Nogales, Arizona - Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced a State Grand Jury has indicted Raul Lopez, the owner of La Paloma Home for the Aging located in Nogales, Arizona, for four counts of vulnerable adult abuse.
On February 13, 2018, a 90-year-old resident of La Paloma Home for the Aging was taken to a local hospital for an injury sustained due to a fall. While being examined, hospital staff purportedly observed several pressure ulcers that were not reported on the resident’s feet and heels. Doctors determined the wounds to the resident’s feet were full thickness necrosis, consistent with chronic dry gangrene. According to the doctors, the wounds occurred over a period of time, and should have been observed had the caregivers been checking or caring for the resident’s feet.
This case was investigated by Adult Protective Services Investigator Ricardo Martinez and Special Agents with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office Heath Care Fraud and Abuse Section.
Assistant Attorney General Sterling Struckmeyer is prosecuting this case through the Attorney General’s Southern Arizona Office in Tucson, Arizona.
All defendants are presumed innocent until convicted in a court of law.