'Caretaker from Hell' Accused of Stealing from Woman on Her Deathbed

Caption: Latesha Miller, 37, of Chicago, faces numerous felonies after authorities said she financially exploited two DuPage County woman under her care. | DuPage County Sheriff

A caretaker is facing a raft of felonies after she was accused of stealing the identities of two DuPage County women — one a dying woman in hospice care — to open lines of credit and siphon money from their personal checking accounts into her own, the DuPage County State’s Attorney announced.

Latesha Miller, 37, of the 7300 block of South Wolcott Avenue, was charged with continuing a financial crimes enterprise, aggravated identity theft, financial exploitation of a person, financial institution fraud, forgery and theft.

Prosecutors alleged that while working as a certified nurse’s aide at the Spring Meadows senior living facility in Naperville, Miller stole an 86-year-old resident’s credit card and several checks in August 2013. The criminal complaint further accused Miller of using the elderly woman’s credit card to make personal purchases and made unauthorized deposits into her bank account using money from her patient’s checking account.

Miller is also said to have attempted to open up lines of credit using the 86-year-old woman’s personal information.

The scheme was uncovered by the elderly woman’s daughter, who noticed discrepancies in her mother’s bank account and notified authorities, prosecutors said.

Also, from Aug. 19 to Aug. 21, while working for a home health care agency, Miller allegedly stole two checks from a Winfield hospice patient and wrote them out to an acquaintance. The acquaintance cashed one of the checks in the amount of $499.50 and kept $200 for herself, and gave the remaining $299.50 to Miller, according to the criminal complaint.

The acquaintance also tried to cash a second check in the amount of $6,856, but by then the hospice patient’s account had been frozen. The hospice patient has since passed away, the state’s attorney’s office said.

Miller appeared in court on Thursday, where bail was set at $300,000, and is being held in lieu of $30,000 bond.

In addition to investigators and prosecutors, DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin thanked Spring Meadows for its cooperation throughout the investigation

“Our elderly and those who require special medical attention deserve not only our respect, but also whatever care, comfort and support they need to live comfortably,” Berlin said in a written statement. “The very idea that Ms. Miller thought that an elderly woman and a woman who was living her final days in her home on hospice care would be easy targets is revolting.”

Miller’s arraignment is scheduled for Sept. 23 in front of Judge Creswell at the DuPage County Courthouse in Wheaton.

Go check out our Facebook page.