A caregiver was sentenced in October, 2009 to five years in prison for stealing more than $315,000 from a 92-year-old Laguna Woods woman by using the victim's debit card and forging checks from her bank account.
Susana Duran, 38, of Tijuana, Mexico, pleaded guilty to financial elder abuse by a caregiver, plus a sentencing enhancement for fraud over $250,000.
Duran was also ordered to pay restitution.
The elderly victim will receive more than $50,000 immediately, including $34,000 in bank account assets and $17,000 in cash found on Duran when she was arrested, according to a new release from the Orange County District Attorney's Office.
Duran started working as an in-home caregiver for the 92-year-old victim in January 2008, commuting from her home in Mexico and working shifts up to 24 hours at a time.
She stole the victim's debit card and personal identification number to make multiple daily cash withdrawals of $500 at a time, and to make purchases such as gasoline and a computer, according to Deputy District Attorney Marc Labreche, of the Major Fraud Unit.
Duran also forged 24 checks to herself and her husband for more than $137,000, LaBreche said.
The thefts were uncovered when Duran called in sick one day and another caregiver showed the victim a bank statement which had arrived that day in the mail.
Duran was arrested on Oct. 5 by the Orange County Sheriff's Department when she arrived for work at the victim's home.
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