Two Calif. women charged with scam involving fake dead baby

(CBS/KOVR) MODESTO, Calif. - Two California women were arrested over the weekend for allegedly begging for donations to pay for the funeral of a dead baby that doesn't exist, reports CBS station KOVR.

According to police, Tiffany Lyon, 27, and Chasity Doll, 20, were detained Saturday on charges of taking money under false pretenses and conspiring to defraud the public.

The pair reportedly stood near busy intersection with a sign depicting a baby boy and asked passing motorists to help pay for the child's funeral. Lyon and Doll managed to collect $640 in donations before officers discovered the ruse, reports KOVR.

Officers arrived on the scene after drivers complained that the women were entering the road to collect donations and creating a traffic hazard. The women told officers that their son, Justin Michael Farrell, had died at a Modesto hospital on June 6 from a heart condition while they were on vacation.

The women were unable to provide details of their "son's" death, and investigators eventually discovered the duo had downloaded the picture off the internet to concoct their story.