Daughter Says Caregiver Took Parkinson’s Patient’s Home for $5

Nora Rowland says she drove from Baltimore to Conway, South Carolina, after becoming concerned that her father, Robert Rowland, had stopped responding to calls. When she reached his home, she found that the door had been replaced and a Ring camera installed, according to reporting cited by Boing Boing from WMBF News. Rowland said Sarah Smalls, the nurse who had cared for her 75-year-old father during the final months of his life, answered through the camera. Smalls allegedly told her that Robert had died and that there was more information she needed to share. According to the report, Robert Rowland had Parkinson’s disease and a brain injury. He had reportedly been moved to a senior living facility days earlier, while Smalls was named his power of attorney. A quitclaim deed transferred ownership of his Conway home to Smalls for $5. The daughter said the property had already been substantially changed. Video described in the report showed walls painted bright orange and the house filled with Smalls’ possessions and family photographs. Rowland also said she and her partner were handcuffed by police for trespassing after Smalls presented the deed as evidence that the property belonged to her. Charges against Rowland were later dismissed. A neighbor told police that he had become concerned after seeing furniture removed from the house and Robert disappear. The neighbor said he had contacted senior services because Robert did not seem mentally capable of making informed decisions, though the report does not say what action followed that contact. WMBF also reported that bank records showed money moving from Robert’s account to Smalls after his death. Conway police are investigating, and Rowland is challenging the deed transfer. Horry County Registrar of Deeds Marion Foxworth III told media that the office does not determine whether the terms of a deed are fair or valid before recording it. The case has been reported in the context of broader real-estate fraud concerns. The FBI says 58,141 victims reported $1.3 billion in real-estate-fraud losses nationwide from 2019 through 2023, although it does not maintain a separate total specifically for quitclaim-deed fraud.