Charges in nursing home wedding ring thefts

she was employed at Miller’s Health and Rehab at 3530 Monroe Street.

Beginning in late January, police said Blake over a three week period stole four rings from the fingers of three female residents while they slept.

One resident had two rings she had not taken off in years removed on separate occasions while sleeping.

BY STAN MADDUX

Police said one of the difficult to slip off rings was tugged on hard enough to cause her finger to bleed.

Another ring taken from the finger of a resident who later died belonged to her grandmother.

A break in the case was from another victim waking up to a small-framed young blonde woman trying to pull a wedding band from her finger.

Police said Blake was the only midnight shift worker matching the description she gave of the suspect.

Each of the rings had an estimated value of $1,000 or more.

Blake allegedly sold them to a pawn shop, telling investigators she needed the money to make ends meet since the nursing home wasn’t giving her enough hours at work, according to court documents.

She could face up to 12 years on the robbery charge and as much as a 30 month sentence on each of the three theft counts.

Police said the pawn shop buying the rings was making an effort to locate the items.

Naked Man That Door Knocked Arrested In Woods

It appears a naked man arrested by La Porte County Police was under the influence of methamphetamine.

Geoffrey Manthey did have work boots on to protect his feet from sticks and other ground cover.

Those are the latest details to emerge from case against the 40-year-old Michigan City man.

According to police, a man on the night of Tuesday, April 11, answered his front door to find a stranger standing on his doorstep without a stitch of clothing on.

Police said the naked man turned and ran toward nearby Pinhook Bog, a close to 600 acre nature area on Wozniak Road between La Porte and Michigan City.

Court documents show responding officers in the parking lot of the nature area used a trail to follow the sounds of a male voice coming from the woods.

Police said Manthey was located about the length of a football into the woods with just a pair of brown work boots on.

He was given a black trash bag to cover himself, police said.

According to court documents, Manthey told officers he was looking for a cell phone he just acquired.

He also revealed being under the influence of methamphetamine and aware he was naked in a park despite his impairment, according to court documents.

He could receive as much as a one-year jail sentence on Class A misdemeanor public nudity.

A status hearing in the case is scheduled May 19 in La Porte Superior Court 3.

Pinhook Bog is a National Natural Landmark and part of the Indiana Dunes National Park system. — STAN MADDUX