Keokuk Woman Charged with Theft of Elderly Relative

A Keokuk woman who was accused of misusing a family member’s finances has been convicted of theft Wednesday. Laura Hawkins held power of attorney for a 77 year old family member who was a resident at Sycamore Healthcare in Quincy when an investigation was launched after thousands of dollars went missing from the elderly person’s account. Hawkins was scheduled for a jury trial this week but court records show she waived her right in favor of a bench trial. Hawkins had 2 counts of financial exploitation of the elderly dismissed and she will now be sentenced in September for the theft charge.