Nathan Carman Asked ‘Who Had to Die’ 1st in His Family in Order to Inherit His Grandfather’s 8 Figure Net Worth
John Chakalos had one of the biggest estates in the northeastern part of the US. But did his vast fortune lead to his downfall?
His grandson, Nathan Carman, was particularly close to the patriarch when he was alive. Family members described him as a volatile man in Netflix‘s The Carman Family Deaths. But it all boiled down to the day where John Chakalos was found dead in his bedroom with a gunshot to his head. Three years later, his daughter Linda Carman was missing after a fishing trip with Nathan.
All eyes were turned on Nathan after it was discovered that he bought a .308-caliber semi-automatic rifle before his grandfather’s death. He was arrested in 2022 for an eight-count indictment charging him with the 2016 murder of his mother, Linda Carman, on the high seas, and related frauds to obtain family and insurance funds.
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What was John Chakalos’ Net Worth?
According to CNN and the Boston Herald, John Chakalos’ net worth and estate exceeded $40 million. Shortly before his death, Nathan had emailed his grandfather’s trust and estate attorney, asking who had to die first for Nathan to inherit his grandfather’s money.
Who inherited John Chakalos’ fortune?
John Chakalos’ fortune was split between his children. NBC Connecticut reported that his youngest daughter was the executor.
After taxes and debts were paid, “there’s a number of 20 million federal estate tax. Paid over $100,000 for the funeral, mostly for a monument, $500,000.00 was given to a church in Hartford on Fairfield Avenue.”
“The trust probably continues in existence for his four children,” attorney John Gale told the outlet. “And it’s likely that if any one of his daughters were to pass away, that the trust would continue in existence for the benefit of any children the daughters had.”
NBC News affiliate reported that Nathan could have received up to $7 million after his mother’s death.
The Netflix documentary showed that Nathan Carman received money from the two bank accounts his grandfather had set up shortly after his death. Between 2014 and 2016, Nathan spent most of it and was considered “low on funds,” according to the indictment.
After Linda died, her siblings became suspicious of her son, and they filed a “slayer action” in New Hampshire so that he could not inherit their family wealth. Chuck Lapenna, says in the documentary that he believed Nathan was receiving $100,000 a year from his grandfather before his death.
“This is not about money, it is about justice,” Dan Small, an attorney for the Chakalos family, said in a statement during the filing.
Nathan was arrested and charged with murder in May 2022 after he filed an $85,000 claim with his insurance company for his boat, and the insurance company sued back. The FBI alleged that he engaged in a years-long scheme to ensure he would be John’s sole beneficiary and killed John and Linda to claim his inheritance early. He pleaded not guilty last year to fraud and first-degree murder in the death of his mother, per The Associated Press.
Nathan was due to be on trial in October 2022. He died by suicide on June 15, 2023, CT Insider reported. He was 29 years old. His grandfather’s case remains unsolved, while his mother’s murder case was dismissed.
