More alleged victims of man wanted for scamming elderly relatives
A Columbia woman is coming forward claiming she was also swindled by the Mid-Missouri man accused of scamming his elderly relatives out of nearly $110,000.
Farrel Pride is wanted for a felony charge of exploitation of the elderly, after his dying aunt and uncle claimed he brainwashed them and stole money.
Thursday night, a Columbia woman, Monette Jordan, said she too was of victim of his tricks.
Jordan first met Pride when she bought what she thought was a used car from his car lot, Pride’s Used Cars. She found out a year later that it wasn’t used — it was salvaged.
“I never would’ve bought a salvaged car. That’s dangerous for my two young kids to be in,” Jordan said.
The problems didn’t stop there.
Pride lied about how much she bought the car for, claiming she paid $2,500 for it.
“We paid more than $2,500 for just the down payment alone,” she said. “He charged us $5,600 for it, that we paid in full.”
As she was paying for it, she had issues with the payments.
“The Prides kept sending me letters, wanting more and more money,” Jordan said.
Then, a year after she purchased the car, it was hit while parked in a parking lot.
She took it to get repaired, but insurance turned her down saying it had already been totaled. That’s when she found out it was salvaged.
“I called him and informed him it was salvaged and he just said I was making complaints,” she said.
After several heated exchanges, she said Pride took matters into his own hands.
She told ABC 17 News he used the tracking device he put in her car to find it in St. Lois at her cousin’s house.
Then she said he broke into the garage and stole it.
When Jordan decided to take legal action, she said Pride bribed her not to.
“He had a letter written up that informed me if I didn’t take legal charges, he would pay me $500,” she said.
She went ahead and hired a lawyer and investigator. She told ABC 17 News the investigator found out she wasn’t the only one he swindled.
“They found a large amount of falsified paperwork,” she said.
ABC 17 News did some digging, and discovered Pride’s been involved in numerous civil lawsuits, dating all the way back to 1995.
The car lot has since been closed.
Jordan believes Pride is somewhere in New York, where she said he bought many of his cars for his car lot.
She plans on pressing her own charges against him when he is caught.
If you have any information on Pride’s whereabouts, call Crimestoppers at 573-874-TIPS.