Man Masquerades As Dead Mom To Cash Social Security Checks

Thomas Prusik-Parkin, seen here in surveillance footage disguised as his mother.

For six years, 49-year-old Thomas Prusik-Parkin of Brooklyn disguised himself as his deceased mother so he could collect some $115,000 in Social Security and rent subsidies, police sources tell the Daily News. After being busted for the elaborate scam on Monday, Prusik-Parkin reportedly told detectives, "I held my mother when she was dying and breathed in her last breath, so I am my mother." And if you think that's creepy, take a look at his mug shot!

It seems that the mother, Irene Prusik, died at age 73 in 2003, at which point her son gave the funeral director a phony Social Security number and date of birth for his mother so her death would not be registered in government databases. He then allegedly began collecting her $700 a month in Social Security checks, on top of his own disability checks, and even posed as his mother to file bankruptcy so "she" could get $39,000 in city subsidies.

It gets nuttier: Irene had deeded the Park Slope brownstone to her son in 1996, and he took out a $200,000 mortgage, which he invested in a real estate business that failed. When he finally stopped making the mortgage payments in 2003, the house went into foreclosure and was bought by Samir Chopra. To fight it, Prusik-Parkin allegedly came up with a really bright idea: Posing as mom, he sued himself, alleging that he had forged the 1996 deed transfer, and therefore the house was never legally mortgaged to begin with! According to the News, Prusik-Parkin deeded the house back to his mother last year, then he took out another mortgage for almost a million dollars in her name in April, collecting some $300,000 of the loan.

It's Chopra, the new owner of the $2.2 million brownstone, who tipped off investigators, who interviewed "Irene" last month. At "her" side was an alleged accomplice, Mhilton Rimolo, who police say has been posing at "her" nephew to assist "her" when Prusik-Parkin would appear publicly to cash checks and conduct property transactions. Both men are being arraigned today on a variety of grand larceny, forgery and conspiracy charges.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By John Del Signore in News on June 17, 2009 11:40 AM

Comments [rss]

NannyState

She hasn't aged a bit...

babyhitler

Hey Hipster Grifter take notes! This is how you do it, bitch.

abcohen

wow... thanks for no one in the government following up with the funeral home about how this social and dob never existed in the first place - good catch!!!! what no computer system that could throw up a red flag!!!!

makes me angry that no one checks these things!!!!! how about year license checks - we have social workers for kids and we have a useless department of aging

militza

I love the old people sunglasses he's wearing. they remind me of the special shades from the movie "They Live"

r1b2

That fight scene with Rowdy Roddy Piper and the other human dude, the scene that goes on and on and on in an alley, it's a riot!

r1b2

That fight scene with Rowdy Roddy Piper and the other human dude, the scene that goes on and on and on in an alley, it's a riot!

r1b2

No mother, no!

Weekend at Bernice's!

Spirit of 76

This would make a great movie script.

Snoopy

Kind of like the Blues Brothers in drag.

Snoopy

The mother looks pretty good for being in her mid seventies. How does she pay her real estate taxes on $700 a month income?

Ethan

"Norman, izzat you?"

Rocknrope

(S)he's crafty! (S)he gets around!

(S)he's crafty! (S)he's always down!

(S)he's crafty! (S)he's got a gripe!

(S)he's crafty! And (s)he's just my type!

(S)he's crafteeeeeeeee!

breaknight

Best scam since those two Hell's Kitchen rascals tried to wheel their dead roommate to the bank to cash his welfare checks...or something like that.

JacqueMehoff

that's so true, he got greedy.

it's not enough he has a million dollar brownstone and living off his disability.

nyorker555

He got greedy.

keepdiscoevil

"Mrs. Doubtfire II: Masquerade Mom."

buttface

Mrs. Doubtfire meets Weekend at Bernies II

hotstepper

freud would have had a field day with this guy.

JacqueMehoff

it's like I'm seeing myself in the mirror (except much poorer), though I don't have a good friend by my side. my friend's don't even know how to back me up in a bar fight.

matty

This is the best news story I have read in I don't know how long. I guess since those two guys who brought their dead buddy into a currency exchange to cash a check?

Potty Boy

Yeah, that was one for the ages...

Potty Boy

I SWEAR I only hit "submit" once. WTF?!

Mr Mel

Unless you meant 2 for the ages.

Potty Boy

Nice.

Here's the NYTimes link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/09/nyregion/09dead.html

Potty Boy

Nice.

Here's the NYTimes link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/09/nyregion/09dead.html

Potty Boy

Yeah, that was one for the ages...

Jen Chung

I sort of love this guy for his Norman Bates-style scam.

Bottomless Chips

People who steal from the public's coffers should be killed for treason. I don't find this amusing at all.

People already get screwed being forced into Social Security, now this asshole is fucking stealing from it.