A doctor who practices in NJ with admitting privileges at New York Presbyterian Hospital. His 94-year-old mother. Her $832,453 savings. And a wall collapse in Upper Manhattan. In a case Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau called "a mini-Astor case," Dr. Robin Motz was accused of stealing his mother's savings since 2003.
Motz, who pleaded not guilty to grand larceny and money laundering, assumed power of attorney for his mother, Minnie Motz, a retired librarian. According to the NY Times, he used her savings on "luxuries like vacations, a country house and fancy clothes." The Daily News adds it was spent on "fine dining, five-star hotels, racket-club dues, improvements to his upstate home and $400,000 in credit-card debt."
What's fascinating is that Dr. Motz's scheme was uncovered after a retaining wall collapsed at Castle Village onto the Henry Hudson Parkway in 2005. Minnie Motz lives in Castle Village, and since the building's co-op owners were being made to pay for repairs, she discovered she had no more savings! Castle Village started eviction proceedings against her and, per the Post, "the elderly woman's social worker called the DA's Elder Abuse Unit." When the Post called the senior citizen for a comment, the woman (with a West Indian accent) who picked up the phone only said, "How would you feel? That's exactly how she feels!"
Dr. Motz's sister, who lives in California, told the NY Times that their family had unraveled since their father's death a few years ago. She also "said relations with her brother were strained because she was an 'energy healer,' and he did not approve of her practice of alternative medicine."
