Chicago Bears defender John Helwig #80 is seen at far right in the 1956 NFL Championship Game against the New York Giants. (© Kidwiler Collection/Diamond Images/Getty Images)

Daughter charged with cashing dead dad's NFL pension checks since 1994

12/20/2012

We always want to keep our loved ones close even after they've gone, and in some cases, at least as close as the drive-up teller's window. Constance Helwig-Langlois faces fraud charges after being accused of continuing until 2011 to cash the NFL benefit checks sent to her father, former Chicago Bears player John Helwig, even after his death — which was in 1994. That's 17 years, or 14 longer than Helwig's pro career in the 1950s. The tab never topped $12,000 year, but court documents say it was something of a family business: Helwig's wife, Ruth, twice told NFL officials he was still living, and his daughter kept up the masquerade after Ruth's death in 2007. [Source]

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