ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
Caregiver Arrested For Theft Of Jewelry
Over $70,000 In Stolen Jewelry Suspected
Remedies For Seniors And Their Families
Any time a caregiver or other stranger enters a senior’s home, there is a risk of financial elder abuse. Cash, checks, and credit cards may be stolen, and silver, jewelry and other valuable items may disappear as well. If the senior is bedridden or confined to a wheelchair in one part of their home, dishonest caregivers may have time to hunt in other rooms of the house for valuable items. Any taking of a senior’s property, or any assistance in that taking is a crime and grounds for civil liability of the person doing the taking and anyone assisting him or her. California Penal Code § 368 and Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 15610.30 (definition of financial elder abuse). California broadly defines what constitutes financial elder or dependent adult abuse:
(a) “Financial abuse” of an elder or dependent adult occurs when a person or entity does any of the following:
(1) Takes, secretes, appropriates, obtains, or retains real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult for a wrongful use or with intent to defraud, or both.
(2) Assists in taking, secreting, appropriating, obtaining, or retaining real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult for a wrongful use or with intent to defraud, or both.
(3) Takes, secretes, appropriates, obtains, or retains, or assists in taking, secreting, appropriating, obtaining, or retaining, real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult by undue influence, as defined in Section 15610.70.
If you or a loved one has been the victim of financial elder abuse by a caregiver or other person in San Francisco or anywhere throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, call us today at (415)441-8669. We will pursue all persons responsible for a senior’s injury. Our toll-free number is 1-888-50EVANS (888-503-8267).
Caregiver Arrested For Jewelry Heist
In one reported case,[1] a caregiver has been arrested and accused of stealing more than $70,000 in jewelry from two elderly women. One of the victims was a 79-year-old woman who hired the caregiver to assist her in her home as she recovered from hip surgery. Police say while the caregiver was in the woman’s home, she stole several items of jewelry. Police say the caregiver can be seen pawning the stolen jewelry on surveillance camera footage from the pawn shop where she reportedly pawned $20,000 worth of jewelry for $871. Investigators then determined that the caregiver may have stolen $50,000 in jewelry from another senior for whom she also acted as a caregiver. The caregiver had been placed in the two elderly women’s homes by a care agency who fired her after the two complaints came in in a period of just two weeks. Charges are still pending and an investigation regarding other potential victims is ongoing.
Remedies For Victims
Any senior, like the victims in the reported case, is vulnerable to theft when strangers are working in his or her home as caregivers or doing any other kind of work. Before you allow any stranger to work in an older loved one’s home, do a background check on the person, even if they are coming through an agency. If your older loved one has in-home assistance of any kind make sure their credit and debit cards, jewelry, cash and other valuables are in a safe place away from reach. If a senior has any cards that they never use, destroy them and alert the relevant bank or credit card company that the card is discontinued. Never give a caregiver a credit card or ATM card to shop or get cash for a senior. Keep financial information, bank account numbers and Social Security numbers away from a caregiver’s or other stranger’s glance. Never, ever grant a power of attorney to a caregiver. Visit your older loved one as regularly as you can to see firsthand how they are doing. Accompany older loved ones whenever they go shopping or go to the bank or have any sort of meeting about financial matters. Most important of all, if you suspect anything wrong, do something about it right away.
Contact Us
Ingrid M. Evans represents elder and dependent adults throughout the San Francisco Bay Area who are victims of any kind of financial exploitation or other abuse. Ingrid can be reached at (415) 441-8669 or TOLL FREE 1-888-80EVANS (888-503-8267), or email us at <a href=”mailto:info@evanslaw.com”>info@evanslaw.com</a>.
[1] Evans Law Firm, Inc. was not involved in the reported case in any way.
