SORRENTO, Fla. – Countless people have moved to Florida for the weather, cost of living, and family, but one is in jail for something almost unthinkable.
He’s accused of using “a position of trust” to “knowingly exploit his parents,” and some of the evidence comes from his late mother.
Authorities say Paul “Wesley” Dennis III moved from North Carolina in October 2022,
“when [his mother] was hospitalized continuously for more than four months and [his father] continuously remained at the facility.”
His father is reportedly 76 years old and his mother, 74, now deceased.
A detective’s affidavit said their son took the opportunity
and “accessed and used the victims’ financial information to obtain property and pay personal loans, forged a check, and make unauthorized credit card transactions.”
It also said his mother knew, since her “sworn affidavit states ‘Wesley’ was given a key to access the property for the sole purpose of a remodel to a bathroom tub in October 2022.
“[His late mother’s] statement, ‘Wesley’ was not given permission to stay at their residence or access a separately locked office area which stores documents and financial information.”
Specifically, the detective alleged Dennis fraudulently used his mother’s Wells Fargo credit card “from 11/04/2022 through 11/23/2022 for approximately 126 unauthorized transactions totaling over $13,000.”
It claims he fraudulently used the victims’ credit card “six times to purchase a timeshare agreement and other charges on 11/07/22 and 11/08/22. Documents provided by Blue Green Vacations contain receipts, ‘Wesley’s’ photo identification, and signatures. Total unauthorized charges for $6,002.”
Another claim: “Dennis did utter an altered Duke Energy bill on 11/18/2022 to FL DHSMV [Dept. of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles] for the purpose of changing his driver license legal address to that of the victims.
“The DHSMV scanned proof of legal residency document, the address has a pen mark making ‘Dennis II’ into ‘Dennis III.’ The victims’ Wells Fargo credit card was used 11/18/22 for the $33.75 fee.”
The detective alleged Dennis got his hands on his father’s bank account information “on 12/10/2022 to obtain a $2,589.71 scheduled payment loan for repairs to his registered Toyota pickup truck performed at [a dealer] in Leesburg, FL. Wesley used his own SSN [Social Security number], DOB [date of birth], phone and email, linking himself to the fraudulent transactions which posted to the victim’s Wells Fargo account.
“The victim’s physical address was used as ‘Wesley’s’ legal residence. ‘Wesley’ posted a Facebook photo of himself retrieving the pickup at the dealership the same day.”
And, the affidavit said he forged “a $1,000 check to another person and sign[ed] the name of [his father] on 01/14/2023. Both victims were in the hospital on this date.
“An aggregate amount of unauthorized charges and expenditures constituting grand theft <$20,000.”
The detective signed the document asking for an arrest warrant on May 1, 2024.
He must’ve gotten it.
Paul Wesley Dennis III was arrested in Watauga County, N.C., at some point and extradited to Florida on Nov. 1, 2024.
He’s charged with seven felonies: felony theft from a person 65+, exploitation of the elderly, criminal misuse of identification, uttering a forged instrument, forging a bank check, grand theft $5,000-$10,000, and grand theft $10,000-$20,000.
He also faces a misdemeanor: fraudulent use of a credit card.
Two of those felonies come with no bond, so Dennis, 54, has been in jail ever since.
The detective’s affidavit does not specify what caused the investigation to begin.
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