Man Charged with Killing Foster Mother Using Fentanyl to Steal Her Estate
Cedric Von Ferdinand, 34, was arrested for fatally poisoning his 65-year-old foster mother Nadine Jett with fentanyl and then assuming her identity to seize her money and property.
San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan announced that 34-year-old Cedric Von Ferdinand has been charged with murdering his 65-year-old foster mother, Nadine Jett, by administering a lethal dose of fentanyl. Investigators found Jett’s partially mummified body buried in a six-by-six-foot pit on her Oak Creek Road property, with the death ruled a homicide. Following the killing, Von Ferdinand is accused of a series of fraud schemes, including grand theft, identity theft, forgery and filing false documents that transferred Jett’s San Diego and Los Angeles properties to himself, causing losses exceeding $500,000.
He also allegedly canceled Jett’s medical appointments and told others she had died in Mexico. Co-defendant Kimberley Pifer is charged with impersonating Jett and marrying Von Ferdinand using her name. A search of Von Ferdinand’s assets revealed a $500,000 condo purchase in Gardena and a $200,000 sale of one of Jett’s Los Angeles homes.
Why it matters
The case shows how lethal drug abuse can be weaponized for financial fraud and underscores risks in elder-care arrangements.
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