Former state prosecutor arrested in $100K fraud case with 85-year-old victim

A Sarasota bankruptcy attorney and former state prosecutor has been arrested by the Sarasota Police Department on charges of fraudulently accessing the bank accounts of an Alzheimer’s patient to pay rent and other bills totaling $112,804.

Sherry Lee Ellis, 65, was arrested Dec. 13 following an investigation that began May 17, when the victim’s son reported he suspected his father’s girlfriend was stealing from him, according to an affidavit obtained by the Sarasota Observer, sister paper of the Business Observer. 

He said that while reviewing his father’s bank statements, he noticed large amounts of money missing.