Who is Evan Edwards? Florida pastor, 64, arrested for $8.4M Covid loan scam to buy Disney World Resort home
ORLANDO, FLORIDA: Evan Edwards, a pastor, has been accused of fabricating a medical condition in order to escape going to jail after allegedly getting $8.4M in Covid-19 loans through deception. Edwards, 64, has been in the hospital ever since he and his son, Josh, were both arrested in December 2022 on charges of forging paperwork for their company, ASLAN International Ministry.
Edwards allegedly used the pandemic CARES ACT in 2020 to apply for loans under the Paycheck Protection Program. His family intended to spend it on a luxurious $3.7M Disney World Resort home. The pastor underwent a mental health evaluation after he skipped a court session in 2022 and struggled to speak clearly at another, according to NBC. On January 26, a judge found him ineligible to appear in court, but some believe Edwards may be fabricating his sickness to avoid going to trial. The court appointed psychiatrist, Dr Ryan Hall, concluded that Edwards was not ineligible to stand trial but he was unable to determine if the suspect's illness was mental health-related.
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'There is a history of flight, and the family was involved'
Leslie Hoffman Price, a magistrate judge, concurred with Hall's ambiguous conclusions but claimed the pastor had an unidentified illness. He was placed under arrest in a wheelchair in December 2022. "I know there's a suggestion of potential malingering on some aspects, but there are medical issues that are completely verifiable," Price reportedly said.
When Price asked whether Edwards could speak, defence lawyer Brian Phillips urged for a competence hearing. "In only the most limited fashion, your honor," Phillips said, adding that Edwards' responses were "monosyllabic responses or gestures to simple binary questions." A hearing will be conducted in February to determine whether the suspect will show up in court.
Prosecutors turned down the request for the Edwards family to care for the pastor because they had a history of fleeing. Assistant US Attorney Kara Wick earlier stated, "This is a difficult situation and set of facts, but there is a history of flight, and the family was involved in that - the same family that would be caring for him."
More than two years before Edwards' arrest, Florida highway police stopped the family of four, comprising the pastor Evan, Josh, Mary Jane, and Joy as they tried to flee the country in a Mercedes SUV, according to a federal complaint. Federal officials discovered bags of paper waste and their electric devices in a Faraday bag, a bag intended to prevent data loss, in the car.
Who is Evan Edwards?
Edwards was born and raised in Edmonton, Canada, according to NBC. His relatives reportedly claimed that Edwards became a fervent Christian in his 20s after his parents stopped giving him money and he started giving it all to the church. Later, the family-of-four served as missionaries for a while in Turkey.
In a 2012 interview with the Christian Post, Edwards stated, "I have been arrested and harassed by the police and military in Turkey over 50 times. I have jumped over fences, slipped out of side doors, and hid in the most unusual of places. Opposition came in the form of having my book distribution company closed by the government and having to report to the police."
The Edwards family returned to Canada about 10 years ago, staying there for a while until relocating to Florida in October 2018. The family moved into the three-bedroom property they had purchased for $332,500 in New Smyrna Beach, Florida.