The Pastor Who Stole a Dream Home: How Eric Redden Defrauded Retired Postal Worker Edward Fuller Out of Everything
Edward Fuller had spent 35 years delivering mail for the United States Postal Service. Every paycheck, every overtime shift, every careful saving went toward one goal: building a home in North Miami for himself and his daughters. By 2015 the house was nearly finished — walls up, roof on, windows and doors in place. All it needed was utilities and final interior work. The finish line was in sight. Then a pastor knocked on the door.
Fuller thought Eric Redden was the answer to his prayers.
Instead, what followed was a multi-year nightmare of deeds, credit cards, a VA loan, and a secret sale that left Fuller with nothing — not one red cent from the $380,000 house he had built with his own hands.
The “Helper” Who Took Control
It was around July 2015 when Redden — pastor of New Beginning Missionary Baptist Church in Miami Gardens — showed up at the construction site with his wife, Lakesha. He claimed someone at the Miami-Dade permit office had mentioned Fuller’s long-running project. Redden introduced himself as a man of God who could help secure the financing needed to finish the home.
The price for that “help”? According to prosecutors, a $15,000 fee — and a 50% ownership stake in the property transferred to Redden’s nonprofit, Project Youth Outreach Unlimited / New Beginning Multi-Purpose Community Center, Inc. Redden assured Fuller it was temporary. Once the house was complete, they would refinance, pay everything off, and Fuller would get full ownership back.
Fuller trusted him. He signed.
What happened next was a slow-motion nightmare of escalating control:
- Redden claimed the initial loan funds fell short. He had Fuller open credit cards (First Savings, Capital One, Lowe’s, Home Depot) and allegedly swiped them through a phone reader for supposed construction supplies. Fuller was left with thousands in new debt.
- When that wasn’t enough, Redden pushed a new plan: Fuller should use his VA loan benefits (earned through federal service) to buy a second property Redden already owned on Southwest 173rd Terrace. The proceeds would supposedly clear the credit cards and finish the original house.
- To make it work, Fuller signed over his remaining 50% of the North Miami property in November 2015. By April 2016 he had transferred full ownership of both properties — the dream home to Redden’s nonprofit and the second house to Lakesha Redden.
Every transfer came with the same promise: This is temporary. You’ll get it back.
The House Vanishes
By October 2016 the original North Miami house was finally complete and passed code enforcement. Fuller believed the nightmare was over. Instead, Redden took out a $280,000 loan against it — and Fuller received none of the money. When he asked the title company for documents, they refused. On paper, he no longer owned anything.
In January 2017 Redden asked Fuller to sign one more “corrective quitclaim deed” to fix a technical issue. Fuller, still clinging to the promise, signed on January 30.
Two weeks later, on February 13, 2017, Redden sold the fully finished house to a buyer named Marlon Christopher Bell for $380,000. Fuller was never told. He received zero proceeds.
Fuller only discovered the truth when he drove past the property and saw strangers living inside. A quick online search of public records confirmed it: his retirement dream home — the one meant for his daughters — had been sold out from under him.
When confronted, Redden reportedly screamed that he had “personal money tied up” and couldn’t lose it.
From Civil Matter to Criminal Charges
Fuller went to police. Because he had signed the documents, investigators initially classified it as a civil dispute. Deed fraud cases are notoriously difficult to prosecute when the paperwork looks voluntary on its face. The deception, prosecutors would later argue, was in what Fuller thought he was signing versus what the deeds actually accomplished.
Local 10 News (WPLG) began investigating. Their reporting brought other alleged victims forward — people who claimed they gave Redden cash deposits for rentals or cars and received nothing. Redden responded by suing the station for $50 million, claiming reputational damage. The lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice, and in 2023 the Third District Court of Appeal ordered Redden and his attorneys to pay the station more than $73,000 in fees.
In February 2022 — nearly five years after the sale — Miami-Dade prosecutors finally arrested Eric Dion Redden. Charges included organized fraud, scheme to defraud, exploitation of the elderly, theft from the elderly, and grand theft. Prosecutors valued the theft from Fuller at approximately $267,000. The case also involved allegations that Redden used the same property to defraud another couple.
Justice — But No Money
In June 2025 Redden took a plea deal: 364 days in Miami-Dade County Jail, followed by 15 years of probation, and a court-ordered restitution of $180,000 to Edward Fuller.
He tried to withdraw the plea weeks later, claiming pressure and media influence. In November 2025 a judge rejected the attempt. The plea stood.
Yet as of September 2025, Fuller — now living in a modest home in Georgia — told Local 10 News he had not received a single dime of the restitution. At nearly 80 years old, he was still repairing his damaged credit and trying to rebuild emotionally from the betrayal.
A Warning Written in Deeds and Broken Trust
Edward Fuller did everything right. He worked 35 years. He saved. He built something tangible for his family. What he never expected was that a man wearing a collar and claiming to be a pastor would use that trust as the perfect weapon.
Deed fraud targeting seniors and retirees often follows the same pattern: a trusted figure appears at the exact moment of vulnerability, offers “help,” slowly takes control of the paperwork, and disappears with the asset. The signatures look voluntary. The promises never make it onto the deeds.
If you or someone you love owns property — especially an unfinished home, a retirement dream, or any real estate — treat every offer of financing help with extreme caution. Get everything in writing. Have a lawyer review deeds before signing. Never assume a verbal promise will protect you when the documents say otherwise.
Edward Fuller’s house is gone. The money is still missing. But his story is now public — a cautionary tale about how quickly a lifetime of hard work can vanish when trust meets greed dressed in pastoral robes.
The pastor who promised to help finish a dream home instead sold it and walked away with the proceeds. For Edward Fuller, the real restitution still hasn’t arrived.
