DC police says Eleanor Holmes Norton scammed in her home by fake cleaning crew

Authorities on Friday confirmed reports that Washington, D.C.'s House Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton was scammed on Thursday by people who posed as a cleaning crew. 

Holmes Norton, who represents the district in the House of Representatives but does not have voting power, was charged $4,362 for duct and fireplace cleaning that never took place. The delegate had allowed the group inside because she allegedly believed her house manager had approved the cleaning. 

A D.C. police report described the 88-year-old as having "early stages of dementia," and said Norton has a caretaker who has power of attorney, but Norton's office pushed back against that claim in a statement to NBC Washington.

"The congresswoman employs a house manager who oversees all maintenance services, so she initially assumed her staff had arranged the visit and provided her credit card for payment," her office said. 

"Upon notifying her house manager, who reviewed Ring doorbell footage and confirmed that no such appointment had been scheduled, the incident was immediately reported to the police," the office added.

The police report said Norton's credit card and driver's license number "could potentially be compromised," and that the department was treating the incident as felony fraud. No arrests have been made so far.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.