Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Woman accused in nursing home theft

A Gurdon woman has been charged with felony theft of property in Clark County Circuit Court after funds were found to be missing from her employer in Arkadelphia.

According to documents on file in the Clark County Circuit Clerks office, Dawn L. Dillard, 38, of 42 McMillan Road, has been charged for the theft of $4,194.91 from accounts at Golden Ventures/Beverly Health Care in Arkadelphia. The charge is a class B felony and is punishable by not less than five nor more than 10 years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections or a fine not to exceed $15,000, or both.

According to an affidavit prepared by Arkadelphia Police Department Sgt. Harley Hillery, the police department was contacted in April after a random check of residents personal accounts turned up the possible misuse of funds. The accounts are a part of one checking account into which residents personal money is deposited and then used for their needs. A record is kept as to how much money each resident has in the account.

As business office manager, Dillard was responsible for the account, the affidavit states, but it was common practice to have two signatures on a check before money was spent.

The affidavit indicates that during the random check of the account it was noted that one patients account had been more active than usual. Because receipts detailing each purchase must be kept on file, a check of the patients room was made, and none of the purchased items could be found.

When the items could not be found, the facilitys corporate manager reportedly confronted the employees who had co-signed the checks with Dillard. These employees said Dillard told them the items were needed by a resident, and they signed off on the transaction because it seemed to be legitimate.

During the course of an internal investigation, the affidavit states that items such as recliners and large amounts of clothing had been purchased through the accounts by unauthorized purchases. Some checks were also written for cash.

The court documents further state that video surveillance was obtained from Regions Bank in Arkadelphia that shows Dillard cashing checks that are recorded in the checkbook as "clothes, recliners, Eye Clinic and various discount stores."

Other items were purchased for residents, but duplicate cash withdrawals were found and listed as payment for the same items previously purchased.

According to the affidavit, the facilitys internal audit found fraud on three patient accounts totaling $2,082.64; $340; and $500. A trust fund was also found to be missing $556, operating petty cash was missing $237 and an unauthorized American Express charge was found in the amount of $819.27.

Court records indicate that Golden Ventures corporate manager attempted to talk with Dillard about the situation, but she reportedly refused to talk and quit her job citing "personal reasons."

A bench warrant for Dillards arrest was issued in June.