A mother daughter duo in El Segundo, CA are being accused by local police authorities of conning a 90-year-old man out of thousands of dollars in cash and expensive items, including a Mercedes-Benz.
Continue Reading...The former administrator of a now-closed Kentucky personal-care home as admitted to stealing over $300,000 intended for the home's disabled residents. The administrator stole over $113,000 directly from residents and also stole all of their 2009 federal stimulus checks. He plead guilty to charges of theft, exploitation, and tax evasion and has agreed to repay the money stolen from the residents.
Continue Reading...The person most likely to financially take advantage of an elderly individual is someone close to them. A neighbor, a friend, and a family member are the ones most likely to take advantage of unsuspecting seniors. Financial abuse can be anything from money, to property or even valuables.
Continue Reading...A 52-year-old woman is being accused of stealing over $12,000 from her 100-year-old grandmother whom she was taking care of. The 52-year-old woman reportedly began stealing money from her grandmother just weeks after moving in with her mother and grandmother. The woman was charged with 39 counts of criminal use of personal information after using her grandmother’s information to steal from her bank accounts. She was also charged with theft and exploitation of the elderly as well.
Continue Reading...A group of male thieves have targeted many different long-term care facilities in several states and have snuck in to these facilities by dressing up as female nurses. The nursing homes in the Denver, CO area have been the targets recently with at least 20 separate attacks.
Continue Reading...In San Diego, a 44-year-old woman could possibly face the death penalty if she is convicted of charges of murder and special circumstance charges of murder for financial gain following the death of an 89-year-old man whom she was caring for. The caregiver is also accused of stealing over $500,000 from the elderly man’s bank accounts as well.
Continue Reading...In Murrieta, CA a 36 year-old-woman who broke into her elderly grandmother’s home and beat her with a cane is being sentenced this month. The granddaughter pleaded guilty in February to burglary and elder abuse of her 94-year-old grandmother.
Loneliness can cause anyone to easily trust a stranger who gives him or her the companionship they want. A man in Lake Butler befriended a 94-year-old woman and then swindled her out of nearly half a million dollars.
Continue Reading...A 79-year-old woman got back $2,000 thanks to the assistance of an elder abuse task force in Flint, MI. The woman originally lost the money after two employees from a tree trimming service stole the money from her. The woman was allegedly approached by the two men who were persistent in convincing the woman that she should take their service. They were able to convince her that her neighbors requested them to offer her the service.
Continue Reading...A family member, a caretaker, a nurse, and a doctor can all commit elder abuse against your loved one. Older Americans are losing $2.9 billion dollars as estimated in 2008.
Continue Reading...A 31-year-old caregiver caring for an 81-year-old man was arrested and is suspected of 90 criminal counts including forgery, grand theft, and elder abuse. The report on KTLA.com states that the woman allegedly wrote several checks to herself from the elderly man’s account totaling over $287,000.
Continue Reading...In Lafayette, Indiana, an 82-year-old woman was scammed out of $11,500 by a 31-year-old man claiming to be a construction worker offering to build an additional room for her home. The construction was to take place in November of 2009 but the 31-year-old man and his associate left the job unfinished and completely disappeared according to the elderly woman. The woman stated she tried to call the man but his phone number had reportedly been disconnected.
Continue Reading...Three employees at a Winterville, GA retirement home including one administrator have been accused of assault and embezzlement in separate incidents, according to the Onlineathens.com report. The 47-year-old administrator of the facility is accused of stealing over $4,000 in social security payments from a 69-year-old resident of the home. The administrator was arrested and charged with three counts of theft and two counts of exploiting an elderly or disabled person.
Continue Reading...The ATB Financial bank has joined with Edmonton and Calgary police in Canada to try and put a stop to elder financial abuse. The financial institution has developed a training program for its employees to recognize when people are trying to take advantage of elders and steal their money. The financial institution is one of the first ones to work with law enforcement to develop this training program.
Continue Reading...A licensed nurse’s assistant at Thompson House in New Hampshire was accused of financial exploitation against an elderly woman living at the facility. The woman was accused of making cash withdrawals from the elderly woman’s credit card. In total, The woman reportedly stole $8,000 from the woman’s accounts. The 85-year-old woman was reportedly admitted to the hospital when a Thompson House employee found her in her wheelchair unresponsive. Following the financial exploitation accusations, the Brattleboro Police Department joined with the Medicaid.
Continue Reading...A 50-year-old woman pleaded guilty to three counts of embezzlement but she avoided a prison sentence in favor of repaying $600 per month in compensation to her 76-year-old mother over a period of 5 years. In total, Carol Brazeika owes $355,800 in compensation which includes $1,600 prior to receiving her sentencing.
Continue Reading...A Montana woman reportedly used a reverse mortgage on her mother’s home to steal $140,000 to fund a condo for herself according to the Missoulian. Paulette Homer got a check for $141,308 from the reverse mortgage and wrote out checks totaling over $120,000. This included making payments to a Lowe’s store, a credit union, a Zales jewelry store and several other transactions.
Continue Reading...Oakland police have been searching for a man suspected of scamming over $20,000 from two elderly residents. 70-year-old Carl Talton is suspected of elder abuse, grand theft, and attempted elder abuse after he created a scheme to steal money from residents. The scheme involves telling victims that they will be given a small piece of an inheritance that will be collected if a donation is made to a church or charity.
Continue Reading...The Elder Financial Protection Network launched its 8th annual “Call to Action” summit on April 31 to discuss elder abuse prevention practices and bring special attention to the many scams that plague the elderly. Among the speakers on hand for the event were California Insurance Commissioner, Dave Jones and San Francisco District Attorney, George Gascon.
Continue Reading...A New York man was sentenced to spend weekends in jail for an entire year and had to pay $388,063 in compensation after he reportedly forged several checks and transferred thousands of dollars from accounts belonging to a 98-year-old man. Harry Abrams pleaded guilty to charges of grand larceny, forgery, and money laundering in this incident of elder financial abuse.
Continue Reading...In a possible case of elder financial abuse in San Diego, investigators and the police department are asking the public for assistance to find two suspects wanted in connection with several scams against elderly individuals. According to authorities, two cases that occurred recently could be linked involving a male and female posing as roofing inspectors. The two perpetrators would enter an elderly person’s home and one would distract the victim.
Continue Reading...A 45-year-old woman faces 17 felony charges of grand theft and elder abuse after she was accused of and arrested for draining her husband’s bank accounts. According to The Press-Enterprise website, 45-year-old Shawna Verdugo stole $500,000 from her husband, 74-year-old Johannes Holzel. Verdugo also reportedly took out a fraudulent life insurance policy on her husband as well.
Continue Reading...According to a report from KHON news channel 2 in Hawaii, a man was charged with theft after he was arrested for going door-to-door claiming he would assist elderly individuals with their yard only to take their money without cleaning their yard. Vilisoni Mafi took over $2,700 from elderly victims claiming he would help them.
Continue Reading...A San Diego residential care facility operator has been charged with financial elder abuse and forgery among other charges stemming from a series of alleged acts of embezzlement from two elderly residents. 54- year-old Maria Corazon Park has been accused of embezzling a total of $665,000 from a 91-year-old man and an 89-year-old man.
Continue Reading...A Santa Cruz real estate broker has been on the run from authorities after she was accused of stealing over $500,000 from her clients in 2007. 56-year-old Louisa Katrina Dubinsky faces 39 counts of embezzlement of funds as well as financial elder abuse and writing bad checks from at least one person’s account. Dubinsky is being accused of writing at least four bad checks to two separate people.
Continue Reading...A 62-year-old insurance agent has been charged with 14 counts of theft as well as insurance fraud after stealing over $45,000 from elderly insurance customers in several areas in Pennsylvania. The insurance fraud activity occurred between 2006 and 2009 and Brian Reid Johnson was charged in August of 2009. The incident occurred when Johnson allegedly took the insurance premiums that the 14 customers paid to him for life insurance and long-term care insurance.
Continue Reading...In San Diego, a 93-year-old man was believed to be the victim of elder abuse and neglect as he was found in his home disoriented, dehydrated and living in unsanitary conditions early in the week. Arnold V. Bauer, a Pearl Harbor survivor suffering from dementia and prostate cancer was taken to a Veterans Affairs hospital after he was discovered in his home.
Continue Reading...The Mercury reported the accomplice of a home health aide in Pennsylvania that allegedly stole over $11,000 from an elderly patient was arrested this past week. 21-year-old Goanutaye Goanue reportedly worked together with 24-year-old Mercy Nagbe to steal from an 84-year-old woman. Nagbe was working in the elderly woman’s home when she reportedly stole two credit cards and some of the woman’s checks.
Continue Reading...A company known as The Sun Valley Group has been investigated and that investigation found several charges made to elderly patients under the group’s care. Jenette Long and her sister Marie shared roughly $1.3 million in savings when the court-appointed group began caring for Marie. The two owners of the company hired themselves to care for the woman and collected $15,000 a month in fees as well as fees for their guardianship.
Continue Reading...The company Your Friends and Neighbors, the parent company for several group homes in the Fort Wayne area had its property seized and/or frozen as a result of a class-action lawsuit against them. 29 former employees filed a class-action lawsuit arguing that they were not paid wages, vacation pay or overtime pay that they should have been paid before or while the company was closing its doors in October.
Continue Reading...A woman in Reno, NV reportedly stole and pawned an 89-year-old hospice patient’s wedding ring, according to a story on mynews4.com. Michelle Smith was caring for the 89-year-old woman when she allegedly removed a solitaire ring and a wedding band from her finger and replaced them with fake jewelry.
Continue Reading...Two salesmen selling water purification systems have been arrested and charged with exploitation of the elderly after selling systems to an 88-year-old woman for over $37,000. The equipment is actually valued at a much lower price. The sales occurred in isolated incidents, the first one occurring when a salesman kept returning to the woman’s house to sell her equipment that he said was necessary for treating her water system.
Continue Reading...A scam targeting elderly diabetes sufferers has been discovered and is currently under investigation by police in Tazewell, VA. In an incident that occurred on Tuesday the 7th, an elderly woman received a phone call from somebody who claimed to be part of a company that provides glucose testing meters. The man told her his company would provide one for her and asked her for her birth date, Social Security number and Medicare number.
Continue Reading...The Sun in California reports that a Riverside, CA man has been sentenced to 9 years in prison for felony charges of grand theft, elder abuse and filing false documents after the man allegedly conducted a Ponzi scheme. 39-year-old Ronald Paul Shade pled guilty to 29 felony counts of the aforementioned charges and had to pay $3.5M in compensation to the victims of the Ponzi scheme.
Continue Reading...ABC affiliate KGOTV in San Francisco, CA conducted an investigation into the number of senior care providers with felony convictions. In addition, the investigation also discovered that city legislation put in place to protect against elder abuse is being ignored. This law allows the state’s In-Home Support Services program authority to conduct background checks on behalf of seniors and disabled adults seeking caretakers. However, these background checks are not considered mandatory and, as a result, are not always enforced.
Continue Reading...A 92-year-old woman has lost her entire life savings as a result of financial abuse from a live-in caregiver. Dorothy Linklater lost over $82,000 in savings in 3 years. In addition, according to the report on the Toronto Sun, Linklater also owed over $7,000 for utility bills in her home. The report states that Linklater’s niece tried to assist her elderly aunt as much as possible to recover what she could.
Continue Reading...According to the website ajc.com, a woman who ran an assisted living center in George is facing elder abuse charges after she allegedly stole $10,000 from an elderly man in her care. 39-year-old Veronica Martin reportedly turned herself in to police on Friday and was subsequently released. Police stated that during their investigation, they discovered Martin was able to pose as a family member and gained access to the elderly man’s assets and records.
Continue Reading...An assisted living facility employee has been handed down charges in connection with several thefts from elderly individuals in the facility. 43-year-old Yesenia Matilde Surillo is accused of stealing jewelry and cash from residents of the assisted living center where she works. According to the report, Surillo stole property that was out in the open and locked away in lockboxes or dressers and pawned it for cash.
Continue Reading...CNN Health reports that the Government Accountability Office conducted an investigation and discovered over 45 incidents of elder abuse by legal guardians. According to the report, 20 of those incidents involved guardians stealing roughly $5.4 million from 158 people. Six of those cases involved court-appointed legal guardians that were not screened or monitored in any way. In one of those six cases, a convicted bank robber was appointed legal guardian over a wealthy, elderly individual with no family connections. The legal guardian reportedly stole over $600,000 when the elderly man began to develop Alzheimer’s disease.
Continue Reading...A report from Visalia Time-Delta in Visalia, CA states that a woman was arrested on Friday for suspicion of financial elder abuse, felony neglect of an elderly or dependent adult and in-home supportive services fraud. There is no information on the incident or incidents that prompted police to arrest Marlene Brant. Brant’s bail is set at $110,000 according to the report.
Continue Reading...A home health-care provider is under suspicion of using an elderly woman’s credit card to purchase groceries and other things. 34-year-old Angela Lynn Thornton was charged with exploitation and neglect of the elderly, fraudulent use of a credit card and grand theft.
Continue Reading...The Canadian government is trying to raise awareness of elder financial abuse as part of its Elder Abuse Awareness Campaign. The website Marketwire.com reports the campaign is used to help elderly individuals and other people discern the signs of elder financial abuse.
Continue Reading...In Salinas, CA, a report from the Monterey County Herald states that a man that is well-known for grand prix motorcycle racing and fundraising for cancer-prevention has been arrested and charged with elder abuse, grand theft and money laundering for stealing $500,000 from his parents. 40-year-old Joe Cubbage pleaded not guilty to the charges. Prosecutors in the matter argued that Cubbage’s intent was to empty his father’s account that was setup for his retirement.
Continue Reading...A report from the Lodi News Sentinel has stated that a 54-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of elder abuse and burglary. Billy Melvin Huber was arrested after he reportedly scammed an elderly woman of $76 and stole her credit card. According to the report, Huber followed the woman to her home and told her that there was a rag hanging from the back of her car. He reportedly said he would fix the problem for her and she gave him $76 to fix the problem.
Continue Reading...The Daily Journal in Redwood City, CA has reported that a bank teller faces a year in prison after stealing roughly $40,000 from her elderly aunt’s bank account and $33,000 from a 16-year-old girl’s account. 28-year-old Arcelia Barajas Aguilar reportedly stole her mother’s Social Security number to get a job as a bank teller and stole the money.
Continue Reading...According to Mercurynews.com, a Santa Cruz bank teller prevented theft of a large sum of money. According to the report, a 90-year-old woman showed up to the bank and attempted to take out a large sum of money, stating that a man with a badge came to her and told her she was required to pay a bond associated with an accident she was in.
Continue Reading...The Republican Herald has posted a report about a woman who admitted to stealing over $163,000 from an elderly woman between 2006 and 2008. 39-year-old Michelle A. Connors pleaded guilty to charges of theft and receiving stolen property in connection with the incident. According to the report, the exact amount stolen from the elderly woman was $163,358.93.
Continue Reading...A 33-year-old man was found guilty of elder abuse in a case in Ventura County, CA according to a report posted by the Ventura County Star. 33-year-old Edmundo Prieto Ramirez was found guilty on five counts of elder abuse by theft.
Continue Reading...The Willows Journal has posted a report regarding police executing two search warrants in a possible elder financial abuse case. Both warrants were reportedly executed earlier this month, the first at the home of Jodene and Harry Sage, and the second at Butte Community Bank.
Continue Reading...Rgj.com has reported that an 87-year-old woman has been the victim of elder abuse when a neighbor of hers obtained power of attorney over the woman’s estate and wiped out the woman’s bank accounts. The 87-year-old woman reportedly saved an inheritance she obtained when her children died. The woman’s neighbor – Peggy Six – reportedly gambled part of the money that she stole from the woman and purchased a mobile home and a car with the rest.
Continue Reading...According to www.times-standard.com, an Arcata, CA bank employee was arrested on Tuesday after being charged with elder abuse and embezzlement. The report states that 32-year-old Elliot Shane has been booked on suspicion of embezzling a total of over $100,000 from 5 different customers, all of which were either unaware of changes in their bank account or were elderly people that may have been unaware of changes in their banking.
Continue Reading...The Illinois Government News Network has posted a report on their website discussing a bill that Governor Pat Quinn has signed that will protect elderly individuals in Illinois from suffering elder financial abuse. The report states that this new law will call for financial institutions to set stronger methods in place to identify and report financial abuse of elderly individuals.
Continue Reading...A New Jersey hospice worker has been accused of stealing money from a dying patient. Tristan Chang, 23, allegedly used the hospice patient's ATM card and PIN number to withdraw $700, the full amount the patient had in their account.
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