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| Jason DeCicco is charged with exploitation of an elderly person after FDLE agents say he was hired to remodel a Tampa woman’s home but ended up moving in and stealing about $120,000 over five years provided |
By Jessica De Leon
Before Jason Daniel DeCicco was hired in March 2015 to remodel a 70-year-old grandmother’s bathroom, she took care of herself and enjoyed quilting, careful not to leave her needles lying around because she enjoyed spending time with her grandson.
But not long after the Bradenton man convinced her to turn the small project into a home renovation, he had moved in and began overcharging her. Soon, the two were drinking and smoking marijuana together and she was keeping guns around her home and distancing herself from her family.
Over the course of the next five years, DeCicco defrauded the Tampa woman out of more than $120,000 and never actually completed the work in her home, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which investigated the case.
DeCicco, 45, was arrested by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday and booked into the Manatee County jail. Charged with one count of elderly exploitation, DeCicco was released later that day after posting a $15,000 bond. Conditions of his release include that he have no contact with the victim.
“DeCicco established himself in a position of trust, pretending to care for and help the victim, all while he was stealing from her and working to drain her financial resources,” FDLE Commissioner Rick Swearingen said in an issued statement. “Elderly exploitation cases continue to be a priority for FDLE.”
The Tampa woman has dementia and “did whatever she could to keep DeCicco around,” because he reminded her of her husband, according to FDLE agents. She would sometimes call DeCicco her husband’s name.
DeCicco was not licensed contractor but had a specialty license from Hillsborough County for tile and marble trade.
Despite how much money the victim gave DeCicco, her home remained in disrepair. As the money she had quickly began to run out, DeCicco convinced her to refinance the mortgage of her home, which had been nearly paid off.
Attorney Bryan Kutchins was later suspended from the Florida Bar for a year for his involvement in the refinancing, which included overcharging the victim.
The woman’s daughters had felt she was being exploited and that her dementia made her vulnerable to being taken advantage of. Because of that, they sought and got a court-appointed professional guardian. The victim was found to have limited capacity, according to a court order and she was stripped of her rights to enter into a contract or manage property.
The victim’s guardian trespassed DeCicco from the victim’s home, yet he continued to live there.
In June 2017, Tampa police were called to the woman’s home in response to a report of gunshot. Soon after, police began to investigate possible elderly exploitation and construction fraud but later closed their case when the victim wouldn’t cooperate.
As the victim’s guardian and
doctors found her cognitive abilities were continuing to deteriorate
because of the dementia, she was placed in an assisted living facility
in July 2020.
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