NORTH TEXAS -- Derek Alldred gets around. And now, police say the convicted con-man of a long trail of women across the country is in North Texas.
On the run since December, police say Alldred is known for meeting women through online dating sites, duping them into believing he’s a war hero (or a lawyer, or a professor) and then taking them for thousands of dollars.
Police say Alldred has targeted multiple victims in California, Arizona, Minnesota and now Texas. A warrant was just issued for Alldred’s arrest for credit/debit card abuse by The Colony Police Department.
“He’ll use different job titles such as doctor or lawyer or even the military and that gives him the security and story to tell his victims, 'Hey, this is why I’m out of town for so long,' so he’s doing it to somebody else, multiple people, multiple times,” said The Colony Police Department spokesman Kyle Koiner. “When you get somebody doing this, it’s a slap in the face.”
The Colony police turned to Facebook this week for the public’s help finding Alldred who may be using the name Richard Peterson or Rich Tailor.
Our sister station KARE in Minneapolis has done extensive reporting on Alldred in the Twin Cities where he’s been charged with impersonating an officer.
“Linda,” a divorced, single mom in Minnesota, met Alldred on an online dating site last year. Alldred told her he was a professor and also had an elaborate tale of his life as a Navy Seal.
“It still makes me sick to my stomach that someone would pretend,” she said. “That someone would take someone else’s medal and someone else’s uniform and put it on as if it was his own.”
Alldred pleaded no contest last year for theft in Arizona and then skipped town before his sentencing. According to court documents, the Phoenix Prosecutor’s Office warns that anyone who connects with Alldred “is a potential victim.”
Police encourage anyone with information to come forward.
“Don’t be embarrassed,” said Koiner. “Things happen, and things can be fixed.”