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Evansville Woman Accused Of Defrauding Grieving Family

VCSO

Police have arrested an Evansville woman accused of defrauding a family grieving the loss of a child. 

The Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office says deputies arrested 37-year-old Caroline Marie Rich for allegedly defrauding more than $18,000 that was meant to cover burial and memorial expenses for the deceased child.

In a news release, the sheriff’s office says Rich worked as a family service counselor at Alexander Memorial Park for the family of Oliver Dill.

The boy died in July after accidentally being left in a hot car on the USI campus, and Rich was working on contracts involving the purchase of burial plots and headstones.

The sheriff’s office says Dill’s parents and grandparents had paid about $19,000 via PayPal and personal checks to Rich with the belief that she would transfer the funds.

But the Dill family began receiving invoices indicating about $18,000 was still owed.

Investigators say Dignity Memorial, which owns Alexander Memorial Park, began an internal investigation which showed Rich had apparently kept all but $1,000.00 of the money paid by the Dills.

Rich was arrested on Fraud and Theft charges.