Arrest in child cancer scam

**DamagedGoods** · January 21st, 2009, 10:19 AM

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/...in533634.shtml

This one actually put some decent effort into it...

**Peeperann** · January 21st, 2009, 10:26 AM

(AP) Police arrested the parents and grandmother of a 7-year-old girl who was told she had leukemia as part of an apparent fund-raising hoax that netted about $10,000 in donations from well-wishers.

Robert J. Milbrandt, 44, his wife, Teresa L. Milbrandt, 35, and her mother, Mary K. Russell, 57, all of Urbana, were arrested Tuesday. The scheme, which had been going on since April, was discovered in December, police said.

The girl, Hannah, had been taken from the couple and placed in the custody of relatives.

To make Hannah's cancer appear believable, police said, Teresa Milbrandt shaved the girl's hair, gave her sleeping pills, had her wear a protective mask and put her in counseling to prepare for death. Hannah also wore a large bandage to cover a "port" for chemotherapy injections that wasn't there, police said.

"We interviewed well over 100 people and felt it was time to make the arrests," police Lt. Garry Kimpel said. "Hannah is still in protective custody."

Russell and the Milbrandts were charged with theft and engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity. The Milbrandts were charged, in addition, with endangering children and possession of criminal tools.

Robert Milbrandt's lawyer, Mark Feinstein, said his client "had absolutely no idea this was going on." He said his client believed his wife's story that their daughter had leukemia.

"That's too horrific of a lie to think she's not telling you the truth," Feinstein said.

Feinstein said his client suspected nothing because his wife handled the medical bills and usually took their daughter to Dayton for what she said were cancer treatments. He said Hannah has a blood disorder that requires quarterly checkups.

I'm tellin ya people, the law takes these things very seriously!

**Abroad** · January 21st, 2009, 02:38 PM

To make Hannah's cancer appear believable, police said, Teresa Milbrandt shaved the girl's hair, gave her sleeping pills, had her wear a protective mask and put her in counseling to prepare for death. Hannah also wore a large bandage to cover a "port" for chemotherapy injections that wasn't there, police said.

This is abuse. The sleeping pills are bad enough; but how on earth is the girl ever going to recover from being persuaded that she was dying?

**DarkPrincess** · January 21st, 2009, 04:32 PM

What a wonderful family. Hope you're prepared for death, grandma.

**Athena** · January 21st, 2009, 04:38 PM

Originally Posted by Peeperann

I'm tellin ya people, the law takes these things very seriously!

Yeah, when people abuse a child physically and mentally in a clear attempt to solicit funds.

Apples and oranges.

**Athena** · January 21st, 2009, 08:17 PM

Ooh! Catty! :P

Look, guys, I'm just disagreeing with the comparison being drawn, here. I don't want people reading these stories and getting their hopes up that justice is on the horizon for Share when it's probably not. That, I fear, will only breed even more resentment.

**malq** · January 22nd, 2009, 12:16 AM

Originally Posted by Athena

Ooh! Catty! :P

Look, guys, I'm just disagreeing with the comparison being drawn, here. I don't want people reading these stories and getting their hopes up that justice is on the horizon for Share when it's probably not. That, I fear, will only breed even more resentment.

That was a good statement Athena. Meanwhile, we are getting a good education on cancer scams. I just hope its doesn't jade people too much about people who really are going through this trauma who represent the vast majority.

**DamagedGoods** · January 22nd, 2009, 01:03 AM

Originally Posted by malq

That was a good statement Athena. Meanwhile, we are getting a good education on cancer scams. I just hope its doesn't jade people too much about people who really are going through this trauma who represent the vast majority.

I agree, with Athena as well... what this woman did is in a whole new league...

Also... If you are feeling jaded by these, look at it this way, in these cases, yeah 1 person, maybe a whole family lied, but how many people gave out of the goodness of their hearts? To me, this shows there are a LOT more good people out there, and that these fraudulent assholes are the minority. They are rats in the cupboard, shine the light on ALL of them, don't let them hide, don't let them continue, don't let them make the people truly in need suffer.

**Dakota Valkyrie** · November 17th, 2010, 10:12 AM

She was released from prison 9 months ago. Looks like she missed "home".

Teresa Milbrandt, who went to elaborate lengths in 2002 to make it seem as if her then-7-year-old daughter was dying of cancer, is accused of using forged prescriptions in July, August and October to get pain pills at a Walmart Pharmacy in Springfield.

Milbrandt, 41, of St. Paris in Champaign County, has been charged in Clark County with three felony counts of deception to obtain a dangerous drug.

One of her four daughters, 27-year-old Katie Harding of Springfield, has been charged with two counts of deception to obtain a dangerous drug and three counts of illegally processing drug documents.

Neither woman has been arrested; both are expected in Clark County Municipal Court on Nov. 29. Neither of the women, nor their attorney, Kirk Ellis, could be reached for comment.

Court documents show that Harding was a medical assistant in a Springfield doctor's office when she forged Vicodin prescriptions for herself, Milbrandt and two of her other sisters.
[...]

Champaign County Prosecutor Nick Selvaggio, who handled the cancer-hoax case, said the Urbana Police Department is investigating similar drug allegations against Milbrandt. Selvaggio has asked the Clark County prosecutor's office to roll all the allegations into one case because they are comparable.

Milbrandt, who already had a criminal record for stealing credit cards and passing bad checks, served 61/2 years in prison on child-endangering and multiple theft charges after her cancer hoax was exposed. She was released from the Ohio Reformatory for Women in Marysville on Feb. 17. She is still under court-ordered supervision from that prison sentence.
[...]

In the only interview she ever gave after the conviction, Milbrandt told The Dispatch that she thought her husband, Robert, was going to leave her so she made up the lie about Hannah and it snowballed.

Robert Milbrandt always maintained that he believed Hannah was really sick, yet he pleaded guilty to a charge of felony child-endangering. He spent nearly five years in prison.

A jury acquitted Milbrandt's mother on charges that she was involved.

After the cancer-hoax scheme was uncovered, Hannah entered foster care and was staying with distant relatives out of state. Today, she is 15 years old. Selvaggio said that as far as he knows, Hannah is doing great.

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content...n.html?sid=101

**VXIII** · November 27th, 2010, 01:20 AM

Good God, terrify your child she is dying all for a measly little 10k? Shit that wouldnt help the average (even small) family for more than a few months... hope the girl who is 15 now, can make a new start...