Pair indicted on 50+ counts in tree-trimming scheme; Multiple alleged victims in Colorado Springs
JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO)--A Jefferson County couple has been indicted by a grand jury on 51 criminal counts, accused of preying on the elderly in a tree-trimming scheme, that spanned the entire front range.
According to the grand jury indictment, Joseph and Amelia Tyler ran J.A. Tree service. Tonight, both are sitting in jail, charged with targeting the elderly in a massive pattern of deception.
In September, the Arvada Police Department posted on social media, saying the couple would start a tree-trimming job in the Denver-Metro area, ask for a payment, and leave with the payment without finishing the work.
When the pair were arrested in October, the indictment says law enforcement recognized them, saying at job sites they carried a carbon copy receipt book.
Police obtained a warrant for their car, and inside were multiple receipts for customers across the state. 11 of those receipts came from El Paso County.
"They intend to take your money and leave you high and dry," Attorney General Phil Weiser said. "They were engaging in an egregious pattern and practice of activity that was literally all up and down the front range."
The receipt from a 98-year-old customer in Colorado Springs was in the book, charged $300 in July 2020. That man didn't want to go on camera, but his family told KRDO he remembers what happened clear as day.
Also listed, was a 93-year-old woman from the east side of Colorado Springs. She told KRDO the same thing happened to her in July 2021, allegedly defrauded out of nearly $400.
That woman, according to Weiser, was one of the few who actually report these crimes.
"The challenge that we face is a lot of times people don't even bother reporting these sorts of scams. They don't think it's worth the trouble.
KRDO reached out to the public defender's office for comment from the Tylers' but didn't hear back.
Weiser says he recommends customers research who is doing their yard work. When that is not always possible, he says customers should withhold payment until a job is done.
