Long Island man may have faked own drowning to claim life insurance

Long Island man may have faked own drowning to claim life insurance

An aggrieved New York woman has told police that her husband faked his own drowning to collect on a life insurance policy and to abandon his marriage.

 

 Raymond Roth (LinkedIn)

"This is a terrible nightmare that I just want to wake up from,'' 43-year-old Evana Roth told the New York Post. "Why did he do this? I think I'm just numb.''

On Sunday, July 29, Raymond Roth, 47, told his wife that he was going for a swim at nearby Jones Beach and would be back in about an hour. However, his son claims that his dad disappeared while out on the water and never returned.

However, Evana Roth says she discovered emails allegedly sent from Raymond to her stepson Jonathan, 22, outlining details of his staged disappearance. After finding the details, Evana then contacted Raymond's brother and the police.

"I need to get to the bank for cash for the trip," Roth allegedly wrote in one email. In others, he instructs his son to not allow his wife to sell their house.

In another email obtained by the Post, Roth writes: "about the jewelry we spoke of yesterday, you need to whisper in [a relative's] ear about it and do not worry she will get it," and, "tell [another relative] i handed you the papers -- then you JUST noticed that there was an envelope with [his] name on it (the last Will and Testemnet [sic]) then hand it to him."

And Roth allegedly tipped off his location at a Florida resort, writing in another email,  "there needs to be a way for me to find out how things are going. call me Sunday night at 8 PM at the resort. "You cannot call from your phone,'' the email continues, "go to a pay phone or borrow your friends phone. you must call within 15 minutes of the determined call time in order to be sure i will be available."

Police in Orlando went to the resort in question but reportedly did not find Roth there. However, another police report in Santee, S.C., says that he was stopped for speeding but let go after telling authorities he had recently been involved in an argument with his wife.

"He told the officer that he was having some problems in New York, so he went off to Florida," Santee Police Chief Bing Jones told Newsday.

Roth reportedly tripled the value of his life insurance in the months leading up to his disappearance.

Long Island police tells the Post that it has been in contact with Roth by phone and that he said he was coming in to talk with them. However, the police said it remains unclear whether or not criminal charges will be filed against him. However, the cost of the investigation is already estimated to be in the thousands.

"While I was crying and thinking he had drowned, he was vacationing in a resort and having a drink in the pool," Evana said.