I AM CURIOUS – Why is it still the case some sectors of our community see elder abuse in the same terms we once saw domestic violence as a “family matter”. Queensland has criminal laws for this type of wrong doing:- In R v Naidu [2008] QCA 130 financial abuse was prosecuted as fraud. In that case, the appellant was convicted at trial of two counts of fraud for receiving over $370,000 by way of gifts from the victim who was aged in his late 70s and suffered from dementia. An appeal against the conviction was dismissed. #Fraud – It is an offence for someone to use another person’s property by dishonestly applying it to their own benefit. Section 408C of the Criminal Code 1899 (Qld). In Queensland, the penalty for breach of this provision is five – 20 years imprisonment depending on the value. #Stealing – Theft applies in the circumstances of elder abuse. Section 398 of the Criminal Code 1899 (Qld). A basic definition of theft is: “A person steals if he dishonestly appropriates property belonging to another with the intention of permanently depriving the other of it”. #elderabuse #crime #powerofattorney #advice
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