Life Insurance Claims

The man, who is quite thrifty (and clever) was going on a month-long trip overseas and didn't want to pay a parking fee for that time. He got the bank to hold his car for the entire month for about $6 (assuming 7% interest).

Before we go into our next riddle, I'd like to do something a bit different. I'd like instead to give you guys some interesting stories:

I came across this article about three people who faked their own death and stuff, just to make large life insurance claims.

John Darwin

John Darwin was a science teacher in the UK. He eventually switched careers to work for Barlcays Bank. He also ran a side business with his wife renting rooms in multi-family houses.  They eventually expanding their business to include 12 houses. After purchasing two houses in December of 2000, the couple ran into a great deal of debt, amounting to "tens of thousands of pounds". This prompted him to make the life insurance claim.

John loved nature, and was often seen at the seashore in his canoe. On March 21, 2002, John Darwin was seen setting out to sea in his canoe at Seaton Carew in Hartlepool. Later that same day, he was reported missing after he failed to show up at work. A search party was mounted, but no sign of Darwin could be found, save for his canoe paddle. The next day, his wrecked canoe was found. Anne is branded by the UK media as "the canoe widow".

In March of 2003, a death certificate was issued, which allowed Darwin’s wife to collect on her husband’s life insurance policy. In addition to a payout of £25,000 (about $34,000), she receives enough money to pay off her mortgage, about £130,000 (just under $180,000).

Meanwhile, John Darwin has been living secretly in an apartment in the house he owned with his wife. Shockingly, the couple keep their two sons completely in the dark. For the next five years, the couple’s children believe that their father is dead... Read more here!

Ari Squire

The story of Ari Squire is a macabre tale of greed, murder, and suicide. Squire was convicted in U.S. District Court in Chicago in 2005 of overbilling Medicare for $838,920 through a company he ran named AccuCare Inc. This may have been what pushed him to commit a grisly murder.

In February of 2008, Ari Squire plotted with his wife Denise to commit a massive insurance fraud. In order to collect on a  multi-million dollar policy, Ari befriended a man who looked nearly identical to him. Ari Squire met Justin Newman at a Home Depot in Illinois, and lured him with promises of working on some construction jobs around Squire’s home. Squire offered to pay Newman double his normal wage working at Home Depot. Squire murdered Newman, dressed him in Squire’s clothing, and made it seem as though an accident had occurred. Squire crushed Newman’s body under a truck, and then set fire to the truck and the body.

Ari went into hiding, and his wife Denise played her part in the evil scheme by calling 911 after her husband had set fire to the corpse of Mr. Newman. When police arrived on the scene, they were initially fooled by Denise Squire’s deception. However, when Newman’s mother reported her son missing two days later, police became suspicious.

Meanwhile, Ari Squire had gone into hiding in Missouri, and was exchanging emails with his wife to see how their scam was going. He even asked her about a memorial banquet that was held in his honor after he faked his death.

Squire had dyed his hair and used colored contact lenses to make himself look even more like Newman. As police began to close in on his location, Ari Squire then committed suicide in a motel room in Eureka, Missouri. He shot himself in the head... Read more here!

Ahmad Akhtary
Ahmad Akhtary’s story is interesting because he exhibits both devilish cunning and incredible stupidity.
Akhtary and his ex-wife Anne conspired to commit life insurance fraud to the tune of £300,000 (over $400,000). Anne was 43 at the time, and was a single mother supporting triplets.

Akhtary obtained a falsified death certificate from Afghanistan, which stated that he had died from a brain injury in 2006. His ex-wife submitted a claim to the insurance firm Norwich Union, where the couple has a joint life insurance policy.

For a man who was cunning enough to forge a Afghan death certificate, Akhtary soon showed immense stupidity.

News of the couple’s deception made news in early September of 2008 when the story broke in UK newspaper The Guardian.

Akhtary’s plan had come crumbling down around him. He was foolish enough to keep living in Gloucester, without doing much to hide his identity. He even was thick-headed enough to continue keeping his appointments with his doctor.  Investigators for the insurance company knew there was something fishy going on when they saw that Akhtary had visited his doctor’s office six months after his alleged death... Read more here!

And last but not least, today's riddle:

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