Andre Zachary Rebelo, a cryptocurrency trader from Perth, Australia, was found guilty of murdering his mother, Colleen Rebelo, to claim life insurance money.
The court heard that Andre had taken out three life insurance policies worth a total of $1.2 million (approximately £500,000) just a week before his mother's sudden death in May 2020.
Initially, Colleen's death was not considered suspicious by first responders, and an autopsy failed to determine the cause.
However, suspicions were raised years later when an insurance company employee noticed irregularities in the claims process.
This led to a police investigation that uncovered Andre's fraudulent activities, including providing fake medical records and using an AI voice generator to impersonate his mother's psychologist.
Prosecutor Brett Tooker described Andre's actions as driven by financial desperation, stating, "To the outside world they were rich and beautiful, but the truth was different."
Andre and his former partner, Grace Piscopo, an Instagram influencer, were living beyond their means, with debts exceeding $120,000.
Despite pleading guilty to fraud, Andre denied the murder charge, but the jury found him guilty based on the evidence presented.
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