Elder Financial Abuse: Insights and Solutions with Guests Andrea Higgens and Patty Presta
Wrestling Payments Podcast: Season 2 - Episode 10
Episode Summary
In this episode of Wrestling Payments, Joe Casali talks with Andrea Higgens, a Vulnerable Adult Abuse Investigator from the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office, and Patty Presta, Director of Education at NEACH. Andrea shares her 25 years of law enforcement experience, focusing on elder financial abuse and the critical role of financial institutions in preventing these crimes. Patty adds her insights from decades of advocacy and education on elder abuse prevention.
Andrea discusses the importance of suspicious activity reports (SARs) and how they can help law enforcement track and prevent elder abuse. She emphasizes the need for financial institutions to educate their frontline staff on identifying and reporting suspicious activities. Patty highlights the significance of cross-reporting to Adult Protective Services (APS) to ensure timely interventions.
Throughout the conversation, Andrea, Patty, and Joe explore real-life examples of how collaborative efforts between financial institutions and law enforcement have successfully protected elders from financial exploitation. This episode sheds light on the complexities of elder financial abuse and the continuous efforts needed to safeguard vulnerable seniors.
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Guest-at-a-Glance
💡 Name: Andrea Higgens
💡What they do: Criminal Elder Abuse Investigator
💡Company: San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office
💡Noteworthy: Over 25 years in law enforcement, specializing in elder abuse cases.
💡 Where to find them: LinkedIn
💡 Name: Patty Presta
💡What they do: Director of Education
💡Company: NEACH
💡Noteworthy: Passionate advocate for elder abuse prevention since 1994.
💡 Where to find them: LinkedIn
Key Insights
The Role of Financial Institutions in Elder Abuse Prevention
Andrea Higgens emphasizes the crucial role financial institutions play in preventing elder financial abuse. She highlights the importance of suspicious activity reports (SARs) and cross-reporting to Adult Protective Services (APS). By identifying unusual transactions and collaborating with law enforcement, banks and credit unions can help protect vulnerable seniors. Andrea stresses the need for frontline staff to ask open-ended questions and be vigilant in detecting signs of abuse. She also suggests financial institutions host educational events for customers and their families to increase awareness and preventive measures. Empowering bank employees with knowledge and tools to identify potential abuse can make a significant difference in safeguarding elders from financial exploitation.
The Power of Cross-Reporting to APS
Andrea discusses the impact of cross-reporting suspicious activities to Adult Protective Services (APS). When financial institutions notice unusual transactions, they can trigger an investigation by APS, leading to timely interventions. She shares a success story where a bank's prompt cross-reporting helped uncover a significant financial abuse case. The abuser had liquidated large sums of money and taken ownership of the victim's home. Thanks to the bank's quick action and collaboration with APS and law enforcement, the victim's assets were recovered, and the abuser was prosecuted. This example illustrates how cross-reporting can prevent further exploitation and protect vulnerable seniors.
Empowering Frontline Staff to Detect Abuse
Andrea highlights the importance of training frontline bank employees to detect and report elder financial abuse. She points out that tellers and call center staff are often the first to notice red flags, such as unusual transactions or changes in a customer's behavior. By asking open-ended questions and understanding the signs of abuse, these employees can play a vital role in prevention. Andrea advocates for ongoing education and support for bank staff to ensure they feel confident in their ability to intervene. She also suggests rewarding employees who successfully identify and report suspicious activities, reinforcing the importance of their role in protecting elders.
Episode Highlights
Andrea's Path to Elder Abuse Investigation
Timestamp: [00:02:00]
Andrea Higgens shares her journey into law enforcement and how she specialized in elder financial abuse cases. With nearly 25 years of experience, Andrea began her career as a patrol officer and detective before transitioning to the District Attorney's Office. Her work on annuities fraud cases involving older adults led her to focus on elder abuse. This background set the stage for her current role, where she investigates various forms of elder abuse, with a particular emphasis on financial exploitation.
"I have been in law enforcement for almost 25 years. I started out my career at one of our local police agencies as a patrol officer and detective. And about 14 years ago, I moved over to the district attorney's office as an investigator. And about two years into my work at the DA's office, I was actually investigating annuities fraud. And many of the abuse victims in my annuities fraud cases were older adults."
Elder Financial Abuse: A Collaborative Effort
Timestamp: [00:07:00]
Andrea and Joe discuss the importance of collaboration between financial institutions, law enforcement, and Adult Protective Services (APS). Andrea highlights how effective partnerships can lead to successful interventions and the prevention of elder abuse. She underscores the need for financial institutions to report suspicious activities and work closely with APS and law enforcement to address complex cases. This teamwork is essential for protecting elders from financial exploitation and ensuring timely action.
"If I could give any message to financial institutions across the board it would be to [...] really empower those frontline workers and educate them about those open ended questions. How do you, instead of saying hey who's taking advantage of you? Because those older adults if they're being taken advantage of will have been schooled and groomed by the abusers, by the scammers to say okay when the bank asks you this question, here's what you tell them."
The Complexity of Elder Abuse Cases
Timestamp: [00:14:00]
Andrea delves into the complexities of investigating elder abuse cases, particularly when it involves financial capacity and cognitive impairment. She explains that law enforcement and financial institutions often face challenges in assessing an elder's financial decision-making ability. Andrea emphasizes the importance of ongoing education and training for those involved in these investigations. By understanding the intricacies of elder abuse, financial institutions and law enforcement can better protect vulnerable seniors.
"Capacity is really specific to what it is we're assessing for. So it creates a lot of challenges and you know there is no perfect system. So I think part of what I really advocate for is that we all just keep learning, that we all keep striving to do a better job of protecting folks but also understanding that if we have the resources, and we're still in full possession of our cognitive abilities as an older adult, we can do whatever really dumb thing that we want to do with our money."
Real-Life Success Stories in Elder Abuse Prevention
Timestamp: [00:17:00]
Andrea shares a success story where a financial institution's quick action helped uncover significant elder financial abuse. A bank noticed inconsistent financial transactions and promptly cross-reported to APS, leading to a collaborative investigation. This intervention revealed that the abuser had liquidated large sums of money and taken title to the victim's home. The timely response by the bank, APS, and law enforcement resulted in the recovery of the victim's assets and the prosecution of the abuser. This story highlights the impact of vigilant financial institutions in protecting elders.
"We actually got a deputy public guardian, which is an APS social worker who helps out with cases where an older adult may not have capacity anymore. And somebody may need to step in take over because the person who is acting as that person's agent was our suspected abuser basically. So we collaborated and Adult Protective Services went out to the home of our victim with local law enforcement and knocked on the door and said ‘Hey, things are not looking great from the bank.’"
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