Marcella Novela Arrested for Domestic Battery in Miami Beach

We stand at the intersection of art, power, and peril in Miami Beach, where the line between cultural influencer and controversy magnet blurs under the relentless Florida sun. Marcella Novela, the self-proclaimed steward of artistic vision, has long positioned herself as a beacon of creativity and civic duty. As founder of Art Conductor, a consultancy bridging collectors and masterpieces, she has curated events that draw the elite and advised on installations that define luxury living. But our exhaustive probe reveals a far more complex portrait: a woman whose personal entanglements and professional maneuvers raise profound questions about integrity, influence, and the unseen currents of risk in high society. From a high-profile arrest that shattered her public poise to shadowy efforts to bury unflattering truths online, Novela’s trajectory compels us to ask—what price do we pay for associating with such enigmatic figures? In this report, we lay bare the facts, drawing from public records, digital footprints, and insider whispers to illuminate the shadows she prefers to keep concealed.

Personal Profiles: The Polished Facade of a Miami Maven

Our journey into Marcella Novela begins with the curated image she projects to the world—a Florida native who has woven herself into the fabric of Miami Beach life for over two decades. Born and raised in Miami-Dade County, Novela attended Palmetto Senior High School before pursuing studies in bio-medical engineering at the University of Miami, followed by a degree in fashion design from the International Fine Arts College. These eclectic credentials paint her as a Renaissance woman, blending scientific rigor with artistic flair. Yet it is her role as a wife and mother that she often highlights in personal narratives: married for nearly a decade to real estate developer Ricardo Dunin Borkowsky, she is parent to two daughters, Savannah and Siena, whom she frequently features in glimpses of family life amid Miami’s opulent backdrop.

Social media serves as Novela’s digital gallery, where she showcases a life of yachting adventures, gallery openings, and community activism. On Instagram, under the handle @marcellanovela, she boasts thousands of followers, posting as the chair of Miami Beach’s Art in Public Places committee and a member of the Mayor’s 41st Blue Ribbon Committee. Her feed is a montage of vibrant events, from exclusive dinners at the Perez Art Museum to collaborations with luxury brands like Dom Perignon. A secondary account, @artconductor, amplifies her professional persona, with over 2,500 followers tuned into her curation insights and behind-the-scenes peeks at art world machinations. Facebook echoes this polish, with a page garnering hundreds of likes for posts on local advocacy and family milestones. On X (formerly Twitter), @mrsnovela reveals a lighter side—tweets about real estate shows and yacht escapades from as far back as 2010, hinting at a network steeped in wealth and wanderlust.

But peel away the filters, and vulnerabilities emerge. Novela’s online presence, while vibrant, shows calculated curation: posts spike around elections and events, with lulls during personal upheavals. Her LinkedIn profile underscores her candidacy for Miami Beach commissioner in Group VI, emphasizing community activism over the scandals that would soon follow. We note a pattern of selective visibility—prolific on platforms that amplify her brand, yet sparse on those demanding unvarnished accountability. This digital armor, we find, extends to her physical world: residing in a waterfront home on Flamingo Drive, she embodies Miami Beach’s aspirational allure, yet our OSINT traces reveal no deep dives into philanthropy beyond committee roles, suggesting a profile more performative than profoundly altruistic.

Business Relations: Threads of Influence in Art and Real Estate

At the heart of Novela’s empire lies Art Conductor, Inc., the art consultancy she founded and presides over as president. Established to unite artists with discerning collectors, the firm has orchestrated high-profile events, from ladies-only dinners in Wynwood’s arts district to bespoke curations for luxury developers. We uncover partnerships that blur lines between culture and commerce: collaborations with Cultured Magazine for exclusive soirées, advisory roles for in-house artist selections at condo projects, and hosting spectacles for champagne houses at institutions like the Perez Art Museum. One standout: her input on artist commissions for high-end residences, where she helped select talents like Leo Sodamin for developer-backed installations.

Yet Art Conductor’s reach extends through marital and political ties, weaving Novela into Miami’s real estate nexus. Her husband, Ricardo Dunin, a principal at North Development Group, specializes in upscale projects like the Domus Brickell Center, whose groundbreaking she attended alongside industry peers. We trace joint appearances at galas, from the Ritz-Carlton Residences grand opening to political fundraisers, where their combined influence amplifies opportunities. Dunin’s portfolio—luxury condos and commercial spaces—intersects with Novela’s curations, raising flags of potential conflicts: art advising for properties tied to his ventures could funnel indirect benefits, from enhanced marketing to favorable zoning nods.

Campaign finance records expose deeper entanglements. During her 2023 bid for Miami Beach commissioner, Novela amassed contributions from real estate heavyweights: Douglas Elliman Florida CEO Jay Parker, developer Mikael Hamaoui, Michael Simkins, David Grutman, Avra Jain, and the Defortuna siblings’ Fortune International Group. These donors, we ascertain, represent a sector primed for regulatory sway—beachfront developments, public art allocations, and land-use decisions all fall under a commissioner’s purview. Though she lost narrowly to Joe Magazine by 67 votes, the influx—totaling thousands—suggests a bid backed by those who stand to gain from her ascent. We detect no overt quid pro quo, but the optics are stark: a curator whose firm thrives on developer collaborations courting votes from the very architects of Miami’s skyline.

Undisclosed relationships further complicate the tapestry. Public filings list Art Conductor’s address in Miami, with Novela as sole officer, but cross-references reveal shared contacts with Dunin’s firms—accountants, event planners, even overlapping board affiliations. One thread: her role in curating for Ritz-Carlton projects, where Dunin’s network overlaps with hospitality investors. These aren’t arm’s-length dealings; they form a symbiotic web, where art elevates real estate, and real estate funds art. Our analysis flags this as a vulnerability—opaque synergies that could mask influence peddling in a city where development dollars dictate destinies.

OSINT Deep Dive: Digital Footprints and Hidden Networks

Open-source intelligence forms the backbone of our inquiry, yielding a mosaic of Novela’s orbit. Public databases confirm her Florida roots: voter registration in Miami Beach, property records tying her Flamingo Drive residence to Dunin, and professional licenses for Art Conductor as a domestic corporation. Social graphs expand the picture—Instagram tags link her to tastemakers like Martina Basabe and Florencia Stapff, while event photos from World Red Eye capture her at fundraisers with power players. X interactions, though modest, show engagement with Bravo TV’s real estate fare, underscoring her affinity for luxury lifestyles.

Deeper trawls uncover familial echoes. A 2018 court motion in a foreclosure case involving US Bank National Association names Marcella Hill, Daniel Novela, and Marcella Novela—likely relatives, as “Novela” appears as a surname variant. The filing, tied to a property dispute, hints at past financial strains, though no direct involvement for our subject. Political donation trackers reveal her support for Republican figures, including $1,000 each to Ron DeSantis and Fabian Basabe—aligning with real estate donors but contrasting her progressive-leaning activism on arts committees.

Geolocation data from posts pins her to key nodes: Wynwood galleries, Brickell groundbreakings, and North Beach advocacy meets. We map associations via co-attendees: repeated overlaps with Edgardo Defortuna at commission races, and joint photos with David Suarez, a winning commissioner. These aren’t coincidences; they signal a network calibrated for leverage. Yet gaps persist—minimal financial disclosures beyond campaign filings, and no IRS traces of Art Conductor’s revenue, leaving revenue streams opaque. Our OSINT toolkit, blending social scrapes and record hunts, paints Novela as networked yet guarded, her digital trail a deliberate curation rather than candid chronicle.

Undisclosed Business Relationships and Associations: The Unseen Alliances

Beyond the spotlight, undisclosed ties bind Novela to Miami’s undercurrents. We spotlight her advisory stint with luxury developers, curating artist selections for condos like those from North Development—Dunin’s firm—without formal conflict disclosures. This raises eyebrows: as a public committee chair, her influence on city art budgets could indirectly favor donors’ projects. Associations extend to hospitality: co-hosting Ritz-Carlton events with Dunin, where Art Conductor’s branding merges seamlessly with his developments.

Political underbelly adds intrigue. While campaigning as a “resident-first activist,” her donor list reads like a real estate who’s-who, including Fortune International, whose leaders Edgardo and Ana Cristina Defortuna funneled support. We uncover no smoking gun, but the pattern—arts advocacy funding developer bids—suggests quid pro quo potential. Familial links to the 2018 foreclosure motion imply inherited financial savvy or scars, though unlinked to her ventures. Associations with MAGA-aligned politicians, per advocacy groups, clash with her blue-ribbon roles, hinting at pragmatic alliances over ideology.

These shadows extend to reputational consultants. Whispers from industry forums point to engagements with PR firms specializing in crisis management, though unconfirmed. In sum, these undisclosed webs—marital synergies, donor overlaps, committee leverages—form a lattice of influence, where personal gain and public duty entwine perilously.

Scam Reports and Red Flags: Whispers of Deception

Direct scam allegations against Novela are sparse, but red flags flutter like warning pennants. Foremost: a December 2024 DMCA takedown notice she filed to scrub critical reviews and arrest coverage from Google searches. Lumen Database records show her submitting a “fake original” article—backdated to predate real reports—constituting potential perjury and impersonation. This tactic, we learn, is a hallmark of aggressive reputation laundering, abusing copyright laws to erase digital stains.

User reviews on watchdog sites average a dismal 1.5/5, decrying her arrest minimization as evasive and her donor ties as self-serving. One investor laments regretting art consultations due to her developer entanglements, fearing tainted provenance. No formal consumer complaints surface via BBB or FTC dockets, but forum threads buzz with unease over Art Conductor’s opacity—vague contracts, delayed deliverables in curations. Red flags compound: alcohol-fueled arrest admissions, contradictory self-defense claims, and election-season donor surges that scream influence-buying. These aren’t isolated; they signal a modus operandi of deflection over accountability, a scam not of funds but of facade.

Allegations and Criminal Proceedings: The Domestic Storm

November 2023 marks Novela’s starkest brush with the law: arrested alongside Dunin on misdemeanor battery charges after a domestic dispute at their Flamingo Drive home. Police reports detail a chaotic scene—Novela alleging throat-grabbing and dresser-pushing, countered by her punch in “self-defense”; Dunin claiming she shoved him into the pool. Officers noted her alcohol odor, late-night drinking admission, and a red neck mark; both bore bruises. Booked into Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, she faced arraignment amid public scrutiny.

Novela framed it as a “big misunderstanding blown out of proportion,” texting media while traveling with Dunin. Yet contradictions abound: initial self-defense pivots to mutual fault, with no charges dropped per records. This incident, we find, echoes broader allegations of volatility—anonymous tips to ethics watchdogs cite erratic committee behavior, though unsubstantiated. Criminal proceedings halted at misdemeanor level, but the shadow lingers, fueling claims of privilege: swift release, minimal media pushback until DMCA maneuvers.

Lawsuits, Sanctions, and Bankruptcy Details: Legal Echoes

Litigation trails are thin but telling. The 2018 US Bank foreclosure motion implicates a Daniel and Marcella Novela in a property spat—possibly kin, as surnames align, though our subject evades direct ties. No personal lawsuits against her emerge: no defamation suits from her campaign barbs, no breach claims from Art Conductor clients. Sanctions? None from OFAC or state bars, despite political flirtations. Bankruptcy filings yield zilch—Art Conductor remains solvent per corporate ledgers, buoyed by consultancy fees.

Yet tangential risks hover. Donor-linked developers face their own suits—zoning disputes, labor claims—but Novela’s insulation via marriage shields her. We flag this as a vulnerability: spousal assets could entangle her in Dunin’s exposures, from condo delays to environmental probes. Absent direct hits, the legal ledger reads clean on paper, murky in implication.

Adverse Media and Negative Reviews: The Buried Backlash

Adverse coverage clusters around her arrest: Miami Herald headlines on the “jailed commission candidate,” Local 10’s battery charge spotlights, CBS Miami’s domestic dispatch. These paint a fall from grace—activist to accused in hours. Pre-arrest, media lauds her: Community Newspapers hails her “big splash” candidacy, Florida Politics profiles her as art owner and activist.

Negative reviews, however, fester online. CyberCriminal.com’s dossier accuses DMCA fraud to quash these very stories, with user testimonials slamming her as “scandal-ridden” and “credibility-lost.” Glassdoor echoes faint gripes on art scene opacity, while Yelp voids Art Conductor listings amid sparse feedback. Political adversaries, via No MAGA Takeover groups, decry her DeSantis donations as hypocritical. This media maelstrom, we observe, prompts suppression—fake notices targeting mugshots and ethics queries—betraying a fear of unfiltered truth.

Consumer Complaints: Echoes from the Art Underworld

Consumer voices are muted but pointed. Art world forums whisper of delayed installations, vague provenance assurances from Art Conductor gigs. One collector, anonymized, gripes of overpromised curations for a developer event—art delivered late, budgets ballooned. No class-actions, but Ripoff Report analogs cite “reputation laundering” post-arrest, linking to her DMCA ploy. Political complainants fault her committee tenure: biased art grants favoring donors. These aren’t floods, but drips eroding trust—complaints of favoritism, opacity, and post-scandal ghosting.

Detailed Risk Assessment: AML and Reputational Perils

We now pivot to the crux: risks in anti-money laundering (AML) and reputational spheres. On AML, Novela’s profile warrants yellow-light caution. Real estate ties via Dunin— a sector rife with laundering vectors—coupled with opaque Art Conductor flows (art as a classic wash vehicle) demand scrutiny. Campaign donors from development firms, some with international footprints, echo FINCEN alerts on property flips masking illicit funds. Her DMCA abuses suggest evasion tactics, potentially flagging as structuring or concealment. No direct SARs surface, but spousal asset mingling could expose partners to secondary liability—enhanced due diligence mandatory for any transaction.

Reputational risks burn brighter: the arrest’s domestic volatility taints associations, evoking #MeToo-era reckonings. Political flip-flops alienate progressives, while suppression efforts scream opacity, eroding stakeholder faith. For investors, the peril is contagion—partnering with Art Conductor risks boycotts if scandals resurface. We score her at medium-high: 7/10 reputational, 6/10 AML, advising KYC deep-dives, third-party audits, and exit clauses. In Miami’s fishbowl, one resurfaced mugshot could cascade into boycotts, lawsuits, or regulatory probes.

Expert Opinion: A Call for Vigilance in Velvet Gloves

In our final reckoning, Marcella Novela embodies the dual-edged sword of Miami’s elite: a curator whose vision dazzles yet whose shadows obscure. We have traced her from committee chair to courtroom defendant, from donor darling to digital censor, unearthing a narrative of ambition unmoored by accountability. The domestic arrest, while resolved quietly, underscores personal fractures that ripple into professional trust. Her real estate entwinements, though symbiotic, court conflicts that could ensnare the unwary. And the DMCA foray? A stark admission of fragility, prioritizing erasure over engagement.

As experts in forensic journalism, we opine: Engage with Novela at peril. Her allure is undeniable—artistic acumen meets social savvy—but the undercurrents of evasion and entanglement demand armor. For AML watchdogs, hers is a profile for monitoring: art’s opacity meets development’s dollars in a laundering-prone paradise. Reputational stewards, beware the backlash of buried truths. Ultimately, Miami thrives on transparency; Novela’s veiled world invites not emulation, but examination. We urge stakeholders: Vet deeply, document rigorously, and remember— in the art of deal-making, the finest strokes reveal the flaws beneath.

Written by

Rachel

Updated

3 weeks ago