Galax Pair Sentenced On Fraud Charges
Jennifer Hall, Bernard Satterfield to Serve Prison Time
ABINGDON, VIRGINIA -- A former senior social worker for the Grayson County Department of Social Services who oversaw Adult Protective Services was sentenced this afternoon on federal fraud charges arising from the theft of money from two elderly clients. A former companion care provider hired to work with her was also sentenced this afternoon on charges stemming from misuse of a debit card and theft from a bank account belonging to a patient the defendant was hired to care for.
Jennifer Edward Hall, 36, and Bernard Dale Satterfield, 47, both of Galax, Va. were indicted in July 2010. Satterfield pled guilty in October to one count of conspiracy to commit access device fraud, one count of access device fraud and one count of bank fraud in October.
This morning in U.S. District Court, Hall was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $34,401 in restitution to the victims. Satterfield was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $26,008 in restitution to the victims.
“Mr. Satterfield and Ms. Hall stole money from an elderly woman who trusted them with her life savings,” United States Attorney Timothy J. Heaphy said today. “Ms. Hall was a government worker entrusted with caring for the vulnerable victim in this case. Rather than protecting that elderly victim, Ms. Hall enlisted Mr. Satterfield as her partner in a criminal scheme to loot the victim of her hard earned money. When people prey upon our most vulnerable citizens in pursuit of their own greed, law enforcement will respond vigorously and pursue full restitution for victims.”
Hall and Satterfield have admitted to victimizing an 88-year-old person suffering from dementia. The pair wrote checks out of the victim’s account, withdrew money from her back account, and used that money for personal needs.
Hall also admitted to fraudulently negotiating a series of checks as a means of obtaining funds from an 81-year-old victim. She has admitted to taking this action without consent and for the purpose of using the funds for personal needs. In all, a total of $34,853 was stolen from both victims.
The investigation of the case was conducted by the United States Secret Service and the Grayson County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Bockhorst is prosecuting the case for the United States.
