Attorney General Alan Wilson announces guilty plea and sentence in Orangeburg case of vulnerable adults locked in unlicensed facility

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced that on April 10, 2025, Tracy Timothy Wright, 53 years old, of Orangeburg, S.C., pleaded guilty in Orangeburg County to one count of Neglect of a Vulnerable Adult {43-35-85(C)} and one count of Criminal Conspiracy {16-17-410}. The Honorable Charles McCutchen sentenced Wright to five years in prison, suspended to three years at the South Carolina Department of Corrections, followed by two years of probation on each count. The sentences are to run concurrently.

An investigation by the Attorney General’s Vulnerable Adult and Medicaid Provider Fraud (VAMPF) unit and the Orangeburg Department of Public Safety (ODPS) revealed that, between January 16, 2024 and February 5, 2024, Wright, while working as a caretaker at an unlicensed community residential care facility, confined residents in locked rooms within the care facility and prevented the residents from accessing basic necessities such as food, clothing, medicine, shelter, supervision, medical services, and any way to get out of the building. The residents were immediately taken into emergency protective custody by law enforcement. Additionally, ODPS firefighters identified that a malfunctioning natural gas heater in the facility was causing a buildup of gas fumes inside the residence, requiring the immediate venting of the residence by emergency personnel.

Charges remain pending against Wright’s co-conspirator and facility owner, Estelle A. Hutchinson, 52 years old, of Orangeburg, S.C. Pending charges against Hutchinson include five counts of Neglect of a Vulnerable Adult {43-35-0085 (C)}, four counts of Kidnapping {16-03-0910}, and one count of Criminal Conspiracy {16-17-410}. This case is also being prosecuted by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office.

Pursuant to federal regulations, the VAMPF has authority over Medicaid provider fraud and the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of individuals residing in assisted living facilities or nursing homes. 

The South Carolina Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, dba VAMPF, receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $2,889,252 for federal fiscal year 2025. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $963,084 for FFY 2025, is funded by South Carolina.

Attorney General Wilson stressed that all defendants are innocent until proven guilty in court.