NYPD officer, wife accused of using dead mother's identity to steal $300K
MARINE PARK, Brooklyn (WABC) -- An NYPD officer and his wife are accused of using his dead mother's identity to steal more than $300,000.
Edward Ian St. Hill, 52, and Maria Ramos, 45, of Marine Park, Brooklyn, were arraigned Tuesday on a 101-count indictment.
The couple is facing charges of conspiracy, identity theft, scheme to defraud, grand larceny, money laundering, falsely reporting an incident, possession of a controlled substance.
Officials say Hill's mother died in June 2016. The couple allegedly impersonated her in multiple phone calls to scam various financial institutions.
Officials say they used her identity to steal Social Security and pension benefits that totaled $100,000 and fraudulently sold her home for $260,000. They also allegedly attempted to defraud another $160,000 in life insurance annuities.
The couple is also accused of refilling the woman's prescription for Percocet more than a dozen times after she died.
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez released the following statement:
"These defendants, a police officer and his wife, allegedly took advantage of his own mother's death to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars to which they were not entitled. This greedy and macabre conduct is even more egregious because police officers take an oath to uphold the law. We now intend to hold both defendants accountable for their alleged criminal conduct."
Hill, a 16-year veteran of the NYPD, is being held on $200,000 bond and his wife is being held on $50,000 bond.
Both were ordered to return to court in November and face up to 25 years if convicted on the top count.
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