Community Corner
Police: Woman Charged in Theft from Daughter’s Special Needs Trust
Officers said a Mt. Vernon Road resident had allegedly used her access as trustee to take more than $200,000 from her daughter's special needs trust for personal use in an ongoing scheme.
A Southington woman is facing charges after police said an investigation into concerns expressed by the state Department of Social Services revealed she had allegedly stolen more than $200,000 from her daughter’s special needs trust over several years dating back to 2005.
Police said Joan Wilkinson, of 1748 Mt. Vernon Road, turned herself into police late last week after learning there was a warrant for her arrest.
Wilkinson, 59, was charged with first-degree larceny and second-degree money laundering, according to Southington Police Department records. She was released after posting bond and is scheduled to appear in Bristol Superior Court for arraignment next month.
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A police incident report said Wilkinson was the target of an investigation after allegedly withdrawing money from the special needs trust in late 2011 and depositing it into her own accounts for personal use while her daughter was living elsewhere.
“She allegedly misappropriated to herself a large sum of money that was designated in a ‘special needs trust’ for the sole benefit of her disabled daughter who resides in a group home,” Master Sgt. Jay Suski, the investigating officer, said in a press release.
Wilkinson’s alleged actions actions came to light when investigators with the Department of Social Services Investigations Unit came to police in November 2011 to explain their findings. According to the state’s report, Wilkinson made consistent transfers, some dating as far back as 2005, to her personal accounts.
The trust was set up for the sole benefit of her special needs daughter, investigators said.
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Editor's Note: The publication time was originally 2:47 p.m. The time was changed to allow the article to hit the morning newsletter.
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