A jury found a man guilty Friday of financial exploiting an elderly Springfield woman.
After
a two-day trial in Greene County, the jury deliberated for about four
hours before deciding Howard Roberts, 75, was guilty of a Class A felony
for convincing the woman to invest more than $300,000 in his supplement
business.
Roberts will be sentenced at a future hearing. He faces a possible life sentence.
Authorities
brought the charge against Roberts in February 2016, accusing him of
taking advantage of a then-78-year-old woman with bipolar disorder.
Roberts
maintained his innocence throughout the court proceedings, claiming the
woman freely decided to invest in his company, Maximum Performance, and
she was involved in the business operations.
Maximum Performance was involved in making supplements for horses and human athletes.
Prosecutors
say the company was based in Kentucky and was not registered to sell
stock in Missouri, so Roberts broke the law when he sold the woman
$250,000 worth of stock.
Roberts'
defense attorney Adam Woody argued at trial that Roberts was not an
expert in business law, but he tried to do everything right.
Woody said he was shocked by the jury's decision.
"The
state did a good job presenting their evidence," Woody said. "We just
certainly did not believe there was enough evidence there to find Mr.
Roberts guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. He tried to do things the
right way during this stock purchase agreement."
In addition to the stock purchase, the woman also bought a truck and horse trailers for the company, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors
say Roberts and the woman were friends in the 1970s and reconnected in
late 2013 after Roberts was divorced and the woman's husband died.
Roberts
eventually moved into the victim's east Springfield home and invited
his ex-wife to move in as well, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors say Roberts tried to gain control over the woman's finances.
Investigators
got involved in the case after the victim's family and friends
expressed concerns and the bank noticed some irregular activity on her
account.
The jury was not able to reach a unanimous
decision after closing arguments on Thursday, but the jurors returned
Friday morning and found Roberts guilty.
Full Article & Source:
Man found guilty of exploiting 78-year-old Springfield woman in $300,000 scheme
