Editor's note: This Shark wonders why the owners of the insurance company that bilked Alice R. Gore were not "sentenced". Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster, ProbateSharks.com
Owners of St. Louis insurance company sentenced for bilking elderly out of $3 million
2014-10-14T17:05:00Z 2014-10-14T18:23:05Z Owners of St. Louis insurance company sentenced for bilking elderly out of $3 million stltoday.com
Two owners of a St. Louis insurance company were sentenced to prison Tuesday in federal court for bilking elderly people out of $3 million.
Mark Driver, 50, of south St. Louis County, and Robert Palmer, 45, of Kansas City, had been charged last year with two counts of mail fraud and two counts of wire fraud. They pleaded guilty in June.
U.S. District Judge Rodney W. Sippel sentenced Palmer to 70 months in prison and Driver to 30 months in prison. The two men operated Princeton Partnership LLC out of offices in the Hill neighborhood.
In court files, prosecutors said that from 2004 to 2010, the pair engaged in "systematic looting of retirement funds and life savings" of elderly people, most without children or other heirs.
Prosecutors said the men visited the women's homes and brought snacks, while promising that their money would be used to invest in annuities, stocks, and bonds.
Instead, the money went for their personal use, "enjoying nice lifestyles, including Maserati and customized Mercedes Benz and BMW automobiles, fine homes, and frequent travel," prosecutors noted in court files.
Some victims submitted letters to the court. One woman wrote, "They probably didn't think I'd live as long as I have, but I am glad I am still alive for this day of sentencing."
Mark Driver, 50, of south St. Louis County, and Robert Palmer, 45, of Kansas City, had been charged last year with two counts of mail fraud and two counts of wire fraud. They pleaded guilty in June.
U.S. District Judge Rodney W. Sippel sentenced Palmer to 70 months in prison and Driver to 30 months in prison. The two men operated Princeton Partnership LLC out of offices in the Hill neighborhood.
Prosecutors said the men visited the women's homes and brought snacks, while promising that their money would be used to invest in annuities, stocks, and bonds.
Instead, the money went for their personal use, "enjoying nice lifestyles, including Maserati and customized Mercedes Benz and BMW automobiles, fine homes, and frequent travel," prosecutors noted in court files.
Some victims submitted letters to the court. One woman wrote, "They probably didn't think I'd live as long as I have, but I am glad I am still alive for this day of sentencing."
