Faking It: Raymond Roth's Disappearing Act

It was no ordinary day at the beach when raymond roth walked into the water and vanished. His wife was plan ig his funeral. Was was other planning going on. Raymond playing what drifrk to order next... See More

It was no ordinary day at the beach when raymond roth walked into the water and vanished. His wife was plan ig his funeral. Was was other planning going on. Raymond playing what drifrk to order next and celebrating his newfound freedom. And not in the after life. It is a familiar fantasy. Dump your old life, for a one-way ticket to paradise. It is the day dream of a million midlife crises. Raymond roth decided to hit reset on his life a few weeks before his 48th birthday. His gran began with a day at the beach in new york. And a great big lie. It's like surreal, kind of, you know? Reporter: Jon roth, a 22-year-old former marine, shows us the exact spot where his father got in over his head. I'm more afraid that my dad might just show up out of nowhere, and that would be -- that would be crazy. Reporter: Saturday, july 28th, 2012. The weather, overcast and cool, with a chance of rain. Nevertheless, raymond and son decide it's a perfect beach day. Neighbor ron christian remembers. He just said, "see ya later, we're going to the beach." Reporter: At the beach, the roths choose their spot with care. We kind of went off over back there. It was a no-swim zone. Reporter: Just the place for a swim, raymond decides. He took his shirt off. He took his shoes off, even. Reporter: Half an hour later, jon sounds the alarm. Saying his dad went for a dip and disappeared. I called my stepmom. I told her, "i don't know where he is." Dad went into the water and never came back out. Reporter: Evana and raymond's marriage was no bed of roses. In fact, they didn't even sleep in the same bed. But still, the news he might be dead hit like a ton of bricks. She started crying on the phone. She was very upset. Reporter: Roth calls 911 and runs for help. And I told them, "i don't know where he is. I can't find him. You gotta help me." And then that's when the whole search went crazy. Reporter: Helicopters, lifeguards, the coast guard, everyone responds to the scene. Raymond is not an easy guy to lose. He's, like, 6'3", about 280. Whoa. Reporter: They comb the beach, and fish for his large body in the sea. It was a full rescue effort at that time. Reporter: But roth is nowhere to be found. We're all crying on the beach that, you know, he -- maybe he had heart attack, maybe, you know, the undertow. Reporter: But then what about this? Among the belongings he left on the beach, a wallet with no driver's license, a cell phone with no calls or texts, and, as evana soon discovered, bank accounts, with no money. There was nothing left. Reporter: And although it is unclear exactly when, raymond had also significantly increased -- tripled. Reporter: His life insurance. But it would never do anyone any good because raymond roth didn't stay dead. And then the horror started. Reporter: Four days after the disappearance, evana roth stumbles upon her stepson jon's stumbles upon her stepson jon's open e-mail account -- uh-oh. All the e-mails popped up. Reporter: She reads a dumbfounding series of secret messages from raymond, sent the day before he went missing. Raymond mentions a "last will and testament," speaks of "going the distance," and getting "cash for the trip." Ray warns him to use a pay phone to call me at the resort. And I'm like, "i can't believe it. He's alive. We have to call the authorities." Reporter: Then, evana gets a phone call. He called my name. He was like, evan -- and I just hung up the phone. I couldn't believe it was his voice. It was like someone rising from the dead. I thought he was dead. Reporter: When evana figured out her husband was still alive, she wanted to kill him. Instead she did the next best thing. She blew the whistle on her allegedly scheming husband and his side-kick, her stepson. I was planning a funeral for him? Reporter: And where in the world is raymond during his not so near death experience? Tanning in tahiti? Cooling his heels in cancun? Posing as a playboy in paris, perhaps? No, no. He had driven his honda down to his own timeshare at the westgate lakes resort and spa in orlando, florida. It's hard to believe that anybody would do that, and then go to his timeshare. You know, if you're gonna do that, you gotta disappear for about ten years. Reporter: Meanwhile his son, and alleged co-conspirator, makes a full confession. Jon roth says one day on the front porch, his father laid out the plan to end his life. He said, "well, I'm just going to go into the water and not come out and that'll be it for me." And I was, like, "what? Are you kidding? Like, you're just going to try to kill yourself?" And he goes, "no, no, no, no, I'll be in florida." You know, like, he was, ta-da. Reporter: What was the plan? He said that my role was to just convince everybody that he was dead, and once that happened, I would collect on the moneys and deliver the moneys to him in florida. Reporter: And then that day in july, it's go time. He said, "okay, here's all my things. I'm leaving. See you later, bye. You wait 30 minutes, and then you tell everybody I'm missing." Reporter: Roth denies it, but jon says his father has physically abused him for years and forced him to take part in the scheme by threatening him with death, the real kind, not like his fake one. You had to participate in the big lie. Yes, because if I didn't, i would die and anyone who I told about this would die. Reporter: And why should that threat be believed? I mean, he's a violent person. Not only that, he has a ton of weapons in the house. Reporter: And even as a former marine, you didn't feel you could defend yourself. Not against weapons. Especially if I don't have any. Reporter: As for raymond, his dream of a cosmic do-over, dashed. He heads for home in his honda. On the way, his lucky streak continues. He is stopped for speeding. I got a guy on a traffic stop listed as missing involuntary out of new york. Reporter: Raymond is sent on his way. Turns out being a missing person, not a crime. But insurance fraud is. And those are the charges waiting for him when he finally resurfaces in new york where it seems nobody loves raymond. Raymond, are you sorry? Now's the time to apologize, ray. Reporter: Raymond says the life insurance angle was his son's idea, he had nothing to do with that. But prosecutors are charging both men. And so ends one man's fatally flawed plan. Raymond roth will have to live with the consequences, but not with his wife. She is filling for divorce. But instead of a bachelor timeshare down south, raymond may be sharing a prison cell up state.