Inset: Wendy Stone (U.S. Department of Justice). Background: the home where Stone allegedly hid her boyfriend’s body (WHAM/YouTube).
A New York woman is accused of hiding her live-in boyfriend’s body for months in a recycling bin in the basement of their home, occasionally pouring bleach on the remains to hide the foul odor, while taking thousands of dollars from his Social Security benefits for purchases at restaurants, stores and ATM cash withdrawals.
Wendy Stone, 63, was charged on Monday with theft of government funds, aggravated identity theft, and making a false statement to obtain Social Security benefits from her boyfriend, Kenneth Crisman. The charges carry up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, the U.S. Attorney’s office announced in a news release.
According to the federal complaint, the series of events started even before Crisman died, when he requested a replacement debit card for his benefits. The card arrived at Crisman’s home four days before his death, the complaint states.
Stone and her son discovered Crisman’s body inside his home a few days after his death, the son told police. Aware that Crisman was receiving Social Security benefits, Stone allegedly decided not to tell anyone about his death and continue collecting the benefits. She wrapped his body in plastic and tape, placed it in a plastic recycling bin and put it in the basement of their Rochester home, court documents said.
“Wendy Stone periodically poured bleach on Crisman’s body between January and September 2023 to prevent foul odor,” the complaint said.
Crisman died on Dec. 28, 2022, but his debit card was activated with a new PIN on Jan. 6, 2023, and the first charges to the new debit card began the following day, court documents said. By Jan. 15, the card was depleted with charges at a restaurant, Walmart, The Home Depot, Staples, and ATM withdrawals, the complaint said.
Stone and her son were captured on surveillance video shopping at a Walmart in Greece, New York, on Aug. 10, 2023, when she was accused of using the debit card, authorities said in court documents. She was also seen in a security photo taken by an ATM making withdrawals of $400 and $300 on June 6, 2023, court documents said.
The card was also used to open a Rent-A-Center account on March 7, 2023, for $1,815.05. Between January and September 2023, Stone took $7,902 of Crisman’s benefits, authorities said.
On Jan. 3, 2024, the Social Security Administration conducted a redetermination for continuing eligibility for Stone’s own benefits. Stone allegedly falsely reported that since December 2021, no one has moved into or out of her residence, including births or deaths, and that nobody had helped pay her bills or rent since December 2021, officials said. Using Crisman’s benefits rendered Stone ineligible for her own benefits from Dec. 28, 2022, through September 2023, documents said.
When the news broke, some neighbors were aghast, local ABC/The CW affiliate WHAM reported.
“It was just a shocking kind of a thing to be happening in a pretty peaceful-feeling neighborhood,” Patty Borges-Madden told the outlet.
Neighbor Gary DiFrancesco wasn’t so surprised.
“On one hand, nothing surprises me anymore in this area,” he told the station. “But at the same time, something that’s sad is they felt that they couldn’t report it.”
Stone is not facing any charges related to Crisman’s death.
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