SPOKANE, Wash. – A couple charged with defrauding an elderly woman out of more than $100,000 pleaded guilty in Spokane County Court.
Tyice and Mark Strahl were charged with theft of a vulnerable adult and were arrested in 2022. They are accused of stealing from 85-year-old Loretta Holley.
According to court documents, Holley’s now deceased husband hired the couple under the guise of ‘Life State,’ a company they ran to help the elderly manage their money and make payments. That’s when overcharges started showing up for services that weren’t taking place.
Attorney Dianna Evans commented on the prevalence of such schemes.
“The biggest way to combat this is by having a relationship with your family members if you don’t have a relationship with your parents, you’re not gonna be able to be privy to that knowledge,” said Evans.
Court documents also show the pair forged documents and “tricked” Loretta into putting Tyice on her checking account. Prosecutors say this allowed the couple to withdraw a large sum of money which they used at a casino.
The case now moves to civil court.
