The check belonged to a Villages resident. The handwriting belonged to a caretaker
A certified nursing assistant has had her license suspended by the Florida Department of Health after a fraud that victimized a resident of The Villages.
Officially, Crystal Beall of Tavares pleaded no contest to one count of fraudlennt use of personal identification information. The 33-year-old started three years’ probation in December. The health depasrtment put an emergency suspension order (ESO) on her license, which she has had since January 2015, on April 3.
Beall worked at The Villages Rehab & Nursing Center last July when a resident’s nephew, who had power of attorney, contacted Lady Lake police about a $700 check from on his aunt’s account to Beall.
As described in the probable cause affidavit, the resident didn’t remember writing the check. Her check registry backed up not remembering the check — the last check recorded was for $204.82.
More tellingly, the affidavit said, “The victim’s “signature also included her middle name, which the victim never uses.”
Also, the resident’s handwriting on the power of attorney papers and the check ledger “did not even closely resemble the handwriting used on the check.”
Later, when they got Beall’s handwriting, they found the penmanship “a close and reasonable match for the handwriting on the check.”
Before that, however, Beall, identified as one of the resident’s caretakers, replied to a police request to talk with: “Is this about the gift I was given?”
She insisted the resident heard about her car problems and other issues and had slipped a folded check into her pocket while admonishing Beall not to tell anyone about the check.
