A lot of interesting events have taken place in Tampa, Florida over the past couple of years putting our area at the top headline news almost every week. Most recently, a Florida woman has been accused of faking cancer in order to steal money from her well-wishers. Her name is Kelly Johanneson, she is 36 years old, and she pretended to have Stage IV breast cancer so she could steal thousands of dollars from the Tampa Bay community. This all began in 2013 when Johanneson completely cut herself off from her family and friends by telling them she was being treated at the Moffitt Cancer Center of Tampa. Detective John Bergan comments, “It just seems so implausible that someone would use a horrible illness like cancer for personal gain,” and “Johanneson hurt so many people, from people that loved her to people that hardly knew her but wanted to help… It really is unbelievable.” Her family donated hundreds of dollars to her cause, while the community donated thousands to “Kelly’s Hope”. A friend stated: “I remember her GoFundMe all over my Facebook feed.” “Everyone was reaching out to her. When I hadn’t heard an update I assumed the worst. It never crossed my mind she could be lying.” Officials said family never made appointments to see her, never went to doctor’s visits or treatments with her and Moffitt has no record of her, thus resulting in Kelly being charged with organized fraud.

When people think of strange and bizarre crimes that take place in the United States, most will automatically link this thought to the state of Florida.

Here’s a few “bizarre” headlines that may just prove this stereotype to be correct:

“Florida Man Accused of Attacking Girlfriend With Banana”

“Police search for man who pushed woman’s head into Burger King toilet”

‘Fake Cop’ Matt Skytta, Florida Man, Shows IHOP Server His Butt When Free Food Request Doesn’t Work: Police

“Witness: Families Brawled At Chuck E. Cheese Over Prize Tickets”

“Jeremy Dugas Tried To Sell Duct-Taped Iguanas Dangling From Bicycle: Cops”