Woman, 77, honored for quest for justice

HELENA – A 77-year-old Boulder woman was honored Wednesday for her help in bringing a man who stole money from the elderly and disabled to justice, officials said.

Helen Carey was thanked by Bryan Lockerby, division of criminal investigation administrator with the Montana Department of Justice, for her help in the conviction of Bill Wise, who was sent to prison in 2014 for his theft through his former business, Walking Cross.

“Helen might be small in stature, but she stood tall in this investigation and merits the recognition we’re giving her today,” Lockerby said while presenting the plaque to Carey at Boulder’s Law Enforcement Center.

Carey was the personal representative for the estate of retired teacher Audrey Reese, who died in 2011. After Reese’s death, Wise refused to provide Carey with Reece’s financial records, so Carey obtained them from Reese’s banks. When she discovered that a number of checks written on the accounts seemed inconsistent, Carey reported the matter to law enforcement, state officials said.

An investigation revealed that Wise had stolen more than $87,000 from Reese, and $369,000 from 35 other victims.

Wise was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison and ordered to pay the entire amount he embezzled from his victims, $369,582, officials said.

Attorney General Tim Fox said Carey was not an heir to the estate and did not receive any benefits from it.

“It would have been easy for her to have walked away from the estate after finding that the money was mostly gone and to have let the chips fall where they may, but she didn’t,” Fox said.

He said because of her actions, Walking Cross was put out of business, dozens of elderly or disabled Montanans whose money was stolen between 2007 to 2011 now have the opportunity for restitution, and no more victims suffered a loss from Wise’s actions.

Lockerby said Wise kept taking money from people, even after the state searched his business in 2011. Eventually, the case was worked through the federal system with agents from Social Security, Veterans Affairs and the FBI.

“Mr. Wise decided to cooperate with the investigation and we had a positive outcome in this case,” Lockerby said.

Officials said that over the course of three years, Carey called DCI periodically to ask about progress in the case. She also arranged interviews with Reese’s family members for DCI during the early part of the investigation, provided more information when requested, and drove to Missoula for the sentencing, officials said.

Fox said the ordeal serves as a good reminder to plan carefully when choosing an estate executor.

The Bozeman Police Department and the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office were also involved in the early stages of the case.