Charges filed in elder abuse case

Fetuu Tupoufutuna faces up to nine charges in the elder abuse case including elder fraud by a caretaker, forgery and a great taking allegation among others, San Mateo County Deputy District Attorney Melissa McKowan said yesterday.

The victim, Pauline Reade, faced foreclosure on the Pacifica home she has lived in since 1951 after Tupoufutuna allegedly tricked the woman into signing loan documents to the tune of $312,000. The loan documents were falsified in at least one respect, said Reade’s attorney Niki Okcu.

"They say that Pauline had a pet-sitting business and was earning about $3,500 a month. There was no such business,” according to Okcu.

Reade’s husband died in 1990 and she has little contact with any other family, Okcu said. She is also visually impaired.

Okcu, an attorney with Cotchett, Pitre and McCarthy, is taking the case pro bono with the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo.

Reade hired Tupoufutuna in 2006 to do some repair work to her home. Work on the home extended for months in which time the victim and suspect developed a close fiduciary relationship, according to court documents filed with San Mateo County Superior Court.

Reade eventually named Tupoufutuna her executor and sole beneficiary in her will.

"Tupoufutuna was aware of Pauline Reade’s significant health problems, lack of sophistication regarding real estate matters and her vulnerability given her advanced age, and given that she had no close relatives or contacts who would look after her. Defendant Tupoufutuna abused the trust Reade placed in him, and by fraud, undue influence and forgery gained control of Pauline Reade’s financial affairs,” according to court documents.

Unfortunately, Reade’s case is not unusual, McKowan said.

Tupoufutuna has allegedly fled the country, thought to be in either New Zealand or Australia, McKowan said.

"It is a traditional strategy in identification theft and elder fraud,” McKowan said.

With Reade’s advanced age, Tupoufutuna must avoid arrest or a trial before the woman dies. If Reade were to die before the suspect is brought to court, charges would have to be dropped.

"The defendant has a right to cross-examine his accuser,” McKowan said.

McKowan deals with elder fraud cases regularly with entire nest eggs or home equity being devastated in many instances.

State Assemblyman Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, has made combating elder abuse within the county a top priority.

"Seniors are in many cases lonely,” Hill said. "It makes them easier to befriend and to be taken advantage of. People must know who they are dealing with. People should be suspicious and ask questions.”

Hill hosted a Seniors Against Investment Fraud in Belmont in August and will conduct another one in April at the San Bruno Senior Center.

"It would be nice to have the resources to watch out for these people. But it is just not there. This case is a tragedy,” Hill said.

In 2006, a Deed of Trust was recorded with the Office of the County Recorder indicating Reade owed $312,000 in debt with her home as collateral.

Reade has no memory of applying for a loan, according to court documents.

In 2008, Reade received a notice that about $18,000 had been charged to her credit card account without her knowledge or approval, according to court documents.

Reade finally asked a neighbor to help her review her bills. Shortly thereafter, she contacted the Pacifica Police Department. Tupoufutuna allegedly had Reade sign over 100 checks between 2006 and 2008.

The Legal Aid Society stepped in after Reade received a Notice of Trustee’s Sale in 2009 stating her home would be sold at a public sale.

The initial lender on the loan was Paul Financial, according to Okcu. Within 30 days or so after issuing the loan, it was sold in the secondary market. The current lender appears to be Deutsche Bank National Trust, according to Okcu. The servicer is GMAC Financial.  

"I think the loan was sold several times before ending up with Deutsche Bank. We recently discovered the identity of the current lender because even the servicer of the loan could not figure out who the lender was until recently,” Okcu said.

Tupoufutuna faces nearly eight years in prison if convicted on some of the charges, McCowan said. The suspect’s family has been cooperating with law enforcement, McCowan said, and the District Attorney’s Office may pursue Tupoufutuna overseas if his location can be identified.

Bill Silverfarb can be reached by e-mail: silverfarb@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106.