Wife Of Man Accused Of Faking Death Faces Federal Charge

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MIAMI (CBSMiami/AP) — A year after a north Florida man was accused of faking his own death to collect from a string of insurance companies his wife has now been charged.

Daphne Simpson, 58, was named Wednesday in a one-count court filing describing her role in a conspiracy with her husband Jose Lantigua.

According to authorities and insurance companies, Lantigua faked his own death in Venezuela in 2013 so the family could claim millions in life insurance payments.

Lantigua was arrested in March 2015 in North Carolina after getting caught applying for a passport in another man's name. Simpson was jailed on state charges in Florida several days later, but prosecutors have turned the case over to federal officials.

Simpson faces additional federal charges in North Carolina.

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