A bizarre case in Arkansas highlights how money can give people the incentive to create fake wills and that they can be caught.
Matthew Seth Jacobs was on an oil rig when the Deepwater Horizon disaster struck. He was caught in an explosion and suffered extensive injuries. After filing a lawsuit, he eventually reached a multimillion dollar settlement with the company.
The story did not end there.
Jacobs used some of that money to purchase a home with the help of Arkansas real estate agent Donna Herring. Herring had plans for the rest of money. She pushed her teenage stepdaughter on Jacobs and eventually the two became engaged. However, the extent of their actual relationship is unknown.
Jacobs was later driving to the home of a different girlfriend, when he was in an accident. He did not recover from his injuries. Herring then produced a will that left all of Jacobs’ assets to her stepdaughter, even though she never actually married Jacobs.
At first the scheme worked, but new evidence was later found that showed Herring may have fraudulently created the will. She now faces multiple charges.
Arkansas Business has more on this case in “Fake Will Scheme Puts Camden Real Estate Agent in Hot Water.”
This case illustrates the lengths that some people will go to when large sums of money are involved. It is particularly tragic in this case, since the victim had previously been the victim of a horrific tragedy and the fraudster involved her teenage stepdaughter.
Reference: Arkansas Business (Jan. 30, 2017) “Fake Will Scheme Puts Camden Real Estate Agent in Hot Water.”
