Non-sextuplets

So Brian decided to watch the news this morning, and was disgusted, DISGUSTED, by a report about a couple in Missouri that claimed that they were having/had sextuplets, all in an effort to get money and gifts from kind-hearted gentlefolk.
"We're sorry for everything we did," Sarah Everson said. Kris, her husband, vowed to pay back all those who sent money or other items. Kris said that they did it for financial reasons.
They probably did not expect that people would check out their story about the four boys and two girls that were in intensive care. The police are investigating the couple's bank account, the Post Office box they had set up to receive gifts, and the PayPal account they started for online donations. Huh? Where did they get the money for all the preparation for the scam, if they're so broke that they have to lie about the kids in the first place?
This lady invited a reporter into her home, showed off the nursery, clothes and fake pictures of her pregnancy (above), all to substantiate a lie that was so easily disproved. (Sample fact-checking question: "Hello Random Hospital. Do you have the Everson sextuplets in your intensive care unit?" Answer: "This is Random Hospital's ICU. Nope, no sextuplets here." Lie blown out of the water.)
While it's a clever idea, and well-knowing that so many other multiple-birth parents have hit the motherload with donations, this was a silly thing to do. Did they really think that no one would follow up? They could be charged with collecting cash and gifts under false pretenses, but here's my additional question: Was what they did against the law? How are they different then some guy in a silk suit feeding a convention hall full of people a line like, "Send me 10 percent of your income and you'll go to heaven." (Discuss.)