A former pastor was behind bars in Miami-Dade after police said she scammed an elderly couple who had attended her church.
Yvonne Hampton-Barley, 63, is facing charges including grand theft, organized scheme to defraud and exploitation of the elderly, Miami-Dade Police officials said Thursday.
Police said Hampton-Barley defrauded the the couple, who are ages 89 and 81 and suffer from mental health disorders including early onset Dementia and Alzheimer's, out of thousands of dollars.
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The investigation began after a family member came across a change in the couple's home deed while reviewing their personal affairs.
Investigators discovered that Hampton-Barley had obtained power of attorney over the couple days after altering their home deed, officials said.
Over the course of several months, Hampton-Barley added her name to the victims' bank accounts, altered their retirement funding and tried to take the cash value of their life insurance policy, police said.
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Hampton-Barley also posed as their daughter to withdraw around $18,000 from the man's checking account, police said.
Online records show Hampton-Barley was the pastor at True Spirit Of Christ Our Redeemer Christian Ministries in Opa-locka. Police said Hampton-Barley had known the couple for more than 10 years.
Hampton-Barley was booked into jail. Attorney information wasn't available.
"As a community, when a member of a community that is elderly is exploited, we take these crimes very, very seriously. And so we're asking anyone in the community if any family member or anyone who has felt that they have been defrauded by this same person, our detectives want to speak with you," Miami-Dade Police spokesman Angel Rodriguez said.
