Woman with history of scamming elderly violates probation

A woman who has been convicted of fraud and exploiting the elderly in the past has violated probation in the Orlando area.

[WEB EXTRA: Local 6's original report on scam ]

Sharlene Sadler has had numerous victims in the past according to police.

Fay Berryman, 94, remembers the day her friend and neighbor was tricked out of her debit card.

"It was very upsetting to her," Berryman said.

It was 2003 and Emma McGraw was 85 at the time. She has since passed away.

Orlando police say it was Sadler, who scammed McGraw. She was eventually convicted of scamming many other elderly people.

Sadler told Local 6 in an exclusive interview in 2005 why she did it.

"It's an addiction, you know, because I just keep doing it, just like when I used to be on drugs. I just keep doing it and doing it and doing it," Sadler said.

That's why police believe she could be doing it now.

Sadler went to prison in 2005 and was released in August of 2013, but by December she had violated probation.

She is now 52, back on the streets and has a warrant for her arrest.

"I spent a lot of time working to find out who she was and finally arresting her," Tom McQuade, who is a retired detective with the Orlando Police Department, told Local 6.

Local 6 was on the scene in 2005 when Mcquade arrested Sadler.

He has since retired from OPD, but still investigates fraud cases and still remembers Sadler.

Sadler has been arrested numerous times over the years, and police consider her a career criminal since her felony convictions date back to 1991.

"It wouldn't surprise me that she's probably up to her old tricks," McQuade told Local 6

Her tricks are low-tech according to police. She's hacked the elderly with a phone call and a friendly voice.

In the past, she's claimed to be a bank representative, convincing many seniors to leave blank checks and credit cards in their mailbox, which she later stole, according to police.

Sadler has a tattoo on her right arm that reads "money is the root of all evil." She is 5 foot 3 inches and 154 pounds.

If you know where she might be, you're asked to call the Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS.
  


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