Separating Belief From Suspicion in Elder Abuse Investigations

by Jeff Ziesman and Andrew Adams

Norton Rose Fulbright’s Jeff Ziesman and Andrew Adams examine financial institutions’ obligations in cases of suspected elder financial exploitation.

The Bottom Line

• Financial institutions have a responsibility to intervene when they suspect their services are being used to facilitate elder financial exploitation.
• Deciding whether to place transaction holds or file suspicious activity reports requires evaluating the facts and using subjective and objective standards.
• The best defense for an institution is to carefully document investigative steps they have taken in cases of suspected elder financial exploitation.

Elder financial exploitation, or EFE, is on the rise, with vulnerable adults losing more than $28 billion annually, according to a recent AARP study. Whether these frauds are perpetrated by family members and acquaintances or professional criminals unknown to the victim, financial institutions may find themselves in trouble if they don’t respond appropriately to being caught in the middle of a fraud scheme.

Financial institutions providing services to, or holding accounts for, a vulnerable adult have a series of steps to consider when suspicious underlying circumstances involving the individual are present: placing a transaction hold on transactions within the account and/or disbursements from their accounts, and/or filing a suspicious activity report with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN.

The standard in many states for effecting a transaction hold is synonymous with whether the financial institution “reasonably believes,” after initiating an internal review, that the transaction will result in financial exploitation. If so, the institution may (but isn’t required to) place a hold on the transaction, pending further review and providing appropriate notification to specified state agencies.

A financial institution is required to file a SAR if it has a reasonable suspicion that a transaction (or attempted transaction) through the financial institution is an effort to facilitate criminal activity.

Placing a Hold

A “reasonable belief” is a term that connotes both objective and subjective components. A belief is “a state or habit of mind in which trust or confidence is placed in some person or thing”—or what a person subjectively believes. Reasonable, as a legal requirement, has long been identified as an objective standard.

The North American Securities Administrators Association Inc., created a “NASAA Model Act to Protect Vulnerable Adults From Financial Exploitation,” which has been adopted in various forms in nearly 40 states. The commentary to the Model Act states reasonable belief is “intended to be both a subjective and objective standard – i.e., a qualified individual must have a subjective belief in the existence of financial exploitation, and this belief must be objectively reasonable.”

This blended standard is intended to be flexible and capture instances of actual knowledge of exploitation—as well as instances in which the reviewer has a belief of exploitation, and a reasonable person armed with the same information would reach the same conclusion.

Further adding flexibility to the Model Act standard (and permitting a transaction hold under appropriate circumstances) is the inclusion of the word “may”—that is, “the requested [transaction] may result in financial exploitation of the eligible adult.” With this additional modifier, financial institutions only have to rationally believe that financial exploitation could take place.

A shorthand way to describe this standard is: “Do I believe, after a review has been commenced, that a transaction may be exploitive, and would a hypothetical co-worker agree with me?”

Although not necessarily explicitly embodied in cases or statutes, this operates similarly to a preponderance-of-the-evidence standard that exploitation could take place. Under those circumstances, a financial institution is permitted (but not required) to put a transaction hold in place.

This careful balancing makes sense when it’s understood that a vulnerable adult’s funds are at issue, and potentially being held for weeks. Many vulnerable adults rely on their retirement and investment accounts to meet periodic and other living expenses. However, there is a collective societal interest in putting measured, appropriate safeguards in place to protect the most vulnerable from theft, fraud, or other illegal activity.

One other significant safeguard for financial institutions is the availability of immunity for reporting suspected exploitation to state officials and putting transaction holds in place, as long as the financial institution acted in “good faith.”

In one of the few reported cases on the scope of statutes designed to protect vulnerable adults and financial institution responsibilities, a North Carolina federal district judge gave a broad interpretation to immunity provisions for financial institutions.

Given the overall purposes underlying these statutes and their paternalistic nature, financial institutions have broad space to make judgment calls and, at minimum, buy time to more fully and completely investigate the underlying facts.

In some circumstances, the investigation of the underlying facts and the consequent judgment call will result in no transaction hold (or anything else) taking place. Other instances may result in law enforcement and protective services’ involvement, potentially leading to legal proceedings.

Filing a SAR

In stark contrast, if a financial institution has a reasonable suspicion a transaction (or attempted transaction) is being used to facilitate criminal activity, it is required by law to file a SAR. This includes instances of EFE. As FinCEN has explained in the context of EFE, financial institutions “are uniquely situated to detect possible financial exploitation through their relationships with older customers.”

The reasonable suspicion prong for SAR-filing appears, on its face, to be an objective standard. Analogizing to the well-developed body of criminal law under Terry v. Ohio—which applies a similar standard in the context of brief law enforcement interaction with a suspect—such a legal threshold is lower than probable cause.

Along the same lines, reasonable suspicion requires something more than a mere hunch, but a showing of a reasonable belief isn’t required. Applying a rough percentage range for the reasonable suspicion standard, something like a 33% to 40% likelihood (and certainly well short of 51%) that criminal activity may be occurring seems generally reasonable.

In determining whether a reasonable suspicion is present, all surrounding facts and circumstances must be considered. This will consist of, among other things: the unique characteristics of the customer, the historical and known transaction history in the relevant accounts, other assets and income that the customer may have, and the customer’s risk tolerance and investment objectives.

While there can’t be a precise formula for finding reasonable suspicion because it is inherently fact-based, regulators have identified the following examples of red flags supporting a reasonable suspicion:

• Unusual types of account activity (for the customer, the type of account, or similarly situated customers)
• Customer appears distressed or fearful
• Caregiver shows unusual or excessive interest in the customer’s business or accounts

Enforcement cases against financial institutions for failing to file SARs have been prevalent in recent years. However, because there are a wide range of judgment calls in this space, enforcement cases typically involve instances in which financial institutions have done little in terms of either SAR filings or documenting the underlying investigative steps and reciting why a filing a SAR wasn’t appropriate.

At bottom, a SAR filing is mandatory in instances when the financial institution evaluates a set of facts and merely has a reasonable suspicion it is being used to facilitate criminal activity through the financial institution.

Suggested Steps

As noted above, the same set of facts of suspected EFE will, in many instances, necessitate both a transaction hold and a SAR filing. However, other instances may require one step or the other—or maybe neither step. A non-exhaustive list of suggested practices to consider in these circumstances include:

Immediately contacting the financial professional responsible for the accounts or investments. This should be among the first steps considered, unless the professional is suspected of being involved in the EFE. The financial professional likely will know the vulnerable adult well and be able to shed light on financial, personal, and physical situations.

Attempt to contact the customer. What the customer says (or doesn’t say), and how the customer reacts, may provide clues as to what is occurring in their personal and financial life.

Attempt to contact a trusted contact person or third party reasonably associated with the vulnerable adult. Many financial institutions have been encouraging customers to identify a trusted contact person, or TCP, for the account. Several states also permit contacting a third party reasonably associated with the vulnerable adult (in addition to or instead of the TCP) if there is a reasonable belief exploitation may be occurring. However, neither the TCP nor any other third party associated with the vulnerable adult should be contacted if they are suspected of being involved in the EFE.

Conduct a comprehensive review of the account activity and documents. Review the recent transactions giving rise to the concern against historical transaction data and the account’s investment objectives. An email review using the customer’s known email address may provide additional clues, such as other people who are suddenly being copied on the vulnerable adult’s communications.

Document investigative and evaluative steps considered and taken. A well-documented file will be the best shield against any potential regulatory or civil liability. A broad continuum of gray area exists for transaction holds and SAR filings. Documenting findings, as well as investigative steps taken and steps considered, will be the best support for whichever “reasonable” standard is at issue.

After these steps have been taken, stress-test the facts. The findings and steps should be discussed with at least one other person to assess whether the findings and conclusions are objectively supportable. If the conclusion is debatable, additional investigation may be necessary.

In the case of a transaction hold, once a hold is put in place, continued communication will remain key. Communication with the customer about the status of their funds and any communications with law enforcement or regulators should be frequent and well documented.

Outlook

EFE will keep rising given the continued aging of the US population, coupled with overall investment returns since 2010. The nature and types of EFE also will be dynamic as technology rapidly advances.

Financial institutions will continue to face facts in which EFE may be occurring. Investigation of the underlying facts will often result in concluding that both the “reasonable belief” and “reasonable suspicion” standards were or weren’t met, though in limited instances, one or the other actions may be appropriate. Above all, financial institutions should document their investigative steps and conclusions to make the decisions defensible down the road.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg Industry Group, Inc., the publisher of Bloomberg Law and Bloomberg Tax, or its owners.

Author Information

Jeff Ziesman is partner at Norton Rose Fulbright, assisting financial institutions with regulatory matters brought by the SEC, FinCEN, FINRA, and state securities regulators.

Andrew L. Adams is counsel at Norton Rose Fulbright, focusing his practice on securities litigation and regulatory investigations involving broker-dealers, registered investment advisers, international banks, insurance companies, and other financial services clients.

Full Article & Source:
Separating Belief From Suspicion in Elder Abuse Investigations

State Hold Laws and Elder Financial Exploitation Survey Report

This survey examines how banks are utilizing “hold” laws that allow banks to delay or hold transactions in suspected cases of elder exploitation.

To protect older customers from the growing threat of elder financial exploitation, banks have implemented protective measures including staff training, customer education, enhanced fraud investigations, and collaboration with law enforcement and adult protective services (APS).

States have also taken strong action — about half have “hold” laws that allow banks to delay disbursements or hold transactions when they suspect financial exploitation of an older or vulnerable person. 

To better understand how banks are utilizing these laws, the ABA Foundation conducted a national survey Sept. 9 – Oct. 8, 2024. Key findings include:

• Prevalence of Hold Laws: More than half (54.4%) of the respondents conduct business in states with hold laws. 
• Utilization of Hold Laws: Among these banks, half have used the laws to hold transactions, leveraging the time to contact a trusted family member or friend, collaborate with law enforcement or APS, or dissuade customers from transferring their money to a would-be thief.
• Call for Longer Hold Periods: Over half (52.4%) of respondents utilizing state hold laws believe longer hold periods are needed to accommodate thorough investigations and, when necessary, interventions. 
• Effectiveness: Nearly half (43%) of respondents utilizing state hold laws report that the laws have been useful in preventing elder financial exploitation.
• Support for Passage of Hold Laws: Almost 90% of respondents in states without hold laws said such a law would be beneficial. 

Download the report to view the full survey findings.

 

 

Full Article & Source:
State Hold Laws and Elder Financial Exploitation Survey Report

$27B Reported in Elder Financial Exploitation

From Washington Gorge Action Programs:

By Tammy Kaufman

Bingen/Goldendale, Washington (May 22, 2024) - The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) recently released an analysis based on Bank Secrecy Act reports that indicate in a one-year period, from 2022 to 2023, financial institutions reported roughly $27 billion in suspicious activity related to elder financial exploitation. The April 18, 2024 article from the American Bankers Association (ABA) Banking Journal noted that 80% of all suspicious activity reported by banks involved elder scams.

Elder Abuse Awareness Day is recognized annually worldwide on June 15, bringing attention to issues affecting this vulnerable population. Financial exploitation is one of many concerns surrounding elder abuse. Other common types include physical abuse, neglect, and abandonment. 

Over the past few years, financial exploitation has drawn a lot of attention as scammers target the senior population with telephone and computer scams that include using fear strategies, investment promises, IRS cons, and many other tactics. The day of awareness is an important reminder of the crucial role families and communities play in helping safeguard elders against physical, emotional, and financial abuse. 

Elder financial exploitation is illegal and considered to be the unauthorized or improper use of an older person’s funds, property, or assets. This common crime deprives many seniors of their lifelong hard-earned assets. Perpetrators are not only strangers but also can be family members, friends, neighbors, or caregivers.

The National Institute on Aging’s webpage has a current list of common scams that are targeting the elderly population, including:

•  Government impersonator scams, such as someone posing as a Medicare representative asking for account information

•  Fake prizes, sweepstakes, and lottery scams, in which you are asked to pay money or provide account information to claim winnings

•  Computer tech support scams, in which a scammer tells you that your computer has a problem and wants you to pay for support services to fix it

•  The grandparent scam, in which a caller pretends to be a grandchild or other relative in distress.

It is important to watch for red flags in order to prevent a loved one from being burdened by financial exploitation. The American Bankers Association webpage shares the following as tips to help prevent financial exploitation:

•  Shred receipts, bank statements, and unused credit card offers before throwing them away.

•  Lock up your checkbook, account statements, and other sensitive information when others will be in your home.

•  Regularly review your credit report. Never give personal information, including Social Security Number, account number, or other financial information, to anyone over the phone unless you initiated the call and trust the other party.

•  Never pay a fee or taxes to collect sweepstakes or lottery “winnings.”

•  Never rush into a financial decision. Ask for details in writing and get a second opinion.

•  Consult with a financial advisor or attorney before signing any document you don’t understand.

•  Get to know your banker and build a relationship with the people who handle your finances. They can look out for any suspicious activity related to your account.

•  Check references and credentials before hiring anyone. Don’t allow workers to have access to information about your finances.

•  Pay with credit cards instead of cash to keep a paper trail.

•  You have the right not to be threatened or intimidated. If you think someone close to you is trying to take control of your finances, call your local Adult Protective Services and tell someone at your bank.

•  Trust your instincts. Exploiters are often very skilled. They can be charming and forceful in their efforts to convince you to give up control of your finances. Don’t be fooled—if something doesn’t feel right, it may not be right. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

If you or someone you know is suffering from any form of Elder abuse, don’t hesitate to make a report to the Washington State Adult Protective Services intake line at 1-877-734-6277 or call the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833–372–8311. 

To contact a local advocate, please reach out to Programs for Peaceful Living at 509-493-2662 or go to http://wagap.org to learn more about assistance available throughout Klickitat County to support seniors and vulnerable populations.

More details on the FinCEN analysis can be found at https://www.fincen.gov/news/news- releases/fincen-issues-analysis-elder-financial-exploitation.

Full Article & Source:
$27B Reported in Elder Financial Exploitation

Former Citi VP in Chicago charged with elder fraud

Helen Caldwell, whose actions were spotlighted in an Injustice Watch investigation published by the Sun-Times, is charged with bilking $1.5 million by steering elderly banking clients to invest in her side deals producing slasher movies.

By  David Jackson

A former Chicago banking executive was charged Friday with swindling her elderly clients out of nearly $1.5 million by using her influence to persuade them to invest in her private side deals producing movies.

Helen Grace Caldwell, 58, a wealth adviser who until 2021 was a vice president in the South Michigan Avenue offices of Citibank, was charged with wire fraud by the U.S. attorney’s office in Chicago.

Contacted Friday, Caldwell’s attorney said she intends to plead guilty. 

“My client has taken responsibility and we’ve reached an agreement with the government as to a disposition,” attorney Steven Rosenberg said.

He would not discuss any details, including possible financial restitution or penalties.

Wire fraud carries a maximum prison sentence of up to 20 years.

Caldwell’s case was detailed in an Injustice Watch series also published by the Chicago Sun-Times in August that described gaping holes in Illinois’ safety net intended to thwart a skyrocketing number of fraud cases targeting the old and frail.

According to the charging documents filed Friday by acting U.S. Attorney Morris Pasqual, Caldwell persuaded her Citi clients to invest in horror movies being produced and promoted by her movie company, Canal Productions LLC. According to the charges, each would share in the profits. 

“In fact, as defendant knew, those representations were false because defendant intended to misappropriate, and did misappropriate, those proceeds for personal purposes,” the charging documents say.

Neither the victims nor Citi were named in the charging documents, which referred only to victims A, B, and C and bank A.

In separate federal actions late last year, Caldwell was barred from working in the securities industry by the U.S. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and prohibited from working in banking by the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

Also, Caldwell and Citi were sued by Cook County Public Guardian Charles Golbert, who accused the Fortune 500 company of ailing to adequately police Caldwell’s conflicts of interest.

Golbert’s office wants the banking giant to repay the savings lost by Priscilla Eddings, one of Caldwell’s older clients who is now living in a nursing home with dementia.

“I’m pleased that criminal charges have been brought against Caldwell,” Golbert said. ”Hopefully, the criminal charges will prod Citibank into repaying Ms. Eddings the money that their employee stole from her and the other victims.” 

Citibank and Citi Global — the banking and investment arms of Citi for which Caldwell worked as a “dual hat” employee — would not comment Friday.

In court filings, Citi lawyers have said the bank shouldn’t be held financially liable for Caldwell’s actions. 

According to internal government documents, Citi first reported Caldwell to the Adult Protective Services division of the Illinois Department on Aging in March 2022 — four months after Caldwell left her job there.

State officials didn’t take action because the client “was not being exploited by a family member, roommate, or caregiver,” Citi wrote in Cook County probate court documents.

Since publication of the Injustice Watch investigation, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a law to exempt the Department on Aging from investigating cases of frauds and criminal activity by strangers. The law shifts the burden of investigating such frauds to the Illinois attorney general’s office.

Several experts said Illinois’ new law, which took effect on Jan. 1, represents a step backward in fighting the growing problem of elder financial exploitation. 

The new law was written “to help certain people in the bureaucracy to do less work, to the detriment of the public,” McHenry County State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally said. “I don’t see it furthers the interests of any single person that might be victimized by this crime.”

Fraud against older Americans in investment schemes accounted for nearly one-third of $3.1 billion in elder financial exploitation nationwide last year, up from less than 10% just three years ago, according to FBI data. Reported losses from investment scams against older Americans have increased tenfold in the past three years, to nearly $1 billion in 2022.

Full Article & Source:
Former Citi VP in Chicago charged with elder fraud

Feds urge prison time for Argillite woman

 By Mary Jane Epling

ASHLAND The United States recommends a former nurse and care home owner to spend more than two years in federal prison for defrauding her elderly patients.

Donna Sue Glass, 52, of Argillite, the former owner and operator of Glass Family Care Home was indicted in December 2022 on seven counts of wire fraud after the United States alleged she swindled three patients out of nearly $100,000.

According to a sentencing memorandum filed in U.S. District Court, Glass became the guardian over two of her residences — giving her full access to their finances and later a third after she became a signor on their bank account.

Glass’s actions, according to a U.S. attorney, constitute a 26-month incarceration. “Elder financial exploitation is the type of cynical, insidious crime that must be met with a serious sentence of incarceration,” the document reads.

According to plea agreement documents from April, Glass admitted to operating with the intent to deceive.

Per case documents, Glass became a co-signor on an elderly resident’s account when a physical ailment left him unable to sign his own checks.

Court records indicate Glass depleted the man’s account and spent $73,251 “to which she was not entitled,” between April 2014 and April 2019.

The U.S. also alleged Glass charged the man $1,500 per month in rent for a shared 16-by-20-foot room, with no access to a private toilet, while using the patient’s additional funds for vacation, mortgage payments and monthly subscriptions to Sun Tan City.

“She housed more residents than state statute permitted. ... She squeezed residents into housing conditions that were inadequate at best — not providing a wall for a bathroom is humiliating,” Assistant United States Attorney Kathryn M. Dieruf wrote in reference to Glass’s actions.

Glass became guardian to a second patient in October 2014. She is accused of depleting the woman’s account by “unlawfully (stealing)” $14,299.

In the case of the second patient, Glass is accused of collecting rent from other residents, “commingling funds to the point of inextricability.”

After the account was “bankrupted,” Glass increased the woman’s rent well beyond her monthly income — abusing her role as both guardian and landlord, Dieruf wrote.

Glass remained the woman’s guardian after she was moved to a new facility and, per court documents, Glass neglected to pay the new facility.

According to court documents, Glass was given access to a third patient’s benefits and financial accounts and she continued to collect his Social Security benefits after he was moved from the Glass Family Care Home.

“The defendant’s residents were senior citizens whose mental and physical capacities had deteriorated to the point of needing the care of a family care home. The defendant took advantage of her residents’ vulnerabilities, lack of oversight and trust in her to use and abuse their bank accounts or outright steal their income,” Dieruf wrote.

Dieruf also asks for restitution in the case, requesting the judge to order Glass to pay the amount lost to each of the resident’s estates.

The prosecuting sentence memorandum says the Glass Family Care Home is currently listed for sale at $260,000 and requests that any proceeds of a sale should be applied toward payment to her victims.

Glass’s attorney, Michael Curtis, also filed a sentencing memorandum, requesting the judge sentence Glass to home incarceration.

Curtis wrote Glass “has been a nurse and ... had done an excellent job in caring for her patients.”

“She is an extremely passionate person who feels for the other people and her sole job was caring for those in need,” Curtis continues.

Dieruf seemingly responded to that line in the U.S. memorandum with: “She insists she only cared for the well-being of her residents. The facts of this case demonstrate otherwise.”

Curtis says Glass’s mistake was commingling money — confusing her fiduciary duties.

The defense requested Glass receive mental health treatment if she were to be incarcerated, “or if she is released on some alternative form of sentencing,” Curtis wrote.

Curtis wrote home incarceration and supervised release would “reflect the seriousness of the offense and likewise promote respect for the law and provide just punishment.”

Glass’s official sentence, which will be decided by a judge after taking the sentencing proposals from counsel into consideration, will occur on Aug 14.

Full Article & Source:
Feds urge prison time for Argillite woman

With promise of 'gold fortune,' Grand Island woman defrauds $474,123 from California man, police say

by Jeff Bahr

A 65-year-old Grand Island woman was arrested Wednesday following a California-based investigation into a case of elder financial exploitation.

Constance Reimers was charged Thursday in Hall County Court with conspiracy to commit a Class 2A felony and theft by deception totaling $5,000 or more. A warrant was issued for Reimers’ arrest on Tuesday.

Reimers

Her arrest was based on an investigation that was initiated by investigators from the FBI Elder Justice Task Force in San Diego County in California.

The investigation leads “the Hall County Sheriff’s Office to believe that this case has crossed into other surrounding communities in Nebraska and across state lines,” says a news release. “While some victims have been identified as a part of this investigation, we suspect that more financial victims exist. We hope that this arrest will empower victims of elder financial exploitation to come forward.”

Investigators believe that at least two victims in the case live in Nebraska, Hall County Chief Deputy Josh Berlie said Friday.

According to the affidavit, Reimers established a relationship with an Oceanside, California, man through the Zoosk dating site, as well as Google Hangouts and email. The relationship “quickly turned romantic,” and Reimers began to ask the man “to send her money for various reasons,” the affidavit says.

Those reasons included paying rent, helping with a financial burden caused by COVID-19 and “helping to pay 40 years of storage fees so that Reimers could inherit a gold fortune that she was entitled to.”

In total, the Oceanside man allegedly sent more than $474,123 to the Grand Island woman.

The affidavit alleges that Reimers and another individual “were part of a network of scammers associated with Nana Yaw Awuah Marfo, who resides in the United States but was born in Ghana.”

At Reimers’ arraignment Thursday, Hall County Court Judge John Rademacher set bond at $50,000 and scheduled a preliminary hearing for 10:30 a.m. Dec. 13.

Reimers was released on bond after posting 10% of the $50,000 amount.

Full Article & Source:
With promise of 'gold fortune,' Grand Island woman defrauds $474,123 from California man, police say

Northeast Ohio family warns of elder financial exploitation during the pandemic

In a 3News exclusive, investigator Rachel Polansky talks with a Northeast Ohio man who says his family was swindled out of almost one million dollars.

by Rachel Polansky

WILLOUGHBY, Ohio — The pandemic is isolating many elderly Americans -- as family members distance themselves, in an effort to keep everyone safe.

But that means these seniors are becoming easier targets for scammers.

In a 3News exclusive, investigator Rachel Polansky talks with a Northeast Ohio man who says his family was swindled out of almost one million dollars.

Ronnie's Story:

When Michael Pekar talks about his brother Ronnie, he focuses on the simpler, happier times.

Credit: Michael Pekar

Young Ronnie Pekar

“Mainly we went fishing, we bought a boat so we went boating,” said Michael Pekar. 

Sadly, the last three years have been anything but that.

“I've been running in circles trying to straighten out what this woman did,” said Pekar.

A few months before Ronnie died from cancer, Michael says a neighbor got involved with his brother's finances. Michael says she gained power of attorney and began draining Ronnie’s life savings.

Credit: Michael Pekar

Ronnie Pekar

“This was money my mother made. She made and she saved it for us, not for this woman. And this woman up and stole it,” said Pekar.

That's when Pekar visited attorney Frank Manning, who discovered the full extent of the damage.

“We stumbled upon and discovered a large sum of about $1.6 million had been transferred from him and his family names into other people's names,” said attorney Frank Manning.

Manning filed a civil complaint against the neighbor, and eventually recovered $700,000 dollars for the family, but he says almost $1 million of Ronnie's savings is gone for good.

Warning Signs:

How can you make sure something like this doesn't happen to one of your loved ones?

Manning says watch for warning signs. Those include:

-Isolation: If an elderly person is isolated or limited in their mobility, it makes them think differently. This can lower their guard and allow them to establish trust levels with people they would not normally interact with.

-New People in their Lives: Are new people suddenly interjecting themselves into the picture and giving advice on financial or legal matters? Are new folks paying their bills, or driving them to the bank, lawyer or financial adviser’s office? It could be a neighbor, niece, nephew or other family member. It may start as a genuine offer of help, but a sudden interest where there wasn’t before could be a red flag.

-Changes to Legal or Financial Documents: Sudden changes to legal or financial documents, or suddenly missing documents, are definite red flags. Documents could include estate documents, insurance policies, retirement accounts, etc. Making multiple unexplained trips to attorneys or financial advisers without notice is a warning sign. Or, switching advisers without consent because “Mary or Bob said we should switch” is a red flags.

-Encountering a Gatekeeper: If a new “friend”, “helpful” neighbor or long-lost relative comes into the picture and restricts access to an elderly relative or won’t allow you to speak to the family member without them being present, should raise a red flag.

-New Phone Numbers or Email Addresses: Red flags include suddenly changing or turning off cell phone numbers or email addresses, another person answering their phone or oddly-worded texts or email responses. This may indicate that someone else has access to them and is “managing” communications.

And don't forget to check in on your loved ones regularly, especially right now, because increased isolation often forces people to rely on others.

“Elderly people are more susceptible in general, but COVID-19 is a terrifying experience,” said Manning.

And, what the family says happened to Ronnie Pekar is not unique.

According to the CDC, about 1 in 10 adults over the age of 60 are abused, neglected or financially exploited.

“I don't think I'm the end of this and I don't think Ronnie is the end of this. I think she did it before and I think she's gonna do it again,” said Pekar.

 

Full Article & Source:

Northeast Ohio family warns of elder financial exploitation during the pandemic

Financial, Legal Advisors Scamming Elderly Has Become Big Business

By Nick Leiber

Terry Ann McIntosh’s financial nightmare began four years ago, soon after she hired a caregiver through a family services website. McIntosh, then 75 and in a wheelchair, had assumed that the young woman who eventually showed up at her San Mateo, Calif., home wouldn’t steal from her. She was wrong.

In October 2015, Meletofetofe Uhila began logging into McIntosh’s Bank of America account, using the older woman’s credentials. The first time, Uhila attempted to transfer $10,000 into her own account. The bank blocked it, requesting that McIntosh call in to verify her identity. Uhila called instead, pretending to be her.

Though Uhila failed the bank’s security questions, and McIntosh had never made a similar transfer in all the years she held the account, the bank allowed it to go through. Unaware, McIntosh continued to visit her branch every week, as she had done for the past 15 years. No bank employee ever mentioned the transaction.

Over the next nine months, Uhila made 44 additional transfers, ultimately stealing about $245,000 from McIntosh. Though Uhila was eventually caught and convicted, she had only $8,000 left to return to McIntosh. So McIntosh asked Bank of America for her money back. Despite all the seemingly bright red flags raised by Uhila’s conduct, the bank said no.

Uphill Battle

Tales such as McIntosh’s—of being hoodwinked by a criminal only to face an uphill battle to be made whole—are on the rise, consumer and legal experts warn. Already targeted by phone scammers and greedy relatives, elderly Americans have a “bull’s-eye” on their backs, one Iowa assistant attorney general who specializes in elder abuse cases said, adding that the problem is only getting worse.

And while financial institutions are becoming more responsive and incorporating more safeguards to protect against elder fraud and manipulation, America’s most vulnerable face another, more insidious threat. Increasingly, it’s the professionals—the lawyers, insurers and financial advisers that the elderly trust—who are the wolves in sheep’s clothing.

In 2017, financial institutions filed 63,500 suspicious activity reports tied to the exploitation of older adults, quadruple the amount reported four years earlier, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, for a total of $1.7 billion in attempted thefts and losses. That estimate, however, is a tiny fraction of the real total. The reports “may account for less than 2%” of actual incidents, the CFPB says. Estimates of total losses ranged as high as $36.5 billion, according to one financial services firm.

One in five older Americans is a victim of financial exploitation, said Jilenne Gunther, who heads the BankSafe initiative at the AARP’s Public Policy Institute, costing U.S. financial institutions $1 billion in deposits annually. The vast majority of such attempts to separate the elderly from their money, both legal and illegal, go unreported.

Shawna Reeves, director of elder-abuse prevention at the Institute on Aging in San Francisco, says few understand that such activity can involve professional firms and companies, including banks, financial advisers, insurers and law firms.

“This is big business, perpetrated by actors people think are legitimate,” said Reeves. According to social workers, prosecutors, and other officials across the country, common stratagems involve attempts to sell the elderly ill-advised annuities and reverse mortgages, as well as solar panel installations and access to veterans’ benefits.

‘Nonstop’ Complaints

At the Iowa attorney general’s consumer protection division, complaints about professionals manipulating elderly clients pour in “nonstop,” said Chantelle Smith, an assistant attorney general in Des Moines. They involve “any type of business you can imagine.”

When Investment News surveyed 591 financial advisers about elder fraud in 2017, it found that 62% said they have seen or suspected financial abuse of an older client at least once. Some 39% of them said the perpetrator was another financial professional—but more than half admitted they didn’t bother to report it.

It’s not just financial professionals doing the fleecing. Doug Chalgian, an attorney with the Michigan-based elder law firm Chalgian & Tripp, said some lawyers build a business model helping adult children take control of their parents’ assets. Others encourage older clients to make financial decisions that aren’t in their best interest.

“There’s a sleazy underbelly to elder law,” Chalgian said.

The consequences of such unethical behavior aren’t just financial. Elderly people who fall victim to financial wrongdoing are more likely to die prematurely, research shows. Losing one’s life savings, worrying about maintaining control over assets that remain or simply being embarrassed at having been taken all play a part, Smith said.

“Where do you go after you’ve been exploited by a professional you thought you could trust, and you are now at perhaps your most vulnerable state? Another ‘trusted’ professional?” Smith asked. “They die. It kills them.”

The night before Barbara Williams died in August 2015, she and her husband Tom decided to leave the bulk of their assets to a nonprofit serving the homeless near their Oroville, Calif., home.

Tom Williams had relied on his wife, a former bookkeeper, to handle their finances. Williams, then 78, called American Family Legal Services, the firm he thought had helped them with estate planning in the past, to update their trust.

Not long after, Victor Pantaleoni arrived at his home. An independent insurance agent, Pantaleoni quickly went about selling Williams on purchasing an annuity—one that, unlike the updated trust Williams sought, would earn Pantaleoni a $9,500 commission, according to a lawsuit Williams later filed in the Superior Court of California in Butte County. The agent had Williams sign a blank check and blank documents, ostensibly needed to modify the trust, according to Williams. Instead, Pantaleoni used them to move $100,000 of Williams’ money into a National Western Life Insurance Co. annuity, according to court filings.

Williams, who intended to use those savings for health-care expenses and emergencies, was left with only about $14,000 in his account. When he tried to cancel the annuity and get his money back, National Western didn’t respond. The company instead told Pantaleoni he had five days to “conserve” the annuity or he would lose his commission, according to court filings. Williams alleged that, as a result, Pantaleoni tricked him into signing a second annuity application. National Western subsequently reissued the annuity.

Williams tried a second time to get his money back. He called and wrote National Western, complaining about Pantaleoni. But instead of investigating, National Western slapped Williams with a surrender penalty of almost $15,000 and allowed Pantaleoni to hold onto his original commission, keeping him as an agent, according to the lawsuit. Though the insurer refunded the rest of his money, Williams had spent thousands of dollars on legal fees and other expenses related to his dealings with Pantaleoni. He sued both Pantaleoni and National Western in late 2017 for elder financial abuse, negligence and breach of fiduciary duty.

In April, a jury found National Western and Pantaleoni liable of elder financial abuse and negligence, and found Pantaleoni liable for fraud. It awarded Williams $3.1 million, declaring the insurer primarily responsible. The company appealed in September. Pantaleoni did not.

“Pantaleoni couldn’t have done what he did without the complicity of a company willing to turn a blind eye,” said Frank Fox, the attorney representing Williams.

This wasn’t the first time Pantaleoni was accused of improper behavior when working with seniors. In 2015, the California Department of Insurance filed a formal accusation against him, detailing his violation of insurance statutes in his dealings with a 74-year-old widow. The agency fined Pantaleoni and restricted his insurance license.

“I never did elder financial abuse and I never would,” said Pantaleoni, 62. However, in the case of Williams, he admitted he was negligent, in part because he didn’t have errors and omissions insurance, a type of liability policy, at the time. But he nevertheless disputed most of the other allegations in the lawsuit. “I did what the client wanted,” he said.

As for National Western, in 2010 the insurer settled a class action claiming it had misled seniors about penalties for withdrawing money from their annuities. National Western’s settlement included an accord with the California insurance commissioner requiring the company to make reforms in its sales, marketing and complaint procedures. The insurer denied any wrongdoing.

National Western, which uses thousands of independent agents to sell its insurance, had just two employees in its compliance department responsible for handling complaints at the time Williams tried to return the annuity, according to court documents. “Our independent agents are careful to ensure policyholders thoroughly understand the agreements they enter into when they purchase our annuity or life insurance products,” National Western’s chief legal officer, Rey Perez, said in an emailed statement.

Aggressive Strategies

When it comes to luring the elderly into a trap, some strategies are more aggressive than others. Earlier this year, a federal law enforcement officer outside Washington started to get glossy flyers at his home, inviting him to a free meal and a “retirement strategies workshop” at a local restaurant. “Expect to have a little fun and obtain some meaningful information with none of the usual financial double-talk,” one read.

By chance, the officer, who requested anonymity because he isn’t authorized to speak publicly, noticed that the retirement planner’s address matched that of an attorney he suspected was targeting the elderly. So on a sticky night in July, he dropped by the dinner, also hoping it might yield clues in a case of suspected elder fraud involving his now-deceased father. The dinner didn’t result in a breakthrough, but it did reveal how a business tries to persuade the elderly to invest in financial products they don’t need.

At an Italian restaurant in Virginia, more than a dozen elderly couples picked at their salads as the presenter asked them to fill out forms describing their assets and then complete worksheets while he extolled the virtues of annuities. “We can get you two to three times as much as a bank and keep you just as safe,” he said.

To the officer, the workshop shared the same traits as so-called trust mills, a term he used to describe schemes in which unscrupulous individuals try to sell seniors questionable investments under the guise of estate or retirement planning. He echoed a warning on the Minnesota attorney general’s website about such con artists: “Once he obtains your financial information, he will usually try to get you to buy an annuity or other insurance product. He may have several meetings with you before he reveals his true intentions: to sell you insurance.”

Kathryn Stebner, the lawyer for Terry Ann McIntosh, is a national expert on elder law. Given how her client’s account was methodically emptied, she said she can’t fathom how the bank missed what happened. “I don’t know how much plainer it could be,” she said.

After discovering what happened, McIntosh became deeply distressed, and not just for her own circumstances; she also needed her savings to support her disabled adult daughter. Last year, she sued Bank of America. As the trial approached this fall, the bank settled. Bank of America spokesman Andy Aldridge said the institution is “working with Ms. McIntosh to help her recover from the criminal actions of her caregiver.”

Detection Software

Financial institutions may have gotten the hint when it comes to making it harder to scam the elderly. According to Marti DeLiema, an assistant professor of research at the School of Social Work at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, more banks are investing in detection software and training. Executives, she said, “have really strong incentives, because the problem is only going to get worse.”

DeLiema, a consultant for major banks and broker-dealers, said financial institutions “need better communication across lines of business. For example, the brokerage side needs to talk to the banking side if they suspect a customer is at risk.” She added that banks also could benefit from a rule similar to what the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority put in place last year, allowing broker-dealers to pause a disbursement and investigate without worrying about clients suing them.

She said banks also lack the trusted contact form that broker-dealers are supposed to have clients fill out. “Banks need to do that,” said DeLiema. “Banks need another tool in their toolbox to protect us from ourselves.”

Smith, the Iowa assistant attorney general, started pursuing financial advisers, securities brokers and insurance agents for exploiting older people about two decades ago. She said that elder financial abuse is more than a legal issue. It’s societal.

Financial predators aren’t being prosecuted “in any significant number, relative to how many cases there are,” she explained. And when it comes to lawsuits, “most of them don’t go to court.” Meanwhile, perpetrators seek out and spend time with older people who are isolated and lonely. They know many of their targets won’t report what’s happening for fear of embarrassment or of having their children take control of their finances.

“They target, they stalk,” Smith said. “I tell all the older people I talk to: ‘You have a bull’s-eye on your back.'”

Smith said the only way to stem the rising tide of elder financial exploitation is to get family members, friends and community volunteers more involved in their lives. “The underlying issue here is isolation and loneliness, and a devaluing of older people in our communities,” she said. “It’s ageism.”

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Financial, Legal Advisors Scamming Elderly Has Become Big Business

Financial abuse against the elderly most often committed by those closest to them

Financial fraud against the elderly is most often perpetrated by those closest to the victims: family members, friends or other trusted individuals, according to a new survey.

While 68% of older investors believe that a stranger would be the likely perpetrator of financial exploitation against them, the reality is starkly different, according to Wells Fargo & Co., which released the results of its elder needs survey on Tuesday morning. Two-thirds of financial crimes against the elderly are committed by those who are closest to the victims, the survey found.

Nearly one in five Americans 65 and older have been impacted by elder financial abuse, and each year as much as $36.5 billion is lost to financial exploitation, criminal fraud and caregiver abuse, according to the survey.

The survey found that typical types of abuse include using ATM cards and stealing checks to withdraw money from the victim's accounts. Abuse by in-home care providers can also include keeping change from errands, paying bills that don't belong to the vulnerable adult, asking the elderly client to sign falsified time sheets, spending their work time on the phone and not doing what they are paid to do, according to the survey.

The survey, which was conducted by a third party, was based on interviews with 784 older Americans, ages 60 or older who had at least $25,000 in investible assets. The survey also included 798 adult children, ages 45 to 59 with at least $25,000 in investible assets, who communicate regularly with a parent.

Meanwhile, strangers have plenty of scams to trick elderly individuals into giving up money, personal information, or property, according to Wells Fargo.

Those include "government scams," "granny scams," "prize and sweepstakes fraud" and "sweetheart fraud."

In government scams, the scammers pose as government officials requiring their victims to wire cash or use prepaid debits or gift cards to pay bogus IRS tax bills. Or they may provide sham Medicare services at makeshift mobile clinics in order to bill insurance companies, according to Wells Fargo.

Playing on the emotions of grandparents, fraudsters "identify themselves as grandchildren calling or emailing about an emergency situation" and plead for money.

In prize and sweepstakes fraud, the victim will receive a fake telemarketing call and be informed he or she won a lottery or sweepstakes but must pay taxes on the jackpot before claiming the prize money.

And in sweetheart fraud, elders are conned into trusting a new friend that they meet in person or through social media with the false promise of love and companionship. The romantic partner then swindles them out of money and/or property before disappearing.

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Financial abuse against the elderly most often committed by those closest to them

Vera House: Money stolen from the elderly happens every day in CNY

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SYRACUSE (WSYR-TV) - Across the country, billions of dollars are lost annually to elder financial exploitation, according to Vera House, Inc. in Syracuse.

New York State Police are currently investigating a recent case of alleged elder financial exploitation.

Police say a Canastota couple is being charged with grand larceny. They're accused of scamming an East Syracuse man in his 80's and getting money from him over the course of a year.

Investigators say Kenneth Bennett, 58, was working as a handyman for the victim before they became friends. He then allegedly told the victim he was in trouble with the mafia and owed people a lot of money.

Police say Michelle Beck, 47, would call the victim pretending to be from the mafia and telling the victim they would hurt him, if he didn't give them money.

"Cases like this happen all the time in our community," said Jenny Ackley, a project coordinator for abuse in later life at Vera House. "It can be millions of dollars and we have had cases like that. We've had cases that are $100,000 and people lose their life-savings, lose their homes or it could be $1,000 but that is their life-savings and everything they have is now gone."

Ackley says 90 percent of these cases are at the hands of a family member or someone else who becomes close to the victim.

"Somebody who does things for that person and all of sudden they become reliant on them," Ackley said. "They trust them. Once that trust has been built that's when the abuse can start to happen."

In Central New York, she says for every one case called in -- 34 go unreported.

Vera House works on these cases daily alongside other agencies such as the Office for Aging, the NYS Attorney General's Office, Adult Protective Services and the Onondaga County District Attorney's Office.

"If people are concerned about somebody they know, it never hurts to make a phone call here," Ackley said. "Or get on the phone with that individual that you're concerned about and call together, help them through that process because there's all kinds of abuse."

Warning signs of elder financial exploitation:
-Sudden use of an ATM by the victim
-Large amounts of money withdrawn
-More checks made out to "cash"
-Someone new accompanying the victim to the bank

Resources:
-Vera House Inc. 24-Hour Crisis & Support Line: (315) 468-3260
-Adult Protective Services: (315) 435-2815
-Office for Aging: (315) 435-2362
-NYS Attorney General's Office: (315) 448-4800

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Vera House: Money stolen from the elderly happens every day in CNY

Scambuster: Elderly Woman Victim of Financial Exploitation

MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — Terry Graham is bed ridden. Doctors say a brain tumor started growing three months ago, but her family just found out. They’re also just finding out that she’s been the victim of elder abuse. Unfortunately, they believe one of her close friends is the suspect and has taken money out Graham’s account.

“There was $10,000 taken from Regions. Then that Monday she wrote a $3,000 check, then July 12 she went to the credit union and got $72,572,” says Graham’s daughter, Terry Lynch.

The bank told her it was a friend of her mother’s who had recently been added to the bank account.

They are telling me that she’s the one signing the checks but that’s all they’ll tell me at this point,” says Ginger Lynch.

This all happened while Graham was in the hospital. She added her friend to her bank account so that she could get help paying medical bills.

She got another shock after she got home. The keys to her house were gone, so they had to change the locks to get in. A filing cabinet was also missing—and with it her social security card, driver’s license, birth certificate and her will. Cash was missing as well as her prescription medications.

Graham’s daughter, Ginger says her mom’s mailing address had also been changed because they haven’t gotten mail in over a week. She now believes her mother’s friend had help from a family member.

“Unfortunately, what we see most frequently are family members taking advantage of other family members,” says Sgt. Keith Miller with Mobile County Sheriff’s Office.

Sgt. Keith Miller with Mobile County Sheriff’s Office says in cases like these, a family member should gain power of attorney.

“If they’re to the level, either physically or mentally that they need a full-time caregiver chances are you would want to accept that responsibility to handle their daily affairs, particularly where there’s a large amount of money or bank accounts, things of that nature,” says Miller.

And if you’re hiring someone to take care of your relative, you’ll want to screen them and their agency closely. Meanwhile, Ginger Lynch has filed reports and is working with the police on this case.

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Scambuster: Elderly Woman Victim of Financial Exploitation

Declaring War on Financial Abuse of Older People

Mariana Cooper

Amy A. Lecoq was a stay-at-home mother raising her young son and mourning the death of her mother. But when her grandmother reluctantly admitted five years ago that she had been swindled out of her life savings, Ms. Lecoq sprang into action.

She shed her home-centered life, first to push prosecutors to investigate and bring charges, and then, earlier this year, to become an activist, traveling around her home state of Washington to lecture and testify about the financial exploitation of older Americans. She has also become a lobbyist, exhorting state lawmakers to pass legislation that would toughen penalties for people who take financial advantage of vulnerable older people like her grandmother.

“When I tell our story, so many people tell me that, ‘Oh, that happened to my grandmother, my aunt or some other family member,’” Ms. Lecoq, 41, said in a telephone interview from her home in Camano Island, Wash. “But then they say they didn’t know it was a crime, or they didn’t know it could be reported or punished.”

Her own grandmother, Mariana Cooper, 87, whose financial exploitation was recounted in a 2015 New York Times article, was swindled by Janet Bauml, who had insinuated herself into her life and whom she had come to trust. Over time Ms. Cooper, a widow living by herself, gave more than $217,000 to Ms. Bauml, expecting to be paid back. When she sheepishly admitted to her granddaughter that she had been defrauded, Ms. Lecoq spent months calling law enforcement agents and prosecutors to help make a case for serious theft.

In late 2015, Ms. Bauml was sentenced to three and a half years in prison. After that, Ms. Lecoq said, she personally felt a calling to raise public awareness of such crimes.

“There needs to be a crime called, ‘theft from a vulnerable adult,’ so everyone knows what it is,” said Ms. Lecoq, who also works part-time for a Head Start program.

A number of states have laws like this on the books, but they vary widely. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, which tracks such laws, this type of financial abuse is an active topic in state capitals. Last year, 33 states, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, considered measures against the illegal or improper use of seniors’ money, property or assets, in addition to fraud or identity theft targeting the older people.

Some states have shored up their existing laws. Last year, Idaho revised its definition of neglect of vulnerable adults to include exploitation. Illinois extended the statute of limitations to seven years from three for prosecuting a person accused of taking financial advantage of an older person or a person with disabilities.

Also, last year, Alabama passed the Protection of Vulnerable Adults from Financial Exploitation Act, to add a layer of protection to existing laws by requiring brokers and investment advisers who believe a vulnerable adult is being exploited to notify the Human Resources Department and the Alabama Securities Commission.

The National Conference of State Legislatures keeps a scorecard of such laws, and, as it turns out, Washington is among about a dozen states that do not define financial exploitation of older people as a specific crime. Absent such a provision, it is more difficult, prosecutors say, to cobble together the pieces of evidence required to convict a wrongdoer, such as a financial audit or competency evaluation.

As the number of older, wealthier people grows, so does the number of people eager to prey on them. Occasionally, awareness of such misconduct is heightened by a notorious case like that of Brooke Astor, the New York heiress and socialite whose son was convicted of grand theft in 2009 in connection with her large fortune.

But financial exploitation routinely is overlooked and unreported, prosecutors say, because — unlike child abuse — there are no formal government-run systems for complaints and intervention.

Photo

After her grandmother was a victim of financial exploitation, Amy A. Lecoq worked with Roger Goodman, a Washington state legislator, to strengthen protections for vulnerable adults. Credit Matt Lutton for The New York Times

“There is a sense that this is a family matter, and we shouldn’t intrude,” said Edwin L. Walker, a deputy assistant in the federal Administration on Aging, of the low national priority such misdeeds often receive. “But we’re talking about a crime.”

Under the 2010 Elder Justice Act, the federal government is working to boost awareness of financial abuse and other crimes against older individuals, and to encourage more people to report and take legal action against the misuse of older people’s money.

Senator Susan Collins, Republican from Maine, has introduced legislation aimed at improving the reporting of fraud and teaching seniors to recognize the signs of exploitation. Ms. Collins, who heads the Senate Special Committee on Aging, called financial fraud against older Americans “a growing epidemic that costs seniors an estimated $2.9 billion annually.”

In recent years, the Justice Department has trained prosecutors to handle cases of abuse of older people and offered online training to law enforcement officials nationwide. Since most older people still visit banks, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has compiled a list of tips for bank tellers on how to identify and thwart suspicious financial transactions.

Still, it can be an uphill climb to get legislators to declare such financial exploitation a serious crime. Washington state lawmakers had been trying since 2015 to strengthen legal protections, but their efforts had failed.

Two months ago, Ms. Lecoq kicked off her advocacy campaign at Washington’s State Capitol in Olympia, recounting what had happened to her grandmother. Working with the AARP’s state chapter, she helped distribute 8,000 citizen petitions to legislators.

“The person who committed these crimes stole my grandma’s financial security for the remaining years of her life,” Ms. Lecoq told a crowded town hall in March in Kirkland, Wash., a Seattle suburb. “But she took more than money. She stole part of my grandma’s person, the part that was trusting, confident, healthy, independent and proud of herself.”

Because Ms. Cooper also lost her home as a result of the fraud, Ms. Lecoq said that she and her siblings had to sell the “accumulated memories of my grandma’s lifetime to fit her into a tiny apartment.”

Washington and other states without a specific financial exploitation crime on the books typically treat such swindles as ordinary theft — similar to grabbing someone’s purse on the street — and penalties are less severe. For example, the nine-felony count conviction of the woman who stole Ms. Cooper’s money drew a 43-month jail term, longer than the routine sentence because of the large amount of money stolen, but far less than the maximum sentence of 89 months the legislation that Ms. Lecoq is backing would stipulate.

Stiffer penalties are necessary to combat a growing drain on the savings of those 60 and over, according to the National Center for Elder Abuse, a federal clearinghouse. In 2015, in Washington state alone, there were nearly 8,000 complaints to adult protective services about financial exploitation, a more than 70 percent increase over 2010. And such crimes are likely to climb simply because the retiree population is growing.

Representative Roger Goodman, the Democratic state legislator in Washington who sponsored the legislation Ms. Lecoq is championing, also has pushed to increase penalties for neglect of the seniors, and to make it easier to bring charges and secure convictions for both neglect and financial abuse, which often go hand-in-hand.

“This legislation creates a uniform way of dealing with crimes that are currently being treated inconsistently,” Mr. Goodman said in an interview.

On Tuesday, the bill was passed by a unanimous vote. Mr. Goodman said he hopes the measure will result in giving “victims the justice they deserve, and making sure their abusers are held accountable for their crimes.”

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Declaring War on Financial Abuse of Older People