TAMPA, Fla. — The Department of Justice said Rebecca Stewart Vaughn, 63, of Tampa, has been charged in a fraud scheme where she was accused of concealing a body to continue to get Social Security and pension benefits.
The indictment said Vaughn continued to get benefits paid to her aunt after she died. Vaughn did this by wrapping her body in layers of sheets, blankets, and plastic bags. She then put the body in a mattress bag and put the body in a wooded lot adjacent to a water treatment plant.
U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe said the United States is seeking more than $75,000 in restitution for the criminal conduct.
Vaughn has been indicted on four counts of wire fraud. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each count.
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