A man from Somerset, Kentucky, has been sentenced to prison for his involvement in hacking state registry systems. His motive was to fabricate his own death as a means of evading child support payments.
A 39-year-old individual named Jesse Kipf has been sentenced to 81 months by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for charges of computer fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Kipf has been accused of hacking into state systems in Hawaii, Arizona, and Vermont, as well as two private companies, GuestTek Interactive Entertainment and Milestone Inc., according to federal court documents.
In January 2023, federal prosecutors claimed that Kipf, who owed a significant amount of money to his ex in California, allegedly acquired the login information of a doctor and used it to access the Hawaii Death Registry System. It is alleged that he then proceeded to create a case file for his own untimely demise.
According to court filings, he proceeded to complete a death certificate, assuming the role of a doctor, and submitted it. This resulted in his apparent death being recorded in multiple government databases.
According to prosecutors, he gained unauthorized access to various death registries and private business networks and then proceeded to sell this access on the dark web.
In a shocking turn of events, it has come to light that he allegedly faked his own death and is now facing accusations of using fake Social Security numbers to open credit cards, all in an effort to start a new life.
Kipf has pleaded guilty to the crimes he committed for personal gain, according to the DOJ.
Kipf is obligated by federal law to serve 85% of his prison sentence. After his release, he will be under supervision for a period of three years.
“This scheme was a cynical and destructive effort, based in part on the inexcusable goal of avoiding his child support obligations,” Carlton S. Shier, IV, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky said. “This case is a stark reminder of how damaging criminals with computers can be, and how critically important computer and online security is to us all.
The DOJ stated that the harm caused to governmental and corporate computer systems, along with Kipf’s failure to meet his child support obligations, resulted in a total of $195,759.
Source: Fox News