Bobbi Kristina Brown Update: $29,920 Bond Set For Fraudulent Nurse

A Forsyth County, Georgia, judge set a $29,920 bond for the woman who fraudulently posed as a nurse at at least one assisted living center, as well as the Peachtree Christian Hospice care center where Bobbi Kristina Brown lived during the final days of her life.

AJC reports that Taiwo Bolatito Sobamowo, 32, was arrested earlier this week in Raleigh, North Carolina, on charges of practicing nursing without a license, identity theft, and first-degree forgery. She was transferred back to Georgia, the state she allegedly used a stolen identity to practice nursing, where she attended an arraignment this morning. After the hearing, Sobamowo remained in jail without posting bond.

Sobamowo caught the attention of the District of Columbia Board of Nursing in 2013 after she used someone’s identity to land a nursing job in Washington, D.C. The organization put out a warning on Sobamowo, but this year, she somehow slid by and landed a job at the Peachtree Christian Hospice care center, where Bobbi Kristina was staying, as well as a nearby assisted living facility in Forsyth County.

Although there is no indication that Sobamowo played any part in Bobbi Kristina’s death, records indicate that she was one of the people who helped care for her.

Authorities recently ran a federal background check on Sobamowo, which turned up a warrant for her arrest in Minnesota, and two prior convictions, which occurred before she began working for Homestead Hospice and Palliative Care, a company that contracts with Peachtree Christian Hospice and provides nurses and caregivers.

Per the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, the investigation into Sobamowo’s employment at Peachtree Christian Hospice “identified that Sobamowo was working as a registered nurse with a Georgia health-care facility. Sobamowo had provided fraudulent credentials under a different name to gain employment.”

Since Peachtree Hospice is in Duluth, Sobamowo also faces charges in Gwinnett County of practicing nursing without a license. Homestead Hospice CEO Mallie Sharafat stated that a full background check was conducted on Sobamowo prior to hiring her in September, 2014, but she was fired earlier this year in August when she failed to provide proof of her licensing after a discrepancy in her credentials was found.

“We had no reason to believe that she was anything other than a good nurse with proper credentials.”

ABC News reports that Duluth police Capt. Mark Hunter indicated that authorities are waiting to hear from family members and friends of any patients who were treated by Sobamowo.

“In the capacity that she was operating, the patients that she treated, there are more than just Bobbi Kristina.”

In addition to a $29,920 bond for practicing nursing without a license, Sobamowo faces a $2,420 bond on felony charges of financial identity fraud and forgery. So far, there is no indication whether she’s retained an attorney. At least $27,500 of the $29,920 bond must be paid in cash.

The Associated Press reports that a friend of Sobamowo’s, Mariam “Lola” Savage, visited Sobamowo earlier this year, when Sobamowo told her that she had cared for Bobbi Kristina. Per the executive director of the Georgia Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, Paula Sanders, nurses who are contracted to work at hospice care centers typically feed, bathe, and change the patients, or ensure that those tasks are carried out by others. Some nurses provide medications to patients and communicate with patients’ family members to offer assurance and give updates.

None of Bobbi Kristina’s family members or friends have commented on this issue, including Pat Houston, who didn’t indicate anything about Sobamowo during a recent interview about Bobbi Kristina Brown with Entertainment Tonight.

[Photo by Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office]