Man Installs Hidden Camera in Father’s Nursing Home, Makes Shocking Discovery
I have always held nursing home workers in high regard. They look after our mothers, fathers, grandmothers, and grandfathers on a daily basis, and it is truly impressive to think they dedicate their careers to helping people in need. However, things are far from perfect, even in environments that appear innocent and harmless. Some workers who are supposed to be thoroughly taking care of the elderly are tainting this great profession through their irresponsible actions. Instead of performing their responsibilities carefully and assisting the weak and ailing, they treat their wards as they please. This kind of behavior is, of course, against anyone’s best interest, and unfortunately, it happens surprisingly often.
Today’s story revolves around Malik Yun, a fisherman of Middle Eastern descent whose grandfather immigrated to the United States in the second half of the 19th century. Malik started his career as a young man manufacturing fishing equipment, such as nets, lures, sinkers, fishing lines, and even boats. He found deep pleasure in the peaceful environment of lake waters and sea animals. After mastering the proper usage of fishing technology, he became a fisherman in his own right.
A couple of years later, Malik fell madly in love with Stella, a journalist and writer for the local newspaper in Livonia. It was love at first sight, and the marvelous bond between the two brought them four beautiful children: Nina, Salim, Ramon, and Mati. The vow to stay together through sickness and health did not remain merely words spoken at their wedding; it became the foundation for their entire family philosophy.
Growing up with four children was not easy. Sometimes food was scarce since not all of Malik’s fishing days were extraordinary successes. The children had to share school materials and clothes, which often brought conflict and suffering into the home. The kids fought a lot, and the house they lived in could not always provide privacy for everyone, which was at times exhausting for the family’s psyche.
The silver lining was that they all pulled through. The love between Stella and Malik grew stronger every day, and the children learned quickly how to be responsible, how to take care of loved ones, how to be understanding of others’ problems, and how to offer a helping hand. One by one, they left their parental home and built beautiful lives of their own. Even after the children moved away, the family was never truly broken apart because they kept their traditions intact. They met once a month at the parental home for a special dinner featuring a personalized recipe for fish soup, spent Christmas together every year, and above all, were there for each other at all times.
Sometimes all it takes is one night for the universe to change its course. The evening of July 29, 2015, was a night that immensely changed this family. Stella and Malik were enjoying their retirement, and Salim, their second eldest son, was visiting for a few days. They had another guest, Peter, who was Malik’s closest friend. They all dined together, and shortly after finishing the meal, Peter excused himself from the table to use the restroom. He left the table and peculiarly vanished. No one ever saw him again.
Stella, Malik, and Salim went to check all the bathrooms in the house after realizing he had been gone for an unreasonable amount of time. They found his wallet on the floor containing his ID, some cards, and a little bit of cash. The family gathered to help with the investigation, but unfortunately, Peter was never found. This event caused tragic turmoil for everyone involved, but it was Malik who had the hardest time moving past it. In fact, he never truly recovered.
Malik became depressed. Sometimes it was impossible for him to carry out a simple conversation because he was mentally absent. He became withdrawn and didn’t want to leave the house or speak to anyone except Stella. He occasionally called his children, but he contributed little to the conversations. At family gatherings, he would mostly stare into the void until he would eventually leave for his room to be alone. After some time, he no longer wanted to sleep in the same room as Stella, as his sleep was disturbed and his desire for isolation grew exponentially. He tried therapy, hypnosis, thermal baths, and everything doctors proposed to get him back on track, but he remained lost.
Stella was deeply worried, but she eventually accepted his new state. She took great care of his needs without letting herself be emotionally destroyed. She understood that books and movies brought him joy, so she researched and bought them for him daily. She continued to take care of herself and maintain social contacts while staying close by in case he needed anything.
She was just getting accustomed to this new way of life when Malik suffered a stroke and fell due to a loss of balance. Stella heard the loud noise and found him in a puddle of blood. Paramedics managed to rescue him from the concussion caused by the fall, but the stroke paralyzed one side of his body, forcing him to use a wheelchair.
The family was now more united than ever. It was obvious that Stella could not manage the situation alone. Malik’s body was heavy, and the house was not designed for a wheelchair. The brothers took turns helping Stella, but it wasn’t enough. Things were getting harder every day. Nina proposed that their father reside in a nursing home, as the effort to care for him at home was becoming too great for everyone. It was emotionally heart-breaking to see Malik leave the house, but everyone accepted that the situation could be handled better this way—or so they thought.
On September 18, 2018, Malik was moved into the Autumnwood Nursing Home in Livonia, Michigan. The family gave him symbolic objects so their memories would stay with him. He received framed photos, a music box playing “Tea for Two,” a lively abstract painting, chopsticks, books, and a feather. His wife and children made every effort to facilitate the transition. Nina moved back home to be with Stella, and Salim reorganized his job to work remotely so he could visit his father frequently.
It was a chilly November night in 2018 when the family gathered again for their special fish soup. It was the first time a family member could not attend.
“Mom, did Dad also tell you that the workers at Autumnwood are behaving strangely?” Salim asked while sipping his soup.
“Oh, he behaves like such a princess sometimes,” Stella replied with a laugh as she broke a piece of bread. “We always provided everything for him at home in the last couple of years, and he may have gotten a little spoiled in the meantime. Would anyone like some?”
“I thought that Dad’s expectations from the staff were kind of reasonable,” Ramon added. “I mean, did he also tell you the story when he had to wait the whole day for them to bring him a glass of water? They let him lie in bed until 4:00 with no food or drinks, and the wheelchair was not even in his room but in the corridor. The nurses told him they needed the wheelchair for another patient but forgot to bring it back. He couldn’t even access the bathroom. Nothing.”
“No way! He told me a similar story but from another day,” Nina shouted. “He explicitly and kindly asked everyone to bring him to the common area in the evening because he wanted to play chess with Jordan, the one friend he made in there. Remember? They never came to pick him up, and when he called them, the nurses would always complain about how busy they were, promising to show up later.”
“I’m wondering why he spared me all of these details,” Stella asked. “To me, he’s only complaining about the shade of white the walls are painted and how the food needs more salt. There are for sure serious issues if what you guys just mentioned is true. We should establish better communication with the people in charge. Let’s just call them and ask.”
“Right now?” Salim asked.
“Yes, right now,” Mati said. “We just have to pretend that we are random people who don’t have a patient in there already. They would never tell us the truth otherwise. Look, take my phone. They sure don’t have my number.”
However, no one picked up. “I cannot go there because they’ve seen all of us visiting Dad. They know we’re their clients,” Salim noted.
The next day, Salim went to the home during visiting hours. Before seeing his father, he decided to speak with the manager and one of the nurses, Ms. Anderson. Both assured him that no wrongdoing had occurred and suggested his father was being difficult. The nurse admitted to a waiting time but claimed it was only ten minutes and insisted Malik had indeed met Jordan that evening.
Salim apologized for his accusations but did not believe a word. He went to meet his father, who was late for their meeting. Salim felt something was wrong but remained cautious. As they talked, Salim raised concerns about his safety. Malik seemed confused but told his son there was nothing to worry about. As Malik turned to return to his room, Salim noticed a bruise on the back of the old man’s head. He decided to take matters into his own hands.
A few days later, the truth became clear. The employees’ behavior toward the patients could only be described as sick. The family eventually went to court, but the question remained: how did they find out, and why hadn’t Malik said anything?
In an interview, Salim Yun explained, “I went there the next day after seeing the bruise on my father’s head. I gave him an alarm clock with a mounted hidden camera to put on his bedside table. I saw absolutely horrifying footage of what was actually happening.”
The family couldn’t believe it. The nurses were not just shouting at their elderly relative; they were physically beating him. They saw Ms. Anderson, the main caretaker, come in one morning and force him to swallow pills. When he resisted, she slapped him. When he refused again, she smashed his head against the wall. The cruelty was incomprehensible.
The camera also captured nurses refusing to bring him water. After he called them several times, they took away his call button so he “would not piss them off anymore.” On the same day, a nurse finally came to move him, but he was weak.
“You old piece of shit, get yourself on there,” the nurse was heard saying. After putting him in the chair, she shook his head roughly and purposefully slammed his legs against the wall.
Within two days, the family had accumulated 119 clips revealing inappropriate behavior. When they brought the proof to the manager, the employees still refused to admit to anything. The footage also showed a nurse putting drops into Malik’s tea. Since no such drops were prescribed, the family realized they were drugging him to cloud his memory and ensure he wouldn’t be taken seriously if he complained.
“They don’t want the public to know what happens in this nursing home. They try to keep this from becoming public through the courts,” claimed the family’s lawyer, Jonathan Marco. “These people are malicious. They would go so far as to drug their patients to maintain their image, only to hurt them even more while making a profit.”
Ignoring the manager’s pleas, the family decided to make the horrifying footage public to warn others. Even though the employees seen on film were fired, Salim and his family continued to protest to have the home shut down entirely.
“There is no way this place can heal after it has seen all that horror. It’s in the walls, in the medicine, in the spirit of the house. This evil—it must be entirely destroyed,” Salim claimed during a radio interview.
Stella tried to get her former newspaper to cover the issue more frequently, but she was told, “We cannot focus on the same story if society does not move closer toward the issue. If we insist too much on a topic undesired by most people, we can be accused of corruption. I’m sorry, Stella. I really hope you and your family will manage.”
The extended family stepped in to help Malik at home for a while. However, as time passed and people returned to their lives, they knew he would eventually need another facility. Fortunately, the new home where Malik was brought was a suitable place for him to find peace. Such behavior is utterly wrong. We can only hope that this family’s story raises awareness and that nursing home administrations pay greater attention to their workers. There should be no cruel treatment of the elderly. Nobody should have to go through what this vulnerable 89-year-old man endured.
