Three charged with scamming elderly woman
By Mark Leberfinger and Phil RayHOLLIDAYSBURG - A borough couple and their son have been charged in a scheme that scammed a 95-year-old woman out of thousands of dollars by using her personal information to obtain credit cards, police said Friday.
The father and son, David and Andrew Resa, were arrested Nov. 21 and Tuesday, respectively. A warrant has been issued for Gina Resa's arrest.
Gina Resa, 47, was the housekeeper for Dorothy B. Moore of Hollidaysburg, who died Sept. 7, police said. She is charged with 47 counts, including access device fraud, conspiracy, forgery and identity theft.
Moore was the mother of Debra K. Trenkle, 58, also of Hollidaysburg, who died Aug. 13 after an incident at a Claysburg garage; Trenkle's death remains under investigation, authorities said.
The Resas were Moore's neighbors before moving to Logan Boulevard, police said.
Gina Resa did some good things for Moore, such as taking her places, but police said she started stealing from Moore in March - around the same time a caregiver quit taking care of the woman.
Gina Resa opened three credit card accounts under Moore's name and racked up more than $18,000 in debt, police said.
She also forged checks from the prior caregiver's checking account when she was asked to care for that woman's finances.
The father and son had lesser roles in the scheme.
Andrew Resa deposited two checks into his account that were intended to pay for Moore's hearing aid. Moore's son had sent the money for the device, writing the checks in Andrew's name, Lingafelt said.
Some of the funds were used to pay a car debt David Resa owed to a Delaware title company. Car repairs and water bills also were paid with the money, Lingafelt said.
This is not the first time Gina Resa has been accused of a credit card scam.
She was arrested by Hollidaysburg police in September on a warrant from Washington state. Court documents state she used credit card information from a woman to pay the airfare for a youth basketball trip from Portland, Ore., to Las Vegas in 2005.
David Resa coached the basketball team, and he and his wife set up the tournament trip. They were to deposit all the money they received for the trip into a team bank account.
The day before the trip, Gina Resa said she discovered a problem with the credit card and the bank account, court documents state.
One of the parents then gave Resa her credit card information, according to Resa, but the parent later reported fraudulent activity on her credit card for the airline tickets.
Gina Resa was extradited from Blair County to Washington in October and released on signature bond, according to a criminal record check.
She also has a criminal history in California, based on an identification number listed on a Washington court document, but no information was available Friday.
David Resa was lodged in Blair County Prison Friday in lieu of 10 percent of $150,000 bail. Andrew Resa was freed on $150,000 unsecured bail. Preliminary hearings for the men are scheduled Dec. 9 before Magisterial District Judge Paula Aigner.
Gina Resa's whereabouts were unknown as of Friday night.
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labstud3
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12-27-08 10:28 AM
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I believe "innocent until proven guilty" is in order for ******* you people ahead. It is not my business to pre-judge until final words are presented. That makes me think this area we live in is backwards. Ignorant. Outsiders not welcome.Not quite what I thought of Blair County as I grew up.
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MomFirst
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12-01-08 3:16 PM
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Greene, the "prior caregiver" is another piece of work. She got good and chummy with the Resas and has lied about so much to do with this case that one can't help but wonder what her REAL involvement is. She changes her stories like one changes their underwear, and acts like a lunatic most of the time. She had plenty to do with it, believe you me! The Moores never wanted her there so much, but everytime I went there, there she sat on her lazy bum, smelling like yesterdays trash. Her and Gina were seen together just days before Gina was arrested. Now if Gina was stealing from her, WHY would she be so chummy with Gina?
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ToonaBornandRaised
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11-29-08 4:59 PM
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These Resas were dirtballs anyhow. Daddy had to coach his own AAU team to let po-boy Andy play and try to get a scholarship for college. Why not use your stolen cards to pay for Andy boy, Resa?? Freaking dirtbags. And here we thought they were just a typical rich Hollidaysburg family. Resa kid is a punk, the dad is scum and the mother is probably out trying to get into Canada.
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Greene
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11-29-08 3:02 PM
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i think the piece of garbage could be the son--who needed professionals, not church ladies or neighbors and my eyes were close enough to see who ran when she needed help in the middle of the night......the sisters death really needs ck'd out very throughly.....didn't the brother try putting her behind bars too...?
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Suitor
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11-29-08 1:49 PM
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NOSPIN, A note. The crime already occured. Here again, there was nothing the police could do to protect her, or intercede to stop the crime. Again, the cops show up after the crime. Thats there job. It's our job to stop the crime from occuring. As much as possible.
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Suitor
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11-29-08 1:46 PM
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NOSPIN, it was already called in when I found out about it. He was already in jail, when I flew in, from out of state. There was no way I could reach him. I tried.
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edrock
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11-29-08 12:41 PM
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scum bags,slap on wrist and back on street for third round
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MomFirst
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11-29-08 10:24 AM
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WHY would the son make the checks out to Andrew in the first place? I have to wonder WHAT the caregiver has to do with the entire mess; odd how she quit right when this began, then asked Gina to handle HER finances? Knowing some of the parties involved in this scam, I'd have to say that, while Gina and her family are the perps, the "prior caregiver" should be heavily investigated for her role in the entire matter. She knows a lot more than she's saying, and using "forged checks" to coverup her involvement. Smoke screens and red flags are going up everywhere with this story! Seems the REAL victim is now dead, as is her daughter. Wonder what the caregiver knows about THAT, too? Who is being investigated for the daughters death, I wonder? Personally, I think the caregiver knows WAY more than she's pretending to. Her "victim act" should get an award.
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guttertroll
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11-29-08 8:26 AM
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Notice how the scum just keeps rising to the top?
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nospin
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11-29-08 6:55 AM
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Suitor, another example of those who cannot defend or help themselves in a situation, requiring police intervention. I would think that you would not have called the police for your aunt and taken care of it yourself.
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Suitor
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11-29-08 4:57 AM
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awesomerichard8, 3 pieces of garbage. Yep. My Aunt was taken in a simular fashion for over $325,000. Everything she had. She was 68 back then. 12 years ago. Ya, the guy was convicted, prison time, and ordered to pay it back. She never got a nickle, and never will. Something that really pizzes me off is when an American points there finger at another foreign culture and condems them. Untill they start to look here, nothing will change. Except things will get worse.
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awesomerichard8
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11-29-08 1:23 AM
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3 pieces of garbage.
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