Elderly Woman Falls Victim to $300K Fraud

On Thursday, June 7, Bensalem police arrested Virginia Marquardt, 65, of the 1800 block of Badger Road. She was charged with theft by deception, theft by failing to make required disposition of funds and related offenses for allegedly stealing over $300,000 from her neighbor.

Bensalem and Bucks County detectives conducted a joint investigation after funds from the assets of the 67-year-old woman were reported to have been stolen. The victim has been in permanent nursing home care since late July 2007.

According to detectives, Marquardt obtained Power of Attorney for the victim in July 2007. That designation allowed Marquardt to act in a fiduciary capacity for the victim and to control her assets and disburse them as needed. 

Police said Marquardt took control of the victim’s bank account in August 2007. Shortly after she changed the IRA beneficiary designation to make herself a 50 percent beneficiary. In the spring of 2008 she also had a new will drawn up which named her as a 50 percent beneficiary.

Detectives verified that within four months of the victim’s admission only partial payment for care was paid from her Social Security check. Her pension and her partial pension from her deceased husband were not made payable to Nursing Home but instead were deposited into the account controlled by Virginia Marquardt.  Payments to the Nursing Home were made with some degree of regularity through early 2009, and then became sporadic.  The outstanding balance owed increased during 2009 from just over $6,000 to more than $20,000. 

By December 2009 the payments had ceased altogether and Virginia Marquardt represented to the Nursing Home that the victim had no funds remaining to pay for her care.  Medical Assistance was applied for but was denied because the victim still had assets. Additionally, there were other investments belonging to her that apparently had not been liquidated to pay for her care as required to qualify for Medical Assistance.

Over the next several years Marquardt paid only portions the Nursing home for the victims care and the outstanding balance owed to them again ballooned.  In late 2011 an investigation began regarding the unexplained and highly suspicious use of the victim’s assets.

It was found in excess of $300,000 in illegal payments from the account between August 2007 and March 2012 were made for the benefit of Marquardt and her husband Edward Marquardt

After concluding a large scale forensic audit, It was found that the monies stolen from the victim since 2007 were used for business and personal purposes including luxury watches, vacations to Las Vegas, Hilton Head, S.C. and Mexico, State Sales taxes, credit card payments for both the defendant and Edward Marquardt, trips to Atlantic City Taj Mahal  and Grantville PA Hollywood Casino, tickets to numerous sporting events, comedy hypnotist,  charges at Lake Placid, NY for entertainment; payments to a swimming pool company and a hot tub company; purchases at sporting goods companies, numerous golf outings at a large number of clubs in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and other states.

Marquardt was arraigned and bail was set at $300,000. She later posted the 10 percent and was released.