Former NJ Assisted Living Facility Business Manager Sentenced for Stealing Nearly $250,000 from Elderly Resident
A former business manager for a New Jersey assisted living facility was recently sentenced to serve over two years in prison for stealing an estimated $237,000 from an elderly resident. The defendant previously pleaded guilty in a U.S. District Court to Count One of an indictment charging her with mail fraud.
According to court documents and statements, beginning in December 2016, the defendant agreed to help manage the resident’s financial affairs and pay for her care. She was given limited access to the resident’s checking account, although she had already fraudulently gained access to the resident’s credit card account and had secured several cards in her own name. She used those credit cards for personal expenditures that included things like luxury clothing, jewelry, automobiles, dental work, rent, and utilities. The defendant would pay off the credit card bills with checks she wrote on the resident’s checking account—all without the resident’s or her guardian’s permission.
Along with the prison term, the defendant was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution of $237,258.
Compliance Perspective
Failure by a facility to protect and manage the personal funds of residents by ensuring there are checks and balances in place that meet the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) guidelines and prevent any facility employee from fraudulently obtaining residents’ funds for personal gain/use may be viewed as a violation of residents’ rights and provision of substandard quality of care, in violation of federal and state regulations.
Discussion Points:
- Review policies and procedures regarding the facility’s fiduciary duty to protect and manage residents’ personal funds through the implementation of GAAP protocols that help prevent any employee from exploiting residents’ financial interests.
- Train staff about residents’ rights regarding misappropriation and/or exploitation of their personal possessions and financial resources. Training should also include protocols for maintaining a separation of duties regarding financial transactions involving residents’ personal funds.
- Periodically audit the accounts of residents to determine if there are any inappropriate financial transactions occurring with their personal funds.
