Police: Newburg woman scams Kelly Township residents out of nearly $60,000

Justin Strawser, The Daily Item, Sunbury, Pa.
Updated ·2 min read

Mar. 22—LEWISBURG — A Cumberland County woman previously charged with Medicaid fraud allegedly scammed two Union County residents out of nearly $60,000 intended to help victims of domestic violence, according to state police at Milton.

Lori Ann Ketcham, 42, of South High Street, Newburg, was charged with a felony count of theft by deception. The charges were filed by State Trooper Colton Killion, of the Milton State Police Barracks, in the Lewisburg office of District Judge Jeffrey Rowe.

Killion reported that the Kelly Township residents came to the station on Sept. 14 to discuss a suspected theft by Ketcham. The victims considered Ketcham a friend since they were younger and they attended church functions together, police said.

Ketcham allegedly contacted the victims in March 2022 asking for help to relocate families from Ohio to Harrisburg. They had given $59,920 through Cash App to Ketcham between March 10, 2022, and Sept. 1, 2023, to help these alleged families, police said.

The victim said he became suspicious after learning Ketcham would not send photographs of the families or allow him to talk to the families on the phone. He grew more suspicious after learning that Ketcham was arrested for fraud, police said.

Ketcham in November 2018 pleaded guilty in Fulton County to felony counts of tampering with public records and false medical assistance claims. She was sentenced to 36 months of probation and was ordered to pay $7,500 in restitution.

Ketcham was employed as a certified peer specialist in the McConnellsburg office of Peerstar. Ketcham billed for overlapping services while she worked for two separate agencies. Medicaid paid $7,000 to Ketchum for the fraudulent billing between May 2016 and February 2018, according to the State Attorney General's Office.

She had four clients in either Franklin or Cumberland counties. Peerstar offers guidance and support to people recovering from mental illnesses and substance abuse disorders, according to court documents.

In the current investigation in Union County, bank statements and Cash App records both show that Ketcham received the money from the Kelly Township residents, police said.

Ketcham allegedly could not provide identities or contact information for the domestic violence victims to police, police said.

Ketcham allegedly said she would withdraw the money from an ATM near her residence and give it to the victims who she has no contact information for, police said.

Ketcham was arraigned on Thursday in front of Rowe and committed as a Union County Jail inmate in lieu of $60,000. She is scheduled for a preliminary hearing at 10 a.m. April 4.