Photo: Suwanee Police Department
A Georgia caregiver is facing charges after she allegedly defrauded one of her patients to fund a Shein shopping spree.
According to The Root, 24-year-old Briauna Michelle Powell, a healthcare assistant at Visiting Angels, is facing multiple counts of ID fraud and elderly exploitation after authorities found a series of suspicious transactions over several months.
Powell was reportedly a caregiver for an 82-year-old woman who had dementia and Alzheimer's. According to police, the patient was moved from Visiting Angels to another senior living facility and assigned a power of attorney as her illness advanced. The power of attorney discovered a fraud alert from Truist for a $236.37 purchase from Shein made on the 82-year-old's Mastercard, police said.
An investigation into the charge led to the discovery of more fraudulent transactions on the patient's account. Between February 19 to March 6, police tracked six unauthorized purchases, including a $1000 bill from Lowe's, a car purchase, and rent payments. Authorities also determined there was an attempt to open a new account in the patient's name.
Police traced the transactions back to Powell, who is also accused of scamming two other patients. Police have issued a warrant for her arrest, but the suspect remains at large.
“I don’t know how she thought she’d get away with it. Maybe she thought, because they were elderly and they couldn’t care for themselves, so they wouldn’t notice. If you’re preying on the people that can’t take care of themselves, we take that seriously, and we want to make sure she’s held accountable,” Suwanee Police Capt. Robert Thompson said in a statement.
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