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Report: Woman stole $1M from mother, told her, 'I hope you starve now'

The Clark County Detention Center in downtown Las Vegas
Posted at 12:59 PM, May 12, 2022
and last updated 2022-05-12 15:59:09-04

HENDERSON (KTNV) — A woman accused of stealing more than $1 million from her mother is behind bars in Clark County on Thursday.

Investigators allege Deborah Burnette transferred approximately $1,006,600 from her mother's bank account to her own, according to an arrest report from the Henderson Police Department.

Burnette's mother told police she was caring for her ailing husband in February of last year, when Burnette offered to come help. The mother later told police Burnette "did nothing to help her," and instead "drank all her alcohol and left her house a mess."

Burnette's mother told police she was "extremely exhausted" from taking care of her husband and ultimately gave in after Burnette "verbally abused her mom and bullied her into adding Deborah to her bank account," the report states.

“She did not want to but she had been dealing with her dying husband, was extremely exhausted, and just could not take it any more," investigators wrote.

Shortly after her mother added Burnette to the bank account, her money vanished, she told investigators. When she called her daughter to confront her, Burnette told her, "I hope you starve now," and "I hope you die so I can spit on your grave," police were told.

Burnette's mother told police she was "extremely afraid of her daughter" and that Burnette had been abusive to her and other family members in the past.

Police got permission to freeze the assets in Burnette's account. Reached by phone, Burnette told investigators "her mother asked her to safeguard (the money) because (her daughter-in-law) had stolen items from her before." Burnette said she had done nothing wrong.

She was arrested on Tuesday and booked into the Clark County Detention Center on felony charges of theft over $100,000 and exploiting an older/vulnerable person.