March 27--ROCKAWAY PARK, N.Y. -- I
Cops say 58-year-old Maureen Murray's niece, Deborah, called 911 last week after she could not reach her aunt. She knew Maureen was staying with an old neighbor in Rockaway Park.
According to the Queens District Attorney Richard Brown, the duo pulled Murray from an assisted living facility where she was living. They convinced her she would save on health care costs if she moved in with them. They promised her a safe place to live.
Instead, Brown said, they convinced her to sign away her social security and life savings to them by power of attorney. Sources tell PIX 11 they were taking in about 2500 dollars a month and never gave a cent to Murray.
Prosecutors claim they banished the 58-year-old to a back room that was locked from the inside. The room did not have a bed, only a sheets on the ground. The complaint said only a sheet covered the window.
When police arrived on Friday, they found Murray lying on the ground with blood pouring from her head. The duo claimed she fell off a toilet but a doctor examination found the bumps and bruises were a result of beatings.
Neighbors say the night before cops arrived they heard a loud thud upstairs. One neighbor, who saw Maureen often, told PIX 11 she always looked frail and wore a leg brace. She would often come outside and walk the couple's dog.
Both Donovan and Washington face kidnapping, assault, and unlawful imprisonment charges. If convicted, they face 25 years to life in prison.
Copyright 2012 - WPIX-TV, New York
