A 29-year-old housekeeper, Heather Nelson, allegedly assaulted her 83-year-old employer on Christmas Eve in Florida. Reportedly, the latter refused to give her a $500 bonus she demanded from the octogenarian. After becoming irate due to the refusal, Nelson allegedly snatched her employer's checkbook. Nelson almost broke her wrist and stole other items such as debit and credit cards, according to police. Heather Nelson was then arrested and charged on January 7.
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The Brevard County Sheriff's Office issued a
colorful statement written by Sheriff Wayne Ivey. In it, Ivey details the results of the sheriff's office's investigation, which led to Nelson's arrest and charges."When the victim announced that she didn't have enough money to give her a bonus, Nelson responded by physically wrenching the victim's checkbook from her hand, stealing a check from the checkbook," Ivey wrote. "In an effort to ruin other people's Christmas as well, stole Christmas cards that were set to be mailed out also containing checks!"
Furthermore, Nelson then allegedly wrote herself a check for $1,400. She even used the victim's credit card to pay for her rent, among other purchases. Eventually, investigations led to police issuing an arrest warrant against Nelson. She was nabbed by police on January 7. They charged her with aggravated battery, robbery, fraud, forgery, pàssing a counterfeit instrument and grand theft, according to the New York Post.
"Since you were so worried about getting your bonus, we had some extra gifts for you like a keepsake booking photo, a slightly used pair of shower slides, and unlimited access to our world famous one star dining facility where you can enjoy absolutely nothing you eat," Ivey continued.
Elderly Abuse
Tod Goodyear, public information officer of the Brevard County Sheriff's Office, told FOX 35 that Heather Nelson deserved to be in jail.
"The elderly are scammed," Goodyear said. "They are taken advantage of by other people a lot of times because they have some diminished capacity, or they're very trusting." Goodyear believes Nelson was in financial trouble. He reached this conclusion given the payments she made with the victim's checkbook and credit card.
"Maybe she just saw this as the only way possibly out of it," Goodyear concluded. "But to take advantage of our elderly seniors is not what you do."
According to Law and Crime, Nelson was held at Brevard County Jail on a $30,000 bond. She was released on January 9.
