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Adult-Abuse Case Tipster Alleges Benefits Fraud

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By KAREN BRANCH-BRIOSO, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 9, 2007

TAMPA - The man who tipped off police to sweltering, cramped conditions in a West Tampa boarding house also said the operator told him to falsify Medicaid, Medicare and food stamp records, according to a search warrant affidavit.

Steven James Lepper was the live-in manager in June and July at the Daphne Jones Boarding Home at 2347 W. Beach St. Tampa police removed 18 elderly and disabled people from the house on Aug. 9. The operator - Daphne Jones, 36 - faces arraignment next week on 18 charges of adult abuse in the case.

She has entered a not guilty plea. Her attorney, Darryl Rouson, also denied Lepper's allegations of benefits fraud. Rouson said Jones told him Lepper was a problem employee with an ax to grind because she fired him and turned him out of the boarding house.

'He was a disgruntled employee hell-bent on causing her problems,' Rouson said. 'I look forward to working on a daily basis to get Ms. Jones vindicated.'

In the affidavit for a search warrant of Jones' riverfront home near Temple Terrace, Tampa police Detective Larry Brass said Lepper made several allegations.

'Steven Lepper has direct knowledge of this because he had, on occasion, falsified Medicaid/Medicare and 'Food Stamp' records at the direction of Daphne Jones at this location,' Brass wrote in the affidavit. 'Steven Lepper used a laptop computer owned and provided by Daphne Jones from her possession to produce, store and transmit various applications for these fraudulent transactions in conjunction with this business.'

Hillsborough Circuit Judge Walter Heinrich approved the search of Jones' home on Aug. 17.

An inventory sheet of the search that same day does not list a laptop among the seized items.

Lepper, 34, did not respond to requests for comment. His brother, Daniel, said that on the advice of police, Lepper was going to avoid comment until after Jones' trial.

One of the former boarding house residents, Ruby Brewer, said Lepper briefly lived on the top floor of the boarding house while he managed the place. She said he left abruptly. She saw him again on Aug. 9 outside the boarding house, the day police removed the residents from the boarding house and arrested Jones.

'He was a very nice guy, by all appearances. He just kept a look on us and made sure everything was well,' said Brewer, 87.

She said Lepper frequently left the boarding house to go to Jones' home at 5608 Puritan Road: 'I know that she had him over to the big house a lot. She was doing some construction work there. And I just took for granted he was keeping an eye out on some of that.'

The state Agency for Health Care Administration, which had licensed Jones to care for up to five adults at the Puritan Road home, placed a moratorium on admissions there after her arrest in August. It is still investigating Jones, agency spokeswoman Shelisha Durden said Monday.

Reporter Karen Branch-Brioso can be reached at (813) 259-7815 or kbranch-brioso@tampatrib .com.

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