A Jasper County mother and daughter have been arrested for defrauding the Demotte dentist office for which they both worked.
The dentist closed his office in July and requested the Indiana State Police to investigate after he discovered accounting irregularities, ISP spokesman Sgt. Glen Fifield said in a release Tuesday. Detectives in November interviewed more than 40 patients of the practice and were told by patients that Kayla and Meagan convinced them to pay cash to receive a discount for services at the dental practice, Fifield said.
The dentist, however, said that was not something he offered, and detectives discovered the cash was never deposited into the dental practice’s bank account, but several thousand dollars in cash were deposited into Kayla Baker’s account, Fifield said. Detectives further discovered that cash-payment records were deleted from the practice’s computer system.
Both women were charged with theft of at least $50,000.00, corrupt business influence and fraud, all Level 5 felonies; and obstruction of justice, a Level 6 Felony. Kayla Baker also received a Level 6 forgery charge.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.