ST. LOUIS — Newly released evidence photos reveal the result of an elderly woman’s one-million-dollar home remodel. It’s a home worth less than $150,000, according to court records. Prosecutors say the defendant only added to the mess and did little repair work for the million bucks.
Federal prosecutors say the man responsible is Gino Rives. He denied the scam when we caught up with him last November when he told me, “I didn’t do anything wrong. God knows the truth.”
Yet he’d already pleaded guilty to exploiting two elderly victims—including the woman who gave him the million dollars. Prosecutors determined that woman was tricked for more money while she was hallucinating on her deathbed.
That victim has since died. Her friends came to court today, remembering their conversation about the scam. Sharon Pacie remembers when they said to her, “’You realize this guy is a crook!’ And she said ‘yes,’ and we said, ‘Why?! Why did you do this?’ ‘because I was lonely,’ she said.”
Pacie said their friend was so frugal that she would not pay for needed surgery. “She was in pain. She walked all crippled over and she would not have knee surgery done because, again, she wouldn’t spend money on herself.”
Friend Loretta Pritt added, “He had to have manipulated her completely.”
Timothy Weaks also testified. He’s St. Louis County’s public administrator. He was brought in as guardian after the defendant had moved the victim to a nursing home, and the scam was detected.
Weaks said, “The first thing she asked about were her assets—the house that she took care of that she owned and her bank accounts that she was concerned about. She wanted to know what happened to those.”
Prosecutor Tracy Berry is trying to recover the money as she said, “We’ve got to look out for one another. We’ve got to speak up and we’ve got to make sure everybody feels safe and secure in their homes.”
Rives spoke out in court, saying the woman who gave him the million dollars was a wonderful and caring person.
Judge Stephen Clark was incredulous, responding, “It’s hard to understand how someone can take such advantage of someone else and then extol their virtues.”
He then called out the defendant’s “evil, callous and egregious decision-making.”
Rives’ attorneys argued the defendant had a rough upbringing, including an alcoholic father. The judge fired back, saying he doesn’t see the connection between that and the criminal conduct. He then sent him to prison for more than seven years, which is at the top end of the sentencing guidelines.
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