Bridget Nicole Compton, 51, of Philadelphia. (Credit: Bucks County DA)
An employee at the Department of Public Welfare who admitted to stealing more than $130,000 from a resident of the Norristown State Hospital and pleaded guilty to six felonies was not sentenced to jail, but rather house arrest and probation for her crimes.
Bridget Nicole Compton, 51, of the 3300 block of Westminster Lane, Buckingham Township, formerly of Philadelphia, pleaded guilty in November 2025 to felony counts of financial exploitation of an older adult or care dependent person, theft by unlawful taking, theft by deception, receiving stolen property, access device fraud, forgery, and identity theft, according to court records.
Bucks County Common Pleas Judge Charissa J. Liller sentenced Compton to 120 months of probation, requiring her to serve the first six months on home confinement with electronic monitoring, according to court records.
Liller also ordered Compton to repay $132,480.01 at $750 per month, starting Feb. 28, 2026, to the victim, per court documents. She had to pay $4,000 at her sentencing on Friday. Compton is to have no contact with the victim and must remain employed full-time with an additional job.
Compton was charged by Bucks and Montgomery County detectives in December 2024, after diverting five checks from the victim's account to her own bank account, totaling $132,480.01.
An investigation began in November 2024 when the theft was reported by an interested third party, police said. Detectives determined that each of the checks was cashed at Cottman Check Cashing in Philadelphia, per the Bucks County District Attorney's Office.
Investigators found correspondence between Compton and the victim and found nothing to indicate that Compton was allowed to make financial transactions on the victim's behalf.
The victim told police that Compton's help was needed with an address change on the bank account, so the victim can continue to receive mail from the bank, per the DA. However, Compton was never authorized to transfer money from the account, police said.
Compton told authorities she impersonated the victim in phone calls to the bank, authorizing checks to be sent to Compton's mom's house. Then, Compton retrieved the checks and liquidate them at the check cashing business.
Compton told police she spent all the money, which included a $10,000 gift to her mom and a Puerto Rico vacation in July 2023, according to investigators.
"I got the money in July and was broke by Christmas ... that's how quick it went," Compton told detectives.
The investigation was prosecuted by Bucks County Deputy District Attorneys Brittney Kern and John Fegley.
She is free on $100,000 unsecured bond and is represented by Feasterville attorney Paul Lang.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
