Kentucky man admits to faking his own death to avoid paying over $100k in child support

A Kentucky Man Fakes Death to Evade Child Support Payments

A Kentucky man has admitted to faking his own death in order to avoid paying over $100,000 in outstanding child support to his ex-wife. The plea agreement was filed in federal court late last month.

Identity Theft and Computer Fraud Charges

1. Jesse E. Kipf, 39, pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft and one count of computer fraud in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky on March 29.
2. According to the plea agreement, Kipf accessed the Hawaii death registry system in January 2023 using the details of a doctor living in another state and created a case for his own death.
3. He then assigned himself as the medical certifier for the case and certified his own death, resulting in Kipf being listed as deceased in many government databases.

Exploiting Other States’ Death Registry Systems

• The plea agreement states that Kipf infiltrated other states’ death registry systems using credentials he stole from real people.
• He faked his own death, in part, to avoid his outstanding child support obligations to his ex-wife.

Hacking and Attempted Sale of Network Access

• Kipf also admitted to hacking into private business, governmental, and corporate networks using stolen information from others.
• He attempted to sell access to these networks to buyers online.

Financial Damages and Restitution

1. Kipf’s crimes resulted in more than $195,000 in estimated damages.
2. This includes over $79,000 in losses to governmental and corporate networks and over $116,000 in losses suffered by his ex-wife.
3. According to the plea agreement, Kipf has agreed to pay restitution to all parties he wronged.

Indictment and Initial Charges

Kipf was initially indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2023 on multiple counts of computer fraud and aggravated identity theft.

He was accused of illegally accessing state websites for Arizona, Hawaii, and Vermont, as well as businesses GuestTek Interactive Entertainment Ltd. and Milestone Inc.

Kipf was also indicted on two counts of making false statements on applications in connection with federally insured financial institutions.

Plea Deal and Sentencing

• After taking a plea deal, Kipf now faces a maximum of seven years in prison and up to $500,000 in fines, according to court records.
• His sentencing hearing is scheduled for the afternoon of April 12.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

   • Target 16.4: By 2030, significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flows, strengthen the recovery and return of stolen assets, and combat all forms of organized crime.
   • Indicator: The article mentions that Jesse Kipf hacked into private business, governmental, and corporate networks with information he stole from others. This indicates his involvement in organized crime and illicit activities related to financial fraud.

2. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

   • Target 8.7: Take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labor, end modern slavery and human trafficking, and secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labor.
   • Indicator: The article states that Jesse Kipf faked his own death to avoid paying outstanding child support to his ex-wife. This highlights the issue of child support evasion, which is connected to child labor and the well-being of children.

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Source: nbcnews.com

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