Six men sentenced in Stoddard County asphalt scheme

BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- Six individuals charged last week with exploiting and conspiring to exploit elderly Stoddard County residents by providing a service for a quoted price and then charging them a much higher figure once the work was completed have each pleaded guilty to the charges against them.

The six, all from out of state, reportedly scammed a number of elderly individuals in the Powe and Bloomfield areas of the county. Each pleaded guilty and were sentenced Wednesday.

Paul Collins, Jr., and Jay Joles both pleaded guilty to the Class B felony of financial exploitation of the elderly. Each was given a 10-year suspended prison sentence, and each was placed on a five-year unsupervised probationary period and ordered to pay restitution.

According to the county's prosecuting attorney, Briney Welborn, the pair was granted "unsupervised" probation because in the state of Missouri, a supervised probation would entail the pair being mandated to remain in the state for the duration of their probationary period.

In an unusual move by the court, the pair was also ordered to provide proof of $10,000 secured in an escrow account with their respective attorneys to ensure that all parties affected by their illegal activities be reimbursed for any financial losses incurred through the business transactions that landed them in jail.

Jerry Gale Joles, Orval Lee Whipple, Isaiah Elbert and Jose Gomez Martinez, also charged in the scam, each entered guilty pleas as well to the Class C felony of conspiracy to commit financial exploitation to the elderly. The four were given five-year suspended sentences and in lieu of prison, each was also given five years of unsupervised probation by the court.

The charges each of the six faced stemmed from an operation within the county that involved asphalt paving at the homes of local residents. One incident targeted an elderly couple from rural Powe, an area southwest of Dexter. The two were quoted a price of from $50 to $100 for repair to their driveway, being told by the scamming crew that they had "leftover" material with which to work. After the couple agreed to have the work done, they were told by the crew that in excess of $4,000 was owed for the completed work.

The elderly couple, caught up in the scheme, went so far as to drive to their banking facility to borrow over $3,500 to pay the crew, but an alert banker was suspicious and called authorities. The crew was warned by local authorities who appeared on the scene, to leave the area after the couple involved elected not to press charges.

A similar scam, however, was reported just a few days later in early November and involved residents in Bloomfield. This time, the woman who was targeted refused to pay the upscaled amount, paid the amount that she had agreed upon before repairs were completed, and contacted the Stoddard County Sheriff's Department, which acted quickly to apprehend the individuals and recognized a portion of the crew as the same individuals who had earlier taken part in the Powe operation.