Woman Convinces Her 9-Year-Old Son He Has Cancer To Scam Cash Donations From Friends And Family

via Huffington Post

A New Jersey mom is accused of convincing friends and even her own son that he had cancer in an effort to collect cash from duped well wishers.

Susan Stillwaggon, 35, was charged by Pennsauken police with theft by deception and endangering the welfare of a child on Thursday, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

She allegedly told her 9-year-old son as well as “officials at his school, her husband, and others that the youngster had stage-3 Hodgkin’s lymphoma,” authorities told the Inquirer.

Police say they verified through medical records that the child does not actually have cancer.

Stillwaggon took in $3,500 through fundraisers for her child, according to police.

CBS Philadelphia spoke with a woman who identified herself as Stillwaggon’s mom. She told a reporter that her daughter is in a psychiatric ward.