San Bernardino grandmother facing eviction after trusting in nephew

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - A San Bernardino grandmother faces eviction after allegedly being swindled out of her own home, not by some professional con artist but by her very own nephew.  

“I wasn’t prepared for this,  I was not prepared to be homeless.,” said Jacquline McDuffy.

The 71-year-old grandmother has to pack up all her belongings and be out by Wednesday morning. McDuffy says her troubles began when she asked her nephew to help her refinance the house.

“It was my understanding that my name would go back on the deed with his name and at some point that didn’t happen. From that point on, he became the sole proprietor,” she said.

Years later, McDuffy discovered her house had been placed on the market and sold. Her daughter Tamika says, “He said, I’m gonna tell you straight up, the house has been sold. We’re like what?!”

What’s happening to McDuffy is not an isolated case. According to AARP, the elderly are easy targets for numerous scams including real estate swindles. Darrell Frye with the Community Action Partnership of San Bernardino County says seniors need to be extremely careful when sharing legal documents and he advises not to be so trusting.

It’s an expensive lesson for McDuffy.

“I would say to my nephew, I love you as a son. I always have, but to do this to me has been very painful,” McDuffy said about her nephew.