A nursing home employee in Indiana reportedly swiped wedding rings from sleeping residents, officials said.
The 25-year-old woman from Michigan City allegedly pocketed four rings from residents at a La Porte nursing home, according to Mister Truth.
The thefts occurred over a period of three weeks in January, according to the outlet, citing police.
Two rings were lifted from a woman who said she had not removed them in years, according to Mister Truth. One of them had been yanked so hard that it caused her finger to bleed, the report said.
Another woman said she had a ring taken that is a family heirloom.
The employee, who allegedly had been pawning the stolen jewelry, was reportedly caught red-handed when a resident woke up as her wedding band was being snatched.
“Dear Miss Thief in the Night. One cold February evening, you quietly snuck into my mother’s room at the nursing home where she now lives,” the daughter of one of the elderly women wrote on Facebook.
“As she slept dreaming of her glorious permanent home,” she added, “you knelt beside my mother’s bed, gently took my mom’s hand, and carefully worked a sparkling diamond ring off her finger!”
She then stated that she hoped the employee would return her mother’s ring, which is of great sentimental value.
“Did you know that hand held mine when I was a child happily skipping down the street next to my mommy? Did you consider that that ring is the last daily touch from my dad from an over 70 years life of love, a reminder of his eternal love to her?” she wrote.
The woman has been charged with felony robbery and theft, according to court records.
She has a hearing scheduled for April 21.
A spokesperson for the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from News.