Man who faked his death jailed
Sydney Morning Herald
Saturday January 29, 2011
A MAN who faked his death to dodge criminal charges, then tried to claim his life insurance, has been sentenced to a maximum 23 months in jail.His minimum term expired two weeks ago but Paul Terroni remains in jail, awaiting sentencing on the driving charges he went to such lengths to avoid.Instead of facing court in Sydney over the offences, he moved to Ecuador, where he feigned his death by drowning in a river on April 1, 2007.His uncle obtained a death certificate; Terroni obtained a false passport and used it to return to Australia in 2008.His escapade, which included an attempt to claim more than $283,000 on his life insurance policy, ended in the District Court yesterday, where Judge Andrew Haesler sentenced him for trying to obtaining money by deception and possessing a foreign passport not issued to him.Terroni had found himself in a deep hole, the judge said, and instead of trying to climb out, he kept digging. "To fake one's own death in the face of relatively minor criminal charges makes no sense to me."Terroni, 30, feared he might be jailed over the driving charges. By faking his death, he thought could make a fresh start. But investigators grew suspicious after his mother allegedly tried to obtain his superannuation and Terroni took the opportunity to claim his life insurance. He withdrew the claim and has been in custody since his arrest in September 2009.His barrister, Simon Buchen, said Terroni made what "can only be described as a disastrous life choice", but fraud was not on his mind when he faked his death.Judge Haesler sentenced Terroni to a maximum 13 months on the fraud charge and 15 months on the passport offence. His minimum term expired on January 14 but Terroni was refused bail, to face court next month on the driving charges.
© 2011 Sydney Morning Herald