A longtime home health aide allegedly made about $26,000 in fraudulent charges on a patient’s debit cards.
Shaquana Lyle, of Irvington, Essex County, is accused of using two debit cards belonging to the 90-year-old victim to rack up the bills, according to a four-month investigation led by Detective Shayne Dugan.
The victim and his daughter first alerted police about the fraudulent transactions in April, according to the affidavit of probable cause obtained by BreakingAC.
His daughter helped file the report “due to (the victim’s) declining mental capability,” the affidavit reads.
The fraudulent charges included Lyft trips and bank withdraws, which were caught on surveillance footage, Dugan wrote.
Lyle’s Lyft account led the investigation to a gmail account under Ginger Napalm. A search of emails sent there included transactions that matched the victim’s bank statements.
The company that assigned Lyle to the Brigantine woman was not named, but police said they did fully cooperate with the investigation.
Lyle has been a licensed homemaker/home health aide in the state since Sept. 27, 2019, state records show.
She is now charged with two counts each of credit-card theft, fraudulent use of credit cards and theft. She is not jailed.
Dugan’s findings also have been forwarded to the Office of the Attorney General for a review of potential action against Lyle’s license.
Anyone with further information is asked to call Dugan at (609) 266-7600, ext. 273 or email at sdugan@brigantinebeachnj.com.
Brigantine police also urge any residents who think they or a loved one has been a victim of elder fraud, theft or other crimes, to call police at (609) 266-7414 to file a police report.
