Topeka woman takes over $40,000 from elderly family member, pleads guilty

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WDAF)– A Topeka woman has pleaded guilty in a case regarding theft from an elderly woman.

Beverly Anne Freeman, 64, of Topeka, pleaded guilty on Wednesday, Aug. 21, to charges related to stealing over $42,000 from a woman under her guardianship. Freeman is facing two counts of mistreatment of a dependent adult or elderly person and one count of unlawful acts concerning computers.

According to court documents, Freeman was appointed as the guardian of an elderly family member. This allowed her to facilitate payments from the victim’s bank account to a nursing home in Easton, Kansas. During this process, it was found that Freeman was using the victim’s account for personal gain and not paying the nursing home bills.

Freeman used online banking, phones and ATMs to take the money which she used for things like food purchases and bill payments.

The Leavenworth County Attorney, Todd Thompson, put out this statement regarding the incident:

“Check on the elderly and ask questions if you ever think anything is suspicious. This victim should’ve been able to trust that her guardian had her best interest in hand, but that simply wasn’t the case.”

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Sept. 25.

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