Florida Prosecutor Asks Judge To Order Deed Theft Duo To Return Stolen Home To 92-Year Old Widow

In New Port Richey, Florida, The Tampa Tribune reports:

• Joseph and Cynthia Clancy no longer live in Eloise Mudway's 2,900-square-foot house on Hilltop Drive, a house valued at $350,000 that they stole out from under the 92-year-old in 2004. A judge assigned the couple new digs after their convictions Sept. 21 on grand theft charges: the Land O' Lakes Jail. The Clancys will remain in custody until their sentencing Oct. 22. They each face up to 30 years in prison.

• Mudway continues to live with Jeff and Debra Kores, a local couple who have been caring for her since early 2005. Mudway's most pressing wish has been to reclaim the house she and her late husband purchased in 1980. Assistant State Attorney Mike Halkitis hopes to make that happen this week. Last month, Halkitis filed a motion asking a judge to order the Clancys to sign a document that would divest them of any interest in the house. A hearing is set for Friday.

• "If they comply and sign, the house is hers," Halkitis said. "But I don't think they're ever going to do that. If they don't, the judge can hold them in contempt, but they probably don't care because they're in custody now and are probably going to do state prison time." If Halkitis is right, Mudway's best chance of recovering the house likely will be the lawsuit she filed against the Clancys in 2005. The lawsuit was filed to recover the house and 5 acres, but the case has moved slowly. It is scheduled to be back in court Nov. 23.

For more, see Pasco 92-year-old hopes to reclaim house (Though the couple who took her house is behind bars, Eloise Mudway still doesn't have her house back).

For follow-up story, see Pasco woman, 92, still waiting to reclaim home:

• Eloise Mudway, 92, has waited nearly five years for the return of her house. On Friday, she learned she would have to wait at least two more weeks. Pasco Circuit Judge Shawn Crane declined to grant a motion that could have forced the couple convicted of stealing Mudway's house to deed it back to her. Mudway did not attend the hearing.