Jacksonville nursing assistant accused of stealing from terminally ill cancer patient

A Jacksonville nursing assistant accused of stealing from a terminally ill cancer patient had an emergency restriction put on her license.

The Florida Department of Health said Heather Brown stole $6,800 from the 80-year-old patient she was hired to care for.

The report said Brown was employed by the victim from Oct. 2017 to March 2018 as a home health care nurse.

Police said the suspect worked approximately three to four days a week during that time span.

The document said in March, Brown stole three checks from the patient’s home, wrote the stolen checks to herself and forged the patient’s signature.

Police said Brown was caught on surveillance camera uttering all three of the forged checks.

According to court records, Brown was hired by “Beachside Care,” a senior home care provider.

Action News Jax reached out to the company to ask if Brown had contact with other patients. However, the owner refused to answer any of our questions.

The disciplinary report said Brown’s actions “pose a threat to all patients needing assistance with their activities of daily living to whom she provides home healthcare services.”

In April, an arrest warrant was issued for Brown on charges of forging checks and exploiting an elderly or disabled adult.

She was arrested in May and also charged with possession of a controlled substance after police said they found Xanax in Brown’s vehicle during a traffic stop.

Right now, Brown is out on bond. We stopped by her home, but she was not there at the time.

A man claiming to be her husband told Action News Jax that he had no clue about the allegations before closing the door.

Brown is due back in court Aug. 21 for a pretrial hearing.

Cox Media Group