Florida Investigators Arrest Fifth Suspect In Florida Group Home Abuse Case

Tallahassee, FL (AHN) - Law enforcement officials with Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit have arrested a fifth suspect in an investigation involving group home staff members that allegedly struck a disabled resident.

McCollum announced Thursday the arrest of former Elevations Group Home staff member Martello Brown. Brown has a third-degree felony for abusing a disabled adult.

Brown, 26, was arrested after witnesses told investigators that he had struck the victim so hard that the disabled man almost fell to the floor.

In a statement, McCollum said witnesses described the victim as hearing- and speech- impaired and of a slender build who was easily overpowered by Brown, who was described as larger.

The investigation was conducted by members of the Attorney General's Patient, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation (PANE) team.

Brown will be prosecuted by attorneys with the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the State Attorney's Office for the Eighth Judicial Circuit. He faces up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.