Vermont Man Allegedly Murders Mom For Inheritance Under Guise Of A ‘Fishing Trip’

Nathan Carman, 28, was arrested and charged in an eight-count federal indictment after the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Vermont accused him of “murder on the high seas.”

The alleged motive was an insurance and inheritance scam in which the man stood to inherit $7 million in family money if his mother was gone.

According to authorities, Carman invited his mother, Linda Carman, on a fishing trip off the coast of Rhode Island in 2016. The pair set off on his boat called “Chicken Pox” in September, and Carman allegedly rigged the ship so it would take on water and sink once they were out to sea.

Carman was found on a life raft in a shipping channel near Martha’s Vineyard by a passing Chinese freight ship, whose captain brought him aboard. Carman reportedly had emergency food supplies on his raft.

The man told the captain of the ship he was certain his mother had perished when his boat sank.

Linda Carman’s body was never recovered.

His mother may not have been his only victim

The federal prosecutors also allege that Carman shot and killed his grandfather, John Chakalos, on Dec. 20, 2013.

Chakalos was a wealthy Connecticut businessman who made his money in the nursing home business, and his $47 million dollar fortune was set to be divided among his four daughters.

According to NBC News, authorities believe that Carman bought the rifle used to kill Chakalos in November 2013 and then killed the elderly man while he was sleeping. Police reportedly sent an arrest warrant for Carman to prosecutors, but the prosecutor requested more information before signing it, and no further action was taken.

Upon Chakalos’s death, Carman reportedly got half a million dollars from a bank account he was the beneficiary of. He then allegedly lived off that money for a couple years before targeting his mother in an attempt to get her part of the inheritance money.

In 2017, Linda Carman’s sisters filed a civil lawsuit alleging that Carman was responsible for the deaths of his mother and grandfather and should not get any of the inheritance money.

A multi-year federal investigation culminated in Carman’s May 11, 2022, arrest. He was charged with Linda Carman’s murder as well as mail fraud and wire fraud related to his alleged attempts to scam his boat’s insurer and collect his inheritance.

Carman, who denies the charges, is being held in custody pending a bail hearing. That hearing is expected to take place later this summer.