Reno, NV: Guilty plea in insurance case for daughter of woman accused of killing ex-husband

By Jaclyn O’Malley
jomalley@rgj.com

The daughter of a woman charged with the 2008 poisoning death of her estranged husband pleaded guilty to conspiring with her family to fake her mother’s death to collect insurance money.

Natasha Jonsson, 22, pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiracy to commit theft, a gross misdemeanor. Washoe District Judge Brent Adams imposed a $5,000 fine that includes legal fees and extradition costs. Authorities said Jonsson is expected to return to Costa Rica where she had been a medical school student.

Jonsson was charged in April with insurance fraud, as was her mother, Nazira Maria (Ugalde) Cross, and brother, Runar Edwin Jonsson. Both remain fugitives. No insurance payouts were made.

Senior Deputy Attorney General Ronda Clifton of the insurance fraud unit said Jonsson cooperated with local and federal authorities in the murder investigation of her mother.

America’s Most Wanted has featured Nazira Maria Cross on its Saturday night broadcast. She made host John Walsh’s top 10 fugitives of 2009 list, coming in at No. 7.

So far, no one knows her whereabouts. She is wanted in a $1 million warrant charging her with first-degree murder.

Nazira Maria Cross, known as “Nacita,” was charged last year in Plumas County, Calif., with the July 2008 murder of her husband, Michael Cross. He was a 55-year-old Reno and Lovelock car dealership owner. Authorities said she fled the country following a police interview regarding Cross’s death. Nazira Cross is accused of poisoning her estranged husband and burying his body at his Lovelock ranch.

According to court records, Nazira Cross falsified life insurance policies, inflating her net worth so her payouts would be higher. Witnesses told authorities they were aware of her scheme, that she claimed the insurance money would pay Michael Cross money she owed him.

Nazira Cross listed her children as beneficiaries, who were supposed to receive hundreds of thousands of dollars. Natasha Jonsson provided false information to insurance companies, including forged foreign death certificates, and stated her mother had been in Ecuador receiving treatment for terminal cancer when she was murdered in March 2008. During interviews with police, Jonsson admitted to the scam, and said her mother was the mastermind. She said she was an unwilling participant.

Nazira and Michael Cross divorced in January 2008, months before his body was found on his Lovelock ranch.