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Police: Woman lies to get into hospital room, steals from unconscious patient

GREENSBURG, Pa. — A man who spent more than a month unconscious and in a Greensburg hospital woke up to find his debit card missing and thousands of dollars racked up in charges.

Police checked with security and staff at Excela Westmoreland hospital and found a woman visited the victim in the ICU.

She told staff she was his daughter, but police say she was really an ex-girlfriend.

“Through the hospital and video, and then we started getting video from where she was using the card at all the time, so we made a definite ID," said police Capt. Robert Stafford.

Channel 11 was there as police brought Charlette Jackson in after she was picked up in Braddock this morning – they credit a citizen who saw her picture on WPXI.com.

“I guess if he's having medical issues, you don't want to interrogate somebody who says they're a relative,” Stafford said. “You take their word they're there to see a loved one.”

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The victim told Greensburg police he found unauthorized charges totaling more than $4,000 from more than 50 different stores, including gas stations to grocery stores to liquor stores. He even found utility bills paid for allegedly by Jackson.

The detective handling the case said the victim contacted him again Wednesday and believes another credit card was also stolen, but that will take some more investigating.

Jackson is charged with burglary, criminal trespass, theft by unlawful taking, theft by deception, receiving stolen property, access device fraud, identity theft and criminal use of a communication facility.