Kansas Couple Hid Dead Man’s Body to Collect His Retirement Funds for 6 Years
A Kansas couple has been charged with fraudulently collecting over $215,000 in retirement benefits on behalf of a deceased relative while concealing his body in their home for six years.
Mike Carroll’s pacemaker indicated that he died in 2016 at the age of 81, but Overland Park police did not discover his body until 2022, when his son-in-law, Kirk Ritter, called to report his death in the Kansas City suburb.
Prosecutors claim Lynn Ritter and Kirk Ritter, both 61, continued to deposit and spend from Carroll’s bank account even as his body became “mummified” on a bed in the home he owned. Carroll has a daughter named Lynn Ritter.
Family members told the Kansas City Star that the Ritters would repeatedly make excuses for why Carroll could never take a phone call or visit, leading them to believe he was still alive.
Federal Court Appearance Looms for Couple Facing Charges
The couple is scheduled to appear in federal court on February 2 to face a number of charges. They did not respond to phone or email messages from the newspaper, and court documents do not show a defense attorney representing them.
According to prosecutors, Carroll received $216,067 in pension and Social Security payments in the six years following his death. However, bank records from that time show that checks were written from his bank account and cashed by Lynn and Kirk Ritter.
Read more: Google Engineer Found Covered in Blood at Scene of Alleged Wife’s Murder in California
