RED WING — A 44-year-old Red Wing woman is accused of stealing over $30,000 from a vulnerable adult under her care, according to new charges filed in Goodhue County District Court.
Michelle Marie Wyatt is facing three felony counts of financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult and one felony count of theft.
She's scheduled to appear in court April 12, 2023.
According to the criminal complaint:
Wyatt is the guardian of a 36-year-old man with a developmental disability who is unable to manage his own finances following the death of the man's mother six years ago.
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A family member of the man notified the Red Wing Police Department on Feb. 25, 2022, that Wyatt had been stealing from the man.
Through the ensuing investigation, law enforcement found that Wyatt had used the man's bank account to make purchases totaling $32,715.84, which include almost $14,000 spent on Amazon and over $9,000 at Menards.
When the man's mother died, she deeded her home to Wyatt with the intent the house be used in the man's best interest. Wyatt kicked the man out of the home shortly after.
She set him up at in an apartment but police found the man owed close to $13,000 in back rent as of March 1, 2022. The property management company told police that an application for rental help had been denied because of Wyatt's lack of response. On March 9, 2022, almost $12,000 was paid towards the balance of the man's rent after the property managers got the application approved.
Wyatt was using the money from Menards to fix up her mother's residence, the man told law enforcement.
The final disposition of a Goodhue County Social Services vulnerable adult maltreatment investigation found that the allegation of financial exploitation against Wyatt was substantiated.
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