SHELBY COUNTY, TN — A caregiver employed by United Home Health LLC has been arrested and charged after allegedly stealing over $82,000 worth of jewelry from elderly clients in her care.
Corine Mukes, 22, was providing in-home care services to an elderly couple when valuable pieces of jewelry began to go missing. According to the victims’ representative, the theft was discovered around July 4, though items had started disappearing as early as June 9.
Detectives launched an investigation and used Leads Online, a national database of pawned items, to track the stolen jewelry. Records showed Mukes had pawned items on four separate occasions: June 9, 14, 21, and 30. Surveillance footage further confirmed her identity during the transactions.
Police recovered a purchase agreement from Cash America Pawn on Poplar Avenue and Overton Crossing, where the victims identified their missing jewelry.
Mukes is now facing charges of:
Financial exploitation of the elderly
Theft of property valued between $60,000 and $250,000
The American Bankers Association has cited financial exploitation of the elderly as the fastest-growing form of elder abuse — where trusted individuals use an older adult’s finances or property without permission or for personal gain. Caregivers, family members, and even professionals can be perpetrators.
This case serves as a stark reminder of the need for background checks and monitoring in elder care services, where vulnerable individuals are often at risk of such violations of trust.
