Lansing – Attorney General Dana Nessel announced today that she has charged 40-year-old Tanya Patterson with embezzlement of more than $1,000 and less than $20,000 from a vulnerable adult.
An investigation conducted by the Attorney General revealed that Patterson’s father was admitted to the Schneve Senior Care and Rehabilitation Center in St. Louis, Michigan in July 2019. The following month, Patterson was appointed guardian by the Gratiot County probate court. After this appointment, Patterson allegedly opened her father’s checking account and listed her as her guardian, in which her father’s monthly Social Security income was deposited. The Attorney General now alleges that in 2021 Patterson withdrew money from her father’s account and illegally used it for her personal expenses and needs.
“Parents and guardians are entrusted with protecting and managing the medical and financial matters of their custodians,” Nessel said. “Being part of a family does not relieve parents of these responsibilities. If parents violate that trust, they must be held accountable.”
Patterson was arraigned on January 17, 2023 before Honorable Stewart D. MacDonald of the 65th District Court in Gratiot County. She received her $20,000 personal approval bond and is scheduled to return to court for a presumed cause conference on January 26, 2023.
The Attorney General’s Health Care Fraud Division (HCFD) handled the case on behalf of the Department. HCFD is Michigan’s federally accredited Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and receives his 75% of funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under grants totaling $5,196,188 for fiscal year 2023. The remaining 25% totaled $1,732,061. , funded by the State of Michigan.
Please be careful: Criminal charges are mere allegations and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty. The department does not provide reservation photos.
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