FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Rocky Hill, CT) - A Newington man was arrested and charged today with financially exploiting an elderly resident.
Ryan Turko, age 39, of Newington, was arrested by Inspectors from the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit in the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney, and charged with one count each of Larceny in the Second Degree, Identity Theft in the First Degree, Forgery in the Second Degree and Computer Crimes.
According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Turko, the business manager for Portland Care and Rehabilitation Centre, also known as PCRC, improperly accessed an elderly resident’s bank account and made online withdrawals and transfers and wrote checks to himself without permission between September 2020 and February 2021. PCRC is a facility that accepts Medicaid monies on behalf of clients for services.
Turko was released on a $25,000 non-surety bond, and is scheduled to appear in Middletown Superior Court, G.A. No. 9, on December 15, 2022. The charges are merely accusations and he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Larceny in the Second Degree is a class C felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison, Identity Theft in the First Degree is a class B Felony, punishable by up to 20 years in prison, Forgery in the Second Degree and Computer Crimes are a class D Felonies, punishable by up to five years in prison.
The case will be prosecuted by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. The Unit is grateful for the assistance it received in the investigation from the Portland Police Department, specifically Detective Matthew Knapp, as well as the Rocky Hill Police Department.
Anyone with knowledge of suspected fraud or abuse in the public healthcare system is asked to contact the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit at the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney at 860-258-5986.