Charges: Man, wife exploited elderly mother

Published 9:43 am Wednesday, January 27, 2016

MINNEAPOLIS — Warrants have been issued in Minnesota for a Montana man and his wife who prosecutors said financed their lifestyles by exploiting the man’s elderly mother for over $42,000 while overseeing her estate.

Court documents show Michael Christie and Martina Christie failed to show up to court in Chippewa County last week for their first appearances. Both are charged with 12 felonies each, including conspiracy to commit financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult.

Michael Christie became the conservator for his mother’s estate in 2012. Minnesota investigators alleged the couple spent thousands of her savings.

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Michael Christie also allegedly sold his wife two pieces of his mother’s land valued at over $300,000 for less than $500 and failed to pay expenses for his mother’s nursing home.