Newington man/nursing home administrator sentenced to prison: State

CT Division of Criminal Justice

NEWINGTON/MIDDLETOWN, CT — A Newington man convicted of financial exploitation of an elderly resident was sentenced to prison Tuesday in Middletown Superior Court.

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Judge Julia DiCocco Dewey sentenced Ryan Turko, 42, of Newington, to five years in prison, suspended after nine months in custody, with five years of probation, the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice announced in a news release Tuesday.

Turko was ordered not to act as a Medicaid provider and not to work in any facility where elderly or disabled people are cared for, as well as any facility receiving Medicaid funding.

He was also ordered to undergo substance abuse evaluation and treatment deemed necessary, as well as perform 50 hours of community service. Turko previously repaid $15,778.43 to the victim.

Turko pleaded guilty to second-degree theft and first-degree identity theft.

An investigation by the Medicaid Fraud Unit of the Chief State Attorney's Office determined that Turko, the former business manager of the Portland Care and Rehabilitation Center in Portland, also known as PCRC, had inappropriately accessed an elderly resident's bank account and made withdrawals and transfers online. and wrote checks to himself without authorization between September 2020 and February 2021.

PCRC is a facility that accepts Medicaid funds on behalf of clients for services and the amount collected is $15,778.43.

Anyone with knowledge of suspected fraud or abuse in the public health care system is asked to contact the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Chief State Attorney's Office at 860-258-5986.

For more information on the conviction, click on this link.