An elderly Culver City resident and Holocaust survivor was defrauded out of thousands of dollars after her checkbook was stolen by her caregiver.
According to a CBS report, 93-year-old Berta Sklanslky reported the solemn checks to her bank, but they refused to issue a refund, even though some of the checks had not been signed.
Her caregiver had worked for her for three months, and is accused of stealing $5,500 after taking Sklanslky’s checkbook and cashing fraudulent checks.
“People are being warned not to mail checks — or to use a secure mailbox — as check fraud is on the rise nationwide,” reads the report. “In 2022, 680,000 claims of suspected check fraud were reported to the federal government. That’s nearly double from the year prior.”
That wouldn’t have helped Sklanslky however, as her checkbook was stolen by a trusted person, from inside her own home.
“I still feel very hurt because I trusted her,” Sklanslky told CBS. “And every check was either not signed by me or signed by her name.”
The caregiver cashed nine checks, and Sklanslky didn’t notice right away.
“I said, ‘Look, I’m 93-years-old, and I have been with your bank for 40 years. I think I know how to deal but I never knew how to deal with people who steal,” Sklanslky said.
Fortunately, the bank later refunded the money.
“We understand the frustration that victims feel after a fraud event. We want to do all that we can to help customers avoid, detect and quickly report fraud,” Wells Fargo said in a statement. “We take financial exploitation seriously, and are actively working to raise awareness, and provide our customers the resources they need to identify fraud and get support.”