Police: Home Nurse Stole Thousands From Client, Took Beach Vacation
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WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP (KDKA) – A home health care nurse reportedly stole thousands of dollars from a man in her care and took a trip to the beach.
According to the criminal complaint, the victim noticed money was missing from his account in September 2017. A review of his bank account uncovered two checks made out to the suspect, Cathy Mack, 53, of Apollo, who was acting as his home nurse.
One of the checks was for $1,500, while the other was for $260. He also said he did not write these checks and did not give her permission to do so either.
Two more checks, for $225 and $250, were found during a search of his credit report. These checks were also not authorized by the victim.
The victim presented a letter from Mack which read, "Hey, I got an emergency phone call after I talked to you. I will bring the $250 in cash back to you."
The victim told police he had previously declined several requests from Mack to borrow money.
Bank surveillance video from the Apollo Trust Bank branch shows Mack cashing the checks. The video also shows Mack arriving and departing in a red Subaru station wagon. It was later determined the vehicle belonged to the victim and Mack had been using it without permission while he was out of town.
Mack's former employer, United Health Care, was then made aware of the allegations. When they confronted Mack, she refused to talk and quit.
Throughout the course of the investigation, police determined a credit card had also been opened in the victim's name. In all, $4,715 was charged to the card. Several of the transactions were traced to a resort in South Carolina.
A copy of the bill was sent to police, which showed Mack had checked into a room and used the card. It was also determined that Mack took the victim's car to South Carolina and used his E-ZPass along the way.
Police then found a post on Mack's Facebook page, which said, "I need a beach fix. Who's coming with me?"
Mack also allegedly used the victim's Sunoco gas card during the trip to South Carolina.
The victim told police that he noticed Mack was "very red and sun burnt" when she returned home.
Mack is facing a list of charges including, burglary, forgery, theft from a motor vehicle, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and identity theft.
She is free on bond and waived her hearing to take the charges to court. Her formal arraignment is set for Aug. 29.
KDKA stopped by Mack's Apollo home, but no one came to the door. The alleged victim is battling cancer and did not want to talk on camera.
