The elderly couple told police they had been duped out of thousands of dollars and that their Social Security checks were diverted to Georgia, which gave detectives their first real clue.A Tennessee man is accused of conning an elderly woman in Kosciusko County out of more than $15,000.
Brian E. Schendel, 37, of Oak Ridge, Tenn., was preliminarily charged Wednesday with felony exploitation of an endangered adult over 60 years old.
In August 2011, Schendel sold a car to a 79-year-old Mentone woman.
He kept in touch with her and told her he was an injured military veteran in need of money, according to the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department.
Capitalizing on the woman’s kindness, Schendel managed to persuade her to send cash and money orders to him in Tennessee and Mississippi.
The amount he took from her was between $15,000 and $20,000, the sheriff’s department said.
The sheriff’s department learned about the con and started investigating this summer. Detectives found Schendel in Oak Ridge despite his use of an alias.
The Oak Ridge Police Department arrested him, and Kosciusko County detectives flew to Tennessee to retrieve him.
He was booked into the Kosciusko County Jail on Wednesday. His bail was set at $5,000.
