What to Do If You Think Someone is Stealing From an Estate

By Alycia Watt & Leah Wietholter

As your loved ones age, they may reach a point in their lives where they may need some additional help. Usually, a sibling or other family member will step in to take care of them. In most cases, this is a normal transition, but it may also be an opportunity for that person to take advantage of their situation and start to dip into money that does not belong to them. If you have a feeling that someone is taking advantage of your elderly family member, there are ways to verify.

One of the first things to consider is the type of person watching your parents. Regardless of whether or not they are a sibling or family friend, what is most important to note is whether or not they are high-risk. A high-risk individual may have always struggled with their finances, or may be someone that has recently gone through some sort of significant financial change. This does not guarantee they will steal; it just means the risk is increased. If they have access to bank accounts, review statements regularly and look for anything suspicious.

Step 1: Review Bank Statements

If someone is stealing from an estate, one of the first places to look for clues is the bank statements. If the caregiver, trustee, or scammer has access, they may use that bank account to cover expenses. Whenever we review bank statements at Workman Forensics, we use a program called MoneyThumb that converts them into Excel format. While this is a useful step for professionals analyzing a large volume of transactions, anyone can look for similar issues by simply reviewing the statements manually—just access your online bank statements and scroll through the transactions, looking at every deposit item link and check item link. The top items to look for as you are scrolling include the following:

• Cash withdrawals

• Transfers to bank accounts you do not recognize

• Wire transfers to bank accounts or for expenses you do not recognize

• Credit card payments

  • If they don’t have a credit card, why are there credit card payments?

  • If they have a credit card, make sure all of the payments listed on their bank statement are being paid on known credit cards. If there is a payment listed, but you can’t find it on the known credit card statements, this is a red flag, and you should consider the recommendations in step 2.

• Two house payments or multiple utility bills

  • This is a very common way people steal from estates; unless this person owns multiple homes or commercial properties, there should only be expenses for their current home

Step 2: Review Credit Card Statements

If the estate uses credit cards, access the online statements and start reviewing transactions. Before deciding whether or not a charge is “bad,” consider the lifestyle of the card users, and base your decision on whether or not a charge aligns with their lifestyle. With this lens, look for abnormal charges.

Step 3: Find Corroborating Information

If you find anything suspicious from steps one or two, challenge yourself to find another source of information that may confirm or deny your suspicions. For example, if you find a transfer to a bank account for which you were previously unaware existed, contact the bank and obtain a copy of the statements. If you find that this account was being used to pay a medical bill, that is less suspicious than if the bank tells you they can’t provide the statements because the account is not in the name of your estate. If the latter is true, this is corroborating information.

To learn more about data sleuthing in an estate, watch Minisode 15: Understanding Data Sleuthing in an Estate.