SANTA ROSA (BCN) — A self-employed Healdsburg caregiver pleaded no contest Thursday to stealing $25,000 from an 86-year-old woman with severe memory loss.
Andrew Raymond Ross, 47, will be sentenced to six months in jail and three years probation when he is sentenced July 28, Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch said.
Ross also will make full restitution to the victim and is prohibited from working as a caregiver in any capacity, Ravitch said.
Ross founded Creative Counseling for Elders and Families in 2005 and took the money between December 2014 and March 2015, according to Santa Rosa police.
He was a licensed clinical social worker and became a trustee of the victim’s checking account. He wrote himself checks and transferred money on line from the woman’s bank account to his personal checking account, Ravitch said.
Ross used the money to take his family on a trip to Mexico and pay his taxes, police said.
The bank looked into the transfers and notified police, Ravitch said.
A social worker with Adult Protective Services also informed police in March 2015 about the possible financial elder abuse case, police said.
“We are especially thankful in this case to the bank employees who reported the defendant’s suspicious activity,” Ravitch said.