Unemployed son dressed as dead mum to reclaim her pension as he hid the 'mummified' body at home
The man gave himself a 'Mrs Doubtfire-style' makeover so he could impersonate his dead mother
An unemployed Italian man allegedly dressed up as his dead mother so he could fraudulently claim her pension.
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The 56-year-old man, an unemployed former nurse from the northern city of Mantua, successfully earned thousands in pension payments before his scheme was eventually rumbled.
The mother, Graziella Dall’Oglio, reportedly died about three years ago at the age of 82.
But instead of reporting her dead, the son wrapped up her body in a bed sheet and stuffed it into a sleeping bag, according to local media.
He then gave himself a “Mrs Doubtfire-style transformation,” Italy’s Corriere della Sera newspaper reported, referring to the 1993 classic film starring Robin Williams.
He did so by cutting his hair in a similar style to his mother in a bid to reclaim her pension.
The son also put on foundation and lipstick, and wore his mother’s pearl necklace and clip earrings as part of the disguise.
But he later raised suspicions when he attempted to renew his mother’s expired identity card and was reported to the police by an employee at a government agency in the town.
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Police compared photos taken of the mother and son, determining that they had been tricked.
The authorities ordered his ‘mother’ to come to the town hall, where they ambushed him.
Officers then found the body of his mother hidden in his laundry room.
The mother is thought to have died of natural causes but a postmortem will be performed in due course.
“It is a very strange story and very, very sad,” said Francesco Aporti, the mayor of Borgo Virgilio.
The Carabinieri, Italy’s military police, said in a statement that the mother’s body was found wrapped in bed sheets and a sleeping bag
“The body was in a clear state of mummification,” the force said.
The man, who has not been named, is now being investigated for illegally concealing a body and benefit fraud.