Deadbeat Dad Hacks State Registry to Fake His Own Death

A Kentucky deadbeat dad has been sentenced to 81 months in prison after copping to a cyber intrusion into a government death registry system in an effort to fake his own death, among other computer fraud and identity theft related offenses.

Jesse Kipf, a 39-year-old, admitted he was trying to avoid paying the reported $116,000 he owed in back child support payments to his daughter and her mother. The US Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Kentucky said, in addition to committing computer fraud to cheat his kid out of cash, Kipf infiltrated several additional business, as well as private and government networks, then sold the access he gained on Dark Web forums to the highest bidder.

To fake his own death, the US Attorney's Office explained Kipf used stolen credentials belonging to a doctor in another state to log into the Hawaii Death Registry System and fill out the paperwork necessary to create a death certificate for himself. As a result, Kipf was listed as deceased in many government databases, the prosecutors added.

"This scheme was a cynical and destructive effort, based in part on the inexcusable goal of avoiding his child support obligations," Carlton S. Shier, US Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, said in a press release following Kipf's sentencing. "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. Fortunately, through the excellent work of our law enforcement partners, this case will serve as a warning to other cyber criminals, and he will face the consequences of his disgraceful conduct."