A former nursing home aide has been sentenced for taking money from an elderly patient.

Thirty-four year old Malgorzata Burns was sentenced to serve three-to-five years at the Wyoming Women's Center in Lusk, after pleading no contest to one charge of obtaining goods by false pretenses.

According to prosecutors, from May of 2011 through May of 2012, Burns was working as a certified nursing assistant at a senior home and managed to obtain access to the financial assets of 101-year old Alfred Persson.

A representative of the Wyoming Guardian Corporation alerted police when it was discovered that a number of electronic fund transfers had been taking place in Persson’s name, yet Persson had never used the internet.

Investigators were able to obtain Persson’s bank records and discovered that $7,200 worth of checks had been written to Burns, yet Persson’s signature on each check was noticeably different.

In addition, a number of credit card payments had been made online, as well as payments for cable tv, internet and phone service, which Persson had no need to pay for, since it was provided at the senior home.

A doctor at the senior home told police that Persson has a form of dementia and has been deemed incompetent and was unable to take care of himself.

He also said that Persson would not be able to remember giving anyone permission to use his check book.

Burns must also pay $13,000 in restitution.

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