BRONX, N.Y. — A former nursing assistant at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in the Bronx was sentenced to five years of probation for using a paraplegic veteran’s credit card to make personal purchases, the Bronx District Attorney’s Office announced.
Unique Allen, 34, pleaded guilty to fourth-degree grand larceny on August 30. She was sentenced on Wednesday by Bronx Supreme Court Justice Timothy Lewis. The charges stem from incidents between December 2019 and January 2020, during which Allen used the credit card information of a 72-year-old patient to buy food, shoes, bath items, and movie tickets totaling approximately $600. Attempts to charge an additional $2,000 were unsuccessful.
District Attorney Darcel D. Clark said Allen, who was employed in the Spinal Cord Injury Unit at the James J. Peters VA Medical Center, “violated her duty to the patient, a paralyzed veteran.” Clark added that Allen now faces the consequences with a permanent criminal record.
The case was investigated by the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General. “Today’s sentence sends a clear message,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher Algieri, “that the VA OIG will vigorously investigate VA employees who would exploit our nation’s veterans.”
Allen, who was dismissed from her job for an unrelated matter, has been barred from future employment in positions of trust involving veterans.