FREDERIC – The Michigan State Police (MSP) Houghton Lake Post was contacted in October 2022 by Adult Protective Services to investigate an alleged vulnerable adult embezzlement.
The suspect, 67-year-old Elaine Frances Baldwin from Frederic, a relative of the victim, allegedly embezzled money and sent it to a “boyfriend” she’d met online. The boyfriend was asking Baldwin to send him money in the form of gift cards and cash to an address in California. Baldwin had sent almost $30,000 in cash and gift cards.
Troopers were able to stop one of the deliveries sent the day before by Baldwin. The United States Postal Service (USPS) was given the tracking number of the package, which contained $10,000 in cash, to the California address. USPS employees in California stopped delivery of the cash.
A report was sent to the Crawford County Prosecutor’s Office and an arrest warrant was issued for Baldwin on January 7, 2023.
Baldwin was arraigned yesterday in the 46th District Court in Crawford County on one count Larceny $20,000 or more. She was given a PR bond.
Her next scheduled court appearance is on March 21, 2023, at 2 p.m.
