Family Affair: Murder for Life Insurance

Authorities believe that the death of a Merced, CA man could be at the hand of his own wife and stepson. Laura Hernandez, 37, and her son Erik Hernandez Camarillo, 20 year-old UC Merced student, are accused of killing Alberto Rodriguez Macias to reap his life insurance benefits.

According to the Merced Sun Star, investigators believe that Hernandez and Camarillo were under financial distress and murdered for the benefits from the life insurance policy taken out on Macias.

“Sheriff Mark Pazin, who announced the arrests during a Friday morning press conference, said the pair had taken out $1 million in life insurance policies from 2005 to 2009 — and killed Macias to reap the financial benefits.”

“On March 14, sheriff’s deputies responded to a home around 1:30 p.m. in the 7900 block of Azuza Road about a body that had been found. Detectives say Hernandez claimed to have found Macias’ body on the floor and went to the home of a neighbor for assistance.”

“The couple had been staying at the home, which was vacant, because Macias was a carpenter and was renovating the residence for someone.”

“Hernandez had told investigators she’d been with Macias most of the day on March 14, saying he was ‘hungry’ and she went next door to get some food for him. She claimed to have returned to the house and found his body. She then went back to the neighbor’s home for help. ‘There were certain indicators of the body that he had been dead longer than when she had left him,’ Pazin said. ‘The timeline just wasn’t jiving. It was all over the board.”

Authorities announced that Macias died from two shots to the head and after Hernandez’s reaction to her husband’s death and Camarillo’s alibi not panning out, suspicions arose on their involvement in the killing.  Both suspects were booked in the Merced County Jail and are being held without bail.  They face charges for murder, conspiracy to commit murder and insurance fraud.