My sister put our parents in a nursing home and sold their property and stole their money. What can I do about it?

Dear Clara,

Sorry to hear what happened. I know its painful in a family when fraud is suspected. I hope you can get the answers you need.

You'll need proof when you go to the police. Some considerations for which you'll need to be prepared:

1. Did you parents execute any powers of attorney granting this authority to your sister? If so, was it a Durable Power of Attorney? And another if so, did in include authority to dispose of assets?

If POAs or DPOAs were executed, were you co-proxy to serve with your sister?

2. Have you seen the purchase agreement and deed for the house? Do you have access to your parent's or your sister's bank accounts to document that she kept the proceeds of the sale?

3. How are costs for the nursing home being funded? Can you state unequivocally that the funds from the home sale aren't being used to pay for nursing home care? Is your sister paying for the costs?

4. How do you have access to your mother's SS status (and bank account, assuming that the funds are directly deposited) to know that your sister is collecting the funds? And, do you know for a fact that the funds aren't being applied toward your mother's (or your father's) care?

5. What's your relationship with your sister and your parents? Your profile states that you're caring for your father who was living in your home. Who was caring for your mother? Where was she living? Were you caring for her? Or was it your sister?

6. Since your father was living in your home, apparently prior to being moved to a nursing home, what was his attitude (and what was your mother's?) toward being removed from your home?

7. When did this take place, i.e., the sale of the house and the transfer to the nursing home? What were your parents' health conditions at those times? Were they getting in home care, and if so, provided by whom?


These are not prying question or intents to challenge your statements. They are questions that would be asked by law enforcement, and ones for which your answers may influence their action or inaction. You'll need to be prepared.

What would you expect to do if you became aware that someone had stolen a significant amount of money? You'd call the police, presumably. So do that.

The social security fraud you can report to whoever paid it. They will want it back, and they are pretty persistent too.

I might also consider contacting the police. What she did is against the law.

Report her to adult protective services and the social security administration. If she had power of attorney sister may have had paper that said she had right to sell, but not right to keep money.