Woman accused of cancer hoax

[DamagedGoods]

http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=6474734&page=1

[Peeperann]

Keele Maynor, 37, a former Chattanooga city employee, was receiving money and a variety of services from a local hospital and several charity organizations after telling them she had breast cancer that had metastasized to her kidneys and lungs.

Pictures on various Web sites show her alternately with a bald head or very short hair, and she kept an online blog detailing her purported medical struggles.

"I know God has a reason for me to be here," Maynor wrote in an Aug. 2 blog entry. "I just don't always understand or like what I have to go through to stay here."

The community is "devastated," according to Rachel Houghton, executive director of the Chattanooga-based Helen DiStefano Fund, which provides financial assistance to mothers with cancer. "We all thought she was very, very sick."

Jeeze people, I guess I don't feel quite so stupid anymore. Sounds like tens of thousands of people have been scammed.

[Lizard]

LOL! DG, I pulled up a list of my unread posts and had these initial sense of disorientation as I scanned this long list of extremely similar titles! Good lookin' out.

[sanityslipping]

You shouldn't feel stupid, she should feel like a worthless fool. I admire you for being so generous. You have a kind heart and just wanted to help. I believed her too, I just don't have any money to hand out.

[Dakota Valkyrie]

Snippets of article:

Police in Chattanooga Tennessee are investigating a woman named Keele Maynor who bilked 1,554.28 hours from fellow city employees for time off, alleging she had breast cancer. The trusting co-workers donated their time out of concern for the woman's health needs.

According to Chattanooga police officials, "As of today, officials are still gathering information relative to the allegation of fraud".

The breast cancer hoax spanned a period of five years.

Keele Maynor ended up receiving more than $10,000 time off, as well as money donated by her fellow employees. She also accepted contributions from cancer support groups.

The investigation is ongoing, but the Mayor's office is considering pressing charges. The local organizations are in the process of tallying up the support they provided to Ms. Maynor.

Regardless of the motivation behind Keele Maynor's breast cancer hoax, it is important to note that lies and deceit stem from complex environmental and biological health issues.

http://www.emaxhealth.com/1020/98/27...ncer-hoax.html

[Dakota Valkyrie]

A former Chattanooga city employee suspected of lying about having breast cancer, and accepting hundreds of hours of donated leave from her city government co-workers, has been arrested.

A two-month investigation by the City Auditors office and the Chattanooga Police Department has ended in the arrest of the 38-year-old Keele Maynor.

Maynor resigned from her job at Chattanooga's city hall, leaving behind a mound of questions from angry co-workers. She worked as an administrative assistant in the city's land development until Dec. 12, when an apparent lie she had been telling for five years, finally caught up to her.

City officials say Keele Maynor received nearly 200 days of leave donated from her coworkers during the five years she was pretending to have breast cancer. In her resignation letter, she said she did have cancer in 2000, but has been cancer free since 2001.

The letter went on to say "I started fabricating this story about cancer in 2003 and it has snowballed and finally came to a head. I am relieved for two reasons. I don't have to keep up this charade anymore and I am finally getting some help to figure out why I did this in the first place."

Memorial Hospital notified several charitable organizations who had helped Maynor about her false story, including the Helene DiStefano Fund. That's where Rachel Houghton got Maynor money to help pay her rent for several months.

She says Maynor was very involved in the breast cancer community and had also received other monetary donations as well as emotional support from other groups as well. She even blogged about her breast cancer fight online, where you could donate toward her cause.

Richard Beeland, a spokesperson for the mayor's office said co-workers had donated a total of 1554 hours to Maynor, at her salary, that would add up to nearly $18,000. Plus, she used all of her own days for her false sickness, which adds another nearly $3,000.

http://www.dreamindemon.com/forums/n...treply&t=12528

[wild_angel_1980]

Keele Maynor PlansTo Plead Guilty To Federal Charge

Keele Maynor, who is facing charges in both state and federal courts on an alleged cancer scam, plans to plead guilty in Federal Court.

Her attorney, Rita LaLumia, said in a court filing that Ms. Maynor plans to plead guilty to the single count she is facing.

The former city of Chattanooga employee was already facing a nine-count state indictment on similar charges. She was recently released from state custody after posting bond when a judge agreed to lower it. Judge Don Poole agreed to lower the bond from $100,000 to $50,000.

Toby Hewitt, a city detective, said the city is out $79,400 in connection with cancer claims made by Ms. Maynor, including the times fellow employees donated personal leave time to her.

He said a number of local groups dealing with such cancer cases are out over $100,000.

http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_151986.asp

[Dakota Valkyrie]

A woman who authorities say scammed agencies and co-workers out of thousands of dollars by claiming she had terminal cancer has pleaded guilty.
[...]

Her attorney, Stuart Brown, said the maximum she could receive is six years in prison. He said, "She would flatten the six years in about four years counting good time, and she would be eligible for parole consideration after serving 30 percent of the sentence."

The prosecution agreed to lower the first count that charged theft over $60,000 to theft over $10,000. Attorney Brown said it was agreed that the amount owed at the city of Chattanooga, where Ms. Payne formerly worked, was less than $60,000.

He said the amount taken from cancer groups was about $27,000.

Attorney Brown said Ms. Payne was not yet ready to make a public statement. He said, "She's shaken and scared. She feels very guilty about it."

Ms. Payne, former office assistant in the city's land development office, resigned in December 2008 and issued this statement, "I have been untruthful with the employees of the city of Chattanooga."

http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_170658.asp

[battery jackson]

her punishment should involve cancer cells in a syringe.

[Whisper]

Woman In Cancer Scam Gets 42-Month Sentence
by Judy Frank
posted July 26, 2010

A Chattanooga woman who pretended to have breast cancer in order to win sympathy and financial support was sentenced Monday to 42 months in prison for theft over $10,000.

Criminal Court Judge Don Poole also ruled that Keele Maynor must serve two years for forgery. However, he added, the 42-month and two-year sentences can be served concurrently.

She must pay $54,000 in restitution at a rate of $300 per month after she is released.

Judge Poole gave short shrift to findings by Fort Wood evaluators that Ms. Maynor's crimes occurred because she has a condition known as Facetious Disorder, which causes its victims to feign illness in order to win attention and sympathy.
"I'm not going to give that any weight at all," he said from the bench although, he conceded, "she probably was seeking attention."
[...]
She and her attorneys asked that she be given an alternative sentence rather than required to serve time in prison.

Prosecutors, however, said the seriousness of the crimes Ms. Maynor committed necessitate her spending some time behind bars.
Judge Poole agreed.

"I have problems with somebody shaving their head and saying they have cancer," he said while explaining why he sentenced Ms. Maynor as he did. "That was a terrible thing to do."

http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_180645.asp