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

Nathan Carman, 28, was indicted in the 2016 death of his mother after investigators say he sunk his own boat on a faux fishing trip.

Courtesy of the Chakalos Family [main]; Associated Press [inset]

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.

Next Up

Former 'Family Feud' Contestant Sentenced To Life For Murdering His Estranged Wife

Timothy W. Bliefnick fatally shot Rebecca Bliefnick on Feb. 23, 2023 while the couple was in the process of getting a divorce.

Husband Of Missing Mother Who Searched 'How To Get Away With Murder’ Pleads Guilty To Her Murder

55-year-old Elizabeth Capaldi was reported missing on Oct. 12, 2022. In April 2023, her husband pleaded guilty to strangling and dismembering her, and hiding her remains.

New Jersey Teenager ‘Casually’ Slaughtered His Family During New Year’s Eve Party

“He killed them because he could,” the prosecutor said of Scott Kologi fatally shooting his parents, sister, and grandfather’s partner on Dec. 31, 2017.

Two Young California Boys Forced To Watch Their Father Kill Couple During Sailboat Trip

“Even now, we don’t know the full extent of what he’s done,” the son of Silas “Duane” Boston says.

Digital Technology Helps Solve Murder Of California Nurse Found Brutally Stabbed

“I felt that there was something broken in that person,” one official said of discovering who had committed the crime.

Migos Rapper Takeoff Dead After Houston Shooting

In the early morning hours of Nov. 1, 2022, the 28-year-old rapper was shot and killed outside a bowling alley in Texas.

Can You Help Solve Any Of These Massachusetts Murder Cases?

Authorities and loved ones continue to hold out hope that the killers will someday be brought to justice.

Accident Or Murder? Man Fleeing House Fire Dies After His Wife Strikes Him With Vehicle

“I don’t know why he didn’t survive,” Linda Stermer says of her husband Todd’s grisly 2007 death in Michigan.

Missing Connecticut Mom Jennifer Dulos Officially Declared Dead As Trial Begins

Jennifer Dulos, a missing mother of five from New Canaan, Connecticut, was officially declared dead, and now her ex’s girlfriend, Michelle Troconis, is on trial in connection with her murder.

Deadly Georgia Love Triangle Leads To Murder Among Neighbors

A mother plied her son with drugs and material possessions as she masterminded her romantic rival’s murder.