A June 16 trial is scheduled for a Provo man charged with swindling a Cedar City woman he was wooing out of $20,000 by falsely claiming he was an LDS Church official.
Howard Robert Allen, 50, a former conservation officer and owner of a furniture refinishing business in Provo, allegedly told the woman, whose name was not released, that he was a member of an LDS Church high council, said Iron County Attorney Scott Burns.
Allen is charged with four felony counts, including theft, theft by deception, unlawful dealing with property by a fiduciary and unlawful use of a transaction card, Burns said.
Burns said Allen allegedly pretended to become romantically involved with the woman in March 1985 and later talked about marrying her.
Burns said Allen managed to procure credit cards and cash from the woman, telling her that while he was financially solvent and would reimburse her, he needed the cards and cash for emergencies.
Allen is now remarried to a Provo woman who is expecting a baby June 12. He is free on $25,000 bond.