MIAMI – A man stands accused of stealing from his 95-year-old mother to the point that she was about to be evicted from her rental apartment in Miami-Dade County, according to prosecutors.
Investigators found that the widow paid all her bills until Manuel Diaz gained access to her bank account, and wiped her out of about $57,000, according to the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office.
“It is always inconceivably sad when a son, or a daughter, or another family member sees an elderly relative as an exploitable target. “Too many of our older residents are vulnerable to exploitation,” State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement.
Before Diaz, 72, of Hialeah, accessed his mother’s account, only she and her stepson who lives in Arizona, had access, according to prosecutors. Her two biological sons were estranged.
The victim’s 92-year-old husband, whom she had been married to for four decades, fell at the apartment complex where they lived together and died.
A lawsuit claiming his death was due to a lack of “adequate” railing at the complex resulted in a $155,000 settlement, which netted the widow more than $57,000 after all outstanding bills were settled.
“The woman, who now lived alone in the rented apartment, was self-sufficient, independent, and ambulatory, performing her normal activities of daily living,” a statement from the State Attorney’s Office said. “Although she used a walker for ambulation, she remained cognitively lucid and clearly managed her own finances without assistance.”
That was when Hernandez took “an interest in her,” persuaded her to give him access to her bank account since he was a ”blood relative,” and took all of the money from March to August, according to prosecutors.
The State Attorney’s Office reported finding the widow emergency housing before she was evicted and charging Diaz with exploitation of an elderly/disabled person, grand theft, organized scheme to defraud, and unlawful use of a two-way communications device.
Fernandez Rundle said it’s difficult for victims to admit that a relative has exploited them and to report it.
Fernandez Rundle said in this case Diaz spent his mother’s money on personal expenses including jewelry, clothes, and restaurants.
“When she mentioned this to a lot of her friends, they suggested she call our office,” Fernandez Rundle said.
Fernandez Rundle added that the unit that deals with these cases has identified hundreds of potential victims in Miami-Dade County and filed over 75 cases. To report a case of elderly exploitation, call the Florida Abuse Hotline at 1-800-962-2873.