An Ohio woman has pleaded guilty to burglary, theft and receiving stolen property after investigators found 3,000 items at her residence that they said came from 13 senior living communities in two counties.
Susan Gwynne had been indicted on 101 counts in June and on Wednesday pleaded guilty to 46 of them, one for each victim included in the indictment. Gwynne pleaded guilty to 17 counts of burglary, all second-degree felonies; four counts of theft, all third-degree felonies; an additional 10 counts of theft, all fourth-degree felonies; and 15 counts of receiving stolen property, all first-degree misdemeanors.
Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 7.
Charges came after a January call to authorities reporting that personal items were missing from a resident at the Inn at Olentangy Trail, an assisted living and memory care community in Delaware, OH.
“After the initial call, the Delaware County Sheriff’s Office released a picture of the suspect, which had been captured on surveillance video at the assisted living facility,” Delaware County Prosecutor Carol O’Brien said in a statement. After the sheriff’s office posted the photo on its Facebook page, someone identified her, and additional people reported missing items.
“Further investigation resulted in a search warrant being issued for Susan Gwynne’s residence and the seizure of more than 3,000 items, mostly jewelry,” O’Brien said. Other items reported missing included cash, credit cards, watches, Social Security cards and dog tags.
Gwynne is a former senior living community employee who wore medical scrubs and an identification badge and carried a notebook and large purse as she entered and exited rooms in the communities, according to the Columbus Dispatch.
The items were stolen from residents of senior living communities in Delaware and Franklin counties. Additional communities affected include include Abbington of Arlington, Abbington of Powell, Brookdale Trillium Crossing and another unspecified Brookdale Senior Living community, Danbury of Columbus, Danbury at Parkside Village, Forum at Knightsbridge (Five Star Senior Living), Friendship Village of Dublin, Friendship Village of Columbus (United Church Homes), National Church Residences (community and location not specified), Sunrise of Dublin and Village at Westerville (HCR ManorCare).
