NYC nurse, 43, steals coronavirus patient’s credit card as he was on a ventilator three days before he died
The New York police arrested a nurse for stealing a coronavirus patient’s credit card as he was on his death bed, to buy $60-worth of groceries and gas.
Danielle Conti, the 43-year-old nurse, stole the credit card of Anthony Catapano, a 70-year-old COVID-19 patient. She used the card three days before Anthony passed away on April 12th at Staten Island University Hospital in New York, as reported by Mail Online.
The healthcare worker, of Old Bridge, New Jersey, was arrested on Thursday, May 7th. According to police, Conti was charged with grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, and petit larceny.
On April 9th, only three days before the 70-year-old coronavirus patient lost the battle with the disease, the nurse rang up $60.23-worth of charges on the card at a gas station and a ShopRite store. Danielle allegedly stole Anthony’s American Express card while she was fighting for his life during one of her hospital shifts.
When Anthony’s daughter, Tara Catapano, 37, discovered the charges, she immediately reported her findings to Staten Island police.
Tara contacted the police on April 28th. In an interview with New York Daily News, she expressed how shocked she was by the nurse’s immoral deed:
“I can’t believe a person could do something like that to someone fighting for his life. This is a nurse who took an oath to treat, protect and save patients. It’s disgusting … Never in a million years did I expect any of this to happen.”
Tara continues, calling Conti a ‘despicable human being’. She added:
“How would she feel if somebody did this to her parents when they were gravely ill? I hope she gets what she deserves, and loses her license and her job.”
The devastated daughter of the late COVID-19 patient claims the charges were rung up on the same day her father was moved into the ventilator unit as his condition worsened.
Tara cannot believe the healthcare worker risked her job for less than $100. She said:
“A total of $60.23. That’s what she risked her job for. She took total advantage of my father’s condition. I’m sure she assumed he wasn’t going to make it, and his family wouldn’t notice.”
Danielle Conti, the indecent nurse who stole a dying man’s credit card, has worked in the hospital for 13 years. She has been suspended and faces possible termination. A spokesperson from Staten Island University Hospital reported:
“Danielle Conti has been temporarily suspended and faces termination in response to the felony charges. We are working closely with the law-enforcement authorities and the hospital is conducting its own investigation.”
Although she had no prior arrests, officers don’t exclude the possibility of previous similar crimes. A police source shared with the New York Post:
“Who knows how much has already been going on? It’s just a waiting game to see those people brought to justice.”
Another police source added that there are bad people in every industry. Sadly, healthcare workers are people we believe are going to take care of us, while in the meantime, ‘they’re committing grand larcenies’ against us.