Nearly 40 names listed on New York's World Trade Center death toll will be removed since city officials cannot confirm their deaths, reports the Guardian.
The paper cited the Associated Press as saying that the official toll would be revised from 2,792 to about 2,750 Wednesday. "The decision was made by several city agencies, including the medical examiner's office, the police department and the mayor's office," said a city official, who spoke to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity Tuesday, the paper said.
Among those listed as missing are several illegal immigrants and people whose relatives insist they were near the WTC on 9/11.
After sorting through thousands of cases, a Reported Missing Committee was formed to remove fraudulent names on the list, which peaked at 6,700 two weeks after the attack. Till September 2003, police had made about 40
arrests related to people falsely claiming they lost loved ones, and law enforcement agencies in other cities have
nabbed others, the paper said.
