Home / Crime and Justice / Neighbor Kept Man Alive For Money, Dismembered Body
Neighbor Kept Man Alive For Money, Dismembered Body
7 Jul
Summary
- Herrling kept a man's identity alive for financial gain.
- She confessed to dismembering and disposing of his body.
- Herrling was sentenced to 20 years in prison for fraud.
Caroline Herrling, once perceived as a polite neighbor in Los Angeles, has been revealed as the orchestrator of a massive fraud scheme. For years, she maintained the illusion that Charles Wilding, an elderly man, was alive. This deception allowed Herrling to gain access to and control of his assets.
Investigators discovered that Wilding had been deceased for months, with Herrling and her co-conspirator, Matthew Kroth, concealing his death. Herrling confessed to dissolving and dismembering Wilding's body before disposing of the remains in San Francisco Bay to further the charade.
In January 2023, Herrling was arrested and subsequently pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The total fraudulence amounted to approximately $3.9 million. As of March 2024, she was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison.
