LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — A decide in Rochester Hills has arraigned a second particular person accused of embezzling a major sum of money from a weak 87-year-old man.
The Michigan Legal professional Common’s workplace charged Shelley Letzer, 67, of West Bloomfield, with 4 felonies for allegedly financially exploiting a weak grownup. Letzer’s co-defendant, 52-year-old Kirk Lanam, who was additionally on the middle of a 2024 6 Information investigation, was arraigned final week for a similar scheme.
READ: 6 Information Investigates: Stolen Valor
Letzer and Lanam’s relationship or historical past is presently unknown.
It’s alleged that Letzer and Lanam fraudulently obtained authorized energy of lawyer from the 87-year-old sufferer in March 2024, understanding him to be a weak grownup with a court-appointed guardian. Lanam is accused of embezzling greater than $400,000 from the sufferer for his private profit and for the good thing about Veterans Service Canines Group (VSDO), the Howell-based nonprofit he was operating on the time.
Oakland County investigators discovered that Lanam took over the monetary affairs of an aged Korean Struggle veteran. Former people concerned with VSDO advised 6 Information that at across the similar time, he started displaying as much as VSDO with costly gadgets comparable to garden care gear, safety cameras, and even a brand new automotive. 6 Information can present greater than $250,000 in spending from this aged veteran’s account which seems to have benefited VSDO and Lanam.
Letzer allegedly embezzled 1000’s of {dollars} from the sufferer by numerous means, comparable to writing checks to herself from his funds. She is charged with three counts of embezzling greater than $1,000 however lower than $20,000 from a weak grownup, every of which is a 5-year felony, in addition to one depend of fraudulently acquiring a signature, a 10-year felony.
Letzer’s subsequent courtroom look is about for Feb. 10, 2025.
