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A caregiver at a retirement village in Plettenberg Bay appeared in court on Monday, accused of stealing about R90,000 from an elderly dementia sufferer under her care.
It is understood that the alleged victim is in his 90s.
The suspect, Hesley McLein, appeared briefly in the Plettenberg Bay Magistrate’s Court on Monday in connection with one count of theft.
She has not been asked to plead.
The case against McLein, who worked as a caregiver at the CareVita Crescent retirement home at the time of the alleged offence, was postponed to April 1 for her to brief her new lawyer.
McLein was arrested and charged with theft on January 20. She is out on R20,000 bail.
According to the charge sheet, the elderly man’s family had noticed unusual transactions on his bank account, including purchases at clothing stores in Oudtshoorn, Mossel Bay and Knysna.
After flagging the suspicious transactions, the family reported the matter to the police and, after an investigation, McLein was arrested at the home in central Plett.
An employee at the retirement village, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisal, said it was not the first time allegations of theft had been levelled against staff members at the home.
The employee said items belonging to elderly or sickly residents had allegedly gone missing in the past.
However, no employee had been found in possession of stolen property or arrested in connection with the alleged thefts.
“We are often accused of stealing patients’ items, and we are searched regularly, but no-one has ever been found with a stolen item,” the employee said, adding that a thorough investigation was needed.
She said McLein had only recently started working at the facility and mostly worked the night shift.
“This whole [alleged] incident is scary because it threatens the integrity of the workplace and our bread and butter,” she said.
The retirement village had not responded to requests for comment by the time of publication.
The court heard on Monday morning that McLein had changed her legal representation from a private attorney to state-funded Legal Aid SA.
The matter was accordingly postponed to give her new attorney time to obtain copies of the docket and to review the case.
McLein’s bail was extended.
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