A woman who police say befriended a Las Vegas senior has been charged with stealing more than $230,000 from the victim’s bank accounts and also trying to steal her home, police and court records show.
A nine-month investigation led to the arrest of Diana Mendez, 31, earlier this month. She is charged with two counts of theft value $100,000 or greater, attempted theft, and two counts of exploiting an older or vulnerable person.
Mendez’s defense attorney, Steven Altig, declined comment on this story. Mendez denied any wrongdoing in interviews with police.
A Metropolitan Police Department arrest report for Mendez, who was jailed May 14, also identifies her as Diana Marcella Mendez-Hernandez. A police temporary custody record identifies her as a citizen of Mexico.
The victim, listed in police and court records as Selina Milroy-Hayes, 79, declined comment through her civil attorney, Jared Jennings, who said his client’s life savings was stolen in what he called “elder abuse.”
“She took all of her money, then took her house and was going to throw her out on the street,” Jennings said. “What kind of person does that?”
Police first started investigating Mendez in August 2025 when Milroy-Hayes reported the suspected thefts to police. Police said Milroy-Hayes told them she met Mendez after receiving a post card in the mail offering assistance to refinance her Las Vegas home, and she was under the impression Mendez was an attorney.
Milroy-Hayes and Mendez soon became friends, police said, and Milroy-Hayes said Mendez helped the senior set up auto pay for her bills because Milroy-Hayes was having trouble using a banking app.
Milroy-Hayes told police at times Mendez asked for money to help her with family and bills, and Milroy-Hayes said she “can charge it on the card.” Over time, though, Milroy-Hayes said she noticed she was no longer receiving bank statements and her mail key was missing.
264 transfers
Milroy-Hayes grew suspicious in July and later checked on the status of her bank accounts. Police said she found Mendez sent herself unauthorized Zelle transfers from the senior’s bank accounts. A bank representative told told her Mendez had “made herself an authorized user for all her funds,” the report said. Police would later say Mendez sent herself 264 Zelle transfers between February 2024 and July 2025.
A bank manager told her Mendez had made herself the payee on Milroy-Hayes’ bank accounts if Milroy-Hayes were to pass away, police said. Police said one of Milroy-Hayes’ bank accounts did have a note listing Mendez as having power of attorney over Milroy-Hayes.
Jennings confirmed Milroy-Hayes signed a power of attorney to Mendez because she told the senior “that’s how she could help her.”
Police found Mendez received $130,977 in unauthorized transactions from Milroy-Hayes’ accounts in 2024 and $101,817 in 2025.
Police said their investigation also showed Milroy-Hayes at one point received a check into one of her bank accounts for $202,927 from the Nevada State Controller’s Office, which handles unclaimed property payments. Jennings said the check from the state that Milroy-Hayes received stemmed from her family’s ownership in a home.
Milroy-Hayes told police she understood the check was a payment that Mendez helped her obtain from the state for unclaimed property. Within days of the check clearing, police said they observed large bank transfers of the money to another account, which was redacted by authorities. Police said around the same time they noticed increased transactions of money into a business account belonging to Mendez.
Police also learned Milroy-Hayes’ house had recently been deeded to a real estate investor as part of a pending sale of the home for $295,000. Milroy-Hayes, upon learning this, hired Jennings to initiate civil proceedings to get back her house. Police said when the real estate investor was contacted by both Jennings and police about the house transaction, he walked away from the deal and Milroy-Hayes kept her residence.
A notary who initially notarized the sale of the home told police Mendez had presented her with a power of attorney document “on behalf of the seller,” police said. Police said Mendez signed the transaction on behalf of Milroy-Hayes, noting in the signature she was Milroy-Hayes’ “attorney in fact.”
The investor also told police Mendez had told him the sale was for the benefit of Milroy-Hayes.
“Milroy-Hayes maintained that she never sold her house, nor did she give anyone permission to do so on her behalf,” police said.
Police said they first spoke with Mendez over the phone in August 2025. Mendez she said she’d obtained power of attorney over Milroy-Hayes because the senior was “suffering from early onset dementia and was having a hard time with daily tasks.”
When asked about the Zelle transfers, Mendez said they were for compensation as Milroy-Hayes’ caregiver and she was supposed to receive $5,000 a month, but Mendez then acknowledged she was not a licensed caregiver, police said.
“She didn’t take care of her,” Jennings said. “They didn’t have any arrangement like that.”
Mendez told police transfers from Milroy-Hayes’ accounts into her business account were to pay mortgage and utility payments on behalf of Milroy-Hayes. Police, however, said an analysis of the bank accounts later showed Milroy-Hayes’ mortgage and utility payments were made from the senior’s accounts and not Mendez’s business account.
Mendez claimed she informed Milroy-Hayes of the home sale over the phone and that this was all she needed to do to complete the sale because she had obtained power of attorney over Milroy-Hayes. She produced for police two notarized documents that gave her power of attorney and designation as a health care agent.
Police set up an interview with Mendez but she asked it be rescheduled and told investigators the next day that she had retained an attorney.
Police arrested Mendez on May 14. Upon her arrest, they read her her Miranda rights and questioned her about her earlier account that she was supposed to receive $5,000 a month from Milroy-Hayes, noting her bank accounts showed her receiving far more. She said the money was “for extra services she provided,” police said.
Police asked about the home sale. Mendez claimed the real estate investor was going to allow Milroy-Hayes to stay in her home as it was renovated if the sale had gone through. Asked for paperwork detailing this, Mendez said there wasn’t any, police said.
Police asked about the more than $200,000 deposit into Milroy-Hayes’ account from the state of Nevada.
Mendez, police said, “began to answer and then stated she wanted a lawyer mid-sentence.”
Clark County Detention Center records indicate Mendez is no longer in custody at the jail. Las Vegas Justice Court records show a $165,000 surety bond was posted May 15.
A preliminary hearing for Mendez is scheduled for July 6.
Contact Glenn Puit at gpuit@reviewjournal.com.
