On July 3, 2015, Abha Anuradha Kumar, a former nurse from Australia, met Lionel Cox, her 92-year-old patient. Then, after working with him for only 24 days, she inherited Lionel’s estate, worth over $1 million.
Now, the Australian Supreme Court has ordered Abha to return the remaining $880,000 to Lionel’s family, which she received from a grant of probate.
Judge Melissa Daly revoked Abha’s grant to manage the estate, as well as the sale proceeds of Lionel’s home in Victoria, on November 21.
This move came after Lionel’s cousin, Geoffrey Cox, hired a lawyer who claimed Lionel’s will, outlining Abha’s inheritance, was created under “the most suspicious circumstances imaginable.”
Abha was a manager at a care facility for the elderly known as Cambridge House, located in Collingwood. That’s where she met Lionel in 2015 and cared for him for a total of 24 days.
However, within only three days of Lionel being at Cambridge House, Abha reportedly learned that he’d owned property. Additionally, Lionel didn’t have known immediate family, so he hadn’t put together a will.
Abha reportedly got a will kit and managed to get two staff members to serve as witnesses while Lionel penned his will. Yet, she failed to tell the staff members that she was both the executor and the sole beneficiary.
Lionel ultimately passed away on August 9, 2015, due to pneumonia, but Abha wasn’t at work that day. She reportedly contacted a junior staff member and instructed them to find Lionel’s house key before his remains were transported out of Cambridge House.
Afterward, Lionel’s death certificate listed Abha as the informant, and she was given the grant of probate.
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Lionel’s estate was valued at over $1 million, and Abha received $1,117,000 after his home on Greeves Street sold in 2016. Geoffrey’s lawyer, James Dimond, argued that Abha had committed elder financial abuse.
“It’s an important reminder that the law can and will catch up with you eventually. This is a rare situation involving a medical professional, but elderly and vulnerable people are separated from their assets or pressured to sign dodgy wills and other legal documents all the time,” James stated.
“The court system is rife with elder financial abuse cases, usually involving close family members.”
In August 2021, Abha was served with a “summons for revocation” by the Supreme Court, which was launched by State Trustees. Most recently, last week, the Supreme Court decided Abha’s grant of probate would be revoked.
This means that the remaining value of Lionel’s estate, which has dropped to over $880,000 due to transfers made by Abha to cover legal fees, will be distributed to Lionel’s cousins.
In 2019, an investigation led by the Nursing and Midwifery Board resulted in Abha being banned from working as a registered health practitioner due to allegations of professional misconduct.
“Ms. Kumar transgressed the boundaries that should and ordinarily do exist between a registered nurse and her patient in that she was over-involved in the affairs of Mr. Lionel Cox,” the Nursing and Midwifery Board’s review said.
You can view more information on the case here.