ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
A financial adviser based in the Salinas area was recently accused of financial elder abuse. According to the Monterey County district attorney’s office, the defendant was charged with one count of felony financial elder abuse. The defendant in this case operates a business assisting people with the management of their money. Salinas elder abuse lawyers warn that senior citizens should be careful when entrusting their financial affairs to others.
In this case, the defendant was supposed to be providing reliable financial services to a senior citizen customer. She was responsible for making sure the senior citizen’s account was balanced and that the bills were paid in a timely manner. She was also allowed to write checks on the victim’s accounts. Included in the checks she was allowed to write were checks for her own salary. The defendant increased her pay for several months without permission. The unearned money that she is alleged to have taken by overpaying herself adds up to several thousand dollars.
According to the Deputy District Attorney, the family had tried to prevent this sort of thing from happening by hiring a professional to handle the victim’s finances. The family thought they had made the right move when they hired a professional to make sure that their family member’s bills were paid on time and that nobody was stealing from her. Much to their dismay, the defendant is alleged to have stolen from the senior citizen victim. Salinas elder abuse lawyers remind the public that professional fiduciaries are licensed by the California Department of Consumer Affairs and their status can be verified at www.fiduciary.ca.gov. The defendant in this case does not hold a license and the family may have hired somebody else to look after the finances of their loved one if they had known that she was not licensed.
If you think that you have witnessed or are the victim of elder abuse, or financial fraud then contact Evans Law Firm, Inc. at 415-441-8669 for a free and confidential consultation, or email us at info@evanslaw.com
