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Worcester nursing assistant accused of stealing more than $30K from nursing home residents

WORCESTER, Mass. — A nursing assistant in Worcester is accused of using the debit cards of four nursing home residents to steal more than $30,000 from their accounts.

Alexander Irizarry, 52, was arrested Friday and charged with four counts of larceny from a person over 60 and one count each of larceny over $250 from a person over 60 and attempted larceny under $250 from a person over 60.

The Mass. Attorney General’s office alleges that Irizarry, a Certified Nursing Assistant at Parsons Hill Rehabilitation and Health Care Center, claimed he had permission from the facility to shop and do banking for residents who were quarantined during the COVID-19 pandemic. He asked vulnerable residents diagnosed with memory issues, declining health or mental health issues if they needed items from stores or had any banking needs, and withdrew between $500 and $1,000 in cash from residents’ accounts on each visit to the ATM, according to the Attorney General.

Investigators say Irizarry kept residents’ debit cards for extended periods of time, including one instance where he withdrew $1,000 from a dying resident while on vacation.

Irizarry pleaded not guilty at his arraignment April 15. His bail was set at $5,000, with the conditions that he stay away from the alleged victims and the nursing home and not work as a Certified Nursing Assistant.

He is scheduled to appear at a pretrial conference May 19 in Worcester Superior Court.

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