Helena woman gets 5 years in prison after taking money from senior

Cory Ann Rucker

by Tyler Manning 

A Helena woman was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay more than $20,000 in restitution after taking thousands of dollars from an elderly woman's bank account. 

Cory Ann Rucker was sentenced by Judge Mike Menahan on Dec. 7, about six months after a jury found her guilty of felony elder abuse and felony theft of identity. An alternative charge of felony theft exceeding $17,000 was dismissed by the court. 

Menhan sentenced Rucker to 10 years with five suspended for both charges. The sentences are set to run concurrently. Menahan also ordered Rucker to pay nearly $20,000 in restitution to both the victim and the court for her crimes. 

Rucker was found guilty of withdrawing money from the account of her elderly victim between October 2019 and January 2020. Evidence presented during trial included bank statements, ATM withdrawals and video surveillance of Rucker taking money from the account of the victim. Capital One banking submitted a letter to the court speaking to the unusual withdrawal pattern during this timeframe.

Law enforcement determined that the majority of the withdrawals took place in or adjacent to casinos. None of the withdrawals took place in the bank holding the victim's money. 

The victim was reportedly in shock when she was informed that nearly $17,000 was missing from her account. She was unaware that Rucker had spent so much of her money. 

Rucker allegedly admitted to spending the victim's money at casinos and agreed it was not reasonable for her to do so. She also claimed she was unaware of just how much she spent. Rucker still entered a plea of not guilty and took the charges to trial, despite this alleged admission. 

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Helena woman gets 5 years in prison after taking money from senior

Helena woman found guilty of elder abuse, identity theft

by Tyler Manning

Cory Ann Rucker

A jury found a Helena woman guilty of elder abuse last week in Lewis and Clark County District Court.

Cory Ann Rucker was found guilty of felony exploitation of an older person and felony theft of identity July 20 in Judge Mike Menahan's court. Per jury instructions, the jury was able to find Rucker guilty of elder abuse or, in the alternative, felony theft for stealing over $17,500 from the victim.

During the trial, evidence included bank statements, ATM withdrawals, video evidence of Rucker withdrawing money from the victim's account, credit card statements and a letter from Capital One banking. Following the jury's guilty verdict, Menahan set Rucker's sentencing date for Oct. 13, 2021. 

Rucker's crimes took place between October 2019 and January 2020. According to court documents, Rucker had the victim living with her in Helena. Rucker was the power of attorney for the victim at the time.

Law enforcement determined that approximately $11,400 was withdrawn from ATMs in or adjacent to casinos. It was determined that none of the withdrawals took place at the bank holding the victim's money. 

Court documents stated the victim was visibly shocked when questioned about the missing $17,000. She told police she was unaware that Rucker had spent so much money from her account. 

Rucker allegedly admitted to spending the victim's money at casinos and agreed that it wasn't reasonable for her to do so. She also told police she was unaware just how much she had spent. 

Despite this alleged admission, Rucker entered a plea of not guilty and maintained that stance for over a year until her jury trial. 

Full Article & Source:

Helena woman found guilty of elder abuse, identity theft 

 

See Also: 

Helena woman charged with exploiting an elderly person