According to authorities, a Florida lady who used the life savings of an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor to support an opulent lifestyle was given a 51-month prison term.
According to U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, the 36-year-old woman cheated the victim of more than $2.8 million between 2017 and late 2021. In April, she admitted guilty to wire fraud in connection with the prolonged love scam.
Williams claimed that Peaches Stergo “callously defrauded an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor who was only seeking companionship.” She lived a luxurious lifestyle at the cost of the victim using millions of dollars in scam money. She did not, however, get away with it.
The unidentified victim and Stergo first connected online. She begged the Holocaust survivor for money, saying she had to pay her attorney. According to the indictment, the victim’s first check to Stergo was for $25,000.
Throughout the con, the victim issued 62 checks to Stergo, giving her almost $50,000 per month. Stergo warned the man that she would freeze her accounts and never repay him if he didn’t send her money.
The tweet below verifies the news:
A Florida woman who swindled the life savings from an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor in a "romance scam" has been sentenced to more than four years in prison. https://t.co/E5HT7SYdXr
— NBC News (@NBCNews) July 28, 2023
The Florida woman allegedly used the money he provided her to purchase a home in a gated community, a condominium, a boat, and several cars, while the victim lost his life savings and was forced to give up his apartment. She also purchased jewels, Rolex watches, gold coins, and bars, as well as fashionable apparel.
Up to October 2021, the man sent Stergo money. He told his son about the circumstance, and the son informed his father that he had been duped.
“I’m really sad, angry, and frustrated that I haven’t made any money. After the man stopped providing money,” Stergo texted, “I don’t want to work… it’s too hard,” according to the prosecution.
Stergo revealed to her true partner that the Holocaust survivor had claimed to love her during the con. After saying that, she added a “lol.” During sentencing, the judge referred to Stergo’s actions as “unspeakably cruel.”
Additionally, $2,830,775 in reparations was demanded from Stergo. A forfeiture order was also issued for the residence and more than 100 expensive items she bought with money obtained through romantic fraud.
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