Former Pictou County long term care facility administrator charged with theft

A former administrator of Valley View Villa has been charged with theft over $5,000.

Cpl. Ron Bryce of the Pictou County RCMP said that following a lengthy investigation police have charged 47-year-old Emily Maceachern for stealing money from the long term care facility in Riverton, Pictou County.

Police believe the alleged thefts took place between 2013 and 2016 and the investigation indicates that Maceachern stole more than $27,000.

“It was over a period of time,” Bryce said. “She was an administrator for the Villa.”

Maceachern is scheduled to appear in provincial court in Pictou on March 5.

Police began investigating after receiving complaints from other staff members and the investigation has been going on for more than a year, Bryce said.

“It took a while to gather all the information and banking documents and get everything organized and determine what took place,” Bryce said.

He confirmed that the woman is no longer employed by Valley View Villa.

Valley View Villa is owned by the Municipality of Pictou County. Warden Robert Parker said that county council was made aware of the allegations several months ago and said it’s disappointing.

“It’s not just what you lost,” he said. “It’s just the fact that someone was in your trust and let you down.”

He said the municipality has set up an audit committee to help protect against this in the future.

Valley View Villa has recently been in the news because of a financial shortfall which has caused some hours to be cut for some staff.

“While (this theft) certainly had its effect on the shortages there, it’s certainly not the sole cause of the shortages,” Parker said.