ELIZABETHTOWN, Lancaster County — UPDATE (May 29): Witmer has been taken into custody.
PREVIOUSLY: A man and woman from Elizabethtown have been charged after police say they stole more than $36,000 from two people with mental health issues, according to Elizabethtown Police.
Carol A. Witmer, 52, and Michael E. Dunk, 53, both of Elizabethtown, were charged after an investigation that began when police serving a search warrant on an unrelated case found financial documents that showed Dunk was a representative payee for two victims suffering from mental health issues, police say.
Due to their mental health status and “the actions of Michael Dunk and Carol Witmer,” police say, the victims could not account for where any of their money had been going since Dunk became assigned as their representative payee.
Social Security’s Representative Payment Program provides benefit payment management for beneficiaries who are incapable of managing their Social Security or Supplemental Security Income payments, according to the Social Security website.
Police say Dunk and Witmer gained access as representative payee for the victims and withdrew funds for their own personal use, from at least August 2017 to March 1 of this year. The total amount taken was $36,284.38, police allege.
Dunk is currently incarcerated at Lancaster County Prison on $20,000 bail, according to police. Witmer is still at large. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact Elizabethtown Police at (717) 367-6540 or (717) 367-1835.
