In a shocking case of identity theft that spanned over three decades, Matthew David Keirans has pleaded guilty to stealing the identity of William Donald Woods and using it in "every aspect of his life." Keirans, now facing up to 32 years in federal prison, assumed Woods's identity to obtain insurance, a Social Security number, a birth certificate, driver's licenses, credit, a job at a fast food restaurant, a bank account, and even had a child using Woods's last name.

The deception began in 1988 when Keirans, then 58 years old, met Woods at a hot dog stand. In 1990, Keirans obtained a fraudulent Colorado ID using Woods's name and date of birth, which allowed him to continue living as Woods while accumulating tens of thousands of dollars in debt under his victim's name.

The scheme took a devastating toll on Woods, who in 2019 discovered the massive debt under his identity. When he tried to close his accounts at a bank, Keirans manipulated the situation to frame Woods for stealing his own identity. This resulted in Woods spending over 400 days in jail and nearly 150 days in a mental hospital. The real breakthrough in the case occurred when Woods discovered that Keirans worked at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and alerted the authorities.

According to a Justice Department news release, a detective "unraveled" the scheme through DNA evidence, which proved that Keirans was impersonating Woods. Initially, Keirans denied any involvement and claimed that Woods was mentally unstable and needed to be locked up. However, he eventually confessed to the identity theft and providing fraudulent documents to aid in Woods's arrest.

The consequences of Keirans's actions have been far-reaching, as Woods struggled to assert his true identity throughout the years. In 2021, Keirans was convicted and Woods was released, pleading no contest in exchange for his freedom. In May of that year, the court ordered Woods to only use his real name, Matthew Keirans.

Despite Woods's attempts to bring Keirans to justice and protect his own identity, Keirans continued to assert that his identity was under threat. Woods filed a second identity theft complaint in September 2022, prompting Keirans to express concern about his safety to a Los Angeles detective.

The charade finally came to an end in 2023 when Woods reported Keirans to his employer, the Iowa hospital system. Keirans, in response, informed the authorities that an internal investigation had been initiated. A detective in Iowa subsequently matched Woods's DNA with that of his father in Kentucky, providing irrefutable evidence of the identity theft.

Upon learning about the DNA evidence, Keirans exclaimed, "My life is over." With his guilty plea, this decades-long identity theft scheme is finally being brought to a close. Keirans now awaits sentencing, facing potential decades behind bars for his crimes.

This case serves as a chilling reminder of the devastating consequences of identity theft, highlighting the importance of vigilance in protecting personal information.