Woman charged with burying dead father to collect benefits

A federal grand jury has indicted a Florida woman on charges associated with burying her dead father in her backyard so that she could collect his Social Security benefits.

A U.S. Attorney’s Office news release says 61-year-old Susan Marie Kort of Ocala buried her father in the backyard of her home after he died in November 2011.

Federal prosecutors say Kort used a power of attorney for her father’s finances to withdraw nearly $36,000 in Social Security benefits that were being deposited to his bank account. Authorities say Kort admitted to hiding her father’s body and to taking the money, and eventually led investigators to her father’s grave. DNA testing confirmed his identity. Kort faces a maximum of 10 years in federal prison and repayment of the money.