Aide who left autistic man in car faces witness tampering charge

A home health care aide charged with repeatedly leaving an autistic man in a car outside her home while she worked a second job was arrested again Friday morning and charged along with her sister and a friend with intimidating a witness in the case.

Prosecutors say Esther Reyes, 33, of Freeport, first sent her sister, then a friend to intimidate a witness in the case, which stems from her work as an aide for the man from 2006 to 2008. On Nov. 2, Reyes's sister, Milagros Lopez, 31, of Freeport, told the witness that things would be bad for that person if they did not recant testimony in the case. Lopez offered to pay the witness to recant. Prosecutors are not revealing the identity or address of the witness, or any details about the person's role in the case.

The following day, Reyes's friend, Yuly Navaro, 47, of Westbury, went to the witness's house and again offered money for the person to recant testimony against Reyes, prosecutors said.

Lawyers for the three could not immediately be reached for comment Friday.

Reyes, who was originally charged with grand larceny, welfare fraud and endangering the welfare of a disabled person in December 2009, now faces added charges of third- and fourth-degree tampering with a witness. Lopez is charged with third-degree tampering with a witness and Navaro is charged with fourth-degree tampering with a witness because she did not make a threat.

The three pleaded not guilty to the charges before Judge David Ayres in Nassau County Court in Mineola. Reyes is being held on $20,000 bail or $10,000 bond. Lopez and Navarro were released without bail.

Prosecutors say Reyes fraudulently collected $34,157 in Medicaid payments by working a second job when she was supposed to be caring for a developmentally disabled man. She faces up to 7 years in prison if convicted, prosecutors said.

Between July 25, 2006, and Nov. 17, 2008, Reyes worked as a home health aide for a man, now 23, who is autistic and has seizures. Reyes had been hired by the man's parents, a Hicksville couple, to dress and feed their son.

But Reyes locked the man in a car in her driveway while she worked a second job driving a school bus, prosecutors said.

Reyes violated Medicaid regulations that prohibit care providers from having secondary employment during the hours they are supposed to be providing care to patients, prosecutors said.

They also said the Nassau County executive's Medicaid Investigations Unit brought the case to the attention of prosecutors.