Georgia’s elderly landowners among those defrauded in alleged timber scheme, Macon DA says

John Barnhardt Cox and Jack David Uselton

Assets of a Middle Georgia timber company were seized Tuesday and its owner was arrested after agents with the Georgia Forestry Commission began a criminal investigation into an alleged scheme that victimized at least 28 landowners, most of them elderly.

Cox Land & Timber Inc., based in Pike County, is accused of a number of “schemes,” including “intentionally misrepresenting the value of the timber harvested and harvested more timber than represented to the victims,” according to a civil lawsuit filed Tuesday in Bibb County Superior Court.
John Barnhart Cox, owner of the company, was charged with felony theft and 49-year-old Jack David Uselton Jr., of McDonough, was charged with misrepresenting the origin or ownership of timber greater than $500. Both men were booked in the Bibb County jail Tuesday and released Wednesday on a $17,000 bond and a $4,050 bond respectively.

Racketeering, exploitation of elderly people and timber mill theft are among the allegations in the lawsuit, which named four other defendants, including Jonathon Ashley May, of Griffin, James Lafayette Weldon, of Evans, Brenda Owings Jones, of Zebulon, and Kelly Zimmerman, of Kennesaw.

The 28 victims are from 16 different counties including Bibb, Baldwin, Dodge, Fayette, Green, Hancock, Henry, Jasper, Lamar, Meriwether, Monroe, Newton, Pike, Spaulding, Talbot and Taliaferro, Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney David Cooke said at a news conference Wednesday.

At least 17 victims are over the age of 65.

“Our hope is a majority of the victims in this case can receive restitution and recoup the losses they suffered,” Cooke said. “At least one victim has already died. … Another victim is 95.”

The timber company is accused of quoting an elderly man $15,000-$30,000 for the harvest of his timber then paying him only $6,686, according to the lawsuit. It also is accused of harvesting about 655 tons more timber than it declared to another victim on a settlement sheet.

In another accusation, the company allegedly lied to a victim and telling him or her that the property had “extensive beetle damage, which prevented harvesting the amount of timber as quoted,” according to the lawsuit.

In addition to landowners, the company is accused of duping a number of timber mills including Graphic Packaging International in Macon.

The lawsuit alleges Cox’s company “misrepresented the ownership or origin of the timber to the mill owners” to get paid more.

All the businesses’ assets and properties are under the control of receiver John F. Kennedy while the case is pending.

Cooke said Kennedy and a judge will decide if the business will continue to operate.

Reached by phone Wednesday, Cox told The Telegraph, “I just don’t understand it.”

Brian Jarrard, the Macon lawyer representing Cox, said he thinks it is improper for the district attorney’s office “to seize a business’s assets before any testing of their allegations in front of a jury. ... We intent to vigorously defend Mr. Cox and his business.”

Read more here: https://www.macon.com/news/local/crime/article219069075.html#storylink=cpy more here: https://www.macon.com/news/local/crime/article219069075.html#storylink=cpy

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Georgia’s elderly landowners among those defrauded in alleged timber scheme, Macon DA says

Georgia’s elderly landowners among those defrauded in alleged timber scheme, Macon DA says

Former lawyer pleads guilty to bilking elderly woman out of $80k

Former lawyer Thomas Gage pleaded guilty to financially exploiting an elderly woman Monday in Rockingham County Superior Court. (JASON SCHREIBER)

BRENTWOOD — A former Exeter lawyer pleaded guilty Monday to charges he financially exploited an elderly woman.

Thomas U. Gage, 58, of Newfields, faces the possibility of at least two years in prison as part of a plea deal with state prosecutors that was outlined during a hearing in Rockingham County Superior Court.

Gage pleaded guilty to two counts of financial exploitation of an elderly woman after taking out five credit cards in her name and charging more than $80,000 between January 2015 and January 2016.

Gage, who formally practiced in Exeter, was disbarred for unrelated reasons in 2016.

Assistant Attorney General Brandon Garod said he plans to seek a two- to four-year prison sentence and restitution for the victim, who was a family friend of Gage’s as well as a former client.

Garod said Gage approached the 71-year-old woman and told her he was trying to refurbish a house his parents had left to him into an apartment building.

Garod said Gage claimed that his credit was too poor to obtain financing and told the woman that if he could set up a limited liability company and use her personal information to obtain loans there would be no risk to her because the LLC would inherit the debt and it wouldn’t reflect on her credit report.

Garod said Gage also claimed that if his plan was successful the victim could share in some of the profits.

“He basically pitched it as a win-win with no risk. Come to find out, ultimately, he obtained five different credit cards in her name and did not establish an LLC like he told her he would do. He used all of the money to pay himself to his two businesses, Gage Law Offices and Quality Title Company, which is an offshoot of his law firm,” said Garod, who works in the Consumer Protection and Anti-Trust Bureau’s Elder Abuse and Exploitation Unit.

Gage maxed out the credit cards and left the victim with the debt, Garod said.

Garod said the victim agreed to let him use her personal credit information, but was under the impression that it wasn’t her debt and that he was using the money to renovate the home, which he actually did not own.

Garod said some of the credit card companies have been willing to work with the victim to rectify the situation while others have told her that she’s on the hook because she knew about the money he was accessing.

“I think this particular victim was extremely vulnerable due to the relationship with Mr. Gage. She trusted him completely because he was her former attorney and a close friend of the family. She had no reason to question any of the representations he made to her, especially the legal representations made to her,” he said.

Gage will be sentenced on Nov. 15.

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Former lawyer pleads guilty to bilking elderly woman out of $80k

Son must stay away from mother after he’s charged with battery, exploiting elderly

Michael McDuffie\ Muscogee County Sheriff's Office

A Columbus man pleaded not guilty to entering his mother’s apartment and knocking her to the floor during a dispute, an officer testified Friday in Recorder’s Court .

Michael McDuffie, 43, of Columbus faces one count of exploitation and intimidation of disabled adults, elderly persons, battery family violence, criminal trespassing and theft by taking. Judge Julius Hunter ordered McDuffie held in the Muscogee County Jail on bonds totaling $12,500 and bound the charges over to Superior Court. If McDuffie is able to make bond, Hunter said he must stay away from his mother and have no contact with her.

Officer Jerry Yarbrough said he was called to the 676 Sixth Ave. apartment of the 66-year-old mother about an 11:45 a.m. attack on Aug. 22. She was injured on her legs and arms. The son had moved out of the apartment because mother had constant problems with him.

The mother told the officer that her son entered the apartment after she left her side door open to let some air inside. She was knocked to the floor, causing her to strike her head on a TV stand. The victim also said she was struck with a floor fan.

The son is accused of going into her room and taking her keys. She was trying to make a call on her cell phone before it was snatched from her hand and thrown across the room, damaging the screen on the phone.

Yarbrough said McDuffie was taken into custody Wednesday by officers on Cusseta Road near 25th Avenue.

McDuffie was represented by public defender Robin King but he didn’t testify. Seeking a bond, King noted the suspect’s mother wasn’t treated by emergency medical services personnel at the scene.

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Son must stay away from mother after he’s charged with battery, exploiting elderly

4 Tips on How to Remove a Crooked Conservator

It is a miracle. I can’t believe, after over a year of trying to remove my mother’s crooked conservator, I was able to get him temporarily removed after multiple hearings at Superior Court in Downtown LA.

It all started with an investigation by the probate conservatorship office that lead to a recommendation that he be removed. When I showed up to court the apposing side said they “hadn’t seen the report” (lie) so, the hearing was extended for another three months. Meanwhile, I asked the judge to appoint a PVP attorney to conduct an investigation for my mothers health was seriously deteriorating. After a few interviews with my mom, thankfully she reported that my mother also needed a new conservator.

Rule number one: Document document document. Document everything.

So, last week I stood before the judge and everyone was discussing financial abuse, and I stood there thinking what about the psychological abuse? What about her isolation, her apparent depression, and mental decompensating. No one seemed to address this issue so, when it came my time to talk I flat out told the judge the real crime, despite financial elderly abuse, is the mental abuse. I made an argument that it wasn’t about money, and I had the documentation from the probate investigators office, coupled with the PVP report, to prove my point.

Rule number two: Shift the narrative to cover all aspects of conservatorship abuse, not just financial.

After my speech, the court room was silent. People looked at me like I was the crazy but, not the judge. He heard me, he listened to me, and he granted the temporarily removal. Sadly, the conservator still has control over my mother’s trust, which is a huge problem given the fact he’s blown through a massive about of my mothers money since his appointment but, hopefully at the next hearing the judge will be able to permanently remove him from all aspects of my family.

Rule number three: Don’t give up.

I share this story with you cause I have come across numerous people in probate that have difficulty removing conservators from what appears to be a serious crippled legal system but, there is hope. If you stay in the game, document a narrative that shows incompetence and point out the mental component when addressing abuse you have a chance. You should never give up, despite the constant continuances and BS that goes on with lawyers.

Rule number four: Always keep in mind that God is good.

Throughout all this, I have become closer to God. I have leaned on him, prayed to him, and have believed in him. So come November, I go back to court to see if his removal can be permanent and, after a year of hard work, persistency, and prays to the Lord above, I see the light at the end of what has been a wrenched tunnel. And, if you ever find yourself in this mess, take my rules, and so can you.

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4 Tips on How to Remove a Crooked Conservator

COLUMBUS – Starting on Sept. 29, Ohio law greatly expands the number of individuals required to report suspicions of elder abuse, neglect or exploitation.

Mandatory reporters now include many more individuals in the financial services, legal and medical professions – for example, pharmacists, dialysis technicians, firefighters, first responders, building inspectors, CPAs, real estate agents, bank employees, financial planners and notary publics.

"This expansion of mandatory reporters will help us in our goal of protecting our vulnerable family members, friends and neighbors from harm," said Cynthia Dungey, director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS), which supervises Ohio’s Adult Protective Services (APS) program. "Older adults make up the fastest-growing segment of Ohio’s population so all of us need to be vigilant. If you suspect that elder abuse, neglect or exploitation might be occurring, please report it."

"We work with state and local partners to ensure that our elders are able to live independently, and with dignity and respect, in their homes and communities for as long as possible," added Beverley Laubert, director of the Ohio Department of Aging. "Each of us must feel empowered to speak up when we suspect that a neighbor, friend or loved one might be the subject of abuse, neglect or exploitation. Likewise, we deserve to know that people who serve our elders daily will take action when they spot warning signs."

The law changes also require ODJFS to develop and make available educational materials for mandatory reporters. As a result, the agency developed guidebooks for financial services professionals, legal and law enforcement professionals, medical professionals and the public.

Anyone in Ohio can report possible elder abuse 24/7 by calling 1-855-OHIO-APS or by contacting the nearest county department of job and family services (JFS). To find the nearest county JFS, visit jfs.ohio.gov/county. Physical proof or other evidence is not required. Reports can be made anonymously.

If mandatory reporters fail to report possible abuse, they could face criminal charges and fines of up to $500. Ohio law allows no exceptions for professional relationships – for example, doctor/patient relationships or attorney/client relationships.

Elder abuse can include physical, sexual or psychological abuse, as well as neglect, abandonment or financial exploitation. In addition to physical injuries, the following are just a few of the possible indicators: being isolated, missing appointments, appearing frightened or avoiding specific people, suddenly withdrawing from usual activities or interactions, changes in mood or temperament, changes in personal hygiene, or being resistant to touching.

For more information, see the publication "A Guide to Protecting Ohio’s Elders" (JFS 08025), which is available at http://www.odjfs.state.oh.us/forms/pubs/. Industry-specific guides for financial services professionals, legal and law enforcement professionals, and medical professionals will be available soon.

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More Ohioans now legally required to report suspected elder abuse

Moberly man charged with financial exploitation of missing wife

Lawrence Warfel

Lawrence Warfel, 75, of Moberly was charged Thursday with financial exploitation of an elder/disabled person, a class C felony. Lawrence Warfel was withdrawing cash for nearly a year from his missing wife’s Social Security debit card, according to a probable cause statement made by Randolph County Sheriff’s Deputy Aaron Wilson.

Wilson reported that he was contacted June 19 by Penny Warfel’s sister in Columbus, Ohio, to report her sister missing. Penny Warfel was last seen Sept. 15, 2017. At the time of Penny Warfel was entered as missing in the Missouri State Highway Patrol database, she had not been seen in 9 months, according to the report.

Lawrence Warfel was the last person in her family to see her, according to the report. Lawrence Warfel told Wilson that Penny Warfel had left for Florida with a male friend after the married couple got into an argument. Lawrence Warfel said he had only spoken to Penny Warfel once since she left for Florida. It has not been confirmed that she left Missouri.

Wilson reported that Penny Warfel had been receiving an SSI disability check from the federal government. According to the report, Wilson was put into contact with a special agent with the U.S Inspector General’s Office to assist with the investigation. The agent was named in the statement as Special Agent J.F.

Penny Warfel was reportedly the only person with access to her SSI account. Wilson obainted records of Penny Warfel’s transaction history from July 2017 to July 2018. From July to September of 2017, Wilson reported that activity was consistent, including grocery expenses and bills paid through the account.

At the end of September 2017, however, Wilson reported that ordinary transactions on the account had stopped and only ATM transactions had been made since. Further investigation of video surveillance showed that Lawrence Warfel was withdrawing money from the ATM at the Bank of Kirksville in Moberly and the ATM connected to Academy Bank at the Moberly Walmart using Penny Warfel’s SSI account.

The records show that Penny Warfel has been receiving $750 each month from SSI, and all of the money was being withdrawn from her account each month by Lawrence Warfel. The total sum, as of the time of the probable cause statement, was approximately $8,000.

Wilson brought in Lawrence Warfel for questioning Wednesday. He reported that Lawrence Warfel admitted to being in possession of Penny Warfel’s SSI debit card and withdrew funds each month.

Special Agent J.F. was present for Wilson’s interview with Lawrence Warfel. He reportedly told Warfel that he was not allowed to withdraw money from his wife’s account and use it for himself. Lawrence Warfel told the investigators that his wife had told him to keep her money to pay her medical bills of at the Moberly Regional Medical Center, according to the report. Wilson told Lawrence Warfel that he had already checked with MRMC and no payments had been made on Penny Warfel’s account in more than a year.

Charges were filed against Lawrence Warfel on Thursday by Randolph County Prosecuting Attorney Mike Fusselman. His bond was set at $25,000, cash only and his arraignment is scheduled Monday at 1:30 p.m.

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Moberly man charged with financial exploitation of missing wife

Alert Burton senior center director uncovers $50,000 embezzlement case

BURTON (WJRT) (9/25/2018) - "We are always on the lookout. That is one of our number one missions. So, when anybody comes in and starts talking to us about an issue that's going on, it's really important that you listen and that you ask questions," explained Burton Senior Activities Center Director Jean Johnson.

She said that approach is what brought to light two years of abuse endured by one of the seniors she works with.

"She was brave enough to tell me that there was some issues going on," Johnson said.

"You know, Jean Johnson is really I think, the heroine in this case," Genesee County Sheriff Robert Pickell said.

He explained earlier this year, she alerted his Elder Abuse Task Force, who found 58-year-old Virginia Brown had stolen $50,780 from the woman.

The Sheriff said the two met at church shortly after the woman's guardian passed away; and, Brown convinced the woman to sign her money over to her. Once she did, Brown immediately had the woman buy her a new home, which she moved the woman into.

"What happened next was a tenant was paying the victim money on a land contract; and several months of those payments on the land contract were put into the defendants pocket, they never made it to the bank," Sheriff Pickell said.

With that $7,600, plus another $5,000 that Brown wrote in checks from the woman's bank account, she took a trip to Florida.

"The worst is yet to come," Sheriff Pickell added. "In January 2018, the defendant Virginia Brown, without the consent of the victim, withdrew $40,000 from the victim's annuity."

That money was also spent on a trip to Florida.

"These are my friends and to see that somebody would see a situation that someone could be taken advantage of and then do that, that just, it makes me very angry and disappointed in our society," Johnson said.

Brown is facing up to 15 years behind bars.

Johnson said the woman is doing much better now that the situation is under control.

For more information on the Sheriff's Elder Abuse Task Force, click on the 'Related Links' section of this story.

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Alert Burton senior center director uncovers $50,000 embezzlement case

New law offers alternative to guardianship for seniors and those with developmental disabilities

ANCHORAGE (KTUU) — In a bill signing Thursday, Gov. Bill Walker created another way for a person to be helped by others besides restrictive, traditional guardianship.

In signing House Bill 336, Rep. Charisse Millett’s popular final bill, Walker created new law allowing so-called “Supported Decision-Making Agreements.”

The bill signing occurred at the Fourth Annual Disability & Aging Summit at the Special Olympics building on Mountain View Drive for a reason: Decision-Making Agreements are primarily for Alaska’s rapidly growing senior population and for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

In an interview, Millett, an Anchorage Republican who lost her seat to a primary challenger in the August primary, said her bill was essentially nonpartisan and was a fitting way for her to leave the Legislature. The legislative votes and long co-sponsorship list demonstrate the measure’s popularity — it passed the House 39-1 on April 14 and the Senate 19-0 on May 11.

Rep. David Eastman of Wasilla was the sole no vote. He said the bill offered too big a grant of immunity for decisions made on behalf of another. In a telephone interview, he said he was unable to amend the bill to his liking.

The bill emerged from the previous year’s disability and aging summit, according to participants. Millett had warned it might take two years for the Legislature to move such a measure, but she praised her staff and others for shrinking the time to three months and getting the bill passed last session.

The new law allows a disabled person or senior citizen to name a “supporter” or team of supporters — perhaps children, parents or friends — who would sign an agreement with the disabled person or senior naming the help that was needed.

“It could be part of anyone’s natural support network,” said Anne Applegate, an attorney on the staff of the Governor’s Council on Disabilities & Special Education.

The bill itself has several sample agreements among its 19 pages of text.

A team could agree to do something like help a senior with computers, Wi-Fi or a smartphone, Applegate said, or an agreement could focus on health care or legal advice.

In capital letters, one of the law’s sample agreements says: “A supporter appointed under this agreement does not make decisions for me.”

“It’s innovative legislation that will end up saving the state money and will allow the freedom that seniors — and folks with intellectual and development disabilities — to gauge how much support they need,” Millett said in an interview.



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New law offers alternative to guardianship for seniors and those with developmental disabilities

Losing a Parent Is Hell, So Stop Telling Me to 'Get Over' My Grief

As I held the phone to my ear, listening to the sounds of the ICU in my father’s hospital room as he lay dying, I thought, This is the hard part. This was the part that I’d prepared my heart for, the inevitable day that we all knew was coming after my father’s diagnosis of esophageal cancer nine months prior. Every chemotherapy setback, every hospital admission, every missed family gathering had led us here. We knew cancer was going to rob us of our father and my kids of their grandfather.



He was dying, and his cancer-ridden body would finally be at rest.

I was 1,600 miles away and helpless to do anything but whisper to my father through the phone I clutched in my hands as I sobbed.

When the nurse got on the phone and said, “It’s over. He’s gone,” I breathed a sigh of relief.

My father was at peace.

The worst was over, I told myself.

But my grief journey was just starting. And it’s been excruciating, painful, and wonderful, all in different stages.

Though it’s been five years since the day I said goodbye to my father, I still grieve him every day. Not a day goes by that my heart doesn’t feel the pang of sorrow when I want to share a professional success with him or when I catch a glimpse of his smile on my son’s face.

I am not over my grief, and I never will be.

And I’m grateful.

Grief is not an emotion that is fleeting like anger or sadness. Some say grief is a process, but I disagree. By calling grief a “process,” the implication is that there is an end. A final moment where you say, “Yup! I’m done now. I don’t miss my dad anymore.”

But that is simply not the case.

My grief is here to stay, and I’d appreciate it if you’d stop asking me to get over it.



In fact, if I’m being honest, I like who I’ve become since I’ve had to process my grief over my father’s death. Grief has made me a better friend when my friends have lost their parents. Through my experience, I know that doing a friend’s laundry during a crisis means more than any lasagna you can shove in their fridge. And I know that funeral flowers just wind up dying and in the garbage, so I show up with wine instead.

Grief has made me more empathetic to strangers. I don’t judge as quickly when a cashier is short with me or when someone cuts me off in traffic because I wonder if they are having a day like I did shortly after my father passed away. The day when I had an anxiety attack in the parking lot at the grocery store and had to abandon my cart because I was crying too hard to lift the bags.

The man who screamed at me that day for not replacing my cart can rot in hell as far as I’m concerned. People who are carrying the burden of grief aren’t wearing T-shirts that say, “Be nice to me, my sister just died.” I’ve learned to practice kindness more often, thanks to grief.



I know not to tilt my head at a PTA meeting and say “How are you doing?” to a friend who has just lost her mother. Because I know she is fucking falling apart, and and it’s all she can do not to break the school windows with the gavel in her hands. Rather, I say “Death fucking sucks” instead. Because it does, and I needed someone to say that to me in the early months. Grief has stripped away my social filter and has made me braver, bolder.

On the day my father died, I became part of a club that I didn’t know existed. The “I’ve Lost a Parent” club members quietly and bravely carry their pain as they go about the business of raising kids, chasing job promotions, and managing a household.

The members of this club wearily welcome new members by simply saying, “Me too,” and I’ve been welcomed with open arms. The friends who have shared their experiences and the ones who haven’t judged me for my anger as I’ve navigated my grief path are the people I try to emulate when I’m offering support.



You will never hear me say “He’s better off” or “It was God’s plan” to a friend who tells me she is hurting from grief that threatens to swallow her whole. My grief has taught me that sitting in silence with a friend as she cries or the simple act of saying “I see your pain” is what will really make a difference.

Simple gestures like showing up to take care of carpool when you know a friend is struggling or arranging to show up with a hot meal for her family says that you understand where she is in her grief. Grief has made me understand that actions really do speak louder than words.
I didn’t ask for grief to enter my world, and watching my father die was absolute hell. But for all the sadness and pain, the days when my heart hurts so bad that I think it might actually be breaking, I wouldn’t trade my grief for anything.

Grief has been a gift in my life because it causes me to feel deep, raw emotion. And those feelings remind me that cancer didn’t erase my father from my memories. Yes, death fucking sucks, but through the tapestry of memories and a whole lot of tears, my father feels closer to me than ever, thanks to the grieving process.

So stop asking me to get over it. I don’t want to get over it.

By: Christine Burke
Source:scarymommy.com

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Losing a Parent Is Hell, So Stop Telling Me to 'Get Over' My Grief