An unemployed nurse in Italy has been accused of a macabre and elaborate fraud scheme after he was caught dressing up as his dead mother to claim her pension—all while her mummified body lay hidden in his home for three years.
The 56-year-old man from Mantua (specifically Borgo Virgilio) reportedly concocted the desperate plan to keep the money flowing after his mother, Graziella Dall’Oglio, passed away at the age of 82.
Instead of reporting her death, he allegedly wrapped her body in a bed sheet, stuffed it into a sleeping bag, and hid it in his laundry room. For three years, the corpse lay decomposing until it eventually mummified.
To keep collecting her pension, the man realized he needed to physically impersonate her. In what reports are calling a “Mrs. Doubtfire-style transformation,” he shaved his body hair, applied foundation and lipstick, painted his nails, and donned a long skirt, pearl necklace, and clip-on earrings.
The fraud came crashing down when the man walked into a local government agency, hoping to renew his “mother’s” expired identity card.
Despite the elaborate disguise, staff members were immediately suspicious.
Francesco Aporti, the mayor of Borgo Virgilio, described the bizarre encounter: “He came into the council offices wearing a long skirt… lipstick and nail varnish… But up close his neck was too thick and his wrinkles were strange, the skin on his hands did not seem to be that of an 85-year-old woman.”
The mayor also noted that while the man tried to soften his voice, it would occasionally dip into a masculine tone.
The Trap and the Gruesome Discovery
Realizing they were being deceived, employees alerted the police. Authorities compared photos of the son and the mother, confirming the resemblance was too close to be a coincidence.
To catch him in the act, police set a trap, summoning the “mother” back to the town hall. When the man arrived in drag, he was met by officers.
Confronted with the deception, the man reportedly agreed to let police search his home. There, in the laundry room, investigators found the mummified remains of Graziella Dall’Oglio.
“She probably died of natural causes but that will be established by the post-mortem,” the mayor said. “It is a very strange story and very, very sad.”
A Lucrative Fraud
Investigators estimate the man pocketed approximately €53,000 ($95,000) annually through a combination of his mother’s pension payments and income from a portfolio of three houses she owned.
He is now under investigation for illegally concealing a body and benefit fraud.