CHICAGO: County Sues Megachurch For Allegedly Swindling $340,000 From Elderly Dementia Patient

CBS Chicago reports:

A megachurch in Ohio is accused of coercing an elderly woman in Rogers Park to hand over hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The woman is mentally ill and has dementia. She is now under the care of the Cook County Public Guardian, who is fighting to reclaim that money — her life-savings.

Bridget Pollard, 76, has lived by herself since her husband died in 2015. The childless woman lived in hoarding conditions and blocked relatives’ efforts to help her, Pollard’s niece Bridget Johnson says.

Her niece says that Pollard emptied out her late husband’s state pension, and it wasn’t long before she wrote a $340,000 check, payable to Grace Cathedral. The megachurch in Akron, Ohio televises the ministry of Rev. Ernest Angley.

The niece claims that the church “stalked” her aunt with claims of eternal life in heaven and eventually got the elderly woman to grant them power of attorney status.