Financial Disputes Leading to Murder
Money and greed are common motives for murder. Meredith Oppenheim, a New York-based senior housing and care expert, notes the FBI’s 2023 Elder Fraud Report found that scammers steal about $3.4 billion from older Americans, and the CDC estimates that approximately one in 10 adults age 60+ living at home experience abuse, neglect or exploitation at some point.
“The problem is substantial,” she tells A&E Crime + Investigation. “The sad part is most of the cases go unreported. The U.S. Department of Justice estimates that only about one-in-24 cases of elder abuse are reported.”
Pride, embarrassment and a desire to maintain independence are common reasons seniors might not report interactions with manipulators like Gavin, which in turn can embolden opportunists to continue or even escalate their crimes.
McKinney, James and Caballero weren’t the only residents who hired Gavin for small jobs. Gavin’s motive remains known only to him, but Blancato theorizes that it could have been that the victims didn’t have the money to pay him when he needed it, they may have complained about the quality of his work, they could have been arguing over the price or he might have been triggered by something else entirely.
Be it financial, physical or emotional, perpetrators of elder abuse are often in a position to help others in need of assistance.
“Most elder abuse occurs within families, and a lot of that is driven by financial strains,” Robert Blancato, national coordinator of the Elder Justice Coalition in Washington, D.C., tells A&E Crime + Investigation. “And more than likely, the people Gavin murdered were probably living alone, as a lot of older adults do. Elder abuse really comes down to a basic principle: once the older adult trusts somebody, and an individual violates that trust for whatever reason, that sets up elder abuse, whether it's physical, mental or otherwise.”
An aging population creates opportunities to exploit and victimize the elderly, who are often viewed as easy targets.
“The longer you live, the more help you're going to need. It really puts a strain on families, even if your family is close by,” Oppenheim explains. “There's a growing number of ‘solo agers’ living alone. When you're living alone for an extended period of time, and your family isn't close by, you're on your own and you're very susceptible to bad actors may do bad things.”
Elder abusers typically target a woman living alone between 75 and 80, according to Blancato, and the Census Bureau says almost 50% of women over 75 live alone. “That isolation alone contributes to non-reporting,” he says.
How Can Seniors Protect Themselves From Victimization?
As a senior housing specialist, Oppenheim says options like senior housing complexes offer generally safer settings for older individuals than living alone in a house.
“When living in places where the buildings are staffed and you're known, people anticipate you walking around and notice when you aren’t. They check in on you regularly. There's a lot of value in seniors living in congregate settings,” Oppenheim continues.
She notes that most senior housing complexes have cameras monitoring who comes and goes. After Gavin’s arrest, 127 additional cameras were installed throughout the complex where he killed McKinney, James and Caballero.
Seniors who want to stay in their homes are more vulnerable, and they need to be cautious when hiring others to do chores and repairs indoors or out. Oppenheim suggests checking references and doing background checks on people who require access to your house. Build relationships with trusted neighbors, but exercise caution since Gavin was a neighbor his victims trusted.
“Older people are trusting,” Blancato says. “But you have to be trusting with suspicion. If something doesn't seem quite right, or if somebody comes out of the blue and offers to do something for you, that's grounds to be suspicious.”
Blancato and Oppenheim both stress the benefit of having another person onsite whenever a handyman, service technician or other helper enters your house or apartment.
Blancato suggests seniors familiarize themselves with available services, from local agencies on aging to their state’s Adult Protective Services. Faith-based organizations often have outreach programs. Even meal delivery services can provide a safety net of sorts.
“It's more than just a meal. These people are there as your friends,” Blancato says. “They’re trusted entities you can go to if you have a question or concern or something that you didn't think was right. And you want to do that before the situation gets out of hand.”
Don’t underestimate the value of the neighborhood grapevine, either, Blancato says: “Maintaining contact with neighbors or others you can share information with may prove important to preventing a situation like this.”
