MILL CREEK — An Everett caretaker stole a 70-year-old wedding ring from a woman at a Mill Creek senior home, according to police.
The ring was later pawned for $30.
On a chilly night in November, the woman, 90, woke up when someone entered her room around 9:30 p.m. at Brookdale Senior Living on the Bothell-Everett Highway, according to police reports filed in Everett District Court.
“Who is it?” she asked.
A caretaker, 31, answered that she was checking on her to make sure she was OK, according to the report. That seemed strange, an officer noted, because the woman didn’t usually have checks at night.
A few days later, she noticed a lock on her drawer had been broken. She was missing her 14-karat gold ring from the 1940s, her husband’s wedding ring and two watches. Her ring was valued at $1,500.
Police found the ring had been pawned by the caretaker at a Cash America on Highway 99. Officers returned the ring to the woman.
“Her voice shuddered as she thanked me for recovering her 70-year-old wedding ring,” wrote the police officer, Tyrone Hughes.
Police learned the caretaker had pawned at least 22 other items over the preceding months. Most of those were heavily worn jewelry.
Officers arrested the woman on the morning of Dec. 13, in a parking lot outside her home on W. Casino Road. She reportedly admitted to the theft and said she had been using cocaine, according to police.
State health records show the caretaker had been granted a home care aide certification in August 2016. In the days after the arrest, the license still was listed as active. She’s no longer employed by Brookdale, the company said.
The woman had no criminal record in Washington state.
Caleb Hutton: 425-339-3454; chutton@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @snocaleb.
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