Santa Maria Elderly Swindles: R/E Agent Suspected In $300K Ripoff Of 69-Year Old Victim; Landscaper Pockets $50K From Seniors For Unperformed Services

In Santa Maria, California, edhat.com reports:

• More care must be taken to protect elderly residents from unscrupulous people who are hired to help them. As recently as March 4, a 59-year-old Santa Maria man was arrested for bilking an elderly woman out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in a fraudulent real estate deal, the Santa Barbara County sheriff office reported.

• Deputies said the man convinced the 69-year-old victim to invest $300,000 for the purchase of a commercial property and promised the woman 12 percent interest on her investment. He even paid the first six months interest up front. Sheriff's detectives began investigating the incident last year. At that time, the woman reported that aside from receiving a payment for the first six months of interest, which was pulled from the $300,000 she had invested, the man had never paid her anything.

• Deputies said the woman trusted the man because he is a Realtor whom she had worked with before. The man was booked into county jail on suspicion of [financial] elder abuse, and authorities said more charges could be filed before the investigation is finished.

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• And in [another case in] Santa Maria, a landscaper pleaded no contest to charges he charged elderly homeowners for services he never performed. He was ordered to pay $50,000 in restitution and sentenced to eight years in prison.

Source: Op Ed: Elder Abuse.