Cancer scammers face new arrest after skipping sentencing
MINEOLA, N.Y. (AP) — A couple who fraudulently pocketed thousands of dollars in donations for a 5-year-old boy with cancer could be looking at three years in prison after missing a Wednesday court sentencing at which they were expected to merely get probation.
Brittney Schmidt, 31, and Vincent Fina, 30, pleaded guilty in September in a Long Island court to a felony charge of scheme to defraud. Authorities say the pair solicited donations from businesses by claiming the money would pay for the child's funeral.
Prosecutors say there is a boy from Staten Island who has brain cancer but the couple has no relation to him and "misappropriated" his story to run their scam.