of their homes, is allowed to travel out of the country. A judge gave Shastine Pavao permission Thursday to travel to South Africa, even though she's out of jail on bond.
A new profession could be her ticket out of town. If diamonds are a girl's best friend, maybe nobody knows it better than 23-year-old Shastine Pavao. She is facing felony charges for a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud operation with her father and mother.
A judge gave Pavao the "OK" to travel to South Africa to get training in diamonds. Her attorney explained it to a judge.
"She's taken a job with a South African. I guess they sell raw diamonds into the states, uh, to people who polish them up, set them and sell them. Uh, they want her to attend, you know, to get training to do that," defense attorney Mark Fromag said.
"This is a leap of faith the court has taken with this defendant," WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer said.
Sheaffer said the judge may have considered not only Pavao's history, but also her attorney's reputation in granting the unusual request. At the last minute, the judge cancelled part of Pavao's trip that would've taken her to Switzerland, because of what the court called "extradition issues" with that country.
"Once someone leaves the shores of the United States, the only remedy if they abscond is through the extradition process, which can take years," Sheaffer said.
Pavao's attorney said his client doesn't have enough money to pull off an international escape, even if she is now dealing in diamonds. Now the court hopes a $30,000 bond will be enough to bring her back to Orlando in August.
The court's order would've allowed Pavao to leave the country last week, but late Thursday afternoon her bail bondsman told WFTV she still hasn't started her trip.
WFTV
