Casper Nursing Home CNA Accused Of Groping Resident
A Casper man is accused of groping a 77-year-old woman while working as a CNA at a nursing home.
Richard Allan Dangel is charged with a single count of abuse of a vulnerable adult. If convicted, he could face up to 10 years behind bars, $10,000 in fines or both.
He has not had an opportunity to enter pleas to the charges.
According to charges filed this week in Natrona County District Court, Dangel was an employee at Casper Mountain Rehabilitation at the time of the alleged incident.
An affidavit of probable cause alleges that a supervisor at the facility was called in at roughly 10:30 on September 25 for a reported assault.
Court documents state the victim told nursing home staff that Dangel entered her room that evening with a flashlight and groped her before leaving. The victim also reported that she attempted to follow Dangel out of the room to confront him and Dangel pushed her back in her room with enough force that she almost fell down.
Dangel reportedly told the nursing home supervisor that all he was doing was getting the victim's blood pressure for the evening. The supervisor told police that Dangel smelled of alcohol during his interview and was acting strangely, including insisting on being present in the interview between nursing home staff and the victim, which was not allowed.
Still, despite being barred for the interview with the victim and nursing home staff, Dangel stood outside the room and listened in, court documents state.
The affidavit states a nursing home supervisor interviewed numerous residents if they recalled getting their vitals taken that night. The residents unanimously said they didn't, so the supervisor moved to terminate Dangel.
Court documents state the victim told investigators that she was in her room lying in bed when Dangel entered. Dangel then reportedly sat in her chair and groped her with enough force to inflict pain.
The victim reportedly suffered noticeable bruising in the days after the incident.
The affidavit states Dangel denied the allegations to police, but investigators noted a number of inconsistencies in his story.
More From K2 Radio
