Couple arrested after elderly grandmother found in feces

A Danielsville couple has been arrested in an extreme elder abuse case involving a 72-year-old bedridden grandmother, who was found lying in her own “excrement,” according to police.

Adam, 32, and Tara, 31, Fleeman face elder abuse and exploitation charges after Adam’s elderly grandmother, Nellie Coile, was found living in “deplorable conditions” in the home on Sheerwod Circle they share together, according to police. The Fleemans’ 5-year-old child also lives there.

According to a news release, a friend came to visit Coile and found her living in filth. There was no electricity in the home. Coile was covered in her own excrement, which, along with used adult diapers, littered the floor around her bed. She was malnourished and hadn’t been out of the bed in over a month, the statement said. Her bedroom was full of flies, and the flooring under the unusable toilet and bathtub had collapsed.

Police say the Fleemans were supposed to be Coile’s caretakers, but, instead, stole her money and used it on drugs. Investigators discovered the couple been using Coile’s retirement and social security checks and bill payments to purchase drugs and other items. The pair had also ran up Coile’s credit card and mail order bills, which have since defaulted due to non-payment.

In the last month, police say the Fleemans stole $1,300 from Coile, and investigators are now reviewing records from the past 6 months.

Coile, who had lost 60 pounds, is being treated at Piedmont Athens Regional Hospital for possible staph infection and a broken hip. Her condition has improved as she is now able to move one leg, according to police.

The hospital is working with a nursing home to find Coile a permanent home.

The Fleemans’ child is in the custody of the Department of Family and Children Services.

Police say the home has been condemned.

In 2012, police say Adam's mother died in the same house, and the Fleeman family has a long history of drugs, carjacking, armed robbery and other crimes.

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