A 46-year-old man was sentenced to 11 years in prison on Tuesday by the criminal court of Pyrénées-Atlantiques for defrauding a 95-year-old woman of more than €800,000. The man entered into a civil union (PACS) with the victim, who was 49 years his senior, and then confined her in Morocco to gain control of her assets.
The court found the defendant guilty of aggravated fraud, sequestration, and abuse of vulnerability. The victim, a French resident, was isolated in a property in Morocco without access to her bank accounts or communication with her family. The scheme lasted from 2019 to 2022, during which the man transferred large sums from her accounts to his own.
According to the prosecution, the man met the woman in 2018 and quickly established a relationship of dependency. He convinced her to sign a PACS, which gave him legal authority over her finances. He then moved her to a remote house in Morocco, where she was kept under surveillance and prevented from leaving.
The victim was rescued in 2022 after a neighbor alerted French authorities. She has since returned to France and is receiving support. The court also ordered the man to repay €800,000 in damages and banned him from contacting the victim for 20 years.
This case highlights the vulnerability of elderly individuals to financial exploitation, particularly when legal mechanisms like PACS are misused. French authorities have urged families to monitor the financial affairs of elderly relatives and report suspicious activity.
