Las Vegas woman faces extradition from Mexico in deadly romance scam

A Las Vegas pistillate suspected of moving a romance scam that caused 3 deaths is facing extradition to the United States aft being convicted successful a related lawsuit successful Mexico.

The U.S. attorney’s bureau successful Nevada announced successful February 2025 that Aurora Phelps, past 43, had been indicted by a national expansive assemblage successful Las Vegas connected charges that she engaged successful a cross-border romance strategy targeting aged men.

On Thursday, Phelps was sentenced successful Mexico to 37 years, six months successful prison, pursuing a proceedings connected charges arising from the disappearance and decease of Robert “Beau” Erbach, a retired American surviving successful the Guadalajara region.

U.S. officials expect that Phelps, alternatively than serving retired her situation condemnation successful Mexico, volition beryllium extradited to the United States to look the charges pending here, FBI spokeswoman Sandra Breault said.

Erbach was 67 successful December 2021 erstwhile helium allegedly took Phelps, past property 40, connected a day to the Hard Rock Hotel successful Guadalajara — and afterward ne'er returned home.

His mysterious disappearance disquieted his longtime person Corinne Rogan, an histrion surviving successful Los Angeles.

“I met Beau successful 1974 erstwhile I was moving arsenic a cocktail waitress astatine Ebbets Field, a celebrated nightclub successful Denver,” Rogan said successful a telephone interrogation this week. “Beau did the dependable and lights. He was rather a guy.”

After Erbach vanished, Rogan posted a plea connected TikTok: “Have U seen Robert BEAU Erbach? Be successful touch!”

Unbeknownst to Rogan and others successful Erbach’s circle, his assemblage had turned up by a roadside successful Mexico but hadn’t been identified.

As months passed and Erbach remained missing, Phelps allegedly stole his BMW and looted his slope relationship — including his Social Security payments.

According to the expansive assemblage indictment, Phelps met different of her aged victims astatine a edifice successful Las Vegas.

Phelps allegedly drugged the antheral into a stupor, took him to Mexico, ran up charges connected his recognition cards, plundered his fiscal accounts, and near him for dormant successful a edifice country successful Mexico City.

In September 2023, astir the aforesaid clip that Phelps was arrested successful Mexico, she was indicted by the expansive assemblage successful Las Vegas connected 21 counts of kidnapping, fraud and individuality theft related to 4 alleged victims.

The expansive assemblage indictment was primitively filed nether seal to support the confidentiality of the ongoing investigation. But successful February 2025, aft the FBI discovered 7 much alleged victims, the indictment was unsealed arsenic portion of an effort to enlist the public’s help.

At a quality league announcing the unsealed indictment, Spencer Evans, who astatine that clip was peculiar cause successful complaint of the FBI’s Las Vegas office, explained however Phelps allegedly carried retired her scheme:

“Once she incapacitated her victims, Phelps stole their cars, accessed their slope and brokerage accounts to retreat cash, utilized their recognition cards to marque a assortment of purchases, including luxury retail goods and gold, and adjacent attempted to entree their Social Security and status accounts.”

Three of the 4 victims successful the indictment were recovered dormant soon aft their encounters with Phelps, Evans said. One died successful Southern Nevada, according to a graphic of a timeline presented by Evans.

The unfortunate who survived lived successful Henderson and spent 5 days successful a coma aft Phelps allegedly drugged him. Phelps allegedly liquidated $3.3 cardinal of the man’s Apple banal and attempted to transportation the proceeds to a slope relationship that she controlled.

Phelps, who has dual citizenship, owned residences successful Las Vegas and Guadalajara and went by respective aliases, including “Aurora Flores,” according to the indictment.

The FBI is asking anyone with accusation astir Phelps’ alleged romance strategy to implicit an online signifier oregon telephone 1-800-CALL-FBI.

Doug Kari is an writer and investigative writer who writes astir existent crime. Staff writer Akiya Dillon contributed to this report.