BATON ROUGE — A man was arrested on forgery, bank fraud, exploitation and theft charges after he forged signatures on several checks from a disabled woman to steal hundreds of dollars, Baton Rouge Police said. 

The woman, who has cerebral palsy and mental disabilities that significantly impair her ability to manage her own finances and relies on a caretaker, reported her checkbook stolen in November 2025. At the time, one check was made out for $100. 

In March 2026, several other checks were cashed, including $100 on March 10 and $100 on March 12. The check thief, later identified as 53-year-old James Williams, was unsuccessful in his attempts to cash another $100 check on March 20.

Deputies pointed out that Williams consistently forged his signature and made the checks out to himself in a "deliberate and calculated effort to commit fraud." 

On April 1, police were called to Regions Bank, where the woman said that Williams eventually persuaded her to sign a blank check and she said she never intended for the check to be made out to him and did not permit him to use it. 

Later that day, Williams was arrested on one count of exploitation of the infirm, as well as several counts of forgery, attempted forgery, theft and attempted theft. He was booked on a $14,500 bond.