A Pasco woman was arrested after deputies say she exploited a disabled veteran with dementia while she was working as a Certified Nursing Assistant.
The victim in the case is a disabled veteran who has been diagnosed with dementia and PTSD by a medical professional as early as 2017.
The victim is also an amputee and lives in an assisted living facility. Allyn Lopez, 38, reportedly befriended him while working as a certified nursing assistant at the facility.
On two separate occasions, Nov. 1, 2018 and May 25, 2019, the victim wrote a check to Lopez. One was for $2,000 and the other was for $4,000.
Deputies say the victim lacks the capacity to make any financial decisions and would be unable to make a determination to write the checks based on his mental diagnosis.
Lopez admitted to accepting and cashing the checks and knew that it was wrong, authorities say.
"For people to take advantage like that, that's just wrong," said Kenneth Vaughan, a fellow veteran who operates V.F.W. Post 4412 in Hudson.
She was a CNA at the victim's facility from October of 2016 to July of 2019 and should have known the victim's mental and physical limitations to make decisions, Pasco Sheriff's Office said.
She is charged with exploitation of an elderly/disabled person for less than $10K.
