http://www.nydailynews.com/news/story/134827p-120163c.html
Fake dead wife,
borrowed kids in 9/11 rap
By BARBARA ROSS
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
A Pennsylvania man created a phantom wife, claimed she died in the World Trade Center attacks and then staged a funeral - with borrowed kids - to scam more than $100,000 from charities, authorities charged yesterday.
Manhattan prosecutors said Carlton McNish, 51, of Tobyhanna, Pa., reported that his wife had called him from the Cantor Fitzgerald offices at 9:30 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2001, to report that the building was filling with smoke after a plane crashed into it.
Two months later, he staged a funeral for her, using three youngsters from other parents to play the couple's children at a three-minute service, investigators said.
Claiming that his wife was the sole support of him and their three children, McNish then collected $68,000 from the American Red Cross, $30,000 from Safe Horizon, $1,000 from the Salvation Army and $5,000 from the Robin Hood Foundation.
Prosecutors said McNish also got $6,279 from the Red Cross and Safe Horizon for funeral expenses.
The investigation started in March 2002, when Red Cross workers got suspicious because McNish could not provide them with documentation for the children or for his wife's employment at Cantor Fitzgerald.
Authorities said McNish was not even able to confirm whether his wife's first name was spelled Jocelyn, Jaselliny or Jisley.
Ultimately, investigators said they discovered McNish was an unmarried, childless and unemployed construction worker.
In another Sept. 11 fraud case, a New Jersey man who falsely claimed his wife was killed in the attack was sentenced yesterday to 10 years in state prison.
Mark Christopher, 39, of Blackwood had pleaded guilty in September.
For some filings, Christopher used his own name and claimed his wife was named Kim Christopher. For others, he said his name was Mark Palmerri and his wife was Lisa Palmerri.
Authorities said he tried to get more than $140,000 in survivor benefits.
Originally published on November 8, 2003
Fake dead wife,
borrowed kids in 9/11 rap
By BARBARA ROSS
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
A Pennsylvania man created a phantom wife, claimed she died in the World Trade Center attacks and then staged a funeral - with borrowed kids - to scam more than $100,000 from charities, authorities charged yesterday.
Manhattan prosecutors said Carlton McNish, 51, of Tobyhanna, Pa., reported that his wife had called him from the Cantor Fitzgerald offices at 9:30 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2001, to report that the building was filling with smoke after a plane crashed into it.
Two months later, he staged a funeral for her, using three youngsters from other parents to play the couple's children at a three-minute service, investigators said.
Claiming that his wife was the sole support of him and their three children, McNish then collected $68,000 from the American Red Cross, $30,000 from Safe Horizon, $1,000 from the Salvation Army and $5,000 from the Robin Hood Foundation.
Prosecutors said McNish also got $6,279 from the Red Cross and Safe Horizon for funeral expenses.
The investigation started in March 2002, when Red Cross workers got suspicious because McNish could not provide them with documentation for the children or for his wife's employment at Cantor Fitzgerald.
Authorities said McNish was not even able to confirm whether his wife's first name was spelled Jocelyn, Jaselliny or Jisley.
Ultimately, investigators said they discovered McNish was an unmarried, childless and unemployed construction worker.
In another Sept. 11 fraud case, a New Jersey man who falsely claimed his wife was killed in the attack was sentenced yesterday to 10 years in state prison.
Mark Christopher, 39, of Blackwood had pleaded guilty in September.
For some filings, Christopher used his own name and claimed his wife was named Kim Christopher. For others, he said his name was Mark Palmerri and his wife was Lisa Palmerri.
Authorities said he tried to get more than $140,000 in survivor benefits.
Originally published on November 8, 2003
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