Westchester worker fraudulently withdrew funds belonging to a 95-year-old woman suffering from dementia

NY
New York Attorney General Letitia James announced this week the indictment of Chantel Chenault, 46, of Danbury, CT, on charges of grand theft and identity theft for stealing more than $300,000 from a 95-year-old woman. with dementia while in your care.
The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) alleges that from March 2017 to April 2022, while working as a social worker with Westchester County Adult Protective Services (APS), Chenault transferred more than $500,000 from the retirement accounts of the old woman to her checking account and took the woman to the bank to make withdrawals several times a month.
Chenault also regularly used the woman’s ATM card in casinos without her permission. She was arraigned in Westchester County Court today before Judge Maurice Williams. Her next court appearance is scheduled for June 15, 2023.
“Chantel Chenault used her position as a caretaker to steal from someone who trusted her and couldn’t protect herself from her. This betrayal hurt the victim and damaged the reputation of Westchester County Adult Protective Services,” said Attorney General James.
“There is nothing more insidious than exploiting the most vulnerable among us, especially when families place their trust in a social worker who they believe will treat their loved one with the respect and dignity they deserve,” said Suzanne Miles-Gustave , Esq., Acting Commissioner of the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS).
Chenault became the elderly woman’s social worker in 2017. As the woman’s physical and mental health declined, Chenault was responsible for hiring home health aides from an outside provider to provide care. She went on medical leave in March 2022, and the elderly woman’s new APS caseworker noted that there had been a substantial decrease in her assets in a matter of months.
Further investigation revealed that the woman’s bank and retirement accounts were completely empty, and as a result, she could no longer afford home health care.
A forensic audit of her bank accounts identified a pattern of suspicious withdrawals and transfers, and the use of her ATM card at times when she was homebound. In total, Chenault is alleged to have stolen more than $300,000 from the woman over a five-year period.
A Westchester County grand jury indicted Chenault on counts of second-degree grand theft, third-degree grand theft, first-degree identity theft and official misconduct.
Posted on March 30, 2023