A 56-year-old carer from Queensland named Michelle Leanne Stitt allegedly failed to provide an elderly woman with the necessities of life for more than three weeks across the month of May, resulting in a 77-year-old woman being admitted to intensive care, which police believe she may not fully recover from.
Ms. Stitt is accused of keeping the 77-year-old woman is extremely unhygienic conditions at a property in a town west of Brisbane called Tarampa, and she has also been charged with grievous bodily harm over an incident involving the same woman that occurred on April the 29th.
Police were shocked at the poor level of hygiene that they encountered when inspecting the Queensland property and were forced to enforce biohazard measures due to allegedly uncovering unsafe levels on animal faeces.
Detective Senior Sergeant, Lee Fortune, spoke with reporters on Monday revealing that the poor hygiene at the property and the alleged neglect of the 77-year-old woman had been distressing to the officers on duty.
“It will be alleged that the conditions at the property are extremely unhygienic and have led to the condition that this 77-year-old female is in,” said Mr. Fortune.
“It is extremely sad that a 77-year-old female, who was supposed to be cared for by that person, would be living long-term in this sort of condition,” he said.
According to police, there were also a number of animals at the property including horses, geese, and chickens that are alleged to have been neglected, and the RSPCA were being brought in to assist with their care.
Police began their investigations after ambulance officers raised concerns due to the nature of the elderly woman’s injuries and her overall state of health.
Ambulance officers were called to the Tarampa property last Wednesday where they found the elderly woman in a state of cardiac arrest and extremely low body temperature.
Court documents have revealed that Michelle Leanne Stitt failed to provide the 77-year-old woman with the necessaries of life from May 7th through to May 30th.
Ms. Stitt will remain in custody until her bail hearing on Jun 10th
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Hi. I have been told by family that I should not get involved with the abused carer Michelle Stitt and her court case, but I have been able to think of nothing else. I knew Michelle from 30yrs ago & we were very close friends, up until early 2003. I witnessed a lot of unpleasant situations because of her personality. If you require further information for her court case…I know she’s trying to apply for bail tomorrow…but she should NOT get it. You may contact me, confidentially! Thanks