Woman admits to stealing from parents as mother battled cancer

Lisa Wells. Photo courtesy augustacrime.com

Date: May 25, 2022

A woman accused of draining her parents’ financial resources as her mother battled cancer pleaded guilty to exploitation of an elder adult Tuesday, May 24.

Lisa D. Wells, 52, of Locus Grove agreed in Columbia County Superior Court that she will repay $10,000 to her father, starting with $1,300 cash Tuesday. Judge J. Wade Padgett accepted her plea under the First Offender Act and imposed a 10-year probation term. However, if Wells complies with all requirements and pays the remaining $8,700 in restitution in 18 months, Padgett said her sentence will be reduced to three years.

C. Wayne Ellington, whose wife died in 2019, said Wells was supposed to take care of their finances while they were seeking treatment for his wife. They relalized that Wells was taking their money for herself instead, including taking out a $16,000 loan on their property. He’s been forced to return to the workforce at age 75, Ellington said.

Sandy Hodson is a staff reporter covering courts for The Augusta Press. Reach her at sandy@theaugustapress.com. 

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The Author

Award-winning journalist Sandy Hodson The Augusta Press courts reporter. She is a native of Indiana, but she has been an Augusta resident since 1995 when she joined the staff of the Augusta Chronicle where she covered courts and public affairs. Hodson is a graduate of Ball State University, and she holds a certificate in investigative reporting from the Investigative Reporters and Editors organization. Before joining the Chronicle, Hodson spent six years at the Jackson, Tenn. Sun. Hodson received the prestigious Georgia Press Association Freedom of Information Award in 2015, and she has won press association awards for investigative reporting, non-deadline reporting, hard news reporting, public service and specialty reporting. In 2000, Hodson won the Georgia Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award, and in 2001, she received Honorable Mention for the same award and is a fellow of the National Press Foundation and a graduate of the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting boot camp.

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