Boone County sheriff's deputies are looking for a 44-year-old Sturgeon man they believe swindled elderly relatives out of $109,000 in April, Detective Tom O'Sullivan said in a news release. A warrant was issued Jan. 3 for the arrest of Farrel G. Pride of the 20000 block of North Route V. He was charged in December with financial exploitation of the elderly after a sheriff's department investigation.
Farrel Pride
The couple Pride allegedly bilked out of the cash live in Colorado and contacted the sheriff's department in April once they realized they had been the victims of a ruse, O'Sullivan said.
The man Pride allegedly conned, age 71 at the time, had been receiving treatment for cancer since 2004, a probable cause statement said.
Pride called the man and his wife on April 9, 2013, and said he needed $109,000 by 3 p.m. or he would be in jail by 5 p.m., the statement said. He used the money to buy property in the Sturgeon area and was supposed to put the couple's names on the deed. It was when the older man realized Pride was not going to live up to his end of the bargain that he called authorities, the statement said.
The previous day, the man had been undergoing chemotherapy, and one of the side effects was insomnia.
When Pride called him, the statement said, he had not slept all night and told police that Pride had "brainwashed and controlled him." He tried to get the money back but has been unsuccessful.
Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 573-875-8477. Pride's bond on the warrant is $109,000, cash only.
This article was published in the Wednesday, January 15, 2014 edition of the Columbia Daily Tribune with the headline "Man sought for allegedly conning relatives."
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