Two SC men tried to steal dead woman’s $8 million estate, federal indictment says

A federal grand jury in Columbia has indicted two Aiken men in an alleged $8 million inheritance fraud scheme that attempted to divert the assets of an 88-year-widow’s estate to themselves.

The federal indictment did not list the dollar amount, but civil lawsuits filed in Aiken County state court in the same inheritance matter said the amount involved in the scheme was at least $8 million.

Thomas Lee Bateman Jr., 50, and Cody Lee Anderson, 37, both of Aiken, were each indicted this week on charges of conspiracy to defraud and two counts of bank fraud, according to the federal indictment.

Anderson’s attorney, Greg Harris, and Bateman’s lawyer, Marion Moses, declined comment.

A federal grand jury had indicted Bateman earlier in the year on bank fraud charges connected to the scheme. This week’s superceding indictment kept the bank fraud charges and added Anderson as a named defendant. It also charged both men with conspiracy.

Bateman and Anderson are accused of scheming to get the woman to sign a will that diverted her money to them.

According to civil lawsuits in the matter and news accounts, the money was never transferred to the two men. A lawsuit contesting the new will for Margaret Crandall, the widow of a wealthy nuclear scientist, was settled in 2022 with the two men giving up any claim to Crandall’s assets and not admitting fault, according to news accounts.

The federal indictment alleged that Crandall, identified only as M.C., had initially executed a will in 2001 that left all her money to her husband. But if he died before she did, the money would go to charity and friends. Her husband died in 2012, and in 2018, she moved into Shadow Oaks, an assisted living facility in Aiken.

Bateman had power of attorney from 2019 for Crandall until she died in January 2022, and Anderson was the operator of George Funeral Home in Aiken, the indictment said.

Before and after Crandall’s death, Bateman and Anderson devised a scheme to get Crandall to sign a new will abrogating the old will and leaving the two men with all her money, the indictment said.

Anderson worked up that new will, which made him the personal representative of Crandall’s estate, the indictment said. Being personal representative would entitle him to 5% of the estate’s assets, or about $400,000. The new will gave Bateman the rest of the $8 million, the indictment said.

Before Crandall died, Bateman drove Crandall to Anderson’s funeral home, the indictment said. Anderson brought three of his funeral home employees out to the car, where they witnessed Crandall signing the new will, the indictment said.

News accounts said that in her final years, Crandall suffered from dementia.

Bateman and Anderson have initial court appearances in Columbia federal court on July 31.

Federal Judge Joe Anderson is handling the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys prosecuting the case are Winston Holliday and Jonathan Matthews. The FBI investigated.