Ex-senior care operator sentenced

Tuesday, June 25, 2002 | 9:05 a.m.

A former operator for a senior care facility was sentenced to two to five years probation instead of prison Monday for bilking one of his patients out of more than $450,000.

Richard Allen Smith, 48, will also have to pay $453,000 to the victim, but Chief Deputy District Attorney Valerie Adair said he deserved jail time because of the amount of money involved and abuse of trust.

Adair also questioned if Smith would actually pay back the money.

"How is he going to pay it back when the guy is unemployed and the victim is in his mid-80s?" Adair said.

Smith entered a guilty plea agreement that consolidated 22 counts of felony elder exploitation and six counts of burglary into one count of felony elder exploitation.

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