A man who tried to fake his own death before posing as his wife to claim a massive insurance payout has been convicted in London.
Syed Bukhari, 39, initially sent an email to his insurers posing as his wife saying he'd suffered a heart attack in Karachi, Pakistan and had died, in order to claim £1 million (NZ$1.9 million).
He went further and adopted his wife's voice on the phone to try and validate his allegation, the Manchester Evening News reported.
However, a voice analysis expert in the City of London Police's investigation compared Bukhari's voice with the call allegedly made by his wife and said they were likely the same person.
Bukhari pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by false representation, and he was sentenced to five years and seven months in prison.
He is currently serving jail time of more than seven years for unrelated fraud offences. His sentences will run in succession of each other.
The City of London Police called Bukhari's fraud attempts "brazen" as he bid to progress his insurance claim.
"Thanks to the initial enquiries carried out by the insurer and their subsequent referral to IFED [Insurance Fraud Enforcement Department], we were able to uncover the full extent of his fraudulent activity and bring him to justice," lead investigator and Acting Detective Sergeant Mike Monkton said in a statement.
The IFED investigation also revealed fake documents were submitted to his insurer in an attempt to substantiate his claim, including a medical certificate stating cause of death, a death registration certificate and a trust document.
"Several discrepancies" were found in his documents, including Bukhari's fingerprints on the medical certificate. Also, the cemetery named on the death certificate stating where he was allegedly buried had no record in their register for a week either side of his death.
Additionally, an investigator went to the Pakistan Union Council Offices where the death registration certificate recorded the alleged death. But the file which should have contained the details, including identification number of the deceased and a death certificate from the hospital, were empty.
Finally, there was no evidence that the medical centre in Karachi listed on the cause of death certificate existed.
Despite the overwhelming evidence, Bukhari initially denied the fraud and said his wife had made the claim without his knowledge. He later pleaded guilty in court.
