AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF ARREST WARRANT

Transcription

1 AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF ARREST WARRANT BEFORE ME,, Judge of the Circuit Court, in and for Miami-Dade County, Florida, personally appeared SENIOR INVESTIGATOR BONNIE SPENCER of the Florida Attorney General s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, who being first duly sworn, deposes and says that she has reason to believe that certain laws of the State of Florida have been violated, in particular: F.S (2)(c), Exploitation of an Elderly Person, and F.S (2)(c)1, Grand Theft, and that the facts tending to establish probable cause for this application are as follows: Your Affiant has been employed as a Senior Investigator with the Office of the Attorney General, Department of Legal Affairs, State of Florida, currently assigned to the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) since July 1, Prior to being with the MFCU, your Affiant was a Special Agent with the Auditor General, State of Florida, since October 3, During that time, and currently, your Affiant has worked as a criminal investigator. Your Affiant has worked on joint task force investigations with federal agencies which included the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, United States Department of Drug Enforcement Administration, United States Internal Revenue Service, United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, and multiple state, county, and city law enforcement and regulatory agencies. Your Affiant has attended numerous schools in criminal investigations and attended specialized training and seminars and has a Master s Degree in Criminal Justice. Medicaid is the state and federal partnership that provides health coverage for selected categories of people with low incomes. Its purpose is to improve the health of people who might otherwise go without medical care for themselves and their children. The MFCU exists to investigate and uncover Medicaid fraud that occurs in the State of Florida. The MFCU may investigate any criminal violations discovered during the course of those investigations, pursuant to Florida Statutes and (8)(a). The MFCU is also empowered to investigate abuse, neglect and exploitation of the elderly or Page 1 of 5

2 disabled. The MFCU is under the authority and supervision of the Office of the Attorney General of the State of Florida. INVESTIGATION This Affidavit details an investigation by the MFCU into the exploitation and theft from a resident and a prospective resident of Grand Court Lakes, Inc., an assisted living facility, located at 280 Sierra Drive, Miami, Miami-Dade county, Florida. As an assisted living facility, Grand Court Lakes is tasked with providing appropriate services for elderly persons and disabled adults, including housing, meals, and activities of daily living or functions for self-care, including ambulation, bathing, dressing, eating, grooming, and other similar tasks. Grand Court Lakes is enrolled as a Florida Medicaid service provider. The exploitation and theft was perpetrated on the two victims by LISSETTE E. MARQUEZ, an employee at Grand Court Lakes. She is the subject of this probable cause affidavit. This case was predicated on a complaint made by the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) to the MFCU on or about May 27, The complaint alleged that MARQUEZ had stolen a check which was written to victim J.S., and deposited it into MARQUEZ s account. Your Affiant s investigation revealed that victim J.S. is a 77-year-old man who suffers from speech and ambulation difficulties, and other infirmities of aging as manifested by advanced age to the extent that his ability to provide adequately for his own care and protection is impaired. J.S. is an elderly person as defined by Florida Statutes (5). Sworn statements taken by your Affiant show that J.S. was in the process of moving into Grand Court Lakes on or about February 18, He was assisted in the move by MARQUEZ, who at the time was employed by Grand Court Lakes in patient marketing. Her job was to promote Grand Court Lakes so as to induce new residents to move to the facility, as well as to assist them in filling out the residency applications and associated paperwork. Part of MARQUEZ s job was also to receive the security deposit payment from new and prospective residents. In this regard, J.S. anticipated receiving a deposit Page 2 of 5

3 refund check of $1, from Century Village, where he previously resided. This money was going to serve as J.S. s deposit payment to Grand Court Lakes. Around August 2004, J.S. inquired of employees at both Grand Court Lakes and Century Village as to the whereabouts of his deposit money. Sworn statements taken by your Affiant from employees at these two facilities revealed that on or about April 8, 2004, Century Village issued a check payable to J.S. in the amount of $1, as refund of his deposit. In furtherance of the investigation, your Affiant obtained MARQUEZ s bank records which show that the check in question was deposited into her personal account at Florida Savings Bank on April 14, MARQUEZ is the sole authorized signatory for her account. When shown a copy of the Century Village check deposited into MARQUEZ s account, J.S. advised your Affiant, under oath, that he had never seen the check and the signature on the back was not his. J.S. further advised your Affiant that he never gave MARQUEZ the check and that he never authorized or gave permission to MARQUEZ to cash the check for him or deposit the check into her account. As part of the investigation, your Affiant uncovered an additional victim, E.D., a 50- year-old man. E.D. advised your Affiant, under oath, that he telephoned Grand Court Lakes in the spring of 2004, after being given their business card at the Veteran s Administration Hospital. On June 4, 2004, E.D. met with MARQUEZ in her office at Grand Court Lakes and filled out an application for residency. As part of the process to move into Grand Court Lakes, E.D. gave MARQUEZ a cash deposit payment of $600.00, for which he received a signed receipt from MARQUEZ. On June 17, 2004, MARQUEZ was terminated from Grand Court Lakes. Interviews with Grand Court Lakes employees revealed MARQUEZ did not submit the $ cash deposit payment from E.D. to Grand Court Lakes. Neither Grand Court Lakes or E.D. gave permission to MARQUEZ to keep the $ cash deposit payment. SUMMARY Based upon the totality of the circumstances, your Affiant has probable cause to Page 3 of 5

4 believe and does believe that on or about April 14, 2004, LISSETTE E. MARQUEZ did commit the offenses of Exploitation of an Elderly Person, by knowingly, by deception or intimidation, obtaining or using, or endeavoring to obtain or use, J.S. s funds, assets, or property with the intent to temporarily or permanently deprive J.S., an elderly person, of the use, benefit, or possession of the funds, assets, or property, or to benefit someone other than J.S., of funds, assets or property valued at less than $20,000, in violation of Florida Statutes (2)(c); and Grand Theft, by knowingly obtaining or using, or endeavoring to obtain or to use, the property of J.S. with intent to, either temporarily or permanently, deprive J.S. of a right to the property or a benefit from the property, or appropriate the property to her own use or to the use of any person not entitled to the use of the property, valued at $300 or more, but less than $5,000, in violation of Florida Statutes (2)(c)1. Your Affiant also has probable cause to believe and does believe that on or about June 4, 2004, LISSETTE E. MARQUEZ did commit the offense of Grand Theft, by knowingly obtaining or using, or endeavoring to obtain or to use, the property of E.D. with intent to, either temporarily or permanently, deprive E.D. of a right to the property or a benefit from the property, or appropriate the property to her own use or to the use of any person not entitled to the use of the property, valued at $300 or more, but less than $5,000, in violation of Florida Statutes (2)(c)1, and against the peace and dignity of the State of Florida. WHEREFORE, your Affiant prays that an Arrest Warrant be issued commanding the Sheriffs of the State of Florida, all and singular, their Deputies, the Commissioner of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, any of his duly constituted agents, the Attorney General s Director of Medicaid Fraud and his duly appointed Law Enforcement Investigators and all Florida police officers with the proper and necessary assistance, to arrest LISSETTE E. MARQUEZ. Page 4 of 5

5 INVESTIGATOR BONNIE SPENCER, AFFIANT Sworn to and subscribed before me this day of, CIRCUIT JUDGE IN AND FOR MIAMI-DADE COUNTY Page 5 of 5