Cancer Fraudster Pleads Guilty, Receives Sentence
A New Jersey woman, who faked terminal bladder cancer for profit, received her sentence for fraud and theft on Friday, August 16th. She pleaded guilty to charges of theft by deception in May of this year.
The Burlington County judge who sentenced Lori E. Stilley called the cancer fraud scam “despicable,” and the pain and heartache she caused her family “unspeakable.”
“I have never heard of such an outrageous thing,” Superior Court Judge James W. Palmer Jr told Stilley, who sat impassively beside her lawyer. “I’m almost speechless. It’s despicable what you’ve done.”
What Judge Palmer said he found “most disturbing” about the cancer fraud case was that Stilley terrified her two children, who are currently 13 and 8 years old. She reportedly told them, tearfully, that she would not live to see her daughter’s graduation or wedding, and she may not live to see either of them pass 8th grade. In fact, Stilley’s son already lost his biological father, when he was led to believe that he would lose his mother, too.
Stilley’s ex-husband, Brian Schenski, who fathered her 13-year-old daughter, said that the girl was so consumed with fear for her mother’s health that she was reluctant to visit her father, and even go to school, for fear “that Mommy would die when she was not at home.” Reportedly, Stilley also used her cancer fraud to emotionally manipulate the girl with statements such as “How can you be so mean when you know Mommy’s dying?” He said his daughter became “riddled with worry” and was “constantly having a funeral for her mother in her head.”
Surprisingly, however, Stilley did not receive jail time for the cancer fraud scheme, but instead received 500 community service hours and $11,000 restitution. The judge said he gave her the lighter sentence so she could be with her two children, whom she retains custody of.
At the close of the hearing, Palmer told Stilley that he had never seen a defendant in a criminal trial with so little evidence of remorse. “You didn’t appear to be serious about this offense, and this disturbs me,” he said. “You’ve got to understand that this was just awful.”
The Cancer Fraud Scheme Timeline
In February 2011, Stilley was reportedly diagnosed with Stage IV bladder cancer. She admitted that she used the cancer fraud scheme to receive money, which included $15,000 in donations, some of which funded her wedding. She made pleas for money on Facebook after claiming that she had no health insurance, and her cancer had worsened. She also wrote an e-book about her fraudulent trials, which sold for $14.95 online. Additionally, sympathetic neighbors often brought her meals during her cancer treatment.
“My life quickly became consumed with helping Lori,” said Stilley’s brother-in-law, Mike DiGiovanni, reading from his wife’s statement after she became too distressed to continue during the cancer fraud sentencing.
Stilley’s sister, Lisa DiGiovanni, said she discovered her sister’s cancer fraud scheme when Stilley made a sudden, miraculous turnaround the day she was supposed to have entered hospice care in November 2011. DiGiovanni spoke with their parents about her suspicions, but Stilley convinced them that she had, in fact, beaten cancer.
County prosecutor Andrew McDonnell said this was not Stilley’s first brush with the law. In 2004, she had been arrested for a fraudulent medical claim totaling $8,892, and she had failed to repay it.
The cancer fraud “defies logic,” he said, adding that “I don’t think it was profit-motivated,” but might have been a result of Stilley’s “prescription medicine abuse.”
The Strom Law Firm Can Help with Fraud Cases
Our federal criminal defense lawyers handle cases involving:
- Fraudulent insurance claims
- Bond issuances and investment schemes
- Falsifying loan applications
- Check fraud schemes
- Bribes or kickbacks
- False advertising or misrepresentation in sales transactions
Our firm provides extensive experience representing clients in major criminal cases and investigations involving wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud, and RICO violations. While we strive to resolve matters discreetly through aggressive negotiation, our fraud attorneys will not hesitate to take your case to trial. We offer free, confidential consultations to discuss the facts of your case, so contact us today. 803.252.4800
