VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Just weeks after News 6 profiled a Volusia County woman who lost $30,000 in a romance scam, that woman, Carol West, again came face-to-face with the man accused of defrauding her — this time in a courtroom.
On Thursday, suspect Cory Woodall appeared before a judge asking for permission to return to his home state of North Carolina, telling the court he wanted to go back so he could get money to repay West.
The judge denied the request, ordering that Woodall remain in custody in Volusia County.
It was the second time West had confronted the man investigators say stole her life savings. Woodall has been in jail since September, when he was extradited from North Carolina to Volusia County.
In September, Volusia County Sheriff’s Office detectives arrested Woodall on charges of organized scheme to defraud and grand theft, accusing him of spending $30,000 of West’s money. Sheriff Mike Chitwood arranged for West to meet Woodall at the time of his arrest.
West was in the courtroom for Thursday’s hearing. After the judge’s decision to keep Woodall in jail, she told News 6 she believed the court made the right call.
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“I feel wonderful because I think the man was trying to pull a hoax on the judge and get out of jail and go to North Carolina and disappear,” West said. “I don’t believe he had the money up there.”
West first shared her story with News 6 in August. She said she believed she was communicating on Facebook with a decorated U.S. Army officer — a four-star general who claimed to be deployed in South Korea. Over time, the person she thought was the general began asking her for money.
Woodall later admitted spending the $30,000 that investigators say came from West.
News 6’s Laverne McGee spoke with Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood on Thursday about the ongoing investigation.
“Right now we are trying to identify the other players in this scam,” Chitwood said, adding that he does not believe Woodall deserves leniency.
“This scumbag destroyed this woman financially. Why should he get any type of breaks?”
A case management conference in Woodall’s case has been scheduled for Dec. 17.