Published on: December 27, 2024, 03:42h.
Last updated on: December 27, 2024, 03:42h.
Pennsylvania authorities have accused a 56-year-old woman from Ridgway of using her elderly mother’s retirement savings to support her gambling addiction.
Legal documents disclose that Kelly Jo Wright took control of her mother’s finances in early 2022 as power of attorney. Instead of managing her mother’s money while she battled dementia, prosecutors claim that Wright withdrew $123,000 from her mother’s IRA and gambled it away at various gaming establishments in Pennsylvania and Upstate New York in under two years.
Disregarding the advice of a financial advisor who previously managed the IRA on behalf of her mother, Wright liquidated the retirement account. After an investigation, it was found that Wright used the funds for her personal expenses and gambling trips from March 2022 to September 2023.
Wright also reportedly withdrew around $27,000 from her mother’s other bank accounts.
Casino Losses
Authorities claim that Wright used a significant portion of the money on gambling, particularly on controversial Pennsylvania Skill games, unregulated slot-like machines found in local establishments in Punxsutawney and Reynoldsville.
Wright also visited the Seneca Casino in Salamanca, NY, where she enrolled in the rewards program. The casino confirmed that Wright lost $17,000 in 2022 and over $7,000 in the following year, as per the win/loss statement provided by the casino.
If she wagered without using the rewards program or recording her loyalty number, her losses at the tribal casino could be higher.
During Wright’s gambling spree, her elderly mother only received $1,600 monthly from Social Security.
Wright faces four felony charges, including financial exploitation of an older person, theft by deception, and failure to correct.
She is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on January 6 and is currently detained at Jefferson County’s Brookville Correctional Facility due to failure to post $100,000 bail.
Prior Offenses
This is not Wright’s first encounter with the law. Court records indicate that in April, she was charged with animal cruelty and facing drug-related charges before the theft allegations surfaced. The ongoing cases include charges of illegal narcotics possession.
Allegations suggest that Wright attempted to purchase illegal substances through Facebook Messenger, leading to her arrest by the Jefferson County Drug Task Force.
The legal proceedings for all three cases are still ongoing.