U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk sentenced a contractor from Jefferson County, Missouri, to five years of probation, 90 days of house arrest, and 80 hours of community service for his involvement in the financial exploitation of an elderly St. Louis woman.
Austin James, 27, of Hillsboro, was also ordered to repay $94,606 to the victim’s estate. James played a role in the crimes committed by Gino Rives, whom the 80-year-old victim hired sometime before Jan. 17, 2021, to repair her roof for $7,500. Following this, Rives, who falsely claimed to be a licensed contractor, was hired to renovate the interior of her home. Rives instructed the woman to write checks to himself and others, including James, totaling over $550,000 for renovations on her one-bedroom, one-bath, 1,100-square-foot home.
Concerns raised by bank employees due to the high volume of checks written on the victim’s account led to an investigation by the St. Louis City Building Inspector’s Office. The office determined that any work done on the house was worth no more than $50,000.
James received eight checks totaling $94,606 between January 2021 and July 2021 for allegedly performing work on the victim’s kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, basement, and foundation. However, photos presented during the sentencing hearing demonstrated that he did not complete the work for which he had been paid.
James pleaded guilty to one count of identity theft.
Gino Rives, 36, of Edmundson, St. Louis County, was sentenced in June to 87 months in prison and ordered to repay more than $1 million to elder fraud victims.
The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Secret Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Berry is prosecuting the case.
