VIDEO: Minnesota Man Drained $1.6 Million from 85-Year-Old Dementia Patient’s Bank Account

An elderly Minnesota man with dementia was scammed out of $1.6 million and the neighbor who targeted him is set to spend four years in prison.

Forty-one-year-old Joseph Robinson was a former neighbor of 85-year-old Edward Solstad whom KARE 11 reported Tuesday was in the early stages of dementia.

The story unfolded when Robinson told Solstad he would renovate his home in Minneapolis. However, it appeared that Robinson took control of nearly every aspect of the elderly man’s life with Solstad writing him checks and allowing the younger man to take him to doctor’s appointments.

An image shows the sentenced scammer:

Solstad also legally adopted him, gave him power of attorney, and signed over his home. Meanwhile, the dementia patient’s sister, Mary Solstad, said their family relationship also took a significant turn.

“Edward referred to me as his evil sister. And that just hurt so much because we were so close. And I think worse than the money he stole, the fact he stole my brother is the worst part,” she explained. “At some point, Joe’s influence was so huge, Edward was getting closer to full-blown dementia, and it was — he just got sucked in.”

Prosecutors said Robinson drained $1.6 million from Solstad’s bank account and the money cannot be recovered.

“In court, Robinson still referred to Edward as his dad — but admitted to wire fraud,” the KARE article stated.

The judge in the case, Jerry Blackwell, whom Fox 9 reported former President Joe Biden (D) nominated in 2022, cut Robinson loose until he was supposed to turn himself in and head to prison to serve a nearly four year sentence.

“A prosecutor formerly involved with the murder trial of Derek Chauvin is one of seven new federal judicial nominees announced by President Biden. Jerry W. Blackwell will be a candidate for the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, according to an announcement from the White House,” the Fox article stated at the time.

Meanwhile, video footage from KARE’s Lou Raguse showed Robinson leaving the courthouse and a man with him raised his voice at the reporter when he asked Robinson if he wanted to comment on the case.

“He doesn’t, he doesn’t,” the man repeatedly told Raguse who told him to back up. A woman stepped in and moved the man away from Raguse:

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, signs of dementia include when a person struggles with short-term memory, keeping track of items, remembering appointments, and leaving one’s neighborhood.

Breitbart News recently reported on another fraud case in which a man from Kansas who owned a healthcare software company was convicted in a $1 billion Medicare scam targeting the sick and elderly.