Wife convinced husband he had Alzheimer’s while stealing thousands from him, CT cops say
A woman who admitted to convincing her husband he had Alzheimer’s to hide her “fraudulent activities” is accused of stealing up to $600,000 from him over 20 years, Connecticut police said.
Donna Marino, 63, turned herself in to police on Oct. 27 and faces charges of first-degree larceny and third-degree forgery, East Haven Police Capt. Joseph Murgo told McClatchy news in a statement.
She told police that “she believed that convincing him that he had Alzheimer’s Disease would prevent him from going to the bank, ultimately to discover the low balances on his accounts.”
Her daughter Elena Marino and husband, John Marino, first reported the “fraud” to police on March 16, 2019, accusing Donna Marino of stealing money from her husband since 1999, according to an police arrest warrant affidavit.
“John stated Donna has always controlled his finances and he had no idea she was taking money from him,” the affidavit said.
Then, Elena and John Marino had police put the investigation on pause to consider whether to move forward with it.
Ultimately, Elena Marino came back to the police department in March 2020, saying her father is a “fraud victim” and she believed he had lost between $500,000 and $600,000.
She accused Donna Marino of “fraudulently signing John’s pension checks and depositing them into another bank account” without his knowledge, among other accusations.
An investigation ensued and in a meeting with investigators on Jan. 11, 2021, Donna Marino said she had been depositing her husband’s pension checks into her mother’s bank account for roughly 13 years, according to the affidavit.
She also told investigators she had “fraudulently” obtained Power of Attorney for her husband by having her friend, who is a Notary Public, sign the form without her husband’s knowledge.
Donna Marino told police she convinced her husband he had Alzheimer’s disease to hide what she was doing.
She “explained when John wanted to go inside the bank to make a transaction, she told him the last time he went inside he made a scene due to his Alzheimer’s Disease, causing John not to go inside to avoid embarrassment,” the affidavit states.
Marino said she did so to prevent her husband from “discovering the low balance in their accounts.”
In addition, she also said she pawned off some of his belongings, including a set of silver coins that she received $40 for.
“Donna stated she did not use the money to go on a shopping sprees or vacations, but used it to help her family,” according to the affidavit, which mentions she financially helped out her brother to pay for his rent and groceries.
She said “she was trying to make everyone ‘happy,’ but it was at John’s expense.”
Marino told police that she stole roughly $100,000 from her husband over 13 years.
“This case highlights the importance of really staying invested and involved in the financial dealings of our elderly population,” Murgo said in a statement to McClatchy News.
“Although these crimes span across many years, if it weren’t for Mr. Marino’s family discovering these financial discrepancies, Ms. Marino might have gotten away with this for longer,” he added.
Murgo advised others to check in on their family and “don’t be afraid to dig deeper if something doesn’t seem right.”
“In many instances, people get taken advantage of because they don’t have the right people looking out for their best interest,” he also said.
“This case, and the justice hopefully to follow, prove what is possible when we are invested in our family’s well being.”
Marino was arraigned on Oct. 28 and released after promising to appear in court on Nov. 29, the New Haven Register reported.
