COURTHOUSE – An Upper Gwynedd woman showed little emotion as she admitted she stole more than $300,000 in property and cash from a disabled Hatfield man for whom she was power of attorney.
Janet M. Gitney, 58, of the 700 block of Brian Way, pleaded guilty Thursday in Montgomery County Court to felony charges of theft by deception, theft by failure to make required disposition of funds received and conspiracy in connection with incidents that occurred between January 2009 and September 2011.
With the charges, prosecutors alleged Gitney utilized her power of attorney over a disabled 57-year-old Hatfield man for whom she was a caregiver to unlawfully take control of the man’s bank accounts and even the residence he owned by having it transferred to her name. Gitney allegedly fled to the Philippines while she was under investigation for stealing about $135,576 in retirement funds and $222,334 in property from the Hatfield man, who was a stroke victim.
‘Certainly, anybody with power of attorney to handle someone else’s finances is put in a position of great trust and when they proceed to then steal that money it’s really the ultimate betrayal. It’s really offensive,’ said Deputy District Attorney Steven Latzer.
Judge Joseph A. Smyth deferred sentencing so court officials can complete a background report about Gitney. Gitney, who remains in jail pending sentencing, faces a possible maximum sentence of 11 1/2 to 23 years in state prison on the charges. However, state sentencing guidelines could allow for less jail time.
Latzer indicated he will seek a state prison sentence for Gitney.
Defense lawyer Gregory Nester indicated he will seek a county jail sentence for Gitney, explaining in court that sentencing guidelines would allow for a minimum of nine months in county jail on the felony charges.
‘This is an extraordinarily difficult day for my client. Her guilty pleas demonstrate that she’s accepting responsibility for what she did,’ Nester said on Gitney’s behalf. ‘She’s quite remorseful.’
‘She’s remorseful that she got caught,’ Latzer responded.
Gitney admitted that she conspired in the scam with her husband, Anthony, 38, who is still awaiting trial on theft- and conspiracy-related charges. Prosecutors alleged Anthony Gitney used some of the money belonging to the victim to advance his landscape business. Prosecutors alleged that after taking advantage of the man, who had suffered a series of strokes, the Gitneys ‘fled to the Philippines to avoid prosecution,’ leading to an investigation involving the FBI and Philippine National Police.
Anthony Gitney re-entered the U.S. and turned himself in to authorities, according to prosecutors. According to court documents, Anthony Gitney ‘explained that his wife is very controlling’ and that it was her idea to purchase landscaping equipment, vehicle repairs and other items with checks from the victim’s account.
The affidavit of probable cause states that Anthony Gitney told police in November: ‘I want to fix what I did wrong and square things up.’
Last November, Janet Gitney was apprehended at JFK International Airport when she returned on a flight from the Philippines.
In a bizarre twist, the Hatfield victim, who now resides in a Bucks County nursing home, is the same man who previously was duped by his former caretakers, Heather Hall and John Pallante. Hall, 40, of Souderton, and Pallante, 46, of Lansdale, each was convicted of theft-related charges in connection with their roles in the theft of more than $42,000 from the partially paralyzed man while they lived with him in his Hatfield home between March 2006 and February 2007.
Hall and Pallante wrote numerous checks to themselves from the victim’s bank account without permission to do so, authorities said.
Janet Gitney even attended Pallante’s trial as a spectator and at some point in 2007 took on the role of the victim’s power of attorney.
Janet Gitney also pleaded no contest to a separate charge of recklessly endangering another person in connection with allegations she left her ill father without proper care when she fled to the Philippines. A no-contest plea is not an admission of guilt but is an admission that prosecutors have sufficient evidence to prove the charge.
‘It hurts,’ Gitney told the judge when addressing the charge pertaining to her care of her father.
Follow Carl Hessler Jr. on Twitter @MontcoCourtNews
