Archive Episode: Courage of Steele, Part 2: How One Man Fought Back Against His Abusive Caregiver
The Perfect Scam
AARP
4.5 • 980 Ratings
🗓️ 13 June 2025
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In part 2, as 72-year-old Steve Steele is released from jail, not only can he hardly stand or walk, but he is worried about how he will recover the property stolen by Elizabeth, the caregiver who worked for him. That’s where Steve’s attorney, Brent Smith, comes in, waging what becomes a nearly two-year battle.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This week on The Perfect Camp. |
| 0:04.3 | Look, if Steve would have died, this never would have came to light. |
| 0:08.3 | You know, let's remember that. |
| 0:09.6 | And well, there's, I'm sure, many times where an elderly person is financially or physically abused |
| 0:14.8 | and they die of a natural disease or due to a lack of care, the abuse never comes to light. |
| 0:26.6 | Welcome back to the perfect scam. |
| 0:28.2 | I'm your host, Bob Sullivan. |
| 0:34.3 | Steve Steele has spent three months in jail falsely accused of assaulting his caregiver. |
| 0:41.4 | Now free, as he emerges from jail, public defender Mara Fergoso notices something striking. He actually looks healthier than he did the day he was arrested. |
| 0:47.8 | That's just one sign of how twisted Steve Steele's life had been for the past year. |
| 0:53.0 | Unable to get around without a walker or a wheelchair, Steve had hired Elizabeth and Pedro |
| 0:57.6 | Abelah to be live-in caregivers after his partner passed away. |
| 1:02.3 | But within a few months, Steve is relegated to a small shelter outside, and Mara now knows he's |
| 1:08.6 | been malnourished too. |
| 1:10.7 | Mara's research to fight against Steve's criminal case has also revealed that the |
| 1:14.9 | avalus had taken control of Steve's finances, deeded his home over to them, and even cashed out |
| 1:20.3 | a $120,000 annuity that his partner had left him. |
| 1:25.0 | All that is enough to get Steve's charges dropped, but as he emerges |
| 1:28.6 | from jail, looking healthier than he has in some time, Steve has no place to go. His money is gone |
| 1:34.8 | and his home has been taken from him. What happens to Steve? Well, that's what we'll learn in |
| 1:40.0 | today's conclusion of this two-part episode, The Courage of Steel. We've plucked it from the |
| 1:45.1 | archives while we work on all new episodes of the perfect scam for you. |
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