A longtime live-in caretaker was arrested Oct. 13 in Palm Beach and faces felony charges after police said she stole thousands of dollars from an elderly woman with dementia. Malgorzata Staniak faces charges including grand theft from a person 65 or older involving more than $10,000, criminal use of personal identification information and uttering a forged check, according to the arrest report.
The investigation started in April, when the woman’s grandson obtained power of attorney and reviewed her finances. He told police that Staniak had worked as his grandmother’s caretaker for about 15 years.
According to a probable cause affidavit, the grandson found 11 checks made out to Staniak, ranging from $1,000 to $10,000. He told police some looked suspicious because of the amounts, differences in handwriting and misspellings of his grandmother’s last name.
The woman entered hospice care May 6 and died May 29. Police said six checks totaling $22,000 were written to Staniak between May 8 and May 19, and bank records showed several were deposited into accounts linked to her.
Separately, the grandson reported unauthorized ATM withdrawals from another account. Surveillance footage showed a woman using a debit card at a Lake Worth ATM on May 22, and the grandson later identified her as Staniak, police said. Investigators said the checks, bank records and footage gave them probable cause to make the arrest.
