Las Vegas woman arrested for drugging, kidnapping, robbing older men, leading to one death

Aurora Phelps was apprehended in Mexico and charged with one count of kidnapping resulting in the death of one of the men. However, the FBI stated on Friday that the investigation remains "ongoing,” and reported that her actions have led to at least three deaths, per the New York Times.

According to the outlet, one incident involved Phelps drugging a man in Las Vegas after meeting him online, then transporting him to Mexico City, where he died in a hotel room she rented using his credit card. Authorities say she pushed the drugged man, who was in a wheelchair, across the US-Mexico pedestrian border. She allegedly brought her daughter on the trip in November 2022 and drugged the victim during a lunch in Las Vegas just a day after meeting him.

FBI agent of Las Vegas Spencer L. Evans stated that Phelps stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from her victims.

"It’s probably, in recent history, the worst one that we’ve seen,” Evans said. “But for meeting with Phelps, all of these folks would be alive.”

Authorities say Phelps carried out her scheme from at least July 2021 to December 2022, stealing her victims’ technology devices and bank cards. In one case, she used a deceased victim’s bank account to buy a gold coin just days after his body was discovered in Mexico. In another case, she allegedly stole approximately $3.3 million in Apple stock from a different victim and attempted to steal more than $3 million from his E-Trade account after drugging him.

The indictment lists four victims, all in their 60s or 70s. One victim survived after waking from a five-day coma.

Phelps faces charges including one count each of kidnapping and kidnapping resulting in death, seven counts of wire fraud, three counts of mail fraud, six counts of bank fraud, and three counts of identity theft. She was arrested by Mexican authorities and remains in custody in Mexico. As a dual US-Mexican citizen born in the United States, she could face life in prison if convicted. The FBI has identified at least 10 victims.

"We’re still looking for additional evidence,” Evans said. “I’m hoping that someone sitting back and reading the newspaper or watching TV, it might jog their memory and say, ‘Hey — that might be my uncle that disappeared, or my father, or grandfather.’”