Man ordered to pay restitution to Enoch resident after pleading guilty in phone fraud case

Fifth District Courthouse, Cedar City, Utah, April 15, 2021 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

CEDAR CITY — A Florida man who pleaded guilty to felony charges stemming from a telephone scam has been sentenced to 18 months’ probation and ordered to pay back $6,000 to the victim, plus interest.

Iron County Jail booking photo of Guerby Saint Cyr, Cedar City, Utah, March 9, 2021 | Photo courtesy of Iron County Sheriff’s Office, St. George News / Cedar City News

Guerby Saint Cyr, 25, was sentenced Tuesday during a 5th District Court videoconference by Judge Ann Marie McIff Allen.

As previously reported in Cedar City News, Saint Cyr was accused of phoning an elderly Enoch man in January 2019 and pretending to be his grandson. The Enoch man was told he needed to wire $15,655 in bail money to a lawyer; however, authorities alleged that the recipient of the money transfer was actually Saint Cyr posing as a lawyer. One payment of $6,000 was sent, but before any more funds could be transferred, a bank employee reportedly flagged the suspicious activity and froze the account, officials said.

Law enforcement authorities in both states worked with bank officials to eventually track down Saint Cyr, who was extradited to Cedar City from Florida on March 9 to face one count of theft by deception and one count of communications fraud, both second-degree felonies.

Tuesday, as part of a plea agreement, Saint Cyr pleaded guilty to two lesser charges: attempted theft by deception and attempted communications fraud, both of which are classified as third-degree felonies.

The judge suspended the 0-5 year prison term for each count and waived more than $19,000 in fines. Allen then sentenced Saint Cyr to 60 days in jail, giving him credit for the time he had already served since his arrest in Florida on Feb. 24. 

After serving another 10 days in Iron County Jail, Saint Cyr will be free to return home to Florida, where his 18-month probationary period will be monitored and supervised.

Saint Cyr was also ordered to pay restitution to the Enoch man in the amount of $6,000, plus interest, payable at $200 per month over the next 33 months. Saint Cyr was also ordered to reimburse the Cedar City Police Department for $500, plus interest.

“This is a case where we wanted to get as much money back for the victim up front,” Iron County Attorney Chad Dotson told Cedar City News. “Too often in cases like this, we see restitution paid in $50 increments over a period of several years.”

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

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