Did a 91-year-old woman named Helen Miller get arrested for stealing medicines for her husband? Here’s the truth behind viral story

A story circulating on social media has stirred emotions as well as concern. The story claims that that a 91-year-old woman named Helen Miller was arrested for felony theft after she allegedly stole medicines worth $50 for her husband, named George, 88, who suffers from severe heart failure. The tale, which has gone viral across Facebook, Reddit and other platforms says that Miller was arrested, appeared in a courtroom and was eventually released by a sympathetic judge.

Viral post claims 91-year-old woman, Helen Miller, arrested for stealing medicines

According to the viral story, Helen Miller and her husband George have been married for 65 years and always lived very limited income. When their health insurance plan ended, they could no longer afford George’s $940 medication, which usually would cost $50.

Worried about her husband’s worsening health condition, Helen tried to steal the medication from a pharmacy. However, she was caught before she could leave. After being arrested, her blood pressure shot up and she was taken to a hospital.

The next morning, Helen appeared in court in her hospital gown and was handcuffed. It was said that Judge Marcus was deeply moved by her situation and so he dismissed the charges immediately. He said that what happened was “a failure of the system, not a crime.” The judge also ordered that Helen’s hospital bills be paid and that George should get his medicine.

Social media backlash

The emotional angle to the story has led to a massive backlash with many expressing concern for theelderywoman. “This world is full of so many selfish people that have made it hard for some people to live! Shame on them and kudos to the judge for being and doing human”, one of the comments on the post read.“This brought tears to my eyes. Whether AI or not, this is reality and a lot of us senior are experiencing similar situations with our health and medications. May God continue to Bless this judge for showing empathy,” said another one.

The truth

The story however appears to be false. Not only does it lack credible sources or news coverage, the image of the handcuffed elderly woman, which was first shared by Facebook pageDailystories, is AI-generated. Hence, the entire story is fabricated, a hoax, and AI-generated.