Elderly Washington state man, 74, is poisoned with FENTANYL by couple he met on ... trends now

An elderly Washington state man was poisoned with fentanyl by a couple who gained his trust through a gay dating app before moving into his house and assuming control of his finances.

Philip Brewer, 32, and Christina Hardy, 47, were arrested in Southern California Thursday in connection with the death of Curtis Engeland, 74, whom they allegedly defrauded and murdered.

Engeland was reported missing on February 23, but his body was discovered more than 100 miles from his home in the city of Cosmopolis earlier this week.

According to court documents, Brewer and Engeland met on the gay dating app Scruff and went on their first date in January. They met at a Renton Starbucks and Engeland gave Brewer a ride home to his apartment in south Seattle.

The next day, Engeland picked up the younger man to go on a hike. The pair then went to Engeland's home to watch a movie, but the 74-year-old fell asleep.

'When he woke up...he realized Brewer was gone. Engeland's cell phone that had been laying near him on the couch was gone,' documents state. 

'Engeland had an uneasy feeling and went to his bedroom to check for his wallet that was left in the pants he was wearing earlier that day. His wallet, along with a set of keys to include his house, car, and safety deposit box key, were missing.' 

Over the weeks that followed, the suspects allegedly transferred $6,200 from Engeland's home equity line of credit account, plus $5,000 from his checking account.

According to police, the duo spent more than $25,000 for a car using Engeland's credit card and pawned off his cell phone. Surveillance video from a Renton grocery store show Brewer and Hardy making 'fraudulent transactions,' documents state.

Authorities believe the suspects confronted Engeland at his home on the evening of February 23 and used the man's car to flee Mercer Island the same night.

The pair allegedly made 'extravagant purchases just hours after killing' him and are accused of impersonating the man to dupe family and friends into thinking he was still alive.

The following day, Engeland’s roommate, who was in the process of moving in with him, reported him missing.

The man, who told police he was romantically involved with Engeland, said he received a text at 3 am that was 'suspicious in nature due to the time and subject matter,' documents state.

The text claimed Engeleand would be traveling for three to six weeks and unable to respond due to 'taking care of a memorial service,' adding that someone named 'Christina' would be renting out part of his house while he was away. 

On Engeland's bedside table was a handwritten note reading, 'Will be back later on the week. Unexpected matters have come up. Please call me,' with a phone number. His car was missing from the driveway, and in its place sat a rental car the roommate had never seen before.