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I have a brother that removed my mother from her home and is living with him.He went to bank and closed two of mom's accounts and opened a new one. I inquired at the bank and they said he brought my mother with him when this was done. She is 92. My mother was a victim of elderly fraud/theft that happened at this bank between her and another man 4 years ago. The bank cashed a $40K check and money received in CASH. They walked out of the bank and she gave him all the money. The bank has a note on their screen that says to contact me if there is suspicion of tampering due to past fraud.theft.. My name was also on the account and the bank says there is nothing they can do about it. Nobody called me. How does this happen? I'm livid that it's so easy for some people to pull off these transactions. Could there be an authority that is giving the green light to do this? I'm puzzled.

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It is probably because your Mom was the main holder of the accounts thus she can do whatever she wants with the accounts.... and this wasn't consider a fraud.

But I am wondering as in another posting it sounded like your Mom could have dementia because of the way your brother quickly moved your Mom to his house and locked you out, some of us posters were thinking maybe she was making up abuse stories. Apparently at the bank she acted of sound mind.
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Was it a joint account, where the checks and statements have your name on them? If so, then that's a different story than if you just have access to see her account, as I do with my parents.
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I would check it out with the main branch of the bank or check with someone who oversees banking laws or get a lawyer.
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If your mother was with your brother and she can authorize the transactions then the bank did nothing wrong. If your mother is not competent then who ever is the POA for Finance should have been on the account and the account designated as a Beneficiary account then the bank would have had to check with the POA
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What I'm wondering is do you still have records of the last time your mom was defrauded? If so, you can add them to any records you may now have. Take those records with you to an eldercare lawyer who can help you gain custody of the elder. Guardianship will give you power over all aspects of her life including finances. You can also go after the person who was with her when her account was closed. I would try you first find out the situation behind the closing of her account, and if it sounds suspicious then take legal action
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vshs23: Even though there was a screen notation indicating to notify you of suspicious activity, maybe it could have been overlooked if it wasn't signed off by the bank manager? I don't know. But something is definitely amiss if $40K was allowed to be withdrawn and dispensed in CASH. I would hire an elder law attorney immediately. Your mother has dementia.
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vshs23: You profile says that mom lives with YOU. Now you write here that mom lives with your brother. I am confused.
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1RareFind: The person that closed out the account was her brother.
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ILlamalover47, Thanks for the clear insight into what's going on.

Now that we have a better idea and a better view into the picture, I know wonder if the brother was on the account. I'm not sure whether or not you can close an account online like you can in person. I do online banking myself and I never saw this option on my online banking. However, I know you can open accounts online, this is an option in my online banking. I don't know whether or not the rightful owner of the account agreed to closing the account, but I'm starting to wonder if the whole thing is really a scam. There are some scams out there where they can appear as your bank to trick you into giving information. Definitely have the right folder communicate with the bank on this activity.

When I was on the account with my foster dad, any changes needed both of us together at the bank and both of our signatures. I don't know if the brother tricked the rightful owner into closing the account or if it was just a scam appearing as the bank. However, you're definitely want to have the bank look into this if they didn't close the account. They'll contact the head branch for you. I would be very wary if the rightful owner had a lot of money in that account if it really was closed. If it turns out to not be someone posing as the bank, you want to alert the bank to what happen if the rightful owner was not of sound mind when this happened
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I was under the impression that banks question a large amount of money being withdrawn. I'm surprised they handed over 40K.
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I think something's going on and someone needs to put a stop to it. If there was an alert to contact you for suspicious activity, I'm surprised it was an oversight on the part of someone at the bank. I'd be checking with whoever waited on the people in question the day the money was withdrawn and find out why you were never alerted. My guess is that it was either a teller or a personal banker. I wouldn't think it would've been the manager who would've overlooked such a thing, but then again if it was, contact the head branch of your bank and report the fraud. This is who I would contact anyway come to think of it. I would immediately contact the head branch, they have a toll-free number you can call. Definitely tell them what you told us here because you know more about what happened than we do since you found out. If you have some kind of authority over the account, you should've been alerted unless something went on in the background. This may be why someone intervened and close the account behind your back and they may have opened a new one and put their name on it with all the money that was handed to them. It may be that the elder was tricked into something they'll later regret when all of that money vanishes. What I would do first is put a fraud alert out on the account in question by first contacting the head branch of your bank, every bank has one. Next, I would put a fraud alert on the elder's credit and maybe even freeze the credit so no one can open any accounts in the elder's name.
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JoAnn, I, too, thought they questioned large sums leaving the bank. I tried to deposit about $300 and they even questioned that, a deposit.
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1RareFind: Sure thing; you're welcome. I pulled up the OP's profile page because it was confusing. I would think the brother would have had to be on the bank account, else how could he withdraw $40K and have it dispensed in CASH? Something seems amiss. The bank would allow $40K to walk out of their facility and how do they have so much on hand without asking the mom and bro "to come back tomorrow or next day because we don't or can't deplete our cash reserves to that extent/amount?"
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What if maybe they did have the cash on hand? Maybe this is how they were able to dispense the cash to the customers. Some banks can surprise you since that's what the bank is all about, cash. I can't tell you how many times I've seen very large sums at our bank despite it being a small branch, I would've never thought possible to see very large stacks. Of course I don't focus on it when I notice, I see but as soon as I see I look away for privacy of that person handling it, this is just the right thing to do. I know someone in the banking industry and I have much respect for them. When you know someone in the industry, respect is something to have, it's just common sense. No matter the industry you may know someone in, if you know someone in a specific important industry, you'd better have great respect for them if you value the relationship
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1RareFind: The OP said the brother took us mother to the bank personally. So it was NOT done online. Something is definitely amiss here.
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JoAnn29: I agree. That much of a transaction dispensed in CASH is a huge red flag...or at least should have been.
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brother: Mom, why don't you come live with me
mother: I would love to do that.
brother: We need to go to the bank first. We need to close the accounts with with my sister's name and create a new account with mine and your name.
mother: ok son
son: Since you are living with me, we can sell your home and put the money in this new account.
mother: should we tell daughter about this?
son: I'll talk to her later.
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vhs, this is confusing as in this post you wrote that your sister was taking the money and that you and her with equal beneficiaries. In another post you mentioned you and your brother were the only siblings. Please clarify.

https://www.agingcare.com/questions/sibling-told-doctors-i-was-neglecting-mom-as-caregiver-203327.htm
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I am shocked the bank handed over $40,000 just like that. But it can happen, if there is no one to alert, and if the person withdrawing it seems pretty with-it, well, it's their money and if no one is out there to keep an eye on it....bye bye money, hello Mr. Scam Artist.
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