Local News

Report: Days before Dover man killed family in murder-suicide, wife’s life insurance policy changed

Authorities say Rakesh “Rick” Kamal killed his wife, Teena, and daughter, Arianna, before turning a gun on himself on Dec. 28.

By Dialynn Dwyer

July 10, 2024

• Facebook
• Twitter
• E-Mail
• E-Mail
• 36

Four days before authorities say a Dover man shot and killed his wife and daughter before taking his own life, the beneficiaries on his wife’s life insurance policy were changed, The Boston Globe reports.

Authorities have said that Rakesh “Rick” Kamal killed his wife, Teena, and 18-year-old daughter Arianna before turning the gun on himself in their $4 million, 21-room home on Dec. 28.

On Christmas Eve, a fax was sent to the insurance company holding Teena Kamal’s $1.25 million policy, according to the Globe. For three decades, Rick Kamal had been listed as the primary beneficiary, with Arianna listed as the backup or “contingent” beneficiary. The change, made days before the family’s death, switched up the policy to have Rick and Arianna Kamal share the primary designation and to list Rick’s brother, Manoj Kamal, as the contingent beneficiary. 

In the months since the family’s death, there has been a legal battle among the couple’s siblings over Teena Kamal’s life insurance payout, starting when Manoj Kamal filed the claim to collect his sister-in-law’s policy payout, the Globe reported. 

Teena Kamal’s brother, Sandeep Bedi, is “raising concerns” with the insurance company about the circumstances of the family’s deaths and the beneficiary change, according to the Globe. 

“This is salacious and heartbreaking, but this is not uncommon,” J. Michael Young, a Texas attorney who specializes in life insurance disputes, told the Globe. “Anytime you get a million dollars up in the air, it’s not uncommon to see battles.”

The Globe has previously reported that, unknown to his family, Rick Kamal had amassed massive debt in the years leading up to the murder-suicide, culminating in late Dec. 2023 with an order to allow the family to be evicted from their Dover mansion.

Teena Kamal’s family has said she “had no clue” of the financial situation.

Read the full report at the Globe.