PA State Police: Three charged, accused of misusing $500K in elder fraud case

by Caitlyn Scott

BELLE VERNON, Pa. — The Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations has filed charges against three individuals who they say exploited the finances of an elderly woman for their own personal gain.

In a release from state officials Sunday, Todd Reppert, Ty Reppert, and Laura Reppert have been charged with financial exploitation of an elder, corrupt organizations, conspiracy, and multiple felony theft charges.

Officials said the investigation into financial misconduct involving Donna Reppert began in January 2019, shortly after her son, Todd Reppert, assumed the role of Power of Attorney.

Todd, the release said, was entrusted with managing her financial affairs and acting in her best interests. Evidence, however, indicated that Todd and the two other individuals abused their authority for personal gain.

"Between January 2019 and January 2023, the three individuals misappropriated a final judgment totaling $500,009.41," the release read.

The release continued, saying, "Despite having no legal authorization to access or use these funds for their own benefit, they diverted the money to cover personal expenses, including the payment of bills, the purchase of a BMW, the acquisition of real estate, and gambling activities on online casino platforms."

Officials said an investigation is ongoing.

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PA State Police: Three charged, accused of misusing $500K in elder fraud case

Man allegedly stole $50,000 from elderly relatives in Dauphin County

Joshua Wood, 21, allegedly took over $50,000 over a period of time from his elderly, care-dependent relatives.

Author: Leah Hall 

DAUPHIN COUNTY, Pa. — A man is facing theft charges after he allegedly stole over $50,000 from his relatives. 

According to the Derry Township Police Department, Joshua Wood, 21, from Cleona was arrested on Nov, 7 by State Police. He is accused of fraudulently taking money from his elderly relatives' bank accounts and using it for himself. 

He allegedly took over $50,000 over a period of time from his elderly, care-dependent relatives, who he was living with. 

Wood was taken to the Dauphin County Judicial Center. He is facing charges of financial exploitation of an older adult or care-dependent person, forgery- alter writing, access device fraud and theft by deception. 

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Man allegedly stole $50,000 from elderly relatives in Dauphin County

Disbarred Manchester Attorney Indicted on Four Theft Charges

Attorney General John M. Formella announces that on June 20, 2023, the Hillsborough County-Northern District Grand Jury returned indictments charging David C. Dunn, age 63, of Durham (formerly of Manchester), with four class A felony counts of theft by misapplication of property and four class A felony counts of theft by unauthorized taking or transfer. Mr. Dunn is a former attorney who practiced in Manchester. He was disbarred in 2022.

The theft by misapplication indictments allege that between March 3, 2016, and June 9, 2021, Mr. Dunn, pursuant to one scheme or course of conduct, obtained funds in an aggregate amount of more than $1,500, from two revocable trusts in which he served as trustee, and one estate for which he served as executor, upon agreement or subject to a known legal obligation to make a specified payment to trust and estate beneficiaries, and Mr. Dunn recklessly failed to make the specified payments and dealt with the property as his own.

Additionally, the theft by unauthorized taking indictments alleged that between March 3, 2016, and June 9, 2021, Mr. Dunn, pursuant to one scheme or course of conduct, obtained or exercised unauthorized control over funds from two trust accounts and one estate account, property of another, in an aggregate amount of more than $1,500, with a purpose to deprive the owners thereof.

If convicted, Mr. Dunn faces up to 7 ½ – 15 years in the New Hampshire State Prison and a $4,000 fine on each charge. Mr. Dunn is scheduled to be arraigned on the charges in the Hillsborough County Superior Court-Northern District on July 20, 2023, at 10:30 a.m.

An indictment is merely an accusation, and Mr. Dunn is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This matter was investigated by Investigator Calice Couchman-Ducey of the Consumer Protection Bureau. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Assistant Attorney General Bryan  J. Townsend, II, of the Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation Unit.

If you or someone you know has been the victim of elder abuse or financial exploitation, please contact your local police department or the Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Elderly and Adult Services (1-800-949-0470).

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Disbarred Manchester Attorney Indicted on Four Theft Charges

“I hope she remembers my face,”: 20+ victims come forward after attorney’s arrest in Bradford County

Click to Watch Video

By Ruelle Fludd

STARKE, Fla. (WCJB) -North Central Florida attorney Brittany Cooper faces theft charges in Bradford county.

“Why it happened? Don’t really know,” said Bradford County Sheriff Gordon Smith.

Cooper, 33, was booked Aug. 26 at the Columbia County jail on two charges of forgery but was released on $15,000 bond. She was arrested Tuesday in Bradford county after an investigation revealed she stole $9,100 from five victims in the area for failing to provide her services as an attorney. It’s a community she grew up in according to Sheriff Smith.

“It’s a sad story it really is because I’ve known Ms. Cooper most of her life, her family. Been involved in and around them most of my life. The victims? Know most of them, been in and around their lives. It’s just a tragic investigation all the way around that didn’t have to happen.”

Cooper could face more charges as more victims report their testimony to sheriff’s deputies according to the Sheriff.

“I have this big question that goes on in my head is why?,” said Sheriff Smith. “I may never get that answer knowing this entire family. My victims, they deserve justice. They paid for a service, most of them didn’t get it. There are people’s lives that are still held in limbo because of the actions that we’re finding of Ms. Cooper.”

So far, 29 more people have come forward with their case to Bradford county sheriff’s deputies. One victim, Kassie Gilliam said justice was served for her the day Cooper was behind bars.

“It’s just about getting justice for all the people that she’s wronged,” mentioned Gilliam. “I mean, I hope she remembers my face for a long time.”

It was June 2020 when Alachua resident Kassie Gilliam hired Cooper to negotiate custody of her son. Gilliam said no official receipts were filed for court documents cooper said she would file on Gilliam’s behalf for months.

33-year-old Brittany Cooper was arrested this week in Bradford County on charges of theft for failing to give legal advice after charging 5 clients according to sheriff's deputies. Although, more victims, like Kassie Gilliam shown here, are coming forward. @WCJB20 pic.twitter.com/UhrmRRCgFB

— Ruelle Fludd (@ruellefluddnews) September 3, 2021

Last December, Gilliam reported Cooper to the Florida Bar after losing $3,500. Despite all this, Florida Bar records show Cooper, under the name Brittany Loper, is a member in good standing.

“She was not equipped to take credit card payments but that she accepted cash and cash app,” said Gilliam. And so of course, I believed it. I was sitting in an office with a lawyer, you know? Lawyers are honest and me personally, not having much experience with a lawyer I put a lot of faith and trust in her as a person.”

Following Cooper’s arrest in Columbia and Bradford counties, deputies ask anyone who has hired her for help to check if their case exists before calling the sheriff’s office.

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“I hope she remembers my face,”: 20+ victims come forward after attorney’s arrest in Bradford County

Exploitation, theft charges for Wilmington man who allegedly killed his father

by Allison Ballard

Flynn Thomas Gruidl

As of Wednesday, a Wilmington man who is accused of killing his father is facing two more felony charges. 

Flynn Thomas Gruidl, 45, was served warrants relating to obtaining property by false pretenses and the exploitation of a disabled or elderly adult, according to the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office. 

The warrants allege in May 2020, Gruidl transferred $134,000 from his parents’ account without his mother’s authorization to a joint account that he shared with her and then spent the money.  

In November, Gruidl was arrested and charged with first-degree murder after his father died as a result of blunt force trauma wounds, according to the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office. 

Gruidl remains at the New Hanover County Jail on a $2 million bond. 

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Exploitation, theft charges for Wilmington man who allegedly killed his father

Erie Attorney Disbarred After Pleading Guilty to Felony Forgery, Theft Charges

An Erie lawyer has been disbarred after pleading guilty to several felony charges for keeping settlement money from clients.

Robert Barbato Jr., 32, will no longer be able to practice law in the state starting Dec. 17. The order was handed down Tuesday by the Disciplinary Board of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court after Barbato submitted a verified statement of resignation.

Barbato entered the guilty plea to a felony count of forgery and four felony counts of theft Nov. 3. Nine other charges were dropped.

Investigators said Barbato collected settlement-type checks and failed to forward them to his clients.

A total theft of more than $270,000 was reported between January 2014 and Jan. 29, 2020. He was arraigned on the charges in late February.

The Disciplinary Board placed Barbato on temporary suspension in March.

READ MORE: Erie Attorney Charged for Keeping Settlement Money Collected for Clients

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Erie Attorney Disbarred After Pleading Guilty to Felony Forgery, Theft Charges

Ex-Nevada guardian pleads guilty to exploitation, theft charges

As a guardian, April Parks once controlled hundreds of Southern Nevada’s most vulnerable people.

As an inmate, she pleaded guilty Monday to exploitation, theft and perjury charges. The hearing came more than a year after she was first indicted for swindling many of the elderly and infirm in her care.

In court, she only spoke when agreeing to the terms of her Alford plea — a type of guilty plea that requires a defendant to admit only that prosecutors could prove their case. She shuffled her once bright red hair — now gray — in front of her face, shielding herself from the handful of victim families who came as witnesses.

Parks, now 53, was one of the most active private professional guardians in the region. She often acted as the surrogate decision maker for 50 to 100 elderly and mentally incapacitated people, called wards, at a given time. As guardian, she had full control of their finances, estates and even medical decisions.

She originally faced more than 200 felony counts. On Monday, she pleaded guilty to six: three counts of exploitation, two counts of theft and one count of perjury.

But she still faces a maximum prison sentence of 84 years. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Jan. 4.

Parks appeared in court Monday with three co-defendants, who also entered Alford pleas.

“They’re pathetic!” one of Parks’ former wards, Rudy North, yelled in court after the pleas were entered.

Under Parks’ care, North and his wife were taken from their home and put into an assisted living facility in Boulder City. Parks sold nearly all their possessions shortly after moving the couple, North has said.

“I want you to put that in,” North continued in court. “They’re pathetic!”

The man was escorted out of the courtroom. Parks did not look at him.

“Today’s pleas resolve the most significant guardianship exploitation case in Nevada’s history,” Attorney General Adam Laxalt said in a statement Monday.

Throughout the hearing, District Attorney Steve Wolfson sat in a back row of the gallery, silently observing.

“Guardians have a duty to protect their wards, not steal from them and destroy their lives,” Wolfson later said in a statement. “These individuals violated their duty and they will be punished for their crimes.”

Parks’ attorney, Anthony Goldstein, declined to comment after the hearing.

The three other people who entered Alford pleas were Parks’ business partner, Mark Simmons; her husband, Gary Neal Taylor; and her former attorney, Noel Simpson Palmer.

Simmons entered pleas to two counts of exploitation, one count of theft and one count of perjury. Taylor and Simpson Palmer each entered a plea to one count of exploitation. One of Simpson Palmer’s cases was dismissed.

“This is not judicial process,” North’s daughter, Julie Belshe, said as she walked out of court.

Belshe now works as a guardianship reform advocate. She said the last five years fighting for her parents, who now live with her, have been trying.

“This isn’t justice,” she said after the hearing, standing next to her father. “It’s a slap on the wrist. What kind of message is this sending?”

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Ex-Nevada guardian pleads guilty to exploitation, theft charges

See Also:
UPDATE: Private guardian April Parks behind bars in Las Vegas 

Family sees first victory in guardianship case

BREAKING: Private Guardian April Parks Found Guilty Of Fraud, Theft, And Conversion
 
Steve Miller: The Story of Elizabeth Indig 
 
Elderly couple fights guardianship system
 
The Vegas Voice: Guardianship, Part 3: NOW GET RESULTS!
 
Steve Miller: Jared Shafer's Clark County Family Court Lackeys Removed From All Guardianship Cases
 
Contact 13 Investigates: Guardian Gouging?
 
Steve Miller on the Removal of Nevada Private Guardian April Parks
 
Couple liberated from guardianship system
 
New Family Court Judge Puts Immediate Stop To Elder Abuse And Exploitation By For-Hire "Guardians" Jared Shafer And April Parks
 
Steve Miller: The Story of Elizabeth Indig

  Steve Miller: A Message From the Son-in-Law of an Exploited Ward of the Clark Co. (Nevada) Family Court
 
Boulder City police investigate guardianship cases
 
Steve Miller: Judge Steel Frees Three "Wards" From Exploitive Court Ordered Guardianship On Same Day
 
Dan Roberts, The Vegas Voice on Private Guardian April Parks: She Had the Dogs Killed
 
Families Caught up in Guardianship Losing Their Homes
 
Steve Miller: "Guardian" April Parks Home and Office Raided by Police and Nevada AG
 
Search warrants served as police investigate guardianship exploitation
  Contact 13: Judge in guardianship cases recuses herself
 
Guardianship Commission to ask for criminal investigations
 
Steve Miller: Embattled Private Guardian April Parks Censured For Exploiting The Elderly, Mastermind Jared Shafer Stays Under The Radar - For Now

Nurse accused of stealing drugs from nursing home

BULLITT COUNTY, Ky. — A nurse is accused of taking advantage of her job and elderly patients to fuel her drug habit, authorities said.

Laura Morrow, 36, worked at a nursing home in Mount Washington for just a few days before the staff became suspicious and called authorities.

An investigation by the Bullitt County Drug Task Force revealed Morrow sought hydrocodone, oxycodone, and OxyContin, the sheriff’s department said.

“She just started as (a registered nurse in November),” said Lt. Mike Murdoch of the Bullitt County Sheriff's Office.

One week into the job, Morrow’s new bosses at Green Meadows Health Care were already suspicious, Murdoch said. New on the job and the facility, Morrow insisted on distributing pills to patients on her own, authorities said.

“She said she didn’t need anybody going with her – she’d done it before, she knew what she was doing – is what she stated to them so they didn’t follow her around,” Murdoch said. “And they started noticing discrepancies the next day.”

Morrow allegedly stole 26 dosages of narcotics in five days by forging the names of nine different nurses and pocketing drugs she claimed to have dispensed, Murdoch said.

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Nurse accused of stealing drugs from nursing home