A formerly prominent Chester County attorney has plead guilty to stealing over $1 million from clients, according to a story from The Daily Local News.
Thomas
Evan Schindler, 62, of Newlin Township, admitted in court that he had
taken money from clients that he was not entitled to, and had in one
case lied about where the money was.
The
total number of money stolen comes to more than $1 million, according
to a summary of the cases provided by prosecutor Deputy District
Attorney William J. Judge Jr.
According
to the terms of his plea agreement, Schindler will be sentenced to a
state prison term of 2.5 to 6 years. He will be placed on probation
following his prison term, and have to make restitution to the four
victims in the case, three of whom had hired him to represent them in
civil and criminal cases, the news site said.
Schindler
was initially charged by Easttown police in June 2021 with stealing
over $991,000 from a former client who hired him for a divorce
proceeding. According to the Daily Local News, Schindler failed to make
the required transfers of proceeds from the sale of the couple’s home.
He was then arrested this year by Chester County detectives, and charged
with two separate cases of stealing $86,000 from former clients,
looting an escrow account that had been set up to handle the victims’
funds and taking money to represent a man charged in a criminal case but
doing little or no work before he was disbarred. In one case, he
reported the theft to investigators himself, the news outlet reported.
Schindler, who was disbarred in 2020, will remain free on bail until he is formally sentenced, sometime early next year.
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Kentucky
Louisville, KY – A federal grand jury in Louisville returned an
indictment in October charging a New York man with conspiracy to commit
mail fraud for his role in a “grandparent scam” that impacted senior
victims around the country, including a Meade County individual who lost
tens of thousands of dollars to the scam. “Grandparent scams,” also
known as “person-in-need scams,” involve perpetrators making false
claims to victims that their loved one is in jeopardy and in need of
money that the perpetrator will use to assist the loved one.
U.S. Attorney Michael A. Bennett of the Western District of Kentucky
and U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Lesley Allison of the Pittsburg
Division made the announcement.
According to court documents, Juan Carlos Arcena Cabrera, 28, of
Yonkers, New York, conspired with others to trick seniors into sending
cash payments under the false pretense that a grandchild or loved one
had been in a car accident or was facing legal trouble. Scam callers
would reach out to victims repeatedly, claiming more money was needed to
cover additional emergency expenses. As part of this conspiracy,
Cabrera posed as the grandson of a Kentucky victim and attempted to pick
up a parcel full of cash that the victim had shipped from Kentucky to a
FedEx store in New York.
Cabrera was arraigned yesterday in U.S. District Court. If convicted,
he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. There is no parole
in the federal system. A federal district court judge will determine any
sentence after considering the United States Sentencing Guidelines and
other statutory factors.
The United States Postal Inspection Service is investigating the case
with assistance from the Internal Revenue Service Criminal
Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, the
United States Secret Service, and the New York Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Corinne E. Keel is prosecuting the case.
This case was investigated and prosecuted as part of the National
Elder Justice Task Force and the Kentucky Elder Justice Task Force. The
Department of Justice’s mission of its Elder Justice Initiative is to
support and coordinate the Department’s enforcement and programmatic
efforts to combat elder abuse, neglect and financial fraud and scams
that target our nation’s older adults. In response to the growing need
and targeting areas of greatest concern, the Department of Justice
initially stood up 10 task forces made up of 11 federal districts to
combat a variety of elder abuse, including elder financial exploitation.
Kentucky’s federal districts make up two of the 11 districts under the
Initiative. Kentucky’s task force is comprised of investigators,
prosecutors, and others at the local, state, and federal level with a
common objective of protecting seniors across Kentucky.
In October, the Department announced that as part of its continuing
efforts to protect older adults and bring perpetrators of fraud schemes
to justice it is expanding the Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force,
adding 14 new U.S. Attorney’s Offices. Expansion of the Strike Force
will help to coordinate the Department’s ongoing efforts to combat
largest and most harmful fraud schemes that target or disproportionately
impact older adults.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are
presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a
court of law.
An investigation by special agents
with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Medicaid Fraud Control
Division, along with other agencies, has resulted in the arrest of a
Shelbyville man, charged with the abuse and neglect of elderly patients.
In
January, at the referral of Adult Protective Services, agents joined
that agency and the Department of Health, in investigating a complaint
that residents at an assisted living facility in Bedford County were
being abused and/ or neglected. During the course of the investigation,
agents developed information that identified Cody Prestwood, a licensed
practical nurse at the facility, as the individual responsible for the
abuse and neglect of the residents. The investigation also revealed that
from December 2021 through August 2022, Prestwood failed on multiple
occasions to document those incidents and failed to seek proper
treatment for the individuals involved.
On November 9th, Cody Andrew Prestwood (DOB 09/17/1988) was arrested by
the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office. He is charged with two counts of
Aggravated Abuse of an Elderly Adult, two counts of Neglect of an
Elderly Adult, and one count of Abuse of an Elderly Adult. Prestwood was
booked into the Bedford County Jail, on a $250,000 bond.
We're family caregivers, you and I. And we're invisible.
By Connie Baher
My mom is 105, and I've cared for her
for 13 years. So if you've been caring for your older parent, spouse,
partner, or friend for the long haul, you know what I'm talking about.
It's a lonely job, caregiving. And no one knows what we do
— day after day looking after someone, coping with daunting and
sometimes incomprehensible medical issues, hoping that we're doing the
right thing as we take on the vast, evolving and endless
responsibilities of being someone else's caregiver.
It's
a lonely job, caregiving. And no one knows what we do — day after day
looking after someone, hoping that we're doing the right thing. | Credit: Centre for Ageing Better
So let's talk about what we do.
Remember
how it started? You offer to help with the groceries and drive them to
their doctor's appointments. You bring them to your house on the
weekends to watch a movie together and have a nice home-cooked meal. And
then the job expands.
Now you're paying the bills and ordering
the meds. And at your place, the guest room they used to stay in is
currently empty. They can't climb your stairs anymore. So you find help
at their home, and it may be time for them to move to a facility.
You
spend hours looking for a good place, getting them a medical checkup
and TB test, signing endless documents, doing your best to help your
person make new friends, acclimate to the loss of their home and the
smells and routines and privations of this new place to live.
The Ways We Help
So,
we visit and listen to the problem list. We clean under the bed, find
the scattered pills, and throw them away, and we quietly put a new
package of Depends in their closet.
Next, we bring their clothes
home to wash. It's indelicate. We have breached the line between parent
and child, between spouses, partners, and friends — one should not be
handling their undergarments.
We wake
in the middle of the night, wondering if they are also awake, and
hoping that they're not having another one of those frustratingly
enduring sleepless nights.
We visit again, and as we leave their room (wondering if this may be our
last glimpse of them alive), we take a parting look at them and the
room itself. What simple thing should I do before I go — is there a box
of Kleenex too far away to reach, a flip-top can of soda that should be
opened?
What can I do so they are not left
imprisoned by their inabilities? How terrible it must be for them, we
think. What must it be like to feel life ebbing away, to suffer the
indignities as their once strong handwriting has dwindled to uneven
scratch marks, as their hands and legs become mottled with bruises
because they're taking blood thinners, and everything causes a bruise?
We
can never honestly know what the world looks like through their failing
eyes, the panic that grips them in the middle of the night, the
bewilderment, the fear, the helplessness.
We're
just the family, struggling along. We stumble, pick ourselves up, go at
it again, and try to do better. It's hard — no question about it — to
look beyond the daily challenges, but if we zoom out for a moment, there
is something else to see.
Amy
Abrams, a San Diego social worker who has counseled scores of long-haul
family caregivers, speaks of caregiving as a transformative experience.
"Caregivers find inner strength and competence they would never have
thought they had," she says.
The Gift of Time Together
There is the son
who nursed his mother for four years, sleeping on the floor beside her
bed. But then, he told me, "I discovered that weak as I thought I was, I
have such a gift of adaptability, endurance, tolerance, patience."
There is the daughter who moved cross
country to care for her mother: "I realized how lucky I was to spend
time with her. To revisit the home that I was desperate to leave in my
teens. I got to appreciate her and all she had been through. It gave me a
purpose. So even though it was a mixed blessing, this has been a gift."
And
then there is the simple gift of slowing down and spending time
together. Occasionally, I have a slow, quiet visit with my mom. The
chores have been taken care of, there's enough medicine on hand, we've
got the TV working again, and we talk — mostly, though, I listen.
Mom
talks about her life, the school where she felt so lonely except for
the art teacher who recognized her talent, how she gave up a serious
pursuit of art to be a wife and mother, how she rebuilt her life after
my father died, finally winning long-sought approval as an accomplished artist.
She is adding it all up and preparing to let go.
I
have heard these stories before, but as I listen to Mom on this day, I
also hear her determination to rise above each bodily insult; I hear the
grit that keeps her going, and I am thankful for what she is teaching
me. So, yes, I nod; you've led a good life. It is a gentle, sweet moment
that we share.
If no one knows what
we give — and give up — as caregivers, perhaps also no one knows what we
get. We get the chance to live out a unique kind of love.
Therefore,
at this season of giving thanks, and as the country marks National
Family Caregivers Month, here is a celebration of what we do as family
caregivers. With indebtedness to the famous verses from First
Corinthians:
A Caregiver's Love
Love is making that first sweet offer of help.
Love is being there as things get worse.
Love is loss and sadness as he or she slips away from the person you once knew.
Love is pain as you feel your helplessness to stop their suffering.
Love is the soothing music that you put behind your words of care.
Love is brave enough to confront frailty and decline.
Love is the courage to show up daily, asking, "how are you today?"
Love
is the strength to hear them out when they are depressed and life to
them is dismal. When they have not slept, they have awakened in the
middle of the night, fearing they are dying.
Love
is the moments of joy when you encourage their memories of good times,
their childhood, falling in love, and the times you listen to stories of
their lives that will otherwise be lost.
Love is hanging in as they lose the ability to open a jar, walk on their own, or manipulate their hearing aids.
Love is staying engaged despite the toll.
Love is reaching out to their heart.
Love is warm and embracing.
Love is saying, I love you, even when they cannot say the same to you.
Love knows you cannot fix the illness or slow death's approach.
Love is recognizing their fears and anxieties, and the unknowing that they live with every day and night as they wait.
Love is learning to live on the edge of eternity.
Love is silent tears that well up from nowhere.
Love is walking ahead, while sorrow is your shadow.
Love is holding their hand as you both tread unfamiliar territory.
And love is waiting beside them, imperfect as you are, as they take their final steps.
"I
prepared myself to find a grave, and I now found a person, and it was
just absolutely mind-blowing," Deanna Shrodes said of meeting her
92-year-old father
By Abigail Adams
A daughter's search for her biological father ended when she found him
in a nursing home more than 56 years after she was adopted.
Deanna Shrodes, of Florida, met her father
Gus Nicholas, 92, for the very first time back in May after she matched
with him using genetic testing through 23andMe, according to CBS News.
"I prepared myself to find a grave, and I now found a person, and it was
just absolutely mind-blowing," Shrodes told the outlet. "Couldn't
believe that I had found a person."
Shrodes, who is an ordained minister, was an infant when she was adopted in 1966, according to a story about her search on a church website. She had spent two months in foster care beforehand.
At age 27, Shrodes found her mother Sally King and had a relationship
with her for the next 20 years, per the reports. King died just a few
months after she was diagnosed with cancer.
But King never shared the name of Shrodes' biological father with her daughter. So, Shrodes set out to find him on her own.
Using the two clues her mother gave her — that her father is Greek and from Richmond, Va. — Shrodes spent 10 years searching.
Earlier this year, her prayers were answered — literally.
"I told my husband, I told my best friend Laura … I said, 'Listen, guys,
you might think I'm crazy, but I was in prayer. God spoke this to me:
'Your father's name is Gus,' " she told CBS News.
A short time later, she matched with Nicholas on 23andMe, and connected
with one of Nicholas' relatives, who said, "I think you're my Uncle Gus'
daughter."
The next day, Shrodes got to call her father, who was also excited to find his daughter.
"He said, 'I woke up this morning and I was alone ... And now this
afternoon, I have a daughter. I have a son-in-law. I have three
grandchildren. I have great-grandchildren ... I 'm not alone in the
world anymore,' " she recalled. "And I said, 'No, you're not. You're
not.' "
Nicholas, a retired ballroom dancer, had entered the nursing home after
he was found lying on the floor of his home after a fall, per CBS News'
report.
But just 75 days after meeting his daughter, Nicholas moved into
Shrodes' home where she cares for him full-time and they are getting to
know each other.
"It's the hardest thing. It's the most worthwhile thing. It's the most
incredible miracle I've ever had the privilege to live out," she told
CBS News. "I'm living the dream."
More than 36,000 New Jersey residents are living under court-appointed
guardianships. They are unable to make decisions or access their money.
Some advocates say the system needs to be reformed to make it easier for
them to have their rights restored.
Elberta Cohen, 80, has no access to her life savings.
Her life is in the hands of a stranger, a guardian appointed by a
judge. She says she isn’t happy about it.
“What gives them a right to do this to anybody?” Cohen asks rhetorically. “I'm not incapacitated.”
In the eyes of the law, she is. Kane In Your Corner
first investigated Cohen’s case last month. A judge placed her under
the care of a guardian after her youngest son argued she was no longer
able to make decisions on her own. She says that she and her son aren’t
even on speaking terms, and he was just trying to get her declared
incapacitated to prevent her from revising her will. Eldercare attorney
Lauren Marinaro is now representing Cohen in her effort to get her
rights restored.
Terminating a guardianship is no easy task. New Jersey has no clear
standard to determine if a person lacks capacity. Judges decide each
case individually.
Cohen was initially evaluated by three doctors. One
said she could make decisions for herself, but the other two disagreed.
The judge went along with the majority.
But
Marinaro has now gotten two more medical experts to weigh in. Both say
Cohen is capable of making decisions on her own. Cohen’s personal
physician also writes that Cohen’s “memory and judgment are intact.” The
majority of experts are now squarely on her side.
Cohen’s
motion to restore her rights is also unopposed – her son chose not to
dispute it and her current guardian says he takes no position as to
whether the guardianship should be continued. But ending the
guardianship, or even relaxing it, is still not a sure thing. The judge
has sole discretion under the law.
Marcia
Southwick, executive director of the National Association to Stop
Guardianship Abuse, says the system needs to be reformed to make
terminating a guardianship easier.
“They should
always have to prove that you're still incapacitated,” she says.
“Instead, you have to go to court and you or your lawyer have to prove
that you're not. And if you weren't in the first place, that just seems
so unfair to me.”
Pam Teaster, director of the
Center for Gerontology at Virginia Tech, argues courts should always
view guardianship as a last resort. “If there's anything else that could
be done for that individual, other than a guardianship, that's what
should be happening,” she says.
New Jersey Assembly Member Carol Murphy (D –
Cinnaminson) agrees. She wrote a bill that would require courts that
impose guardianships to always use the “least restrictive option.” But
two years later, Murphy’s bill has still not come up for a vote.
Teaster
argues that another reform could help people like Elberta Cohen. While
the guardianship process is currently shrouded in confidentiality, she
is calling for a public database of guardianship cases that would help
evaluate how well or poorly the system is working.
Peter
McAleer, spokesperson for the New Jersey courts, says the judiciary is
constantly trying to improve the system, including making it easier for
people to challenge their guardianships.
U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of California
Tuesday, November 29, 2022
SAN FRANCISCO – Tranquility Incorporated, a corporation doing
business as San Miguel Villa (San Miguel Villa) which is a 190-bed
nursing home located in Concord, Calif., has agreed to pay $2.3 million
to settle allegations that it submitted false claims by billing the
Medicare and Medi-Cal programs for grossly substandard nursing home
services it provided to its residents between 2012 and 2017, announced
United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds and Department of Health and
Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Special Agent in
Charge Steven J. Ryan.
The settlement resolves allegations that from 2012 to 2017 San Miguel
Villa submitted, or caused to be submitted, claims to the Medicare and
Medi-Cal programs for payment of its services that were grossly
substandard and failed to meet minimum required standards of skilled
nursing care in multiple ways. The United States alleges that nursing
home residents at San Miguel Villa were overmedicated with psychotropic
drugs, suffered excessive falls, were exposed to resident-on-resident
altercations, and experienced other mental and physical harm.
“Residents of nursing homes are among the most vulnerable in our
community, and they rely on Medicare and Medi-Cal programs to provide
the care and services they must have,” said United States Attorney
Stephanie M. Hinds. “Nursing homes are entrusted to impart competent and
quality care to their residents. This case demonstrates that when
federal funds are provided but substandard care is delivered, this
office is committed to seeking accountability.”
“Nursing homes are intended to be places of comfort and healing, but
the provision of substandard care jeopardizes the residents’ health and
safety,” stated Steven J. Ryan, Special Agent in Charge with HHS-OIG.
“HHS-OIG and our law enforcement partners are staunchly dedicated to
investigating allegations of inadequate care at Medicare- and
Medicaid-certified nursing homes.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Gioconda Molinari investigated the matter
with the assistance of Paralegal Lillian Do and Auditor Garland He. The
United States Attorney’s Office initiated the investigation with
assistance from HHS-OIG as part of its ongoing commitment to ensure that
nursing home residents receive the necessary skilled nursing home
services that they are entitled to and require. The United States
Attorney’s Office acknowledges and thanks HHS-OIG as well as the
California Department of Justice’s Division of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder
Abuse for their assistance in investigating this matter.
Working in conjunction with the United States Department of Justice
Elder Justice Initiative, the United States Attorney’s Office runs an
Elder Justice Task Force to identify and investigate nursing homes that
provide grossly substandard care, and to support the efforts of state
and local prosecutors, law enforcement, and other elder justice
professionals who combat elder abuse, neglect and financial
exploitation. If you or a loved one is experiencing abuse at a nursing
home, please contact the California Long Term Care Ombudsman Crisis line
at 1-800-231-4024, or the National Elder Fraud Hotline at
1-833–FRAUD–11 (or 833–372–8311).
SHELBYVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Complaints against a worker at a Bedford
County assisted living facility have now landed a caregiver behind bars.
Cody Prestwood, 34, of Shelbyville, was arrested on Nov. 9.
Cody Prestwood (Courtesy: Tennessee Bureau of Investigation)
In January, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation joined Adult
Protective Services and the Department of Health in investigating a
complaint that residents at a Bedford County assisted living facility
were being abused and/or neglected.
Over the course of the investigation, Prestwood, a licensed practical
nurse at the facility, was found to be the person allegedly responsible
for the abuse and neglect of patients.
According to the investigation’s findings, Prestwood failed on
multiple occasions to document those incidents and failed to seek proper
treatment for the individuals involved from December 2021 through
August 2022.
Prestwood was taken into custody by the Bedford County Sheriff’s Office. He is facing the following charges:
Aggravated abuse of an elderly adult (x2)
Neglect of an elderly adult (x2)
Abuse of an elderly adult
Prestwood was booked into the Bedford County Jail and is being held on a $250,000 bond.
HAMILTON
— A watchdog frozen by court backlogs got a boost in Butler County:
Commissioners signed off on $500,000 worth of American Relief Plan Act
funding that will allow probate and domestic violence courts to hire
staff for “essential functions.”
It is personal for Probate Court Judge John Holcomb.
“They just need a little help from the court,” Holcomb said.
His
mother-in-law died fighting Alzheimer’s Disease. So, as leader of the
court charged with guarding the well-being of seniors and adults unable
to care for themselves, Holcomb said his team’s in-home visit program
needs a quick fix.
COVID-19
pandemic protocols suspended the program for six months. That led to a
two-year backlog in visits. The county had just one investigator to
handle the task. In January, the court had 2,648 incoming guardianships
with another 140 pending, according to state records.
While
the court applied for an ARPA, Holcomb’s team hired a former intern
away from a nonprofit to take on investigative duties. The two
investigators are working to catch up, hold caretakers accountable and
make sure the vulnerable are alive and well.
“I
can tell you with adding this second investigator position we are
ensuring that the needs of our senior citizens are being met,” he said.
County
commissioners approved a $424,068 grant award for Butler County’s
Domestic Relations Court Monday. It plans to hire a magistrate/mediator
to ease the rising number of custody cases. The funding will cover the
position for two years.
The $183,783 grant for probate court will pay for the second investigator and a file clerk for two years.
“That is going to take the burden off our local taxpayers of funding this,” Holcomb said.
By
the time the grants expire, court administrators hope to have backlogs
cleared or see a county budget big enough to keep all hands on deck.
WEST CHESTER — A 61-year-old
disbarred attorney pleaded guilty in the Chester County Justice Center
to theft of over $1 million from former law clients.
Thomas
Schindler remains free on $50,000 bail to await sentencing for failing
to plead guilty to theft from former clients who fired him for their
divorce.
Schindler was charged with theft of nearly $1 million
from former clients who hired him for a divorce case, according to
prosecutors.
“Thomas
Schindler misused his power and took advantage of his clients at
vulnerable times in their lives,” Chester County District Attorney Deb
Ryan said.
“They came to him looking for guidance, and he betrayed
that trust for his own selfish gain. It is especially disheartening when
those who take an oath to uphold the law are the ones who violate it.”
According to prosecutors:
In
November 2021, detectives received a complaint regarding retainer money
given to the defendant by a client who hired him as a defense attorney.
The victim paid the defendant $95,000 in August 2019 for representation in a criminal matter.
COUDERSPORT — The Coudersport Borough Police Department arrested a home health nurse on a felony warrant Wednesday.
Amber
Lynn Berlin, aka Amber L. Burdick, Amber L. Johnson, is alleged to have
removed five jewelry rings and a black/blue jewelry bag all valued at
$3,000, between January 2000 and March 2001, from the private residence
of the victim, a 70-year-old male living in the Borough of Coudersport,
Potter County.
Berlin
is also accused of using the victim’s credit cards to make 27
unauthorized purchases and or transfers, totaling $4,037, between
September 2021 and December 2021.
She
was arraigned Wednesday before District Justice Kari McCleaft and
remanded to the McKean County Jail on $15,000 bail on the following
charges, all third-degree felonies: One count of financial exploitation
of older adult, two counts of theft by deception, two counts of
receiving stolen property, two counts of theft, two counts access device
fraud. She is also charged with one misdemeanor access device fraud
count, a third degree offense.
A preliminary hearing with Magisterial District Judge James L. Hawkins is scheduled at 12:30 p.m. Dec. 13.
NEW PALESTINE, Ind. - A Fort
Worth, Texas, woman is accused of scamming a New Palestine man out of
more than $1 million over a 16-month period in which she lied to him
about medical expenses but instead used the money he sent her to gamble
at Oklahoma casinos.
Lorraine Marie Rew
According to Hancock County Prosecutor Brent Eaton, Lorraine Marie Rew,
46, was arrested in Texas on Nov. 16. She has been charged with one
count of corrupt business influence, a Level 5 felony, and 10 counts of
counterfeiting, all Level 6 felonies.
Court documents reveal
that Rew met and befriended the New Palestine man on a social media
platform and that the two began a relationship. From October 2020
through February 2022, Rew had the man send her approximately $1.2
million.
The man
reportedly gathered the funds to send to Rew by drawing from his
personal IRA, a mutual fund, checking and savings accounts, along with
using cash advances and personal loans.
Rew reportedly had told the man that she needed the money in order to
pay for her daughter’s serious surgical procedures and expensive
medications along with heart medication for herself. Rew claimed she had
to pay the costs upfront but that her insurance would reimburse her
later and then she could repay the man. She even made fake email
accounts pretending to be her employer and promised the man that
reimbursement would be forthcoming.
A postal inspector
found no record, however, of Rew using the money to pay for medical
expenses and investigators learned that neither Rew nor her daughter had
accounts with the hospital.
Instead,
investigators discovered that Rew was using the money to finance her
lifestyle, including frequenting casinos in Oklahoma. Over a two-year
period, Rew visited one of the casinos 167 times and the other casino
157 times over a six-month period.
"Sadly,
this is a case in which the victim's heart was in the right place and
the alleged perpetrator took advantage of that," said Prosecutor Eaton.
Rew
is currently in Tarrant County Jail in Texas but Eatan stated he has
already filed paperwork to extradite Rew to Hancock County where she
will face her charges.
ST. MARYS — A St. Marys woman is facing charges after she allegedly used
the identity of a care-dependent client to open a credit card and
withdraw funds from the victim’s bank account.
Tiffany Jane Thomas, 42, is charged with accessing a device issued to
another person who did not authorize its use, a first-degree
misdemeanor; two counts of financial exploitation of older adult or
care-dependent person; two counts of identity theft and two counts of
theft by unlawful taking –moveable property, according to a criminal
complaint filed at Magisterial District Judge Mark Jacob’s office Nov.
21.
According to an affidavit of probable cause, City of St. Marys Police
received a call from the victim in this case on Oct. 7 concerning
alleged fraud and identity theft.
Between May-October 2022, Thomas
— who was employed as the caretaker of an older, care-dependent person —
allegedly stole the victim’s information, including their driver’s
license and social security number, using the information to open a
credit card and make a cash withdraw from the victim’s bank account,
according to the affidavit of probable cause.
The
investigation revealed that in May 2022, Thomas did allegedly open a
Capital One credit card using the victim’s name, date of birth and
social security number. She secured $290.26 in charges on the card, and
reportedly attempted to make several credit increases using the victim’s
identity information.
In October 2022, Thomas also allegedly used
the victim’s driver’s license, which was stolen at an earlier date, at a
drive-thru of a bank in Clearfield to make a $400 withdraw from the
victim’s bank account. Thomas was later found to allegedly be in
possession of the victim’s driver’s license, as well as other financial
documents, valued at $30, according to the affidavit of probable cause.
The total restitution requested is $720.26.
Thomas’ preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 13 at Jacob’s office.
PHOENIX - People often talk of "match made in heaven," but in this particular case involving an Arizona couple, it's a match made in a grocery store.
For 78-year-old Dennis Delgado and 72-year-old Brenda Williams, their love story began at the condiment aisle at a Fry's store in Casa Grande on Aug. 3, 2021.
"I'm walking down the aisle, and someone comes up behind me, and
says…" said Brenda, recounting what happened that fateful and looking to
her now-husband to finish the story.
"You know the best thing about wearing a mask?" Dennis said, finishing the story of their first encounter.
"We stood there, and we found out we had kind of had a similar situation," said Brenda.
Dennis,
as it turns out, was getting olive oil mayonnaise, and Brenda was
grabbing Miracle Whip from the shelf, and that was the start of a
miraculous love story.
"We visited, exchanged phone numbers, and
then about a week and a half later, we started," said Dennis. "I said,
‘what are you doing this Sunday?’"
Then, something big happened for the couple in April 2022.
"He
came to my house, and he said I'm going to go get you an engagement
ring,' and I said ‘yes, sure,'" Brenda recounted. "So he left, and a
couple hours later, I called him and asked ‘have you been drinking?’"
At Brenda's request, Dennis proposed in that same aisle where they met.
"I said we met there. He wants to propose to me, and I want him to do it in the condiment aisle where we met," said Brenda.
At
this point, Fry's was on board, and said they can get married there as
well. On November 19th, Brenda walked down that same aisle, and this
time, she and Dennis got married.
For both Brenda and Dennis, it's a unique love story that's given them each purpose, after both experienced loss.
"I’m
old, he’s old," said Brenda. "There’s not that many more years left for
either of us. That’s genetically true, and I said, 'well, we don’t have
that many more years. Let’s just do something dumb and stupid. Go out
with a bang."
For two people who started out looking for condiments and nothing else at a grocery store aisle, they found love instead.
"I wanted people to see that there is hope. Especially us older folks, especially in the condiment aisle for us," said Brenda.
Late actress Anne Heche’s son Homer has gone back to court to fight his mom’s ex James Tupper as they fight over both control and how much the estate is worth, RadarOnline.com has learned.
According to court documents obtained by RadarOnline.com, Homer has objected to James’ claim Anne left behind millions.
Homer said his mother had a few “modest
bank accounts,” royalty payments and other income, a corporation in her
name that was used to collect money from acting jobs, membership in her
podcast, personal property of “modest value,” and the interest in the
future projects from her forthcoming memoir.
Further, Homer
revealed that Anne had claims for damages against James stemming from
James’ alleged breach of contractual obligations related to their
co-owned real properties that have since been sold.
Homer said his initial estimate that his mom’s estate was worth around $400k is accurate.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, after Anne’s death in September, Homer went to court asking to be named the administrator of her estate.
He said that there were only 2 beneficiaries to the estate. The two were listed as Homer and his younger brother Atlas, who Anne had with James.
James
objected to Homer being named the administrator claiming Anne had
emailed him a copy of her will during their relationship. He said she
named him as the person to control the estate. Homer scoffed at the
suggestion and pointed out the will was not signed by his mom — which is
required legally.
Homer
said the $400k estimate is based on, “a review of [Anne’s] most recent
tax returns (rounded up to the nearest hundred thousand dollar).” He
revealed that Anne did not have any interests in real property at the
time of her death.
As
RadarOnline.com previously reported, Anne’s estate has been hit with
several creditors’ claims including one by her ex-boyfriend Thomas Jane who said he’s owed $150k.
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