An alleged “traveler” accused of intimidating a 93-year-old Longmont woman to pay him $2,200 for unsolicited yard work was arrested on a similar charge that targeted an 86-year-old man while he was free on $50,000 bail.
His bond on new charge is $100,000 and he could face more charges in other Front Range communities, the Longmont Police Department said today. He is being held in the Boulder County Jail.
Eddington, 43, is charged the 93-year-old $2,200 for trimming a few branches, though she had not asked for the work. On Wednesday, the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office said an 86-year-old man in unincorporated Boulder County had paid Eddington more than $1,000 in a similar incident.
His most recent residence is Guthrie, Okla., where records show he has been arrested on home-repair fraud, burglary, domestic abuse and weapons charges.
His construction business in Tulsa declared bankruptcy in 2005, according to records.
Longmont police said Eddington is on probation for a conviction of exploiting the elderly in Georgia. Records show he lived for a time in Kennesaw, Ga., north of Atlanta.
While Boulder County authorities are looking for more victims of the scam there, the Denver District Attorney’s Office also has began taking reports of similar scams and intimidation Thursday.
The work for which the group charges should cost a “small fraction” of the thousands of dollars in charges the alleged group demands for about 30 minutes of work, according to a release from Longmont police.
“The men, acting alone or in groups of three will be very forceful with the victim and intimidate them into writing a check for thousands of dollars,” police stated.
“The investigation has found this group was staying in motels in the Westminster area and may still be targeting elderly residents in the Front Range area.”
Anyone approached by the group or might have been a victim already should immediately call local police or their sheriff’s department, the release stated.
In Denver, victims can call the District Attorney’s Office at 720-913-9179.
