A Jefferson County jury convicted a 50-year-old Monument woman of .
But Nahid “Venus” Moshrefi didn’t have cancer, said Pam Russell, spokeswoman for District Attorney Peter Weir.
The jury convicted Moshrefi after four hours of deliberation of felony counts of theft from an at-risk elder and criminal exploitation of an at-risk elder. She faces up to 24 years in prison.
Moshrefi met William Maruca on the “Live Links” dating service and they began dating in 2013. Soon after, she told him she had cancer and that without treatments she had only five to six months to live.
But in testimony before the jury, Moshrefi admitted she didn’t have cancer.
Two FirstBank employees contacted authorities after noticing that Maruca wrote several large checks made out to Moshrefi. They suspected elder abuse.
Maruca told police that he paid for Moshrefi’s doctor visits and treatment. He knew that she had cancer because of the pain she experienced. He also said that their relationship was kept secret because it was against her religion to be with a white man when she is unmarried.
But Moshrefi’s husband testified that they had been married for 13 years. She is the owner and operator of Holistic Healing Health in Colorado Springs and advertises herself as a doctor. In testimony she admitted that she is not licensed as a doctor in Colorado.
Maruca’s cousin testified that Moshrefi had prescribed supplements to Maruca and that he paid more than $80,000 for them. Maruca also paid for trips to California, Hawaii, and Australia for Moshrefi. She told him that she had family in Australia that she would never see again because she was dying. He also bought her a car.
