Richland County authorities charge woman for stealing thousands of dollars from elderly victim

Richland County sheriff's deputies have charged a woman with several counts of forgery and various other charges after stealing money from an elderly women she was taking care of.

Sheila Yvonne Shirey, 54, has been charged with 15 counts of forgery, exploitation of a vulnerable adult, financial identification fraud and breach of trust after stealing over $16,000 from the victim's bank account.

Sheriff Leon Lott said Shirey was arrested on Thursday after turning herself in to Richland County investigators.

Lott said Shirey was employed by the 93-year-old female victim as a senior care giver. Investigators were notified of the missing funds after the victim's family reported seeing large withdrawals from the victim’s savings account.

Investigators were able to determine that Shirey made several unauthorized money transfers from the victim’s savings account to her checking account. Shirey then allegedly forged the victim’s name to checks and then used the money for personal use.

Shirey was transported to the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center where she is being held.

This story was originally published April 7, 2015 at 12:02 PM with the headline "Richland County authorities charge woman for stealing thousands of dollars from elderly victim."