On Thursday, September 22nd, 2022, at 8:54 am, a Turlock Police detective near the 19500 block of W Bradbury Rd, Turlock, was conducting follow-up investigation in an embezzlement case involving an elderly victim when he conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle one of his suspects was driving.
The detective arrested Kevin Edwards, 55, of Turlock, on a local $85,000 felony warrant for violating a provision of law proscribing theft, embezzlement, forgery, fraud, or identity theft by a caretaker of an elder or dependant adult, burglary, and embezzlement.
Other detectives later arrested Kevin’s wife, Andrea Bodine Edwards, 53, of Turlock, at their home in the 19000 block of Denis Way on a local $35,000 felony warrant for violating a provision of law proscribing theft, embezzlement, forgery, fraud, or identity theft by a caretaker of an elder or dependant adult and embezzlement.
The investigation, which revealed an intricate scheme to obtain control of the victim’s finances in an apparent effort to defraud him out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, began after the victim reported it to the Turlock Police Department in March.
Detectives were able to obtain and serve several search warrants throughout the course of the investigation which revealed a paper trail of evidence.
Kevin, who is a Credit and Collections manager for the Turlock Irrigation District, met the victim in May of 2021 when he was seeking assistance with his Turlock Irrigation District account. Kevin befriended the victim during this contact and took steps to gain control of his life.
Turlock Irrigation District administrators were made aware of the investigation, are cooperating with detectives, and have placed Kevin on administrative leave.
“We continue to focus our efforts on these types of crimes to identify and prosecute those who victimize our elderly residents,” said Turlock Police Detective Jason Tosta. “I am asking anyone who has any information regarding this case, or who may have also been a victim of Kevin or Andrea, to please come forward,” he continued.
Both Kevin and Andrea were booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center on their warrants. At the time of writing this, both have already posted bail and have been released.
The investigation remains on-going. Anyone with information that could assist in the investigation is encouraged to call Detective Jason Tosta at 209-664-7324.
