Former Camillus House worker charged with stealing disability money from veteran, 84
A former employee of Miami’s largest homeless shelter was charged Friday with stealing thousands of dollars in disability payments from an 84-year-old veteran through ATM withdrawals.
Prosecutors say Tashia Raymond-Stackhouse, 34, who helped those in need find housing at Miami’s Camillus House, told the veteran she’d hold onto a new ATM card he received to withdraw Supplemental Security Income funds, or federal assistance for those with disabilities. Then, prosecutors contend, Raymond-Stackhouse visited the ATM more than a dozen times and withdrew $14,000.
She’s now facing four felony counts that include exploitation of an elderly or disabled person of over $10,000, grand theft of more than $10,000, organized scheme to defraud of under $20,000 and fraudulent use of personal identification information. The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office is prosecuting Raymond-Stackhouse.
Camillus House Chief Executive Hilda M. Fernandez said the alleged theft was discovered some time between when Raymond-Stackhouse gave her two-week notice on Aug. 15 of last year and the end of the month. She said money was discovered missing after the military veteran was late on rent payments that he had always made on time using the federal assistance money.
Fernandez said her agency had begun a termination process for Raymond-Stackhouse because she was a no-show during the two-week period between her notice and when she would officially resign. Raymond-Stackhouse was hired in October 2020 and there is no indication she’d been stealing from anyone else.
“He thought this person was doing him a favor,” the CEO said. “I think he trusted her. It’s horrible she preyed on that trust.”
It’s unclear if the veteran will be reimbursed the money he lost.
State attorney spokesman Ed Griffith said Raymond-Stackhouse was in custody as of Friday morning, but there was no record of her being jailed on the Miami-Dade Corrections website by late morning. It also wasn’t clear if she had retained an attorney.
Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle called Camillus House “an important service provider.”
“It is always incredibly sad when someone sees the elderly, or the homeless, or our veterans as potentially exploitable targets,” she said.
This story was originally published June 23, 2023 at 10:46 AM.
