There must be easier ways to make a buck. A Florida couple is in hot water after allegedly shooting themselves in a staged robbery in order to get an insurance windfall.
Lindsey Pelton and Doug Teixiera told police that masked intruders broke into their Deltona, Fla., home on October 26 and stole $7,000 worth of money and jewelry. Pelton and Teixiera also claimed the intruders held them at gunpoint and then shot them both.
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That story unraveled before the bullet wounds even had a chance to start knitting, according to a report by the
International Business Times. Police officers quickly noticed inconsistencies in the couple’s story. They also noticed that the gun that had shot Pelton and Teixiera was still in the house.
“We found a .22-caliber gun hidden,” an officer said. “When they were confronted, they said, ‘Oh, yeah, yeah, the home invaders didn’t bring their own gun. They got hold of our gun.’ I mean, the story just fell apart and it stunk from the very beginning.”
The couple said they were in the shower when the invaders broke in, but police found the shower and bathmat dry. When they checked surveillance footage of the area, there was no sign of the masked men the couple described.
Pelton and Teixiera, unsurprisingly, have been charged with evidence tampering and providing false information to law enforcement officers. Police allege that the couple intended to get an insurance payout from the property owner, who had failed to repair a broken door lock, the
International Business Times reported.
“They make up this story to create a scam so they can sue the homeowner because he wouldn’t fix a locked door,” Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said. “In the process of doing that, they put fear and panic in the city of Deltona.”
A neighbor of the couple told local news affiliate WFTV-9 that she was amazed at their behavior.
“Honestly, I’m disappointed,” she said. “Isn’t it easier to get a job than to try to commit insurance fraud?”
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