Man faces charges of elder abuse at River Ridge Apartments | Local

The former manager of a senior living center in Missoula was formally charged with financial elder abuse and theft on Friday.

Ron Nelson, 51, allegedly used his position at River Ridge Apartments to gain residents' sympathy and trust while extorting nearly $50,000, according to charging documents.

Nelson worked as the manager of River Ridge Apartments for about 18 months, from November 2004 until he was fired in April 2006, when authorities in Missoula began unraveling an intricate scheme to embezzle money from the independent living center and more than 20 individual tenants, according to records.

During his appearance Friday in Missoula County Justice Court, Nelson was charged with four counts of felony elder abuse, one count of felony theft, five counts of misdemeanor elder abuse and two counts of misdemeanor theft.

Nelson, who lives in Hamilton, could face a punishment of up to 50 years in the Montana State Prison and more than $250,000 in fines.

Justice of the Peace John Odlin agreed to release Nelson on his own recognizance with a host of special conditions, which include prohibiting the man from handling the finances of others.

Nelson's official conduct came under scrutiny in April 2006 following the death of an 83-year-old resident, Audrey Tenesch, whose family told police they were unable to account for a large sum of the woman's money, and suspected it had been stolen by the manager.

While cleaning out Audrey's apartment, the Tenesch family found several old checkbooks containing carbon copies of checks addressed to Nelson, apparently in handwriting that didn't match Audrey's, although the signatures were clearly her own.

At Friday's hearing, members of the Tenesch family and other alleged victims packed the tiny courtroom in Missoula Justice Court, each wearing buttons that displayed Audrey's picture.

Reporter Tristan Scott can be reached at 523-5264 or at tscott@missoulian.com