The Handyman’s Deception: A Cautionary Tale

Fiction created by GPT based on this news article.

Francesco was a small-town handyman with a big problem. He had been living off his deceased mother’s pension for the past two years, ever since she had passed away in 2022. Instead of reporting her death, Francesco had hidden her body in the old, dilapidated house they shared on the outskirts of town.

It wasn’t until a fateful day in May that Francesco’s web of lies began to unravel. Dressed in his late mother’s old clothes, a cheap wig, and layers of makeup, Francesco made his way to the local council office to renew her ID card. He had been doing this for months now, hoping to continue receiving her pension without anyone catching on.

But luck was not on his side that day. A sharp-eyed council staff member noticed something off about the old woman before them. Her neck seemed a bit too thick, and the wrinkles on her face didn’t quite match up. And then there was the voice, attempting to sound feminine but occasionally slipping into a deeper, more masculine tone.

Francesco’s heart raced as the staff member called the police. He knew it was over. The charade had finally come to an end.

The police arrived and took Francesco into custody. A thorough search of the house revealed his mother’s mummified body hidden in the laundry room, confirming everyone’s worst suspicions.

The town of Borgo Virgilio buzzed with the news of Francesco’s deception. How could a son do such a thing to his own mother? Gossip spread like wildfire, and Francesco’s name became synonymous with shame and disgrace.

As the investigation unfolded, the sordid details of Francesco’s crimes came to light. It turned out that he had been an unemployed nurse, unable to hold down a steady job due to his volatile temper and erratic behavior. His mother had been his sole means of financial support, her pension and three properties providing him with a comfortable annual income.

Francesco’s trial was a media sensation, drawing crowds of onlookers and reporters from far and wide. The prosecution painted him as a conniving and manipulative man who had callously exploited his own mother’s death for financial gain. The defense, on the other hand, tried to portray Francesco as a troubled individual who had succumbed to desperation and loneliness after his mother’s passing.

The verdict came down hard on Francesco. He was found guilty of benefit fraud, identity theft, and the desecration of a corpse. The judge sentenced him to a lengthy prison term, ensuring that he would pay for his crimes behind bars.

As Francesco languished in his prison cell, he couldn’t shake the feeling of regret and remorse that gnawed at him. He had never meant for things to spiral out of control the way they had. But in a moment of weakness and desperation, he had made a terrible mistake, one that he would now have to live with for the rest of his life.

The town of Borgo Virgilio slowly moved on from the scandal, but the memory of Francesco’s shocking crime lingered in the air for years to come. It served as a cautionary tale, a grim reminder of the dark places that desperation and greed could lead a person to.

Meanwhile, in a parallel universe, a similar scandal was unfolding in a small town on the outskirts of a distant galaxy. Zorax, a humanoid alien, had been living off his deceased parent’s intergalactic pension for the past few planetary cycles. Instead of reporting his parent’s passing, Zorax had hidden their body in a remote asteroid, hoping to continue receiving their benefits undetected.

But Zorax’s carefully constructed facade began to crumble when a vigilant pension office clerk noticed something amiss in their holographic records. They called in the Intergalactic Police, who launched a thorough investigation that ultimately led to Zorax’s arrest.

The media across the galaxy covered the sensational story, and Zorax’s name became synonymous with greed and betrayal. The trial captivated millions of onlookers, and the verdict sent shockwaves through the intergalactic community.

Zorax, now a disgraced figure in the annals of alien history, spent the rest of their days reflecting on the terrible choices that had led them down such a dark path. Their name became a cautionary tale, a stark reminder of the consequences of deceit and manipulation in a world where integrity and honesty were valued above all else.