faking your own death

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Kentucky Man Faked His Own Death to Avoid Child Support

He now faces hundreds of thousands in fines and restitution, plus jail time

(Newser) - A Kentucky man went to great lengths to avoid paying more than $100,000 in outstanding child support—and as a result, he now faces years in jail, not to mention fines that could dwarf that $100,000. In a plea agreement filed recently, Jesse E. Kipf, 39, admitted to...

Alleged US Fugitive Appears in Court, Speaks in British Accent

Man identified as Nicholas Rossi identified himself as Arthur Knight Brown

(Newser) - A man accused of faking his death and fleeing the US to avoid rape charges in Utah denied at a court appearance Tuesday that he is the suspect and, in an apparent British accent, called allegations that he wasn't giving his true name "complete hearsay." Nicholas Rossi,...

Canadian Author Pleads Guilty to Abducting Son

Prosecutors said Dawn Walker faked their deaths before fleeing to Oregon

(Newser) - A Canadian author accused of faking her death and the death of her 7-year-old son before fleeing to Oregon last year has pleaded guilty to charges including parental abduction, but will probably avoid prison time. Dawn Walker, an award-winning Indigenous writer from Saskatchewan, also pleaded guilty Thursday to possession of...

Newton-John's Dead Ex Alive in Mexico

Speculation reigns he faked it to escape debt

(Newser) - Olivia Newton-John’s former lover has been presumed dead since going missing on a 2005 fishing trip—but he may have faked it due to rising debts, the Daily Mail reports. Private investigators claim to have found Patrick McDermott working in a small Mexican fishing town, and a fax sent...

Death Hoax Pilot Captured After Apparent Suicide Try

Accused swindler found in Florida campground with wrist slit

(Newser) - A businessman believed to have faked his own death by jumping out of a plane has been captured in Florida, the Northwest Florida Daily News reports. Law enforcement sources say Marcus Schrenker was found at a campground, alive but with his wrists slit. The fugitive had emailed a friend Monday...

Broker Tried to Fake Plane Death: Cops

Pilot facing fraud charges abandoned plane in mid-air

(Newser) - An Indiana businessman being investigated for fraud apparently tried to fake his death in a plane crash, the Indianapolis Star reports. Authorities believe businessman Mark Schrenker, an accomplished stunt pilot, faked a distress call from the small plane he was piloting saying that the windshield had imploded and he was...

Man Kills Stranger, Fakes Own Death

Suspect commits suicide as cops close in; wife under scrutiny

(Newser) - A Chicago-area construction boss trying to work a life-insurance scam killed another man, used the body to fake his own death, then killed himself as police converged, the Chicago Tribune reports. Authorities are now looking at whether the killer and his wife, who had email contact after his “death,...

7 Stories