Southern Indiana caretaker accused of neglecting elderly man

CLARK COUNTY, Ind. — A Southern Indiana woman is accused of neglecting the elderly man for whom she was responsible.

Court records said Fay Gohl, 55, was a live-in caretaker who is accused of stealing more than $37,000 from the elderly man.

"It was her responsibility to provide for him and to provide care to him that was he was dependent upon," Clark County Prosecutor Jeremy Mull said.

Mull said the 80-year-old man was partially paralyzed and relied on Gohl for help.

"There was neglect of him that was occurring that involved him not having the proper care taken of him, the proper hygiene-type issues," Mull said.

A probable cause affidavit said Gohl left the man in his soiled bed for hours without changing his urine-soaked clothes.

Investigators believe the neglect had been going on for about a year.

Gohl is also accused of signing the man's name on checks she wrote to herself and her family members, leaving his bills unpaid.

"Over and over I have seen individuals take advantage of the trust that they have in those situations," Mull said.

Over the last three years, Mull said his office has seen an increase in the number of elderly abuse cases it's prosecuted.

He said they hired an additional investigator about two years ago to help.

Since July 1, 2017, the Clark County Adult Protective Services unit has received about 700 calls for neglect, exploitation and physical or financial abuse of a dependent adult, according to an investigator from the unit.

The calls come from four counties in Southern Indiana.

"We are investigating more of those cases and we are anticipating filing more criminal charges against individuals who engage in this behavior," Mull said.

A judge set Gohl's bond at $7,500.

She's scheduled to be back in court in April.

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Southern Indiana caretaker accused of neglecting elderly man

Two indicted for murder of elderly man

(Editor’s Note: Charges filed against the defendants are subject to change or be dismissed by the State. The indictment of a person by a grand jury or otherwise is an accusation only and that person is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.)
 
A Coweta County Grand Jury indicted two people for allegedly murdering an elderly man in a home in the 100 block of Brandy Lane.

Jonathan Lee Barber and Tiffany Dawn Fountain were each charged with one count of felony murder, one count of neglect to an elderly person and one count of exploitation to an elderly person, according to the indictment.

The pair reportedly deprived Rollis Nobel Bowman, 76, “... of care and sustenance that jeopardized his health between April and May of 2017,” the document read.

The indictment said Barber and Fountain also improperly used Noble’s financial resources between September of 2016 and May of 2017.

Barber and Fountain will be arraigned in Coweta County Superior Court on Feb. 26.

According to the Clerk of Courts office, Barber and three other people were also indicted in 2013 on an aggravated assault charge for allegedly attempting to rob someone at gunpoint.

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Two indicted for murder of elderly man

Tonight on Marti Oakley's T. S. Radio: Abolishing Probate - What are your rights?

5:00 pm PST … 6:00 pm MST … 7:00 pm CST … 8:00 pm EST
Join Marti Oakley, Luanne Fleming and Robin Austin as we host Brian Kinter (Judicial Accountability Movement) Chris Hallet and Lotus Justice in a lively discussion on ideas for ending the the tyranny of family, probate and other unconstitutional administrative tribunals. We are being bought, sold traded and robbed by these government sanctioned rackets that operate under the pretense of fictional laws, color of law, and a thoroughly corrupted judicial system that is destroying the families of America.

Please tune in for an informative and heated debate on the disastrous effects of treating human beings as chattel property.

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Guilderland judge and second lawyer accused of stealing $4 million from estates

Richard J. Sherwood

GUILDERLAND — A Guilderland town justice and another attorney were arrested Friday on felony charges for allegedly stealing about $4 million from trust funds connected to the estates of three sisters, including one who was married to a deceased General Electric Co. executive.

Town Justice Richard J. Sherwood, 57, and attorney Thomas K. Lagan, 59, are business associates who are accused of devising a scheme to steal the money that originated from the estate of Walter Bruggeman, the former head of Global Nuclear Energy at General Electric.

Bruggeman graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy and died in 2009 with about $20 million in his estate. He and his wife, Pauline, who died in 2011, were noted Capital Region philanthropists who gave millions of dollars to local charities and churches.

Sherwood and Lagan, who provided estate planning and financial advice to the couple since at least 2006, both were arrested Friday morning after an investigation by the state Attorney General's office, the U.S. Attorney's office and the FBI. They are accused of diverting about $4 million in trust fund money into accounts they controlled. The money was intended to be donated to charities, according to court records.

Sherwood is a Democrat who had been a town attorney in Guilderland for 14 years before he was elected town justice in 2013. He ran unsuccessfully for Albany County Surrogate Court judge in 2014, and had been active in the community for many years in Guilderland, including heading Little League baseball programs.

Lagan, an attorney since 1986, is also a financial advisor and former Capital Region resident who now lives near Cooperstown, where he owns numerous properties. Lagan previously worked for Ayco Co. in Albany.

Investigators separately escorted both men, each handcuffed, into Albany City Court on Friday afternoon. They were arraigned before Judge Gary F. Stiglmeier on a six-count felony information charging them with grand larceny, scheme to defraud and criminal possession of stolen property. Stiglmeier released them both on their own recognizance and they left court without speaking.

Sherwood and Lagan had provided estate planning and financial and legal advice to Bruggeman and his wife Pauline, as well as her sister, Anne Urban. The Bruggemans created a $4.2 million family trust intended to provide for Anne Urban and Pauline’s other sister, Julia Rentz of Ohio, upon the death of Pauline Bruggeman.

The complaint alleges Sherwood and Lagan diverted more than $4 million from at least two estates to accounts they controlled. In one instance, more than $1 million in stolen funds were used to fund the Empire Capital Trust, an account that Lagan and Sherwood set up for their benefit, according to the complaint.

The $4 million that was allegedly stolen was supposed to be given to at least six Capital Region charities, which were not identified in the court filings.

Authorities raided Sherwood's law office off Washington Avenue Extension and interviewed him there on Wednesday.

Sherwood had been a partner at the firm of Mazzotta Sherwood and Vagianelis on Washington Square in Albany. A woman who answered the phone at the firm Friday said Sherwood no longer worked there. His name was recently removed from the firm's website.

Sherwood is a former vice chairman of the Albany County Airport Authority and a former chairman of the Albany County Ethics Commission. Earlier in his career, he was a law clerk to the state Supreme Court Justice Daniel H. Prior, Jr., and also had been a clerk with the U.S. Attorney’s office in Albany.

Sherwood, who specializes in estate planning and elder law, was represented at his arraignment by attorney William J. Dreyer of Albany. Lagan was accompanied by Ryan Miosek, an attorney from Cooperstown.

Investigators confronted Sherwood at his former law firm on Wednesday, according to court records, and he allegedly made admissions that "the scheme, including the wording of the trusts, was devised by Lagan but that he, Sherwood, drafted the documents in order to effectuate it," according to a criminal complaint filed in Albany City Court.

“We have zero tolerance for those who try to game the system and violate the public trust in order to line their own pockets," Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said in a statement issued following Friday's arrests.

Dreyer told the Attorney General's office that Sherwood will voluntarily take a leave of absence from his position as town justice while the case is pending. The state Constitution authorizes the Court of Appeals to suspend a judge who is charged with a felony or a crime of "moral turpitude," but it remained unclear late Friday if the court would intervene.

In 2008, Sherwood's conduct as town attorney in Guilderland came under scrutiny by the Town Board after he recommended a property tax reduction for property owned by a legal associate. Sherwood recommended a $540,500 assessment reduction on the property owned by a counsel at another one of Sherwood's former law firms without disclosing his connection.

Sherwood also advised the town in 2008 to approve a settlement in a lawsuit challenging the $3.22 million assessment on the Walgreens drug store at 2061 Western Ave. The pharmacy said the property was worth $2.68 million, and Sherwood agreed with that figure, according to town records.

Sherwood did not tell the five-member board that the chief executive of the company that co-owned the property was also a counsel for the former Albany law firm of Segel, Goldman, Mazzotta & Siegel, where Sherwood was employed at the time.

An earlier version of this story listed the wrong day that investigators raided Richard Sherwood's law office. That took place on Wednesday, Feb. 21.

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Guilderland judge and second lawyer accused of stealing $4 million from estates

Congress passes legislation to protect veterans from financial scams

Rep. Matt Cartwright

WILKES-BARRE — The U.S. Senate last week passed by unanimous consent the Veterans Care Financial Protection Act — a bipartisan bill introduced by several legislators, including U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright.

The legislation seeks to crack down on scam artists who are diverting federal funds from the Veterans Affairs (VA) Aid and Attendance program intended to support low-income and older veterans who require assisted care. The Aid and Attendance (A&A) benefit helps pay for assisted living or in-home personal care for veterans who qualify for a VA pension, and are housebound or require the aid and attendance of another person.

Cartwright, D-Moosic, said scam artists have targeted veterans, charging them fees for obtaining the benefit even though the application process is free. He said some scammers even take control of the veteran’s assets and move them into an irrevocable trust or an annuity, which the veteran often cannot access again for many years, and may disqualify the veteran from other assistance, like Medicaid.

“It’s our responsibility to protect our nation’s heroes and ensure they receive their earned benefits,” Cartwright said in a news release. “The A&A benefit is crucial for veterans who need help with in-home care or assisted living. Unfortunately, predatory scam artists exploit veterans by turning the well-deserved A&A benefit into a financial nightmare.”

Cartwright said he was “thrilled” the Senate passed the bipartisan, commonsense proposal to safeguard veterans from the scams.

The act would:

• Direct the VA Secretary to post an online warning to veterans on the VA’s website related to dishonest, predatory, or otherwise unlawful practices in the Aid and Attendance program.

• Direct the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to complete a study on the financial exploitation of veterans eligible for the Aid and Attendance program, including an analysis of the standards used by federal and state agencies to protect these and other vulnerable populations from financial exploitation, and any gaps in efforts to address these exploitation issues.

• Require the GAO to submit a preliminary report to Congress on the study of financial exploitation of veterans within 12 months, and submit the final report within 18 months.

The bill now heads to the president for his signature.

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Congress passes legislation to protect veterans from financial scams

Man found guilty of exploiting 78-year-old Springfield woman in $300,000 scheme

A jury found a man guilty Friday of financial exploiting an elderly Springfield woman.

After a two-day trial in Greene County, the jury deliberated for about four hours before deciding Howard Roberts, 75, was guilty of a Class A felony for convincing the woman to invest more than $300,000 in his supplement business.

Roberts will be sentenced at a future hearing. He faces a possible life sentence.

Authorities brought the charge against Roberts in February 2016, accusing him of taking advantage of a then-78-year-old woman with bipolar disorder.

Roberts maintained his innocence throughout the court proceedings, claiming the woman freely decided to invest in his company, Maximum Performance, and she was involved in the business operations.

Maximum Performance was involved in making supplements for horses and human athletes.

Prosecutors say the company was based in Kentucky and was not registered to sell stock in Missouri, so Roberts broke the law when he sold the woman $250,000 worth of stock.

Roberts' defense attorney Adam Woody argued at trial that Roberts was not an expert in business law, but he tried to do everything right.

Woody said he was shocked by the jury's decision.

"The state did a good job presenting their evidence," Woody said. "We just certainly did not believe there was enough evidence there to find Mr. Roberts guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. He tried to do things the right way during this stock purchase agreement."

In addition to the stock purchase, the woman also bought a truck and horse trailers for the company, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors say Roberts and the woman were friends in the 1970s and reconnected in late 2013 after Roberts was divorced and the woman's husband died.

Roberts eventually moved into the victim's east Springfield home and invited his ex-wife to move in as well, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors say Roberts tried to gain control over the woman's finances.

Investigators got involved in the case after the victim's family and friends expressed concerns and the bank noticed some irregular activity on her account.

The jury was not able to reach a unanimous decision after closing arguments on Thursday, but the jurors returned Friday morning and found Roberts guilty.

Woody said he plans to file motions asking for Roberts to be acquitted or get a new trial.

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Man found guilty of exploiting 78-year-old Springfield woman in $300,000 scheme

Justice Department Coordinates Nationwide Elder Fraud Sweep of More Than 250 Defendants

Attorney General Jeff Sessions and law enforcement partners announced today the largest coordinated sweep of elder fraud cases in history.   The cases involve more than two hundred and fifty defendants from around the globe who victimized more than a million Americans, most of whom were elderly.  The cases include criminal, civil, and forfeiture actions across more than 50 federal districts.  Of the defendants, 200 were charged criminally.  In each case, offenders engaged in financial schemes that targeted or largely affected seniors.  In total, the charged elder fraud schemes caused losses of more than half a billion dollars.  The Department coordinated its announcement with the FTC and state Attorneys General, who independently filed numerous cases targeting elder frauds within the sweep period.

“The Justice Department and its partners are taking unprecedented, coordinated action to protect elderly Americans from financial threats, both foreign and domestic,” said Attorney General Sessions.  “Today’s actions send a clear message:  we will hold perpetrators of elder fraud schemes accountable wherever they are.  When criminals steal the hard-earned life savings of older Americans, we will respond with all the tools at the Department’s disposal – criminal prosecutions to punish offenders, civil injunctions to shut the schemes down, and asset forfeiture to take back ill-gotten gains.  Today is only the beginning.  I have directed Department prosecutors to coordinate with both domestic law enforcement partners and foreign counterparts to stop these criminals from exploiting our seniors.”

The actions charged a variety of fraud schemes, ranging from mass mailing, telemarketing and investment frauds to individual incidences of identity theft and theft by guardians.  A number of cases involved transnational criminal organizations that defrauded hundreds of thousands of elderly victims, while others involved a single relative or fiduciary who took advantage of an individual victim.  The schemes charged in these cases caused losses to more than a million victims.

"Winners. That’s what so many of the people who received these solicitations in the mail thought they were. But they’re not. They are victims (link is external) of scams that Postal Inspectors have seen and investigated for decades. In fact, some of the same operators we encountered 20 years ago are back. But so are we. Yesterday, Postal Inspectors around the country executed search warrants on 12 locations that some of these same operators used to run their scams. We’re letting the American public know – and especially our vulnerable older Americans – that Postal Inspectors are working hard to protect them and ensure their confidence in the U.S. Mail,” said Chief Postal Inspector Cottrell.

“Over the last year, the FBI has initiated more than 200 financial crimes cases involving elderly victims who were devastated financially, emotionally, mentally and physically. Picking up the pieces of these fraud schemes can be equally as traumatizing for the caregivers of these elderly victims,” said Acting Deputy Director Bowdich.  “The FBI reminds seniors and their caregivers to be vigilant. If any person believes they are the victim of, or have knowledge of fraud involving an elderly person, regardless of the loss amount, they should report it to the FBI.”

Actions against mass-mailing fraud industry
As part of the initiative, the Department’s Consumer Protection Branch, working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and others, brought numerous cases this past week in a coordinated strike against more than 43 mass-mailing fraud operators, including criminal charges against six individuals.  In addition, law enforcement agents executed 14 premises search warrants from Las Vegas to south Florida, served numerous asset seizure warrants, and coordinated with the Vancouver Police in Canada, who executed over 20 warrants, including search warrants on business premises.

“The defendants targeted elderly and vulnerable consumers both in the United States and abroad, using U.S. addresses and the U.S. mails to try to legitimize their fraudulent schemes,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Richard P. Donoghue.  “They sold false promises of life-changing prizes that never came true.  We will pursue the perpetrators of these mail schemes wherever they are located, and hold them accountable.”

These recently filed cases particularly targeted transnational criminal actors who collectively defrauded at least a million victims out of hundreds of millions of dollars.  Indeed, just one of the schemes prosecuted criminally by the Consumer Protection Branch operated from 14 foreign countries to cost American victims more than $30 million.  Click here for map showing a transnational, single fraud scheme.

Mass-mailing fraud inflicts hundreds of millions of dollars in losses to elderly U.S. victims each year.  Department prosecutors and U.S. Postal Inspectors have taken a comprehensive approach to combatting this fraud, disrupting and prosecuting individuals who manage the schemes, artists who draft the fraudulent solicitations, list brokers who supply victim lists, and individuals who collect victim payments. Click here for fact-sheet with cases on mass-mailing fraud.

Actions against other elder fraud schemes
Prosecutors across the country from the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, the Consumer Protection Branch and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices have heeded the call to focus resources on elder fraud cases.  Over 50 U.S. Attorney’s Offices and Department Components filed elder fraud cases in the last year.  A list of Elder Fraud cases is provided on this interactive map.
Some examples of the elder financial exploitation prosecuted by the Department include:

• “Lottery phone scams,” in which callers convince seniors that a large fee or taxes must be paid before one can receive lottery winnings;
• “Grandparent scams,” which convince seniors that their grandchildren have been arrested and need bail money;
• “Romance scams,” which lull victims to believe that their online paramour needs funds for a U.S. visit or some other purpose;
• “IRS imposter schemes,” which defraud victims by posing as IRS agents and claiming that victims owe back taxes;
• “Guardianship schemes,” which siphon seniors’ financial resources into the bank accounts of deceitful relatives or guardians.

Many of these cases illustrate how an elderly American can lose his or her life savings to a duplicitous relative, guardian, or stranger who gains the victim’s trust.  The devastating effects these cases have on victims and their families, both financially and psychologically, make prosecuting elder fraud a key Department priority.

Public education
The Department has partnered with Senior Corps, a national service program administered by the federal agency the Corporation for National and Community Service, to educate seniors and prevent further victimization. The Senior Corps program engages more than 245,000 older adults in intensive service each year, who in turn, serve more than 840,000 additional seniors, including 332,000 veterans.

Using its vast network operating in more than 30,000 locations, Senior Corps volunteers will communicate about elder fraud to potential victims across the country and will use their skills, knowledge and experience to educate their peers and caregivers about the most prolific types of schemes and how to avoid them. Click here for information on Senior Corps’ efforts to reduce elder fraud.

Coordination with foreign law enforcement
Exceptional assistance from foreign law enforcement partners amplified the effectiveness of the Department’s initiative.  The sweep announced today benefited greatly from the work of the International Mass-Marketing Fraud Working Group (IMMFWG), a network of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies from Australia, Belgium, Canada, Europol, the Netherlands, Nigeria, Norway, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States.  The IMMFWG is co-chaired by the U.S. Department of Justice and FTC, and law enforcement in the United Kingdom, and serves as a model for international cooperation against specific threats that endanger the financial well-being of each member country’s residents.  Attorney General Sessions expressed gratitude for the outstanding efforts of the working group, including law enforcement action taken as part of the sweep by the Vancouver Police Department in Canada to halt mass mailing schemes that defrauded hundreds of thousands of elderly victims worldwide.

Elder fraud complaints
Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP.  The Department of Justice provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office of Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.

Source:
Justice Department Coordinates Nationwide Elder Fraud Sweep of More Than 250 Defendants

‘Predator of the Elderly:’ Unlicensed contractor behind bars, latest victims in Pinellas County

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office is calling Richard J. Niger a “predator of the elderly.”

Investigators accuse the unlicensed contractor of collecting money for remodeling projects, doing shoddy work or not finishing work and then disappearing.

“He’s not going to get away with it,” said PCSO spokesman Dan Difrancesco. “Folks like this that are predators, especially the ones that are preying on the elderly, we’re going to go after them. We’re going to catch them and we’re going to put them in jail.”

Niger was arrested Monday after investigators say he left Harry Agoado and his wife, Leta Bazo, with unfinished projects all over their home. The couple has been without a working kitchen since November.

The couple paid Niger a down payment of $5,000 but were sent subcontractors that did poor work.

Bazo said Niger gained their trust and even called her “grandma.”

“He said all the right things and said he was going to correct everything and everything would be perfect,” Bazo said.

Niger has been busted for unlicensed work before. He was arrested in October and charged with exploitation of a 90-year-old woman. He even spent time in prison from 2005 to 2008 for exploitation of the elderly and grand theft of the elderly.

Niger faces 20 charges, including 13 felonies.

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‘Predator of the Elderly:’ Unlicensed contractor behind bars, latest victims in Pinellas County

52-year-old Woman Arrested For Fraud And Elderly Exploitation Charges

Cathy Britton

A 52-year-old woman who offered to assist her 67-year-old disabled neighbor with her finances, but instead took advantage of her, has been arrested on a warrant from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

The investigation into Cathy Britton’s scheme began in September of 2017, when Citizen’s Bank and Trust notified PCSO about fraudulent activity on the victim’s bank account. The victim had been given $4,000.00 following the death of her boyfriend, and in September of 2015, Britton agreed to help the other woman manage her finances. Instead, she depleted the woman’s funds. The victim suffers from cerebral palsy, and does not know how to write checks.

Detectives found twenty checks written out to Britton from the victim’s account, for a total of $5,354.27. Britton had also been added to the victim’s savings account in January 2016. The balance of the account at that time was nearly $16,000.00, but it dwindled each month until September of 2017 when the balance stood at $70.35.

In May of 2016, Britton purchased an air conditioning system for $4,554.00 using money from the victim’s account. Britton acknowledged this to the detective, saying that she was willing to pay the woman back.

The victim told investigators that she did ask for Britton’s help managing her finances, but never authorized her to write checks or purchase an air conditioner.

“The victim reached out for help after her boyfriend died, and rather than seeing the opportunity to do something good, Cathy Britton did the exact opposite—she stole thousands of dollars from the woman instead. How someone could do something like this is just baffling.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff

After deputies obtained a warrant for her arrest, Britton was located and arrested in Marion County, Florida on Thursday, February 8, 2017. She will be transported back to Polk County.

She is charged with 20 counts of Forgery (F-3), 20 counts of Uttering a False Instrument (F-3), Grand Theft (F-3), Use/Possession of ID of Another (F-3), Exploitation of the Elderly (F-3). Her prior criminal history includes two convictions for theft in Ohio.

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52-year-old Woman Arrested For Fraud And Elderly Exploitation Charges