Adult Caregiver Steals $300,000 From Client With Dementia: AG

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY — A Connecticut resident who was working for the Westchester County Adult Protection Services was accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from a Yonkers woman with dementia who was under her care.

New York Attorney General Letitia James said Friday that Chantel Chenault, 46, of Danbury, Connecticut, was indicted and charged by a grand jury with second-degree grand larceny, third-degree grand larceny and first-degree identity theft, felonies, and official misconduct, a misdemeanor.

Prosecutors said, from March 2017 through April 2022, Chenault, while employed as a caseworker with Westchester County Adult Protective Service, transferred more than $500,000 from a 95-year-old woman’s retirement accounts to the woman’s checking account and would bring her to the bank to make withdrawals a multiple times per month.

Chenault also regularly used the woman’s ATM card at casinos without permission.

James said the woman stole more than $300,000 from the 95-year-old.

Chenault was arraigned Friday in Westchester County Court. Her next court appearance is set for June 15.

James said the woman used her position as a caregiver to steal from someone who trusted her and couldn’t protect herself.

“The betrayal harmed the victim and harmed the reputation of the Westchester County Adult Protective Services,” she said.

“All New Yorkers deserve safe and secure services to support autonomy later in life,” James said. “My office will always defend our seniors against those who attempt to exploit their vulnerability and will ensure bad actors are held accountable.”

Chenault became the elderly woman’s caseworker in 2017. As the woman’s physical and mental health decline, Chenault was responsible for arranging home health aides from a third-party provider to provide care, authorities said.

In 2022, Chenault went on medical leave, and the new caseworker assigned to the 95-year-old woman noticed there had been a substantial drop in her assets in just a matter of months.

Further investigation found that the woman’s bank accounts and retirement accounts were entirely depleted. As a result, she could no longer afford home health care, according to prosecutors.

A forensic audit of her bank accounts identified a pattern of suspicious withdrawals and transfers, police said, and the use of her ATM card at times when she was home bound.

In total, the attorney general’s office said Chenault stole more than $300,000 from the woman over a five-year period.