Portland woman indicted, accused of stealing more than $800K from vulnerable adults

by: Alicia Patton

SUMNER COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) — A Sumner County woman was recently indicted after a joint investigation revealed that she misappropriated hundreds of thousands of dollars from vulnerable adults through her businesses.

Agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) and Tennessee Comptroller Office said they began investigating allegations involving 70-year-old Eileen Theresa Santangelo in May 2023 after receiving a request to do so from the District Attorney General of the 18th Judicial District.

Eileen Santangelo (Courtesy: Sumner County Sheriff’s Office)

During the course of the investigation, authorities said they developed information that Santangelo had misappropriated at least $804,247 from multiple individuals through her businesses which include, Serenity Homes of TN and Church and Chapel Funeral Service in Portland; and Restlawn Memory Gardens in Franklin, Kentucky.

According to the comptroller officer, Santangelo entered a trust agreement with a Portland business owner and later took money from the trust, which was where most of the misappropriation ($687,763.05) occurred. The misappropriation included the victim’s residence, sale of his rental properties, and other funds collected for the trust.

Santangelo is also accused of using the victim’s credit card before died to make a $14,150 purchase and after he died in 2023 to make a $1,362.18 purchase. In addition, authorities said she used another disabled individual’s credit card after he died, spending $3,136,42.

The comptroller’s office said the 70-year-old used approximately $91,246,18 from a $100,000 investment that was made to her business for her personal expenses, such as a trip to Australia and a loan payment for a car in her spouse’s name.

Based on the investigation, a Sumner County Grand Jury returned indictments last month charging Santangelo with one count of fraudulent use of a credit card over $10,000, one count of fraudulent use of a credit card over $1,000, three counts of theft over $250,000, two counts of financial exploitation of a vulnerable/elderly Adult over $250,000, and two counts of money laundering.

The TBI reported she was arrested on Monday, Nov. 18 and is being held in the Sumner County Jail on a $250,000 bond.

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Portland woman indicted, accused of stealing more than $800K from vulnerable adults

Franklin County Woman Charged with Theft, Financial Exploitation of Vulnerable Adult

FRANKLIN COUNTY – An investigation by special agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation into a theft allegation has resulted in the indictment and arrest of a Huntland woman.

On July 9^th, at the request of 12^th Judicial District Attorney General Courtney Lynch, agents began investigating allegations of theft by Betty Duncan, who operated a care facility in Franklin County. Agents learned that an 82-year-old female who had been under Duncan’s care passed away in March. During the course of the investigation, it was revealed that a review of the woman’s financial accounts found discrepancies, where large sums of money were transferred from the victim’s account to an account co-owned by Duncan.  During that investigation, agents identified Duncan as the individual responsible for taking the money. 

On November 18^th, the Franklin County Grand Jury returned an indictment charging Betty Jean Duncan (DOB 09/20/1969) with one count of Theft over $250,000 and one count of Financial Exploitation of an Elderly or Vulnerable Adult. On November 19^th, TBI agents and deputies with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department arrested Duncan. She was transported to the Franklin County Jail and booked on a $500,000 bond.

The charges and allegations referenced in this release are merely accusations of criminal conduct and not evidence. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted through due process of law.

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Franklin County Woman Charged with Theft, Financial Exploitation of Vulnerable Adult

Older adults need protection from financial abuse by family members

By Tina Kilaberia

A mentor once told me that we take better care of our pets than we do older victims of mistreatment. As a researcher, I have sat across from people, including grown men, crying while recounting harrowing experiences of discovering and confronting elder financial exploitation within their families — by siblings, sons and daughters, nieces and nephews, girlfriends and neighbors. Intervening and helping victimized older people comes at a tremendous cost to caring family members. Currently, no caregiving or other policy rewards them for the time, labor, or emotional and relationship toll that results from helping to unravel financial abuse.

Only one out of an estimated 44 financial abuse cases receive service in the formal system (help other than from family and friend networks). This obscures the labor involved in helping older victims of family financial abuse. Older adults are reluctant to report to authorities to avoid embarrassment or menacing perpetrator’s aggravation.

Despite the private and hidden nature of the problem, some extreme cases of family financial exploitation have made public headlines. In January, Maxine McManaman, the Transportation Security Administration’s assistant federal security director, was arrested on charges of financially exploiting a family member with dementia. Eight years ago, a case of financial exploitation by David Vanzo, a “caregiving” son, made headlines due to suspicion of his mother being dead in a wheelchair when he brought her to a bank to withdraw money. In 2011, actor Mickey Rooney testified before a special U.S. Senate committee recounting his own financial exploitation by family members.

Unlike policies protecting vulnerable children, policies protecting vulnerable older adults have historically lacked direction, assessment tools, national reporting system, federal response and, importantly, funding. The Credit for Caring Act, introduced in January 2024, would give qualifying caregivers, of whom there is an estimated 53 million, a federal tax credit of up to $5,000. But this credit is not associated with caregiving related to financial abuse. It is associated with frailty and illness-related caregiving, aggregated by the National Institute on Aging in a 27-item caregiver task list.  

There is no such organized list, enumeration of tasks or estimate of caregiving associated with elder family financial exploitation despite intervening family and friends spending countless hours of personal time, time off work and personal financial resources, to help and care for exploited aging family members. For some reason, our concept of caregiving does not include the care provided to help victimized older people. Yet, $28.3 billion is lost annually by older victims to financial exploitation of which 72 percent is lost to family and friends. In many cases, caregivers perform financial abuse-related caregiving in addition to illness-related caregiving as many perpetrators take advantage of the older person’s deteriorating health to start exploiting.

One might ask, isn’t helping victimized older people what families are supposed to do? Well, isn’t illness-related caregiving what families are supposed to do, too? In fact, many groups do not call illness-related caregiving “caregiving.” They call it being there for your family. Still, distinct policies reward illness-related caregiving valued at $600 billion annually. Consider the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Caregiver Advise, Record and Enable Act as examples. 

When older adults lose money and resources, taxpayers also lose. Older victims may need to draw on public programs such as Medicaid to fund their costly long-term care because their own resources were depleted by financial exploitation.

By 2035, older people will outnumber children at 23.4 percent versus 19.8 percent for the first time in the nation’s history. At the same time, an estimated $53 trillion in wealth will be transferred from households in the baby boomer generation to heirs and offspring. These conditions foretell disputes over what happens to the deceased person’s money and property, and foreshadow financial exploitation. We may all know someone with a related family scenario.

We need formalized policies that acknowledge caregiving labor related to elder family financial exploitation. The Financial Exploitation Prevention Act of 2023 would allow “for the delay of the redemption of a security” if an investment company “reasonably believes the redemption involves the financial exploitation of an individual age 65 or older.” 

Such policies are a step in the right direction. Estimates and policies related to informal caregiving associated with family financial abuse should account for efforts aside from health care as family members navigate adult protective services, social services, the courts, law enforcement, financial institutions, attorneys, community-based agencies, Area Agencies on Aging, long-term care settings and many more.  

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Older adults need protection from financial abuse by family members

Son Arrested For Elder Abuse Against Mother In Amador County

By Tracey Petersen

Plymouth, CA – A son faces elder abuse charges after allegedly stealing from his mother and was later found hiding in a field in the unincorporated area of Plymouth.

A report of a robbery on Wednesday, November 13th, at around 3:30 p.m., sent Amador County Sheriff’s deputies to a home in the unincorporated area of Plymouth. Once on the scene, an elderly female victim stated that her adult son forcibly took her purse and car keys and drove off in her car. According to sheriff’s officials, the mother was not injured in the scuffle with her son.

Deputies also learned that the unidentified suspect had returned the vehicle and then fled on foot before they arrived. A record check revealed that the suspect had a felony warrant out of Sacramento County for auto theft.

Deputies began a search for the suspect and found him in a field, about a mile from the residence.  The suspect was arrested for felony robbery, elder abuse, and his outstanding warrant.

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Son Arrested For Elder Abuse Against Mother In Amador County

ABLECHILD: State’s Audit Reveals Rampant Abuse of Psychotropic Drugs on Children in State Care

by Joe Hoft

A recent audit conducted by the Massachusetts Office of the State Auditor reveals that the Department of Children and Families (DCF) apparently is really bad at doing its job and the fact that the well-being of children is at stake makes the incompetence incomprehensible.

The DCF is tasked with providing services to children who are at risk and victims of abuse or neglect. The services the state is responsible for providing include adoption, guardianship, foster care, housing stabilization, and family support.

Specifically, AbleChild is interested in the section of the audit that reviews the oversight of the drugging of children with serious psychiatric mind-altering drugs. The audit reviewed the period from July of 2019 to December of 2023.

During the audit period, 3,899 (22%) of the 17,891 children in DCF’s protective custody were prescribed at least one psychotropic medication. During the audit period, the number of prescriptions filled for each drug category included 1,065 prescriptions for anti-anxiety meds, 21,585 Antidepressants, 10,564 Antipsychotics, 10,776 Mood Stabilizers, and 48,453 Stimulants. Clearly, chemical behavior modification is a common practice, and the state’s DCF social workers are required to participate in, follow, and document the medication history of each child under their care.

To help caseworkers provide the required services, a child is provided a physical Medical Passport that records its healthcare services while in state custody. Social Workers are required to review these physical passports every six months to keep the children’s related medical records in iFN (electronic information system) updated with their most recent healthcare information.

In Massachusetts, it is required that the Courts approve antipsychotic medication use in children in the state’s protective custody. The audit revealed that “the Department of Children and Families did not always obtain or renew court approval before children in its protective custody were administered antipsychotic medications.” This is a problem because the court needs to know that the drug regimen is safe and effective. Furthermore, the courts have oversight of children who are too young to consent to the drug treatment and act as a neutral party.

The audit also found that “the Department of Children and Families did not properly maintain healthcare records in iFamilyNet (iFN) for children in its protective custody who received psychotropic medications.” Keeping up-to-date records is essential to ensure that the child is not being overprescribed with toxic mind-altering drugs. There is no oversight, leaving the children in custody at risk.

Additionally, the DCF did not list and/or update the psychotropic medications prescribed to children in their medical passports, which clearly can lead to overprescribing of dangerous mind-altering drugs and serious, if not deadly, adverse events. And with the lack of documentation, the DCF also did not document follow-up doctor appointments and recommended psychosocial services. How can these deficits possibly help children in the state’s care?

Most egregious, the DCF did “not document its consent in iFamilyNet for children in its protective custody to receive psychotropic medications.” In fact, in 94% of the children in the audit who were “prescribed at least one psychotropic medication from MCO sample did not have the required documentation of DCF’s consent or court approval for psychotropic medications.” One has to wonder, how could these prescriptions continue/change or increase without the proper documentation? It’s interesting to note that the Mass DCF argued that it was not required to “document consent for routine healthcare (for example, psychotropic medication, not including antipsychotics).” Psychotropic medication is “routine?” Just because a judge did not have to sign off on all the other mind-altering drugs prescribed to kids, the state’s caseworkers just didn’t document any of the drug prescriptions. Doesn’t sound like a safe practice.

The DCF also “did not ensure that children received recommended psychosocial services in conjunction with their prescriptions for psychotropic medications.” In other words, children in the state’s care were not only drugged with serious mind-altering drugs but did not get the necessary therapy that is recommended in conjunction with the drugging.

Of great concern to AbleChild is the number of children who received mind-altering drugs that exceeded the dosages recommended by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). “The Department of Children and Families should provide more oversight for children in its custody receiving psychotropic medication in amounts and dosages that exceed United States Food and Drug Administration recommendations.” Apparently 20% of the children in the audit received dosages that exceeded the FDA recommendations. Beyond the caseworker’s culpability, one must wonder what information was being used by the doctors prescribing the drugs to determine which drugs to prescribe and at what levels.

So, let’s recap. The adults tasked with oversight of the state’s at-risk children failed to document the children’s healthcare services, did not get court approval to administer/continue antipsychotic medications, did not list prescribed medications in their medical passports and received mind-altering drugs in excess of FDA recommendations. Wow. What exactly were the caseworkers tracking if not this important drug information?

That there were serious problems with the handling of psychiatric drug information for the state’s at-risk youth population, is not in question. One must wonder, though, what are the consequences for such obvious failures? Will employees be independently reviewed and dealt with accordingly? What responsibility do the prescribing doctors have when it comes to oversight? Will mandated procedures be put in place where none exist today? Were there adverse events associated with the improper control and oversight of medication prescribing?

These questions were not raised by the auditor. A promise to “follow up in six months and track progress” was made by the auditor. It’s a promise, but will Massachusetts’ at-risk kids be safe until then? It is of interest to note that Massachusetts and Florida are the only two states that actually audit psychotropic drug use among its at-risk youth population. Sadly, based on news reports, Florida also failed in its duties to protect the children in the state’s custody.

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ABLECHILD: State’s Audit Reveals Rampant Abuse of Psychotropic Drugs on Children in State Care

Charlotte County woman accused of abusing disabled boyfriend

 By ABC7 Staff

CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. (WWSB) - A Port Charlotte woman is in jail after deputies she assaulted a man who was under her care.

Deputies were called out to a home on Warren Avenue for reports of a domestic violence incident. Officials say De’yeanna Stultz provided a false name to deputies initially. Stultz was the primary caregiver for her boyfriend and she denied that anything had happened.

The victim had called deputies and provided a statement, identifying Stultz as his caretaker and girlfriend of 11 years. He told officals that De’yanna had been drinking and that she becomes aggressive when intoxicated.

The Probable Cause Affidavit states that De’yanna had thrown a Roku remote at the victim and struck him, The remote was in the floor, its batteries spilled out, next to the victim who couldn’t move.

Officers arrested Stultz, and say she resisted and refused to comply with directions. Stultz was charged with the abuse of a disabled adult, resisting without violence and providing a false name to LEO.

She is in the Charlotte County Jail.

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Charlotte County woman accused of abusing disabled boyfriend

CT woman allegedly impregnated by guardian at age 12 files $30 million claim against DCF

by Justin Muszynski,

An attorney representing Connecticut woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted thousands of times by her guardian who also fathered her child when she was 13 has filed a multi-million dollar claim against the state Department of Children and Families, alleging that the agency, during numerous involvements, could have intervened and prevented further abuse.

The claim, filed with the Office of the Claims Commissioner, seeks $30 million and was filed by Middletown-based attorney Nate Baber on behalf of his client, Crystal B. Baber has also brought civil litigation against the man accused of sexually assaulting Crystal, 64-year-old Roger Barriault, and his wife, 48-year-old Darlene Barriault, of Bristol.

DCF could not be named in the lawsuit because of its status as a state agency, Baber said. The claim he has filed against DCF had to be brought in a separate proceeding.

“The only thing we can sue for — although this is not technically a lawsuit — is for money damages,” Baber told the Courant. “But generally speaking, the reason why she’s been willing to come forward and share her story given the unique nature of what happened to her is so that there can be a better understanding and awareness of an agency that still has, from our perspective, quite a long way to go to continue to serve its purpose of protecting children.

“So obviously she wants to make sure that, to the extent that she’s sharing her story, that it’s used to promote the idea for both the survivors and others that this is still happening to,” Baber added. “She wants to be an example of how, one, to address those issues, but also if she can illuminate some of the existing problems with DCF.”

CT man allegedly fathered child with his guardian daughter. She had the baby when she was 13; lawyer claims DCF could have prevented it

“First and foremost, our hearts go out to the victim, and we applaud her bravery for coming forward,” DCF Commissioner Jodi Hill-Lilly said in a statement. “As always, we are grateful for the collaboration of law enforcement and for their work to help hold this individual accountable and bring forth justice.”

Hill-Lilly went on to say that the “events in question” occurred over 15 years ago and that DCF is limited in what it can share due to confidentiality statutes and the pending criminal and civil litigation. The agency is allowed, however, to clarify what it has described as “misinformation” that has previously been reported.

“To that end, it has been reported that DCF ‘lost track’ of the victim and a prior legal guardian in 2005,” Hill-Lilly said. “To clarify, the department had no involvement with the child or any of the involved families between 2003-2006. Also, Mr. Barriault and his wife were never licensed foster parents for the Department and the now adult victim was not placed into the home of Roger Barriault by the Department. The family received guardianship of the victim via the Probate Court as a child.”

Regardless of whether DCF placed Crystal with the Barriaults or not and whether they were licensed foster parents, Baber said the agency had a duty to protect a child who DCF allegedly had reason to believe was being sexually abused. Even after it was discovered that Barriault allegedly fathered Crystal’s child, Baber claimed that DCF still did not intervene enough.

“Our claim centers around the idea that DCF has a statutory duty, they have an obligation to investigate abuse and neglect allegations and protect children,” Baber said. “That’s aside from any role they have in the management of foster care, agency of foster parents, of foster children. That’s a separate duty that they have and regardless of whether he was a guardian or whether he was a foster parent.”

Upon reviewing DCF records tied to his client, Baber claims that the agency appeared to put minimal efforts into doing anything more than closing investigations as quickly as possible.

According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Crystal first reported the allegations to the Bristol Police Department as an adult in May 2023. She reportedly had been placed in foster care when she was between 6 months and 2 years old and was living in a Bristol home around 2004 when she was 8 or 9. It was around this time that she was introduced to Barriault, who was allegedly “often allowed to be left alone” with her and “nearly immediately” allegedly began grooming her, Baber’s lawsuit contends.

Crystal alleged that Barriault first sexually assaulted her in 2004, when she was at her foster mother’s home, the warrant affidavit said. There were two more similar alleged instances involving Barriault before the girl’s foster mother moved to another state, at which point she reportedly began living at a residence with Barriault and his wife, where he allegedly continued sexually abusing her for almost a decade, according to the warrant affidavit.

Baber contends in the lawsuit that, around 2006, DCF learned that Crystal was living with Barriault while he was being investigated for sexual abuse allegations involving another minor child. Police wrote in the arrest warrant affidavit that Barriault was reportedly arrested for “similar sexual misconduct” in 2007, at which point Crystal was temporarily removed from his home before being returned to his custody when the charges were dropped.

In September 2008, Crystal, who had since turned 13, reportedly gave birth to Barriault’s child, according to court papers.

During an interview with detectives, Crystal told police she estimated Barriault sexually assaulted her thousands of times “almost daily” until she was about 20 years old, the arrest warrant affidavit said. She estimated that she was sexually assaulted somewhere between 3,800 to 4,000 times between 2004 and 2015.

Though DCF representatives say the agency cannot comment on many specifics involved in Crystal’s case, Ken Mysogland, chief administrator of external affairs, said he could provide some of the general practices that are used.

“When a child is brought to our attention to be an alleged victim of child maltreatment, best practice is, they are interviewed alone and apart from the alleged perpetrator,” Mysogland said in a statement. “There are particular cases whereby a child may be referred to a multidisciplinary team for a forensic interview.”

The criminal cases against the Barriaults remain pending in New Britain Superior Court. Roger Barriault faces one count each of first-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a child. Darlene Barriault has been charged with one count of risk of injury to a child.

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CT woman allegedly impregnated by guardian at age 12 files $30 million claim against DCF

Fake nurse worked at multiple hospitals in L.A. County, police say

by: Travis Schlepp

(KTLA) — Police have arrested a woman who they say has been posing as a nurse and working at hospitals throughout Los Angeles County without a license.

The Burbank Police Department announced Thursday that Amanda Leeann Porter, 44, of Virginia, allegedly posed as a registered nurse at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center and oversaw dozens of patients for an entire month.

Porter does not hold a nursing license and is currently on federal probation for a fraud conviction in her home state, police said.

She was hired by the Catholic hospital back in April under a false identity. From April 8 to May 8, she oversaw as many as 60 patients before her colleagues discovered she was impersonating a real nurse who lived out of the state.

Amanda Leeann Porter, 44, of Virginia, is shown in this mugshot provided by the Burbank Police Department on Nov. 14, 2024.

She was eventually fired, but not before collecting two paychecks for her fraudulent employment, officials said.

Porter was arrested last week after she was released from custody for allegedly pulling the same stunt at Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Santa Clarita. Investigators said she’s obtained employment with several hospitals using false identities.

Both hospitals released statements to KTLA in which they stated Porter was terminated immediately after the truth about her identity and qualifications was revealed.

She was under a probationary phase of her employment and was under the supervision of a qualified training nurse during her time at both hospitals. Neither health care facility believed the care she administered during her brief time on their payrolls was inadequate, officials said.

The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office has filed multiple felony charges against her, officials said, including identity theft, false impersonation, and grand theft.

She’s currently being held without bail at the Los Angeles County Central Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood.

She is due to appear in Burbank Municipal Court on Dec. 2, jail records show.

Investigators believe Porter may have committed similar crimes throughout Southern California over the last year, and anyone with information is urged to contact Burbank PD Detective Arias at 818-238-3210.

Anonymous tips can be provided online or by calling 800-222-8477.

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Fake nurse worked at multiple hospitals in L.A. County, police say

Home health care nurse turned personal assistant steals $140K from Polk County blind man: PCSO

By FOX 13 News Staff

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - A Winter Haven woman was arrested after deputies said she stole more than $140,000 from a blind man who she worked for as a home health care nurse and personal assistant. 

The Polk County Sheriff's Office said Carrie Hutchinson, 46, who is a private certified nursing assistant who had been practicing as a home health care nurse, is facing multiple charges, including grand theft and exploitation of the elderly. 

"This woman's actions are despicable," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said. "Taking advantage of an elderly man who entrusted her with his life savings while also paying her a good salary is inexcusable and unforgivable. She is now charged with three very serious felonies."

Detectives said the 77-year-old Winter Haven man, who is blind, started getting suspicious about his finances. That's when he asked a friend, who is a retired chief financial officer, to look into his accounts, according to PCSO. 

Courtesy: Polk County Sheriff's Office. 

Numerous fraudulent transactions were found, including one for "pop on veneers" that totaled $780, United Airlines tickets for Hutchinson's friend and Allegiant Airlines tickets for the suspect and four friends to fly to Maine, which totaled $1,588. Investigators also said that 270 orders were made on the victim's Amazon account between April 2021 and July 2024, that totaled $4,774.

Hutchinson's four years of stealing from the victim included making ATM withdrawals, cruise payments, paying for photography classes, Vrbo rentals, pet supplies, animal hospital charges and her personal credit cards, PCSO said. 

Detectives said she was first hired by the 77-year-old man as a home health care nurse for his wife in January 2020. After his wife passed away, Hutchinson was hired as a personal assistant, which meant she had access to his accounts in order to pay his bills, do his shopping and take care of his finances. 

She was paid $5,800 a month until 2024, which is when she started receiving $6,000 a month for the job as a personal assistant, according to the sheriff's office. 

The victim confronted Hutchinson about the thefts after she returned from a cruise in July and fired her. Detectives said she told him that she was "borrowing" the money and was going to pay him back, but wouldn't be able to after she was fired. 

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Home health care nurse turned personal assistant steals $140K from Polk County blind man: PCSO