Man accused of preying on elderly women

A Meeker man faces felony charges of obtaining money by false pretenses for allegedly defrauding two elderly Shawnee women of $7,700 for unnecessary roof repairs that were never completed.
Michael Shane Helms, 34, is charged with two counts in Pottawatomie County District Court.
In count one, he is accused of obtaining $3,000 from an 88-year-old Shawnee woman by means of false representation, with intent to cheat and defraud her, charges show. That incident allegedly occurred Dec. 29.
In count two, he is accused of defrauding another elderly Shawnee woman for $4,700 on Dec. 31, charges allege.
The Shawnee Police Department began investigating this case as a fraud and exploitation of the elderly. Detective Ethan Rieves’ reports show the first woman, age 88, said two men came to her residence with one advising she needed roof work done.
After the suspect wrote out an estimate, reports show he allegedly made a cell phone call and had the elderly woman speak to another person who claimed to be an insurance agent from her provider. That man told her to have the work done, the report shows, so the woman paid for the work with two checks made out to Helms.
The woman assumed the men would begin work on the roof, but after a couple minutes, they left without doing any repairs. The woman contacted her insurance agency, who said no one had talked to her.
The second case involved an 81-year-old woman who has Alzheimer’s. In that case, the woman assumed one of her family members had sent the man to repair her roof. She wrote him a $4,700 check, but no repairs were done, the report said. All of the checks were cashed, according to case paperwork.
Helms was arrested on complaints for these cases Feb. 6 and formal charges were filed Tuesday. He remained jailed at the Pottawatomie County Public Safety Center Wednesday on a $5,000 bond.
His next court date hasn’t yet been scheduled. If convicted of these charges, Helms could face a fine up to $5,000 or imprisonment up to 10 years, or both for each court. Because he has prior felony convictions, including false personation and grand larceny, the punishment range could increase to imprisonment for three years to life in each count, court papers show.
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Kim Morava may be reached at 214-3962.