Caroline Herrling reportedly deceived Charles Wilding, inset, to acquire his multimillion dollar California home. Following his mysterious death, his body was chopped up and disposed of in the San Francisco Bay. (Herrling: U.S. Attorney; Wilding: LAPD)
A female individual will be incarcerated for the next 20 years for swindling a California man out of his multimillion dollar home and subsequently having another person dismember his body and dispose of the parts in the San Francisco Bay following his mysterious death.
According to the U.S. Attorney in the Central District of California, 44-year-old Caroline Joanne Herrling, also known as “Carrie Phenix,” would investigate homes in affluent areas that appeared neglected in the hope of taking advantage of the owner. In 2020, she identified such a property in Sherman Oaks owned by Charles Wilding, who was in his late 60s.
Neighbors informed the Los Angeles Times that Wilding had lived in the property his entire life with his mother, who passed away in 2017. After his mother’s death, he became more reclusive, declining neighbors’ offers of assistance to maintain the property.
Authorities state that Wilding died at some point in September 2020, although investigators are unaware of the circumstances. Herrling and her associates moved into the property as Wilding’s body decomposed. They stole jewelry and other valuable items from the residence, and Herrling deceitfully transferred ownership of the property to herself and appointed herself power of attorney in order to embezzle his assets, prosecutors stated.
Herrling even sent a letter to neighbors introducing herself as Wilding’s power of attorney and claimed he had relocated to a beach house near Santa Barbara.
According to a 55-page complaint, the Los Angeles Police Department received an anonymous tip in October 2021 that Wilding may be deceased and a group of individuals were residing in the property for financial gain. Detectives discovered that in December 2020, a neighbor contacted LAPD and requested a welfare check on Wilding since he hadn’t been seen in three months.
Officers went to the property, where they encountered Herrling and her “assistant” in the driveway. She recounted the tale of Wilding relocating to the Santa Barbara area, but she was unable to provide the address. She provided them with a phone number for Wilding, but the police were unable to reach him. They searched the property but found nothing.
Meanwhile, Adult Protective Services also looked into the situation. An investigator in January 2021 spoke with an individual claiming to be Wilding, who stated he was in the Santa Barbara area. The APS case was closed.
Armed with the knowledge that Wilding may be deceased and a victim of fraud, detectives on October 11, 2021, contacted Herrling, who reiterated her claim of being the trustee of the estate. Police informed Herrling that if she did not provide a valid number or address for Wilding, they would have to initiate a missing persons investigation. Detectives spoke with an individual claiming to be Wilding and requested his Social Security number or driver’s license number, but “Wilding” was unable to provide it, according to the complaint.
West Hills woman who disposed of one victim’s body sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for stealing identities, homes, and assets https://t.co/daPk0IuWs7
— US Attorney L.A. (@USAO_LosAngeles) March 18, 2024
Herrling also provided them with an address, but the man who answered the door said he knew Wilding but Wilding did not live there. Investigators later found out that Herrling had paid the man to say he knew Wilding. Investigators had long grown wary of Herrling.
“If you have any life experience and speak with Carrie, you immediately sense her lack of authenticity,” LAPD Detective Mark O’Donnell informed The Times. “I believe she makes too much effort to be persuasive.”
LAPD sought the assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which aided them in uncovering the money laundering scheme that Herrling and others were operating, along with the financial documents they were deceitfully signing from the Wilding trust.
As police were approaching her, Herrling and others relocated Wilding’s body to her apartment in West Los Angeles, where they attempted to dissolve his body in a mixture of chemicals,” prosecutors stated. When that failed, they dismembered Wilding’s body. Herrling then persuaded someone with a sailboat to dispose of the remains in the San Francisco Bay. Wilding’s remains have never been found, so investigators cannot determine how he died.
District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong mentioned during Friday’s sentencing that Herrling did not view Wilding as a human and treated him “like a cash register,” according to prosecutors.
Apart from defrauding Wilding, Herrling and her co-conspirators also deceived a man into signing over his $1.5 million home to them. They then sold the home without his permission, and the man later died by suicide, prosecutors said. In total, law enforcement believes Herrling tricked her victims out of nearly $4 million. Police arrested her in January 2023, and she later pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. fraud.
“This defendant’s misconduct was both greedy and grotesque, causing profound pain to the victims and their loved ones,” stated United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “There must be serious consequences for those who prey on vulnerable communities, such as older adults, and my office will remain steadfast in bringing these offenders to justice.”