Hopkins woman charged with swindling 2 vulnerable adults out of over $130K

A Hopkins woman has been charged after she reportedly swindled two vulnerable adults out of more than $130,000.

Cynthia Julie Evans, 26, is charged with two counts of financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult and two counts of theft by swindle.

The first victim — who has been diagnosed with mental health and development disorders — visited Evans’ psychic readings store in the spring of 2018, according to a criminal complaint. Early on, Evans allegedly told the victim he’d been "cursed at conception" and also suffered from a "multigenerational curse" on his family.

She claimed she could lift the curses if the victim bought 30 candles, one for each year of his life, for $100 each. The victim paid for the candles in multiple installments over two months but never received candles or any evidence Evans had bought them. Evans then claimed she’d used the candles in a secret ceremony that was too dangerous for the victim to attend, the complaint states.

Evans allegedly performed a ceremony with the victim in attendance in December 2018, but Evans showed the victim a jar of black water, saying it showed he was still cursed. To be cured, she told the victim to buy a $30,000 Rolex watch. When the victim said he couldn’t afford that, she accompanied him to a jewelry store at Mall of America, where the victim bought a nearly $14,000 watch. After he bought the watch, the complaint states Evans told the victim she needed it so she could help him with the curse.

The complaint also states when Evans learned of the criminal investigation into her, she returned the watch to the victim, saying its "energies" were important for her work.

Evans also allegedly charged the victim for other products and services, including $5,000 for a crystal to get the victim’s recently deceased father into heaven; $1,070 to rent a car for Evans to go on a "spiritual journey" for him; $8,322 to work with "energies" to help the victim find a job; and $9,095 for a crystal to make the victim’s love interest break up with her boyfriend.

The victim told police Evans claimed the victim would get everything he gave her back "tenfold," and everything he was giving her was going straight to supplies she bought to do spiritual work for him. The complaint states the victim used his mother’s IRA and money market accounts without her permission to pay Evans, which Evans was aware of.

From June 3, 2019, through Aug. 27, 2020, the victim paid nearly $88,000 to Evans, the complaint states.

The second victim — who has been diagnosed with mental health issues and has seen a psychiatrist since at least 2004 — was contacted by investigators after they noticed she’d made several large payments to Evans. The complaint notes Evans also apparently had tried to link a Discover card in the second victim’s name to her own PayPal account.

The second victim started seeing Evans in 2018 to catch the attention of a love interest, the complaint states. At one point, with Evans’ urging, the victim went with Evans to a bank to open a $10,000 line of credit to pay Evans for a crystal. Evans claimed she was the victim’s daughter and needed the money for "renovations." The victim never saw a crystal.

According to the complaint, the second victim reported many events similar to the first victim, including buying thousands of dollars of candles she never saw, Evans showing her black water and other unspecified services. Evans also allegedly asked the victim for a $2,000 loan, which was never repaid; told the victim, "Don’t ask me any questions, but I need $200," got the victim’s bank information and then took out $400; took money from the victim for "protecting (the victim from) evil" — which included nearly $5,500 from a life insurance policy.

Evans also allegedly told the victim she didn’t need her therapist because "you have me," and that death was stalking her for her entire life. The complaint states Evans also told the victim, who suffered from cancer, that her cancer would come back if she didn’t pay Evans and follow her instructions.

Between May 2018 and Feb. 9, 2021, the victim paid at least $48,575 to Evans, the complaint states.

Evans told investigators she only "recommends" things and never forces clients to do anything. She added that "everybody needs a spiritual life coach" and "there should be more people out there like me." She also likened herself to a doctor and then claimed to be restricted by privacy concerns.