BABYLON, N.Y. (AP) – A man suspected of faking his own drowning at a beach in a scheme to collect on a life insurance policy was arrested Wednesday moments after being released from a hospital where he was receiving psychiatric treatment.
Raymond Roth was taken to state park police headquarters on Long Island in handcuffs wearing a blue polo shirt and white pants. He didn't speak to reporters when entering or exiting the building about 90 minutes later.
He was later taken to First District Court in Hempstead, where an arraignment was scheduled later Wednesday on charges of insurance fraud, conspiracy to commit insurance fraud and falsely reporting an incident. Roth will plead not guilty, attorney Brian Davis said.
Roth was arrested at South Nassau Communities Hospital in Oceanside, where he had spent about 10 days.
The 47-year-old was reported missing by his son on July 28 at Jones Beach. The elder Roth was later reported to be in Flor ida and got a speeding ticket in South Carolina.
His son, Jonathan, was arrested last week. According to court documents, the pair conspired to get more than $50,000 in life insurance money.
But Davis said his client was not aware of an insurance scam, blaming Jonathan Roth.
"My client's intent was to disappear, not to cash in on a life insurance policy," Davis told The Associated Press on Tuesday. He said Jonathan Roth is the one who tried to cash in on the policy just days after reporting his father's disappearance. "It was never my client's intent to make a claim."
