Groups team up to fight crimes against elderly, disabled

Columbus police think this program is important, said detective Gerald Milner.

  

 

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“We want to raise awareness so more of these crimes are reported,” said Bill Taylor, president of Central Ohio Crime Stoppers. The Mid-Ohio Board for Independent Living also is participating.

By Encarnacion Pyle The Columbus Dispatch  •  Friday April 25, 2014 5:35 AM

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Columbus police, advocates for people with disabilities and Central Ohio Crime Stoppers teamed up yesterday to announce an initiative to fight crime against two vulnerable groups.
Detective Gerald Milner said at a news conference that he investigated too many crimes against the elderly and people with disabilities when he worked in the Police Division’s forgery and fraud unit.
“It still bothers me,” he said. “Crimes against the elderly and handicapped are very special to me.”
Criminals take aim at those groups at substantially higher rates than the rest of the population, according to U.S. Department of Justice statistics. Local statistics were not available.
Age and physical challenges can cause people to be perceived as easy marks, particularly when it comes to financial fraud. Fears of coming forward often keep the crimes hidden.
Family members, friends and caregivers are the thieves in 55 percent of the financial-abuse cases against older people, according to a national report by the MetLife Mature Market Institute, the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse and the Center for Gerontology at Virginia Tech.
An estimated 1 million older American lose more than $2.6 million annually to financial fraud, the report found. For each case reported, an estimated four or five are not.
“People often think of these cases as a civil matter,” said Bill Taylor, president of Central Ohio Crime Stoppers. “But it’s criminal, and we want to raise awareness so more of these crimes are reported.”
To get the word out, the Mid-Ohio Board for Independent Living, or MOBILE, an advocacy group that works with the disabled, will distribute crime-prevention tips and other self-protection information to its clients. The group also will encourage clients “who are at home ... looking out the window” to be on the watch for other crimes, said John Coats II, MOBILE’s executive director.
Anyone who is afraid to report crimes to police will be encouraged to call Crime Stoppers, which takes anonymous tips on unsolved crimes and offers cash rewards for information that leads to an arrest or indictment.
Crime Stoppers, in turn, plans to publicize more crimes against the elderly and the disabled in its “crime of the week” features that go out to local news media.
epyle@dispatch.com
@EncarnitaPyle