Woman sentenced in financial exploitation case

CALEDONIA — A La Crescent woman accused of spending nearly $5,000 of someone else's money was sentenced Wednesday in Houston County District Court to probation, community work service and restitution.

Linda Thesing, 62, was originally charged with four counts of felony financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult. The complaint was amended, and Thesing pleaded guilty in August to two counts of gross misdemeanor financial exploitation; the two felonies were dismissed.

She was ordered to pay $1,366 in restitution; according to court documents, Thesing already had paid some directly to the victim. In addition, she was ordered to complete 200 hours of community work service and fined $450.

The investigation began in March, when Houston County Human Services received a report about possible maltreatment of an elderly man with dementia.

The man was in jeopardy of being evicted from the care facility where he lived; Thesing, who was responsible for his finances, "was intentionally ignoring correspondence," the complaint says.

Thesing met with law enforcement officials and a social worker in April, and reportedly told them procrastination and a lack of experience were the reasons she wasn't taking care of things.

According to court documents, Thesing said she "had no good reason (to spend the money). It was stupid and I didn't even need it."

A total of $4,365 was spent from April 2014 to April 2015.

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Woman sentenced in financial exploitation case