ST. JOSEPH, Mo., June 10 (UPI) -- A Missouri mother was arrested for her alleged involvement in her daughter's faked diagnosis of a rare form of cancer, police said.
Carrie Campbell, 35, of St. Joseph was arrested Friday and charged with forgery after she claimed her 17-year-old daughter was diagnosed with anaplastic thyroid cancer, the St. Joseph News-Press reported.
Police said the fake diagnosis was part of a plan to rake in thousands of dollars.
"We received a call earlier this month in reference to an official from Children's Mercy Hospital who told us this woman had forged medical documents in order to receive benefits from the cancer diagnosis," said police Capt. Kevin Castle. "Later, [the diagnosis] proved to be false."
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Court documents show Campbell and other family members held fundraisers for Campbell's daughter, Dayonna, with proceeds allegedly paying for a "new experimental drug to help prolong her life." Campbell and her family had a goal of raising $10,000.
Dayonna Campbell's father, Dave Campbell, who lives in Springfield, Mo., said he was concerned about his daughter.
"I told her that if this was a scam, it could cause serious trouble," he said. "I was really in shock because this was my firstborn."
Campbell said his daughter gave him little information on her condition, so he called her doctor who told him the girl had hyperthyroidism, or an overactive thyroid.
Castle said police believe the scam was an isolated incident and that it was stopped early on.
"Almost any scam you see preys on some sort of emotion, whether that be on greed, or in this instance, preying on the goodness of people's hearts," he said. "St. Joe is great for [community outreach] and we don't want to discourage that, but this is an unusual circumstance ... and thankfully we caught it before it got too big."
