Welcome to our deep‑dive into the world of 10 outrageous liars who tried to profit from the dead, exposing schemes that range from forged wills to phantom authors.

10 Outrageous Liars Who Tried to Cash In on the Dead

10 Emily Grant Hutchings

When aspiring writers rack up a mountain of rejection letters, the dream of a publishing break can feel hopeless. In the early twentieth century, a handful of opportunists claimed they could channel deceased literary giants through Ouija boards.

Emily Grant Hutchings was one of those charlatans. In 1917 she released Jap Herron: A Novel Written From the Ouija Board, insisting that the spirit of Mark Twain was dictating a fresh manuscript from beyond the grave.

The entire text is accessible on Google Books for the curious, but Twain’s spectral contribution appears to have lost its sparkle after death. The New York Times panned the work mercilessly, even joking that Twain’s ghost should appear in court via the board to defend himself.

Twain’s estate sued Hutchings’s publisher, forcing a halt to further print runs. Although the novel never became a bestseller, Hutchings still secured a New York Times review and managed to rake in cash from the surrounding controversy.

9 Brian Adams

Brian Adams, a 56‑year‑old jobless man, shared a modest home in Green Cove Springs, Florida, with his elderly mother Janell and his own son. Their household relied entirely on Janell’s Social Security checks and pension.

In 2014, Brian learned that Janell had died of natural causes. Reporting her death would have cut off the family’s only source of income, so he persuaded his son to help him move the corpse to the backyard, dig a deep pit, and bury her.

Month after month, the benefits kept rolling in. Brian siphoned the checks into Janell’s account, then transferred every dollar into his own name, eventually amassing $35,345.

Brian’s daughter Brittanie eventually confronted him about the inexplicable cash flow. He confessed, and she swiftly alerted authorities. With a prior criminal record, Brian now faces up to a year in prison for his fraud.

8 Thomas Patrick Morris

At the turn of the twentieth century, the Wendel family dominated New York City’s rental market, amassing a fortune so vast they became multimillionaires.

Paradoxically, the Wendels lived a reclusive, frugal lifestyle, shunning marriage and children. The last surviving member, Ella Wendel, spent her days with a poodle named Tobey and a cadre of servants.

When Ella passed away in 1931, she left behind a jaw‑dropping $100 million estate (roughly $1.6 billion today). Her will directed the bulk of the wealth to charities, with a modest portion for servants to care for her dog. Over 2,300 claimants rushed to the newspapers, asserting kinship.

Thomas Patrick Morris, a Scotsman, journeyed to New York claiming he was Ella’s nephew. He produced a forged marriage certificate alleging he was the son of Ella’s brother, John Wendel, and even fabricated a heartfelt letter supposedly penned by John, describing a secret Scottish elopement.

Thomas bore an uncanny resemblance to John, making the deception plausible. Had his claim succeeded, he would have inherited a massive fortune.

However, the estate’s attorney dug into Scottish records, discovering the forged certificate was penned in Thomas’s own hand. Business documents proved John Wendel was in New York during the alleged Scottish romance, debunking the story. Morris was promptly arrested for fraud.

7 Carel Cody

From 1988 to 1994, Carel Cody operated a licensed elder‑care facility out of her Cottage Grove, Oregon residence. When social services grew suspicious of unusually rapid patient deaths, they investigated.

Inspectors found the home filthy and unfit for caregiving, even noting a pet monkey that added to the unsanitary conditions. As a result, Cody’s caretaker license was revoked, though she continued to siphon money from every resident.

After losing her license, Cody began volunteering at nursing homes, where she seduced a disabled elderly man, “M.B.,” into marriage. The Social Security income from this union proved insufficient, prompting her to lure another patient into her home.

John H. Arnold, a 76‑year‑old orphan with no family, was persuaded to leave his nursing home and move in with Cody. He died in 1996.

Cody clandestinely buried Arnold’s body on her mother’s property. Deprived of official oversight, she claimed Arnold had moved away, deceiving her husband. When M.B. finally realized Cody’s abuse, he divorced her.

For the next sixteen years, Cody continued to collect Arnold’s Social Security checks and accessed his bank accounts, stealing over $200,000. In 2013, she was finally apprehended and sentenced to four years in federal prison.

6 Anna Anderson

In 1920, a striking young woman attempted to leap from a Berlin bridge. A police officer rescued her and placed her in a mental institution, where she spoke only in a thick Russian accent and was labeled “Miss Unknown.” She bore numerous scars, hinting at past trauma, and refused to reveal her identity.

Two years later, a fellow patient informed doctors that Miss Unknown bore a striking resemblance to one of the Romanov daughters, sparking speculation that she might be Anastasia, the youngest daughter presumed dead after the 1918 Bolshevik execution.

The Romanov tragedy had left many hopeful that at least one child survived. Miss Unknown matched Anastasia’s age and appearance, and because she could not recall her past, she never refuted the claim.

The press seized upon the story, and numerous acquaintances who had known the real Anastasia personally met Miss Unknown, posing probing questions only a true princess could answer. Opinions split: some believed she was genuine, while others dismissed her as a fortune‑seeker.

Romanov relatives ultimately denied her any inheritance, yet a circle of aristocrats took her under their wing. Philanthropist Annie Burr Jennings financed her move to the United States, granting her the name Anna Anderson and a lavish Manhattan apartment. Over the years, she lived in various aristocratic homes, supported by generous patrons.

Decades later, DNA testing finally resolved the mystery: Anna Anderson was, in fact, a Polish factory worker who had suffered a grenade explosion, accounting for her scars. While she may have genuinely believed she was Anastasia due to her amnesia, scientific evidence proved otherwise.

5 Marsha Henderson

In her twenties, Marsha Henderson married 76‑year‑old Newton Davies, a retired school crossing guard living in London. Beyond his modest pension, Newton owned a house in a rapidly appreciating London neighbourhood.

When Newton passed away at 85 in 2013, his estate listed a £600,000 inheritance. However, his will allocated only £25,000 to Marsha, leaving the bulk of the money and the property to his daughter, Paulette.

Unwilling to vacate the home, Marsha concocted a forged will that claimed she deserved the house and over £500,000. The falsified document was riddled with spelling errors and even mistakenly referred to Newton as a woman.

She claimed the “new” will had been hidden in an attic crawl space inside an empty Doritos bag, only now discovered. In court, the judge exposed the absurdity of her fabrications and ordered Marsha to pay Paulette £42,000 in back‑rent for refusing to leave.

4 Renee Bowman

In the United States, foster parents receive monthly stipends to cover the costs of caring for children. In Maryland, that amount can approach $800 per child.

Renee Bowman took in three girls, two of whom were sisters fleeing an abusive home. For this arrangement, she collected $2,400 each month, enough to cover rent and personal expenses.

In 2009, a seven‑year‑old foster child leapt from a window and sought help from a neighbor. The incident revealed that Bowman had been starving and abusing the child.

Even more chilling, the other two girls—one sister and a third foster child—were discovered dead, their bodies stored in a freezer that Bowman moved with her during multiple relocations. She kept the third girl alive only to mask the disappearances.

3 Albert Houghton Pratt

In 1918, Albert Houghton Pratt published My Tussle with the Devil and Other Stories, claiming it was dictated by the ghost of O. Henry via Ouija board. He opened the book with a direct address to skeptics, insisting any stylistic differences were due to his after‑life evolution.

Pratt’s work featured interludes where he purportedly recorded dialogues between himself and O. Henry’s spirit, further cementing the supernatural premise.

Public reaction was sparse, but records show Pratt later released other titles, including a treatise on mysticism. By 1922, the New York Times reported his eviction from a New Jersey residence for mortgage default, suggesting his ghost‑writing venture failed to generate lasting profit.

2 Arafa Nassib And Adil Kasim

In 2017, 48‑year‑old Arafa Nassib was apprehended after claiming she had died. She and her 18‑year‑old son, Adil Kasim, had secured a sizable life‑insurance policy on Arafa’s name.

The duo traveled back to Tanzania, where Adil reported that Arafa had perished on Zanzibar. The insurance company paid out £136,000, despite Arafa being very much alive.

Adil initially returned to the United Kingdom, spreading the false news of his mother’s death. The ruse unraveled when Arafa attempted to re‑enter the country; airport officials flagged her passport, which listed her as deceased, leading to her arrest.

1 The Manchester Frauds

GoFundMe is designed for people in need to raise money for medical bills, emergencies, or charitable causes. Anyone can start a campaign, and donors often trust the platform to deliver aid.

In May 2017, Manchester was rocked by a terrorist attack outside an Ariana Grande concert, killing 22 people. Unscrupulous individuals quickly created fake GoFundMe pages, claiming to collect money for the victims’ families.

These fraudulent campaigns siphoned donations straight into the creators’ accounts. GoFundMe’s policy allows fundraisers to withdraw money at any time, making it easy for scammers to disappear with the cash.

The sheer volume of bogus pages prompted GoFundMe staff to work around the clock, constantly deleting and suspending fraudulent accounts.

One of the fraudsters, Shannon Quinn, a writer and entrepreneur from Philadelphia, was among those caught exploiting the tragedy for personal gain.

Spinning a yarn, telling a tall tale, or flat‑out lying – whatever you call it, the characters in this top 10 highly curated list weren’t shy about bending reality, and that never stopped them from building impressive legacies, winning adoration, or amassing great wealth.

Why These Top 10 Highly Clever Deceivers Matter

Their stories show that a well‑placed falsehood can be a surprisingly effective tool for power, fame, or survival. Let’s dive into the most audacious fibbers the world has ever known.

10 Benjamin Franklin

We may never pin down exactly what Benjamin Franklin intended when he allegedly quipped, “half a truth is often a great lie,” yet it’s clear he delighted in a good fabrication. Despite his penchant for trickery, he’s forever etched in paintings, textbooks, and even printed on U.S. currency – not a bad outcome for a crafty, opportunistic statesman!

Most amateur historians concur that Franklin concocted the legendary kite‑and‑key storm experiment after suspecting lightning’s true nature. Modern science dismisses the episode as impossible, and there’s no credible evidence the stunt ever occurred.

Beyond that famed tale, Franklin also pioneered early fake‑news tactics. In 1782, he rigged a homemade press to produce a bogus newspaper describing “teenage scalps” discovered on the frontier, a story designed to stoke fear of Native tribes. He even forged letters to the editor. When real printers reprinted the hoax, Franklin reportedly laughed heartily, boasting about how easily he’d duped unsuspecting settlers.

9 Frida Kahlo

Although not famed for lying, the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo is well documented for a couple of bold fabrications that she wore like a badge of honor rather than a scandal.

First, she claimed her father Guillermo was a German Jew – a story that spread widely, even appearing in the biopic about her life, where a scene has Guillermo referencing this heritage. In reality, Guillermo hailed from a long line of Lutherans and only migrated to Mexico after clashing with his step‑mother.

Second, Kahlo deliberately misstated her birth year, saying she arrived in 1910 – the year the Mexican Revolution erupted – instead of her true 1907 birth. Despite these embellishments, her artistic legacy remains unparalleled, as she endured immense physical and emotional pain while producing work few of her contemporaries could match.

8 Frank Abagnale

Who can resist rooting for Frank Abagnale? He pulled off hoaxes that now seem laughably obvious, yet they propelled him to wealth once his crimes were uncovered – pure cinematic gold.

Abagnale’s fame skyrocketed after Leonardo DiCaprio portrayed him in “Catch Me If You Can,” chronicling a teenage con artist who masqueraded as a Pan Am pilot at 16, a medical supervisor at 18, and even a Harvard‑trained lawyer to secure a Louisiana attorney position. He also charmed countless older women into affairs.

The twist? He spent under five years behind bars before the FBI hired him as a fraud consultant, trading his expertise for freedom. Though the stigma of his past made conventional employment tricky, he launched Abagnale & Associates, inspired an Oscar‑nominated film and a Broadway play, and built a thriving consulting empire admired worldwide.

7 Bill Clinton

The scandal is legendary: Linda Tripp recorded Monica Lewinsky confiding about an affair with President Bill Clinton, then handed the tapes to authorities, shaking the nation’s moral compass.

Instead of admitting the truth, Clinton staunchly denied the relationship, even under oath, only to later recant when evidence became undeniable. His ability to predict the political fallout was arguably his greatest skill.

Nevertheless, the controversy didn’t cripple his post‑presidential influence. He founded the Clinton Foundation in 2001, partnered with global leaders to rebuild Haiti, authored a bestseller autobiography, and remained a key figure in environmental and humanitarian initiatives worldwide.

6 Calamity Jane

Calamity Jane’s reputation for daring is unquestionable. Orphaned at 14, she quickly learned that a well‑timed fib could keep her afloat in the harsh frontier.

Popular culture casts her as Wild Bill Hickok’s sidekick, yet many of Hickok’s acquaintances assert he barely knew her and certainly didn’t regard her as a partner. Jane’s Wikipedia page even lists “military scout” among her occupations, a claim she likely fabricated to boost her legend.

She also claimed a Captain Egan christened her “Calamity” after she rescued him from capture. No records confirm any such service under Egan or any other officer, suggesting she invented both the nickname and much of her backstory. Despite these debunked claims, she remains one of the Wild West’s most beloved and iconic figures, rivaling even the mythic Wild Bill himself.

5 Pope Alexander VI

Pope Alexander VI, born Rodrigo de Borja, is infamous for living by a personal creed akin to “the end justifies the means,” even though the phrase predates him by a century.

In late‑15th‑century Italy, the papacy was the apex of power. Alexander craved both authority and women, fathering four children with longtime mistress Vannozza dei Cattanei. He initially denied paternity, but once he became pope in 1492, he promptly legitimized all four. Scholars suspect he sired at least five additional children with other women.

Despite his scandalous personal life, his papacy thrived. He favored negotiation over warfare, acted as a major patron of the arts, and saw his offspring rise to prominence across Europe. Countless books, plays, TV series, and even video games feature him as a formidable historical figure.

4 Herodotus

Often hailed as the “Father of History,” Herodotus may have been more enamored with storytelling than strict fact‑checking, earning him the tongue‑in‑cheek moniker “Father of Lies.”

He believed that exaggerating the truth would magnify Greek greatness, and he freely blended personal observations with second‑hand tales. His monumental work, “Histories,” is riddled with hyperbole and outright falsehoods, yet it cemented his influence on future politicians and scholars.

His legacy endures worldwide: statues of Herodotus grace cities from New York to Istanbul to Athens, proving his narrative flair left a lasting artistic imprint.

3 Henry VIII

Let’s face it: you don’t divorce a devoted wife of 24 years, launch the Reformation, behead the very woman who sparked it, and then marry another dame a week later without a single fib.

When his first wife failed to produce a male heir, Henry declared their marriage invalid, claiming divine sanction for his break. After the Pope refused a divorce, he proclaimed himself head of the Church of England. When his second wife also failed to bear a son, he labeled her a witch and had her executed. All these moves were underpinned by convenient falsehoods.

Surprisingly, the English populace seemed to shrug at his machinations, allowing him to reshape religion and royalty with relatively little public uproar.

2 Benedict Arnold

Although branded a traitor in American lore, Benedict Arnold managed to carve out a surprisingly successful post‑war career after his treason was exposed.

Born on American soil in 1741, Arnold earned acclaim as a Revolutionary war hero for nearly a decade. Resentful over slower promotions and eager for cash, he secretly negotiated with the British in 1779, promising to deliver the strategic fort at West Point in exchange for money and rank.

The plot unraveled when a co‑conspirator was captured with incriminating documents. While his associate was hanged for treason, Arnold escaped, later securing military, export, and property ventures in England—though he never achieved widespread popularity there.

His name remains synonymous with betrayal, yet his story shows that even the vilified can maintain a degree of notoriety and that his three sons each pursued respectable military careers.

1 Robert Ripley

Believe it or not, the genius behind “Ripley’s Believe It Or Not!” blended unverifiable tall tales with astonishing facts, creating a global empire of curiosity.

His “discoveries” spanned every conceivable category. A 2012 Vanity Fair roundup highlighted his claims: men with horns, a child cyclops, an armless golfer, a fork‑tongued woman, fish that climbed trees, wingless birds, four‑legged chickens, and peg‑legged cows. While many entries could be corroborated, others remained unverified, earning him the title of the world’s biggest liar at speaking engagements.

Ripley even claimed his own dreams served as sources for some of his oddities, and he famously quipped, “It makes no difference what I say. You won’t believe me anyway.” From a disputed birthdate to tree‑climbing fish, his legend grew into an empire that still thrives, with over 90 attractions worldwide delighting visitors.

Janice Formichella, an American‑born globetrotter now living in Bali, Indonesia, loves history, gin, girl talk, her bullet journal, and a good list. Follow her adventures on Twitter and Instagram.