ARLINGTON, Texas — Weeks after the first death in an investigation into Arlington boarding homes was ruled a murder, a civil suit was filed by the family of the 60-year-old victim.
The suit, filed on behalf of the late Kelly Pankratz by his brother, is filed against the company, Love and Caring for People LLC, its owner Regla 'Su' Becquer, and a company called Placing Russell LLC. Also listed as a defendant is the owner of the Mansfield home where Pankratz was living, a company based in Indiana.
All four defendants are accused of sixteen separate charges, including assault and battery, corporate negligence/civil conspiracy, unjust enrichment, constructive fraud and violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.
Christopher Devendorf, Pankratz's brother, is seeking more than $1 million in monetary relief, the suit states, and a demand for judgment for all other relief he may be entitled to.
"He was basically neglected," Devendorf's attorney, Dan Moore, told WFAA. "He was basically being used as a cash cow. We have numerous withdrawals of cash from ATMs that are unaccounted for, purchases in his name for things that were not for his benefit."
After being discharged from Baylor Scott & White in 2022, the hospital referred Pankratz to Placing Russell to help him find a local assisted living facility to treat ongoing medical conditions. He was first admitted into one of the homes, run by Becquer, in October 2022.
"Over the next approximate fifteen months, Mr. Pankratz's condition gradually declined, physically and financially," the suit reads. "Upon information and belief, Defendants utilized [Pankratz's] credit, financial accounts, documents governing estates and medical disorientation to profit financially in a variety of manners, and in this case even purchase an automobile."
Moore said there were several cash withdrawals, tens of thousands of dollars unaccounted for, and a number of personal valuables like watches and jewelry Devendorf hasn't been able to find.
"He was there because of various medical reasons, and he needed care. He couldn’t just go and take care of himself, which is why he was there," Moore said. "Because of his vulnerability, he was easy to be taken advantage of."
The suit states that this was a pattern that followed with several patients at a number of Becquer's homes.
"He was abused both financially and physically, kept drugged up on drugs that were not prescribed to him," Moore said. "Ultimately, he lost his life because of a mix of three different drugs that were not prescribed to him."
Pankratz died on Jan. 12 of this year. Earlier this month, the medical examiner found he died of "mixed drug toxicity," after Trazodone, Tramadol and Mirtazapine were all found in his system. His death was ruled a homicide, and authorities charged Becquer with murder.
"It was not only subpar, it was grossly negligent," Moore said of the care Pankratz received. "They weren’t given the proper care, but on top of that, they were giving even less than the care that they should have been giving."
Pankratz's death is one of more than 20 that police are investigating. Two of the deaths involved wills that resulted in Becquer -- or her family -- inheriting the person’s estate, court records show.
"At the end of the day, the main thing we want to do is bring all this to light so that there aren’t future victims," Moore said. "We want to find out who some of the other victims were and try to help their families."
The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office is also taking another look at the autopsy of Karen Walker, who died in October 2022. The medical examiner originally concluded she died of heart disease, but now they are looking to see if any drugs were in her system that were not prescribed to her.
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