Baltimore woman seeks answers after late father's caregiver charged with fraud, exploitation

A Baltimore woman is still fighting for answers after her father's former caregiver was charged with fraud and exploitation in South Carolina.

Sarah Smalls was arrested in South Carolina on several charges in connection with the alleged abuse and exploitation of her former patient. She appeared in court Tuesday morning.

The patient was the father of Baltimore resident Nora Rowland, who spoke with WJZ's Tara Lynch earlier this month about her father's death.

Smalls is charged with breach of trust with fraudulent intent, perjury and exploitation of a vulnerable adult, according to online court records. She is facing a total of $45,000 in bail.

Rowland told CBS News Baltimore that more charges are pending.

Smalls posted bail Tuesday and was released. She is due back in court on Dec. 11.

"It felt like for so long everything I've been working for finally has come true. It was really a big moment," Rowland said about the arrest.

Rowland said her father retired to South Carolina in 2013 and began using home care services in 2021 after suffering a traumatic brain injury. He was also diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

In 2024, Rowland's father hired a caregiver through Griswold Home Care Services. Rowland said Smalls allegedly abused her father and pressured him to sign over the deed to his roughly $300,000 home for $5.

Three months later, her father had died, the home had been transferred to Smalls and money was missing from his accounts, Rowland said.

Caregiver charged in South Carolina

Smalls is accused of withdrawing more than $17,000 in cash and sending money to herself through Cash App on several occasions, according to court documents obtained by WJZ.

Rowland attended Tuesday's bail review hearing virtually from Baltimore. She said it was uncomfortable seeing Smalls, even through a screen.

According to Rowland, Smalls defended her actions in court and said the home rightfully belonged to her.

Smalls was captured on video leaving the jail Tuesday evening after posting bond.

Family demands investigation

In the spring of 2024, Rowland was planning to move her father to Maryland. She had even set up an in-law suite for him in Baltimore and hired temporary in-home care while she prepared his new living arrangements.

Rowland described her father as independent and said he primarily needed help with daily tasks.

Rowland said she regularly spoke with her father, but their communication became less frequent after he began receiving care from Smalls. After not hearing from him on her birthday or Father's Day, Rowland drove to South Carolina to check on him.

When she arrived, she learned her father had been dead for three days and that his home was no longer in his name.

After reviewing records, Rowland discovered the home had been transferred to Smalls and that tens of thousands of dollars were missing from her father's accounts.

Rowland said Smalls had moved her father out of his home and into a senior living facility without her knowledge. She said Smalls then moved into her father's home.

In body camera video shared with WJZ, neighbors confirmed that furniture and other belongings had been moved into the home. The neighbors also said they had not seen Rowland's father.

Rowland said that while her father needed medical care, she did not believe he was near death.

Records from the senior living facility described her father as "emaciated" and "hallucinating" during the same period he was signing documents that changed his power of attorney and transferred the deed to his home.

Rowland believes her father was placed on and off hospice care and given medications that affected his mental state. Police records from Smalls' arrest described Robert Rowland as a "vulnerable adult."

Rowland also alleges Smalls failed to pay for her father's care at the assisted living facility and said he was not receiving regular meals.

According to Rowland, medical records indicated her father may have been trying to contact her or other family members. She said he was eventually confined to his bed at the senior living facility and restrained because he repeatedly tried to leave to get help.

While Rowland views the charges as a step forward, she believes they do not go far enough. She wants investigators to further examine her allegations of physical abuse.

"She stole his house, and then he died weighing less than 90 pounds. And somehow that's totally legal. I don't get it," Rowland said Wednesday. "It was very clear that like some type of abuse happened here, and the fact that they're not investigating that..."

Rowland said prosecutors told her Smalls will likely be offered a plea agreement because she has no prior criminal record. She said prosecutors also told her Smalls will likely be allowed to remain in the home.

"How is she able to benefit from the proceeds of her crime like this? I don't understand it, and they don't seem to be very interested in pursuing it either," Rowland said.

Rowland said she will continue fighting for answers about her father's death.

"He was always there for me in times of emergencies, and so I constantly am wanting to call him up and wanting to reach out to him, and it's sad he's not here with me."

In legal limbo

Rowland filed a civil complaint against Smalls and is waiting for police in Horry County, South Carolina, to investigate. She said investigators only recently began working on the case.

She also said she still does not have all of her father's personal belongings, including his cellphone, valuable artwork and other heirlooms.

AARP Maryland recommends placing valuable assets and investments, including property, in a trust with a designated trustee. The organization says doing so can make it more difficult for property to be transferred.

AARP also recommends monitoring financial information, particularly when working with a home care company, and regularly checking in with a caregiver through scheduled and unscheduled visits.