In a shocking revelation, a Kentucky man has confessed to faking his own death and engaging in computer fraud to avoid paying over $100,000 in outstanding child support to his ex-wife. 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, according to a recently filed plea agreement.

The plea agreement states that Kipf accessed the Hawaii death registry system in January 2023, using stolen credentials from a doctor in another state, and created a false case of his own death. He even went as far as certifying the case himself as the medical certifier. This fraudulent act led to his name being listed as deceased in numerous government databases.

But Kipf's deceptions didn't stop there. He infiltrated various other states' death registry systems using stolen credentials from real individuals, according to the plea agreement. Part of his motive behind faking his own death was to evade his substantial child support obligations to his ex-wife.

Furthermore, Kipf admitted to hacking into private business, governmental, and corporate networks using information he had stolen from others. He then attempted to sell this unauthorized access to buyers online, as mentioned in the court document. The estimated damages resulting from Kipf's crimes amount to over $195,000.

These damages include more than $79,000 in losses suffered by governmental and corporate networks, as well as more than $116,000 in losses incurred by his ex-wife. However, Kipf has agreed to make restitution to all parties affected by his actions, as stipulated in the plea agreement.

Kipf's illegal activities came to light when he was indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2023 on multiple charges. These included five counts of computer fraud and three counts of aggravated identity theft, involving his unauthorized access to state websites for Arizona, Hawaii, and Vermont. He was also indicted for making false statements on applications related to federally insured financial institutions, after using a false Social Security number to open two credit accounts in 2020 and 2023.

The initial charges against Kipf carried a potential prison sentence of over 30 years. However, after reaching a plea deal, his sentence could now be reduced to a maximum of seven years in prison, alongside fines of up to $500,000, according to court records.

The case of Jesse E. Kipf highlights the lengths to which individuals may go in an attempt to avoid their legal responsibilities. As the legal proceedings progress, it remains to be seen how this complex and disturbing case will ultimately unfold.