pa-mom-abused-disabled-son-Vonda-Brown.jpg
The charges keep mounting for an Allegheny County mother of a disabled man who weighed just 58 pounds when investigators found him. Now, the mother, Vonda Brown of Brighton Heights, Pa., is facing Social Security fraud charges.
(police photo)
The charges keep mounting for an Allegheny County mother of a disabled man who weighed just 58 pounds when investigators found him. Now, the mother, Vonda Brown of Brighton Heights, Pa., is facing Social Security fraud charges.
Brown was charged Friday with 12 counts of theft, less than two months after the state attorney general's office charged her with Medicaid fraud and aggravated assault, TribLive.com is reporting.
Brown was arrested Tuesday morning when she arrived in court for her formal arraignment on the original charges.
She is also facing charges for fraudulently receiving Medicaid benefits and abusing her grown, care-dependent son.
Vonda Brown was charged Friday with 12 counts of theft, less than two months after the state attorney general's office charged her with Medicaid fraud and aggravated assault.
She was arrested Tuesday morning when she arrived in court for her formal arraignment on the original charges.
Details from TribLive:
Investigators discovered that Brown's son, Dyrue McGee, who is autistic and has cerebral palsy, had been hospitalized in mid-October and then moved to a care facility.
Meanwhile, investigators said, Brown continued receiving monthly social security deposits for McGee's care.
Police say Brown collected more than $4,300 in Social Security payments as McGee's representative payee -- the person responsible for using McGee's benefits for his needs.
Police began investigating Brown last fall when McGee was admitted to Ohio Valley Hospital with a burned hand. At the time, he weighed 58 pounds. He remained hospitalized because of malnutrition for two months.
While he was hospitalized, police say Armando Navarro, an in-home caretaker for McGee employed through the state's Medicaid-funded Independence Waiver Program, continued to submit timesheets, and Brown signed them.
Police said Navarro and Brown were in a relationship.