ST. CLAIR COUNTY — A couple from Freeburg, in St. Clair County, admitted bilking an elderly relative out of $200,000, federal prosecutors said Friday.
Ronald W. Speiser and Jean M. Speiser, both 81, had been designated as that victim's power of attorney and successor power of attorney, prosecutors said. From December 2018 to at least June 2020, the Speisers misused that authority by spending over $200,000 of the victim’s money without the victim’s knowledge, prosecutors said.
They used the money for over $50,000 in home renovations, to cover more than a year's worth of credit card bills, a $29,000 camper, a $23,000 truck, and down payments and 13 mortgage payments on a second home, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
The Speisers pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis on Thursday to two felony charges, mail fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud. As part of their plea, they agreed that a year of house arrest and full restitution would be an appropriate sentence, including $119,000 that must be paid by their Nov. 18 sentencing.
Anyone
who suspects financial fraud having been committed on someone aged 60
or older can call the Justice Department's National Elder Fraud Hotline
at 1-833-FRAUD-11 or 1-833-372-8311.
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