ALPENA — An Alpena Township woman deeded a valuable piece of lakefront property to a stranger she hired to do some work on her home.

A Harrisville woman paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for fake car repairs suggested by a mechanic she trusted.

The guardian for several Presque Isle County residents was sentenced to four years and nine months behind bars after she robbed her clients of $200,000 to feed a gambling habit.

An Alcona County woman’s son wiping out her bank accounts. The police found $40,000 he hadn’t yet spent hidden behind a refrigerator in his garage.

In increasing numbers, experts say, people in what are supposed to be their golden years are robbed by people who are supposed to take care of them.

The Michigan State Police-Alpena Post launched seven fraud investigations of all kinds so far this year, including instances of older adults losing money to financial scams from strangers. The Alpena County Prosecutor’s Office reported one criminal case of older adult financial exploitation in the past year.

Statewide, State Police fraud investigations are down by about 35% from last year, Alpena Post Commander 1st Lt. John Grimshaw reported.

But that could be because financial exploitation of vulnerable older adults is one of the most underreported crimes in the country, according to the Michigan Attorney General’s Elder Abuse Task Force, with just one out of 12 of the estimated 73,000 cases a year reported.

Police are sometimes unsure how to treat vulnerable older adult exploitation. Some treat it as a felony. Some call it a civil offense.

“No, it’s a homicide,” said Scott Teter, head of both the Elder Abuse Task Force and Financial Crimes Division for the Attorney General’s Office. “You kill their dreams. You kill their future.”

‘AN UGLY, AWFUL THING’

In 2019, the state task force invited Michiganders to share their stories and tell the task force what needs to be fixed at town halls around the state.

People were ready to talk, Teter said.

The task force heard about a woman whose court-appointed guardian ordered her nursing home to cut off all contact with the woman’s family as retaliation over a disagreement over dentures.

They heard about guardians throwing their victim’s family photos, military medals, and other personal belongings in a dumpster.

They heard, too, about overworked guardians carrying caseloads of 900 clients, expected to look out for the wellbeing of each of them.

The task force developed 28 separate bills now before the Legislature that would, among other things, demand greater financial accountability from guardians, keep vulnerable adults from being taken from their homes, reduce caseloads for court-appointed guardians, and mandate reporting of suspected abuse.

Many prefer to believe the problem of older adult financial exploitation doesn’t exist, he said.

“It’s an ugly, awful thing,” said Teter. “People don’t want to look at it. But if we don’t talk about it, then the bad guys win.”

‘YOU CAN REPORT IT’

Most victims, even if they know the abuse is happening, won’t speak up for themselves, said Scott Stephenson, sheriff of Alcona County, where a third of the population is 65 or older.

They’re afraid of being abandoned or put in a nursing home. They’re afraid of hurting someone they love. Many times, they are controlled by the same tactics used in domestic violence, threatened with isolation from anyone who might be keeping an eye on them — friends, church members, Meals on Wheels deliveries.

Sometimes, it’s up to others to speak up. Often, they don’t.

Once, when the sheriff was following up on an exploitation complaint, a banker told Stephenson he’d suspected wrongdoing for years, but had done nothing to stop it.

Another woman was being taken to a local gas station to buy prepaid gift cards for people who were supposed to be taking care of her.

When he visited the gas station, Stephenson said, the workers knew the names of the woman and her swindlers. They knew what had been going on.

They just hadn’t said anything.

“If you think it’s going on and you can report it, you should,” Stephenson said.

Tell-tale symptoms make the victimized older adult easy to spot, Teter, of the state task force, said.

They stop doing the things they’ve been doing for years — stop going to church, showing up for weekly card games, answering the door.

They make unexpectedly large “gifts,” with extra money or extravagant possessions suddenly in the hands of the people taking care of them.

They make purchases not typical for a generation known for scrupulous coupon-clipping and thriftiness.

When people do report suspected elder abuse, Kim Reid is one of people there to help.

In her role as general manager for Adult Protective Services of northern Michigan, Reid has seen an increase in reports of financial exploitation of vulnerable adults in recent years.

Often, APS’s first step is simply to get family members talking to each other, helped by a mediator. Sometimes, that’s enough, she reported.

Once the person doing the stealing knows someone is watching them, the financial exploitation usually stops.

First, though, someone has to know about it.

“We’ve got to do the right thing,” Reid said. “We’ve got to call.”

Julie Riddle can be reached at 989-358-5693, jriddle@thealpenanews.com or on Twitter @jriddleX.

Learn more

To learn the warning signs of older adult financial exploitation, visit olderadultnestegg.com.

Report abuse

To report suspected financial exploitation of a vulnerable older adult, call Adult Protective Services at 855-444-3911.