A caregiver from Ozark County who allegedly pressured her employer to add her name to a property deed and took money from another person without permission now faces felony charges.
Patricia A. Santos-Duvalier, 57, Dora, was initially charged with misdemeanor abuse of a disabled or vulnerable person, filed on Oct. 14 in Ozark County, in reference to a March 14 incident involving a woman with mental disability in Santos-Duvalier's care.
The victim, a 37-year-old woman, was admitted to Ozarks Healthcare after a fall, and an examination reportedly showed she had rapidly lost about 50 pounds, had bruises indicating possible abuse, tissue missing from her upper lip consistent with having had a blow to the face, and a broken nose.
Santos-Duvalier reportedly told hospital staff the woman had been hurt in a fall and that she had power of attorney over the victim, but changed her statement when asked for legal paperwork showing power of attorney.
Other inconsistencies were found when Santos-Duvalier was further questioned by West Plains police investigators and Department of Senior and Social Services employees, Ozark County Sheriff's Sgt. Seth Miller reported in court documents.
Miller added in his statement that emergency room doctors and nursing staff made written statements confirming the victim was frightened and would say "help me" to hospital staff. She was admitted to the hospital for failure to thrive and treatment of metabolic acidosis, or overproduction of acids by the body, according to court documents.
Santos-Duvalier was arrested on the misdemeanor charge and held without bond.
Court records pertaining to a later death investigation initiated by the Ozark County Sheriff's Department and further documented for prosecutors by Department of Health and Human Services (DHSS) investigator Bryan Brauer revealed the woman had been placed under emergency guardianship while at the hospital, then transferred April 3 to a West Plains nursing home for her own safety.
On June 12, court records show, she was returned to her home and to the care of Santos-Duvalier.
A request to have bond set at $10,000, filed Nov. 9 by her attorney D. Colin Young of West Plains, was taken under advisement, court records show. A court appearance for plea or trial setting is scheduled for Jan. 9 before 44th Judicial Associate Circuit Court Judge Raymond Gross.
However, on Dec. 12, two felony charges of financial exploitation of an elderly or disabled person were filed, also in Ozark County, with bond set at $25,000 each for a total of $50,000.
The felony cases were handled by DHSS Investigator Bryan Brauer, who reported on Oct. 12 the DHSS Office of Special Investigations learned of a death in Tecumseh that was being looked into by the Ozark County Sheriff's Department.
During the sheriff's department investigation, it was reported a woman who had been bedridden for the two years had hired Santos-Duvalier as a caregiver, and the victim who died also lived in the same house.
Deputies on the scene noted the house was infested with roaches and the bed the victim was in was soaked with urine and feces, and there were roaches crawling on the bed, so they contacted adult protective services.
The woman was then taken to Ozarks Healthcare, where she was treated for numerous bedsores believed to be caused by neglect. On Oct. 16, court documents show, Brauer spoke with the victim at the hospital and was told Santos-Duvalier had been paid between $860 and $900 a month for her care and an additional $1,000 a month for the other woman who lived there, who was disabled.
The victim also told Brauer the suspect threatened to stop providing care unless she added Santos-Duvalier's name to the deed of their house and land, and the victim did so out of fear there wouldn't be anyone to care for the two women.
Santos-Duvalier also reportedly told the victim that she had spent $38,000 of her own money on the two and wanted to be paid back. The victim told Brauer the two of them were assisted for about five hours a day by Santos-Duvalier, from about 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., then she was left in bed and the other woman was locked in a bedroom until the suspect returned the following day.
When questioned by Brauer, Santos-Duvalier stated she withdrew between $860 and $1,000 monthly as payment for the second victim's care, using the victim's debit card, and claimed she made purchases on her own credit card for items for the victim.
When asked about putting her name on the property deed, Santos-Duvalier said it was the victim's idea to do so because she was scared to be left alone, and the plan was for the property to be sold, and the difference between the sale price and what the suspect claimed to be owed would be used to buy a tiny house to put on Santos-Duvalier's property for the two victims to live in. Santos-Duvalier estimated the value of the property at $100,000, Brauer reported.
Brauer also filed a probable cause statement in the second charge of financial exploitation of an elderly or disabled person, stating the same day he spoke with Santos-Duvalier, a witness told him she was the recipient of the deceased victim's monthly social security payment of $1,129 and Santos-Duvalier would use the witness' debit card to withdraw $1,000 a month payment for the care of the victim.
During the months of April, May and June, however, while the victim was in the nursing home and had been assigned new guardianship, Santos-Duvalier allegedly continued to use the witness' debit card to withdraw a total of $2,060. The withdrawals had reportedly taken place each month shortly after when the social security payments were deposited, and the witness provided Brauer with two years of bank statements as evidence.
During those three months, Brauer added, Santos-Duvalier should have remitted the money to the nursing home because the victim was receiving Medicaid for a disability and living in a licensed facility.
She made an initial appearance for arraignment on those two cases Friday in Ozark County before Gross and is now scheduled for a bond reduction hearing this morning, also before Gross.
