Viral News
Florida Woman Arrested For Kidnapping Her Own Mom Twice & Scamming Her Out Of $224K
Woman Arrested For Kidnapping Her Own Mom Twice & Scamming Her Out Of $224,000
The self-proclaimed ‘Liberal Sherpa’ who once was a regular guest on Fox News stole at least $224,000 from her 88-year-old mother and physically dragged the elderly woman to a nursing home against her will, Florida authorities said on Friday.
Cathy Areu, 51, faces numerous felony charges including kidnapping, exploitation of the elderly and organized scheme to defraud.
She is being held without bond in Miami-Dade county jail. Areu previously appeared as an unpaid guest on a number of Fox News shows until 2020, when she filed a sexual harassment lawsuit naming hosts Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson — a claim that was later dismissed by a judge.
View this post on Instagram
Miami-Dade County prosecutors say she falsified documents to take control of her mother’s home, siphoned money from her mother’s reverse mortgage and savings account, and took out credit cards in her mother’s name and then used them for her own benefit. ‘Every incident of alleged elder exploitation or abuse touches our heart and never fails to shock us,’ Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement.
‘It seems particularly harder to understand when the alleged perpetrator of the exploitation is a daughter, or a son or another blood relative,’ added Rundle.
In the first case, they say Areu tricked her mother into believing she was being taken to have ice cream with her granddaughters, but was instead taken to a home. When the mother tried to call a friend for help, Area allegedly told the staff not to let her use the phone or see visitors.
After doctors and officials found the woman competent to make her own decisions and released her to go home, prosecutors say Areu and another person physically dragged her from her house and took her to another facility.
Again, the woman was released after she was found competent and asked to go home. Authorities say the investigation continues
You must be logged in to post a comment logged in Login