Men Plead Guilty to Cheating Terminally Ill

Two men accused of stealing the identities of terminally ill people to reap $30 million from insurance companies and brokerage houses pleaded guilty midway through their trial today, and face prison sentences of up to 10 years each. Joseph Caramadre, 50, CEO of Estate Planning Resources in Rhode Island, and his former employee Raymour Radhakrishnan, 28, entered guilty pleas to one count each of wire fraud and conspiracy, ending the trial that began last week and had been expected to last up to three months.

Prosecutors say the two placed ads in a Catholic newspaper offering $2,000 to people who were terminally ill. They then allegedly lied to them to get them to divulge personal information, and used that info to purchase variable annuities and so-called "death-put" bonds that would pay out when a person died. "Today's message is that greed is not good," Rhode Island's US Attorney said after the proceeding. "Life is not just about making money." (More Joseph Caramadre stories.)