Roland Auslander Arrested

New York State Police have been looking for Roland "Jack" Auslander, 69, of  Cook Falls. After a stakeout they finally caught up with him and arrested him at his residence, 911 Cooks Brooks Rd. in the Town of Colchester. He was wanted on an indictment in nearby Sullivan county for:

Forgery second degree, Grand Larceny in the Third degree and Attempted Grand Larceny in the Fourth degree. He was also charged with Unlawful Disposal of Human remains in violation of the New York State Public Health Law, and Resisting arrest in Delaware County.

[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=auslander+rd,+cooks+falls,+delaware+county,+New+York&mrt=loc&sll=41.969191,-74.981689&sspn=0.227182,0.617981&ie=UTF8&s=AARTsJqtMXemag3xnluDQ5JTDQUDN_5q6w&ll=41.623655,-73.894043&spn=3.284922,8.789062&z=6&output=embed&w=400&h=200]

What makes the Roland Auslander case interesting is that he apparently kept his dead mother, Herta Auslander - who was 99 when she died of natural causes -  in a freezer at her home for more than a year while he continued to cash her social security checks.

The body of Herta Auslander was found inside a freezer chest, located on a porch at her home in Cooks Falls, by New York State Police in October 2008. An autopsy revealed the woman died of natural causes - cardiac disease. She had been dead for more than a year even though her social security checks were still being cashed. That's when the police became interested in her son, Roland, who was no stranger to trouble, having been arrested several times on drug charges.

Roland Auslander was arraigned in Town of Colchester Court on the Public Health Law violation, which carries up to a $2,000 fine; and the resisting arrest charge, a misdemeanor, said Lt. James Barnes of the NYS police. He was later taken to Sullivan County for arraignment on the felony warrant for the larceny and forgery charges.

[wpvideo NfFNziY7]

Where is Roland “Jack” Auslander?

Roland “Jack” Auslander, 69, buried his 100-year-old mother, Herta Auslander, not in a cemetery, nor did he have her cremated; Roland buried his dead mother in a freezer chest at her home in Cooks Fall, N.Y. There she remained for more than a year before being discovered by the New York State police. An autopsy revealed that the woman died of natural causes - cardiac disease - so foul play is not suspected in her death.

However in the meantime, for more than a year Roland was happily cashing her social security checks. The police, naturally, would like to have a chat with Roland - but he has disappeared. He hasn't been seen since his mother's body was discovered months ago.

Roland is also no stranger to trouble, he has been locked up several times in Sullivan County Jail and in the Woodbourne Correctional Facility on drug charges. Court records show he was convicted of buying more than 3 ounces of cocaine in Livingston Manor in 1987. He was imprisoned on drug charges again in 1999 and was released in 2003.

“He will eventually appear and we’ll ask him what Mom was doing in the freezer,” said Les Hyman, a senior investigator with the state police in Binghamton.

When Roland surfaces he will likely be facing criminal charges of fraud and forgery related to cashing his dead mother's social security checks. He will probably not face any charges for stuffing his mother in the freezer, which would at best be a violation of the public health law.

According to his attorney, Gerald Orseck, Roland has already paid back the roughly $20,000 that he accumulated from his mom’s Social Security checks. Orseck said he has no clue where Roland is hiding.

“I know he paid back the Social Security Administration because I delivered the check personally,” Orseck said.

This is not the first time Roland has disappeared. When he was out on bail, about 10 years ago, on a cocaine charge, he skipped the court date for his sentencing. He wasn't found until more than a year later, on a farm in Essex County, in Northeastern New York, where he was dressed like an Amish person.

“He was pretending that he was Amish, laying low, working on a farm,” Sullivan County District Attorney Steve Lungen recalls.

Has Roland gone Amish again? The police would certainly like to know: Where is Roland Jack Auslander now??

100-Year-Old Woman Found in Freezer

The body of Herta Auslander was found inside a freezer chest at her home in Cooks Falls, by New York State Police. Herta was at least 100 years old, police said. They believe her 69-year-old son, Roland "Jack" Auslander, stashed her body in the freezer more than a year ago and continued to cash her social security checks. Herta lived in a run-down farm house on Auslander Road. Jack lived around the corner in a small cabin.

[googlemaps http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=auslander+rd,+cooks+falls,+delaware+county,+New+York&mrt=loc&sll=41.969191,-74.981689&sspn=0.227182,0.617981&ie=UTF8&s=AARTsJqtMXemag3xnluDQ5JTDQUDN_5q6w&ll=41.623655,-73.894043&spn=3.284922,8.789062&z=6&output=embed&w=400&h=200]

At first police were not sure if foul play was involved in Herta's death. An autopsy could not be performed until the woman's body had thawed out sufficiently.

After the autopsy was performed it showed that Herta died in April 2007 of natural causes - cardiac disease. Her body had been in the freezer for more than a year.

Herta's bank became suspicious because of unusual recent activity on her account and the fact that no one had actually seen her in a long time. They called the police asking them to investigate. The police got a search warrant.

A fire was smoldering inside a barrel and several dogs were barking at Herta's house. A sign tied to her fence indicated that Herta rescued abandoned dogs, and that she'd be open for adoption visitors at 1 p.m. When police arrived about 30 dogs were at the house, some of them vicious, which made it difficult to retrieve the frozen woman.

Police are now looking for Jack Auslander and have spoken to his attorney. Barring a homicide charge - which is unlikely, after getting the results back from the autopsy - the fraud associated with cashing her Social Security checks will likely outweigh charges for stowing her body, which would amount to a violation of the public health law, police said. It's believed that Jack was controlling his mom's bank account, keeping her Social Security payments and endorsing some checks with a rubber stamp of her signature.

It's not a manhunt, "but we'd certainly like to talk to him," Senior Investigator Les Hyman said.

This is not the first time Jack Auslander has been in trouble. He has been locked up several times in Sullivan County Jail and in the Woodbourne Correctional Facility on drug charges. Court records show he was convicted of buying more than 3 ounces of cocaine in Livingston Manor in 1987. He was imprisoned on drug charges again in 1999 and was released in 2003.