Cathy Areu, former contributing editor for the Washington Post, was arrested for kidnapping her 88-year-old mother twice and scamming her out of $224,000.
Fifty-one-year-old Areu, previously known as the “liberal sherpa,” was booked Friday on several felonies, including kidnapping, elderly exploitation and organized scheme to defraud, according to the Miami Herald.
Areu used to be a regular guest on Fox News.
According to Florida authorities, Areu falsified documents to take control of her mother’s home, then allegedly made several bank withdrawals from her mother’s account and opened credit cards in her mother’s name before physically dragging her to a nursing home against her will.
According to the Daily Mail, Areu told her mother she was taking her to get ice cream with her grandchildren and instead took her to a nursing home against her will.
She is being held without bond in Miami-Dade jail.
The Daily Mail reported:
The self-proclaimed ‘Liberal Sherpa’ who once was a regular guest on Fox News stole at least $224,000 from her 88-year-old mother and physically dragged the elderly woman to a nursing home against her will, Florida authorities said on Friday.
Cathy Areu, 51, faces numerous felony charges including kidnapping, exploitation of the elderly and organized scheme to defraud. She is being held without bond in Miami-Dade county jail.
Areu previously appeared as an unpaid guest on a number of Fox News shows until 2020, when she filed a sexual harassment lawsuit naming hosts Sean Hannity and Tucker Carlson — a claim that was later dismissed by a judge.
Miami-Dade County prosecutors say she falsified documents to take control of her mother’s home, siphoned money from her mother’s reverse mortgage and savings account, and took out credit cards in her mother’s name and then used them for her own benefit.
Details of Areu’s arrest were not released, but prosecutors said she had been evading authorities since June, including spending time in Mexico. She was being held without bond Friday at the county jail.
Court and jail records do not show if she has an attorney to speak on her behalf.
According to prosecutors, the investigation began in 2019 when state officials received reports that Areu was exploiting her mother.
Paperwork had been filed turning over the mother’s house to Areu, but the mother denied the signature was hers.
Cathy Areu in 2020 falsely accused Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity of sexual assault.
The lawsuit was eventually dismissed by a judge.
