New York Nursing Home Employees Arrested for Stealing Resident's Wedding Rings
Amanda Thaler, a Certified Nurse Assistant, and and Sheldon Stoddard, a Dietary Technician, have been arrested for their roles in the theft of an 89 year old nursing home resident's engagement and family rings.
Thaler, charged with petty larceny, took two rings belonging to the resident on October 6, 2008. The engagement ring, given to the resident in 1940 by her husband, and the family ring were both loose on the resident's hand. Thaler offered to have them "fixed" so they would not fall off the resident's hand and took them. Approximately half an hour later, the resident requested the return of the rings, a request that Thaler ignored. Later on, the resident called out to Thaler in the facility dining room and asked her to return the rings. Thaler returned the family ring, keeping the engagement ring. When pushed to return the engagement ring, Thaler responded that she felt ill and needed to leave.
Thaler caller her boyfriend, Stoddard, and asked him to pick her up at the facility. She gave him the ring and they went together to a pawn shop and pawned the ring for $15. Stoddard has been charged with criminal possession.
The ring was recovered and is being held as evidence.
