Man Arrested for Using Dead Person's Identity to Buy Cars in Memphis
A Memphis man has been arrested for allegedly using a deceased individual's identity to purchase two new vehicles.
William Hayes, 63, was apprehended on 10 August and charged with forgery and theft of property, after attempting to purchase two Kia Telluride cars using a fake Tennessee driving licence bearing the name of a deceased person.
According to a post on the Memphis Police Department's Facebook page, Hayes was taken into custody after completing the paperwork for the car purchases. He was found to be in possession of both sets of keys when arrested. The vehicles, valued at £125,000, were recovered by police. Hayes' bail has been set at £40,000.
This incident highlights the growing problem of "ghosting", a form of identity theft targeting deceased individuals. According to bereavement support service Empathy, around 2.5 million deceased people have their identities stolen each year by an estimated 800,000 identity thieves who specifically target the dead. This type of fraud can also involve combining fraudulent data with real information from the deceased, a practice known as synthetic identity theft.
While grieving families may not consider this potential risk, scammers gaining control of a deceased person's estate can lead to legal nightmares. Fortunately, in most cases, authorities can easily identify and apprehend individuals attempting to use a dead person's identity, as death records are readily available.
This case follows a study published in January 2024 by the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), highlighting the disproportionate impact of identity theft on Black communities. The study revealed that Black individuals spend significantly more time trying to recover their stolen identities. Eva Velasquez, president and CEO of the ITRC, stated that the study aimed to provide data on the vulnerability of Black communities to identity theft.
"We believe there is a lack of data around identity theft victimization in Black communities that creates a risk of becoming a victim," said Velasquez. "This is the first step in understanding identity issues in different communities. This effort allows us to develop specific programs that will help victims recover and resolve identity crime."
Kim Allman, head of Corporate Responsibility at Gen (parent company of LifeLock), emphasised the importance of developing culturally competent victim services to address the specific needs of diverse communities.
"Gen is proud to support the Identity Theft Resource Center and Black Researchers Collective in their efforts to understand how identity theft affects Black communities," said Allman. "We need identity theft and cybersecurity solutions that meet the needs of diverse communities in order to power Digital Freedom for everyone. This research effort will be critical to developing culturally competent victim services, and we look forward to additional outcomes as the effort progresses over the next several years."
