Former Alachua County Sheriff’s Office employee arrested for insurance fraud

Staff report

Updated at 11 p.m. with information about the termination of Durant’s employment at ASO.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Celena Desue Durant, 46, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with seven felonies related to fraudulently adding a dependent to her insurance plans while employed by the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ASO).

Durant, who has been employed by ASO since 2003, held the position of Human Resources Employment Manager since June 2022, and the unqualified dependent on her insurance plans was reportedly discovered after Alachua County’s Risk Manager was asked by ASO to compile information regarding Durant’s work due to ongoing issues with her work performance.

The investigation found that the unqualified dependent was added to Durant’s insurance plan during open enrollment in 2023; this discovery caused other employees to recall email communications in late 2022, when Durant asked whether a dependent could be added to her insurance plan if she had a Power of Attorney. At that time, Durant was told that a Power of Attorney alone is not sufficient to qualify a dependent for coverage.

The Risk Manager reported that identifying information for a previously approved dependent on Durant’s account had been changed to that of the unqualified dependent, and the change was submitted with Durant’s credentials.

ASO’s investigation found that Durant was informed by two different Alachua County employees that the dependent was not qualified, and she acknowledged both of those communications. After ASO’s HR Director spoke with Durant on February 25, 2025, and reviewed the Power of Attorney, Durant was placed on administrative suspension. The report also notes that the Power of Attorney document delegated no specific powers to Durant.

An Alachua County employee who previously worked for ASO reportedly said that she had trained Durant on the duties of her position. She confirmed that Durant was never trained to add a dependent in the manner in which the unqualified dependent was added, and she said it is common knowledge that a person working in Risk/Benefits should not make changes to their own plan.

After Durant was placed on administrative suspension, more change forms were reportedly received for her insurance plans, attempting to add another new dependent to her coverage. This dependent was described as Durant’s grandchild, but no supporting documentation was provided to qualify this dependent, and this second dependent was later found to be the child of the unqualified dependent.

The investigation found that insurance claims paid by Alachua County for the unqualified dependent totaled $15,909.83.

Post Miranda, Durant reportedly admitted to adding the unqualified dependent to her insurance plans while she only had Power of Attorney over the dependent. She stated she did so under what “she (Durant) felt qualified her” as a 20-plus-year employee of ASO and said she considered the dependent “like a daughter.” Durant said she misinterpreted her email communication with one of the employees and thought that she could add the unqualified dependent; she said she didn’t recall her email communication with the other employee.

Durant reportedly said that, in her experience, it is acceptable to make changes to her own insurance plan/coverage. When she was asked why she overwrote a previous dependent with the unqualified dependent’s information, she denied making the change in that way, but she also said she may not have been the person who “physically” added the unqualified dependent because she sometimes allowed another employee to use her credentials. However, she later reportedly admitted that she had made the changes on her agency computer.

Durant reportedly admitted to attempting to add the second unqualified dependent to her insurance plans; when asked why she did not provide any supporting documentation when making that change, she said the child’s birth certificate “must not have attached” when she sent the email.

The investigation found that Durant knew or should have known, given her position, training, and the explicit communication, that she could not add the dependent to her insurance, and probable cause was found that she gave false or misleading written statements to four insurance companies, with the intent of fraudulently obtaining insurance benefits for the unqualified dependent.

Durant has been charged with using a computer to commit fraud, four counts of insurance fraud, one count of organized fraud, and unlawful use of a two-way communications device to facilitate a felony. She has no criminal history, and Judge Jonathan Ramsey set bail at $40,000.

An ASO spokesman told Alachua Chronicle that Durant has not been employed with the agency since April 10, 2025.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.