A 32-year-old Atkinson, Ill., woman faces multiple felony charges after police say she stole from a dependent victim’s financial accounts, according to court records.
Kaylin Kempf faces three felony charges of forgery, a felony charge of second-degree theft and a felony charge of dependent-adult abuse, court records show.
On June 9, 2023, a fraud complaint was filed with Davenport Police, arrest affidavits say. Kempf was a “related voluntary caretaker” of the victim, and told police she had been providing the victim with care on a weekly basis since August of 2023 until the time of the incident when the victim was placed in a temporary medical facility.
Kempf, police allege in affidavits, admitted she provided assistance to the victim “after a fall history, medical issues, memory, and possible substance abuse/mental health issues,” affidavits show.
According to affidavits, Kempf was the victim’s medical power of attorney during the involved period of time. While in a role as a caretaker to the victim, police allege Kempf “did financially exploit the victim” for about $7,808 through unauthorized writing of checks and use of the victim’s credit cards against the victim’s financial accounts.
Kempf, police allege in affidavits, “wrote three checks against the victim’s account for unauthorized personal use. (Kempf) signed the account fraudulently as their name and then POA (power of attorney,)” although Kempf “was neither the current POA for the victim’s finances, nor was the financial POA enacted by the victim’s physician.”
Police allege Kempf fraudulently used the victim’s checking account and the fraudulent status of POA to provide personal loans to friends without any right to the victim’s accounts. Affidavits show Kempf admitted the checks “were written at the victim’s residence in Scott County.”
The total dollar amount of the fraudulent checks is $1,308, police say.
Police allege Kempf “did use the victim’s Chase Bank and Green State Bank credit cards without authorization from the victim having no right, license, or privilege to the victim’s accounts” and “did intend to permanently deprive the victim of the total value of the purchases made,” making “fifty-plus purchases over the course of May and June of 2023.”
The combined total of fraudulent spending from the credit cards is about $6,313 and the total value of the theft was between $1,500 and $10,000, police say in affidavits.
Kempf, who was arrested on a warrant, is being held on $10,000 bond in Scott County Jail.
She is set for a preliminary hearing March 1 in Scott County Court.
