And she was aggressive about it, Velling said. It outlined work that Lori had done for him until 1988. [8] Other papers included the birth certificate of Becky Sue Turner and a judge's ruling granting a name change to Lori Erica Kennedy. [8], In the months between the separation and Lori's suicide, she behaved very erratically. In 2010, after she took her own life, secrets were revealed and the truth about her past began to unravel. Lori Erica Ruff was a secretive person. She would regularly be seen with her in some of her favorite tea shops. Police also found a curious letter within the safe. In the box a number of documents were discovered which revealed that Ruff had stolen the identity of Becky Sue Turner, a 2-year-old girl killed in a fire in 1971 in . Apparently, after Becky Sue Turner perished, a woman turned up and requested a copy of the birth certificate. This has led investigators to believe that Ruff was much older than she claimed to be. Various identification cards of Lori Ruff (AKA: Kimberly McLean) retrieved from the Social Security Administration. In 2010, a woman in Texas named Lori Ruff parked her Tahoe in the driveway of the house where her estranged husband Blake had been living since he had walked out on her after their relationship had soured. When asked about her background,Lori was guarded and evasive; she claimed her parents were dead and she had no siblings. Lori Erica Ruff was a secretive person. Where is the Body of the Legendary King Gorm of Denmark. In September 2011 the Ruff family, with the help of a congressional aide, sought the help of Joe Velling, an investigator for the Social Security Administration (SSA). Whatever the motivation behind one man entering wedlock to one woman, both parties usually do know each other intimately. The news of Kimberlys death saddened her mother deeply. That created a lot of heartburn for the family.. His recollection was that she was a dancer at a Dallas-area nightclub at the time [she was attending school], Velling said. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. 1,529 likes. [6] The fact that Ruff was able to cover up her identity so well in a time before the Internet has led to speculation that she had enlisted the services of a so-called identity broker.[6]. Blake's mom, Nancy Ruff, described facing a stone wall. She was above average height at 5feet 10inches (1.78m) tall, and weighed 160 pounds (73kg). Lori Erica Kennedy / Lori Ruff - Identified. Lori Erica Kennedy Ruff (October 16, 1968-December 24, 2010), was an identity thief who remained unidentified for nearly six years after her death. Review our. Marriage is a sacred act between two people that care deeply for one another. Although questions about the case remain, Lori Ruff's name has now been removed from the federal government's database for missing and unidentified persons. Perhaps because of these miscarriages, Lori was ultra-protective of her daughter. Given some of the comments she made or suggested, she didnt appear to realize why the marriage ended. Lori Erica Kennedy Ruff, was an American identity thief who remained unidentified for nearly six years after her death. [6] The article was subsequently republished in numerous newspapers around the world. The new Mrs. Ruff was an unusually private person, particularly around her in-laws, according to Velling, special agent in charge of the Social Security Office of the Inspector General in Seattle, Wash. When people made small talk with her like asking where she went to high school she would say, 'Its none of your business.' ", "Mystery of the woman with two names: Investigator tries to discover true identity of mother who committed suicide three years ago after husband finds evidence of a double life hidden in a lock box", List of unidentified decedents in the United States, List of unidentified decedents in California, List of unidentified murder victims in the United States, List of unidentified murder victims in California, List of unidentified murder victims in Texas, List of unidentified murder victims in New York, List of unidentified murder victims in Florida, List of unidentified murder victims in Michigan, List of unidentified murder victims in Pennsylvania, National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, https://infogalactic.com/w/index.php?title=Lori_Erica_Ruff&oldid=718811075, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2016, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, About Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core. Image: Social Security Administration. The grieving husbandrecognized the box. Shewas an accomplished identity thief. When given the chance for an extravagant and lavish wedding day to remember, Lori declined the offer. [3], Eventually, Ruff did not want her in-laws to have any contact with her daughter. She then moved to Idaho and procured a drivers license using the deceased girls birth certificate. Historic Mysteries provides captivating articles on archaeology, history, and unexplained mysteries. Ordinary people who do unthinkable thingsThe Minds of Madness is a True Crime Podcast that examines the most disturbing criminal minds and the impact violent crimes have on survivors of homicide. The tall and slender brunette met Ruff at a bible study group and introduced herself as Lori Kennedy. In May 1988, McLean obtained the birth certificate of Becky Sue Turner, a two-year-old girl who had died, along with two of her siblings, in a house fire in Fife, Washington in 1971. Ruffs apparent identity theft pulled in former Social Security Administration investigator Joe Velling, who hoped that publicity from the Times piece would urge amateur sleuths to provide some leads. The woman told doctors in 2005 that she was 35 a claim Velling doubts. After her death, her husband and his family found the evidence of her falsified identity in a lock box in her closet. Or, Lori Erika Kennedy? And she did it all pre-InternetShe may have done this on her own, but its possible she sought out one of these identity brokers.. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. She was eventually identified as a native of suburban Philadelphia who left home at age 17, in the fall of 1986, because she did not get along with her mother and stepfather. Synopsis In the box a number of documents were discovered which revealed that Ruff had stolen the identity of Becky Sue Turner, a 2-year-old girl killed in a fire in 1971 in Fife, Washington, in 1988, and then changed her name to Lori Erica Kennedy. [3], Ruff was incredibly overprotective of her daughter, often refusing to let anyone else hold her, which angered her husband's family. (Perkins, who was black and who marketed his legal services to LA's African-American community, had never taken on a white client during his career.) The Bizarre Truth About Lori Ruff, The Woman Without An Identity. Accept Read More, Jeffrey Alan Lash: His Remarkable Mystery. [6], After getting married, the Ruffs moved to Leonard, Texas. McLean requested the birth certificate in Bakersfield, California, Becky Sue Turner's birthplace. The mystery surrounding Jane Does identity begins in May 1988, when the unknown woman requested the Bakersfield, Calif., birth certificate of a 2-year-old girl, Becky Sue Turner, who died in a 1971 house fire in Fife, Wash., Velling said. She must now fight to clear her name and figure out who betrayed her husband. And, with the child, Lori's behavior became even more erratic. McLean, posing as Becky Sue Turner, then appeared before a judge in Dallas on July 5, 1988, and legally changed her name to Lori Erica Kennedy. She was sending deranged emails to the Ruffs. Blake Ruff married the woman he had known asLori in2004. Unresolved is an investigative and immersive look at those stories, as host Micheal Whelan tries to determine why these stories - unsolved crimes and other unexplained phenomena - have no ending. Investigators then began to search of hertrue identitya process that would take six years to complete. But it wasn't until Lori ended her life on Christmas Eve that the Ruffs would get answers. Ruff gradually acquired more documents in her new name, including a Social Security number. Years later, in the life she created with Ruff, tensions between the Verizon account manager and the wife he never really knew eventually reached a breaking point. Papers belonging to Ruff, who had been married with a child, surfaced after her suicide indicating she had once been known as Lori Kennedy, and prior to that, as Becky Sue Turner, the name of a young girl who had died in a Washington state fire in 1971. 2010 42- , . They tried several times to have a child, but had trouble conceiving and suffered multiple miscarriages. Or, maybe she was none of them. Until now, Lori Erica Ruff was known to authorities as Jane Doe a woman of mystery who jumped from state to state, taking on the identities of other people. Although Blakes family was suspicious of Lori from the beginning, Blake himself was very much in love. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. She told them her parents were dead and that she had no living siblings or extended family. Within the next two years, she obtained the birth certificate of Becky Sue Turner, a two-year-old girl who had died with her two sisters in a house fire in 1971. Buried deep in the back of Lori's closet, Blake pulled out a sealed lockbox. About a month afterward, the certificate was used to obtain legal identification in Idaho. Hair pulled from the woman's head had skin on it that helped forensic investigators learn she had one of the genes associated with coronary artery disease. In the days following her death, hebegan the grim task of sortingthrough his wifespossessions. Legal Statement. The tension between the Ruffs continued to grow as the new grandparents were rebuffed from visits. Lori's behavior caused immense tensions between Lori and the Ruffs, even keeping the new grandparents from visiting their granddaughter. She obtained a Texas drivers license in 1989, listing her age as 19. Lori met her future husband, Blake, in 2003. Find ratings and reviews for the newest movie and TV shows. By changing her name, she created a clean identity a person with no past.. McLean assumed a series of aliases before marrying Blake Ruff in 2004 and settling downleaving no trace of Kimberly McLean, at least until Fitzpatrick began researching her family tree. In 1989, her new identity was completed with a Texas drivers license. One was for her daughter. He filed for divorce a short time later. After following numerous leads he was stumped, and sought the help of the general public to identify her through an article published June 22, 2013, in The Seattle Times. On Monday though, Lori. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Lori Erica Ruff's true identity was Kimberly McLean. Lori acquired Becky Turners birth certificate in 1988. This site uses cookies to improve user experience. After her death, Lori's husband found a lockbox with papers inside that shed light on his wife's past. She parked her car, left it running, and shot herself. Kimberly Maria McLean, a.k.a. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. On December 24, 2010, the body of Lori Erica Ruff was found in her car parked in the driveway of the Ruff family's Texas home. Hosts Mike Ferguson and Mike Gibson guide you through the most interesting true crime stories. She was sending unhinged, threatening emails to the Ruffs; she and her daughter were losing weight; she even possibly tried to break into the Ruffs' home. Colleen Fitzpatrick, a former nuclear physicist who created[citation needed] the field of forensic genealogy, learned of Lori Ruff in 2013 and began work on the case. Sources However, the Mclean family now has a granddaughter who offers a glimpse of their beloved Kimberly. After her death, Lori's husband found a lockbox with papers inside that shed light on his wife's past. Lori attended the University of Texas regularly and graduated with a business administration degree in 1997. After several miscarriages, the couple finally had a daughter in 2008. He noticed the car and called the police. "True identity of Lori Ruff revealed six years after she committed suicide", "After 30 Years, Lori Ruff's True Identity Finally Revealed", "5 Creepy-As-Hell Stories Of Real People With No Identity", "She stole another's identity, and took her secret to the grave. She arrived at this identity by way of a girl named Becky Sue Turner. [2] She would also obsessively track the Ruffs' family history and try to find out their family recipes, but still refused to talk about her past. And when he asked her to marry him in 2004, she said yes, but insisted on no announcement in the newspaper, and wanted a wedding where only the minister was present. And, as he flipped through multiple IDs with pictures of his wife at different ages, he realized they all had different names printed on them, according to the Daily Mail. By the time she married Jon Blakely Blake Ruff, of Longview, Texas, in January 2004, her phony identification was as solid as her real past was distant. Lori Erica Ruff was the alias of an unidentified American woman and identity thief who committed suicide on December 24, 2010 in Longview, Texas. Lori Erica Ruff was a secretive person. For the next couple of years, Blake worked on all aspects of the marriage. Additionally, she displayed many asocial behaviors, such as leaving social gatherings to take naps. At the time of this application, Lori quoted her age as 19. [1] She eventually gave birth to a baby girl via in-vitro fertilization in 2008. [1] Velling approached a relative, who immediately identified the deceased Lori Ruff as Kimberly McLean.[1]. And why didn't she see any other option but to end her own life? After she died, her ex-husband's family discovered a lockbox in a closet in her home. Lori Erica Ruff's true identity was Kimberly McLean. Market data provided by Factset. In the car were two suicide notes: an 11-page one addressed to "my wonderful husband" and another addressed to her daughter, to be opened on her 18th birthday. [1][10] Fitzpatrick had Ruff's husband and daughter tested by a direct-to-consumer testing company, through which she was able to obtain Ruff's DNA results using genetic genealogy phasing techniques, which essentially subtracted Blake Ruff's DNA from Lori's. These secrets Lori Ruff had kept from even her husband, Blake Ruff, and his family. In 2010, he moved back across the state to live with his parents. Kimberly Maria McLean, a.k.a. The trail leading backwards was in the forbidden lockbox. Ruff gradually acquired more documents in her new name, including a Social Security number. Ruff had a first cousin named Cassidy on her list of matches; however, the name was very common and the cousin was not responsive. She was much older than that, he said. [3], The suicide notes were quickly determined to be incoherent ramblings that offered no clues to Ruff's identity. Blake and Lori married in 2004the only witness to their marriage was the priest. Different cultures define matrimony in different ways and tie the knot for various reasons. The Ruff family declined to comment on the story, which was first reported by the Seattle Times on Saturday. Ruff's true origins remained a mystery until 2016, when her identity was confirmed using a combination of public records and direct-to-consumer autosomal SNP analysis of her husband's and daughter's DNA, leading back to the McLeanCassidy family on Philadelphia's Main Line. And she may have even attempted to break into the family's home, according to the Seattle Times. Although she left notes for her husband and her daughter, they didn't provide any clues. Legal Statement. In addition, there were no matches for the woman in any existing fingerprint and facial recognition databases. Unfortunately, it looks like Lori took all of her secrets to the grave. Mother and child spent a lot of time together, which is normal for such a doting mother. Sometime later, Blake's father left the house to pick up the paper. The Varangians: Viking Conquerors turned Byzantium Honor Guard, The Secret Necropolis of Ancient Varna and the First Goldsmiths. He found a birth certificate for one person that wasn't her. For two years, Social Security investigator Joseph Velling has been working to uncover the real identity of Lori Erica Ruff, who was Lori Erica Kennedy before marrying into an East Texas family in 2004. The tall and slender brunette met Ruff at a bible study group and introduced herself as Lori Kennedy. In his spare time he enjoys astronomy and Xboxing. Just click the "Edit page" button at the bottom of the page or learn more in the Plot Summary submission guide. Blake Ruff has admitted that he isn't completely sure what drew him to Lori. Over time the pair grew closer and eventually, they eloped to Dallas. Blake admitted knowledge of the box. She became distressed due to her parents divorce. Lori Erica Ruff (born Kimberly McLean, October 16, 1968 - December 24, 2010) was a woman who took her own life while living in Longview, Texas. With the help of investigator Joe Velling, he traced the DNA to a family in Pennsylvania. [6] The Ruffs opened and read the letter, but it contained only "ramblings from a clearly disturbed person" and no details about Lori's past. Henceforth, Lori would be known as Lori Erica Ruff. She was eventually identified as a native. Lori refused to allow anyone else to babysit her child. After earning a GED and a college degree, she married into a wealthy East Texas family and gave birth to a daughter. In 2010, after she took her own life, secrets were revealed and the truth about her past began to unravel. Be the first to contribute! It must have been for some horrific reasoneither she was running away from a crime or an abusive family or relationship., She wanted a complete break from her past, said Velling. Market data provided by Factset. A week later, she obtained a Social Security number, removing traces of her true identity. [1] Despite the questions Blake's family had about Lori, the couple married in January 2004. Although plenty of questions about the case still have not been answered, Lori Ruff's name was removed from the federal government's database of missing and unidentified persons. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. The response? We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. They then discovered the lock box in a closet, pried it open with a screwdriver, and discovered the documentation of Ruff's past. ", "Texas woman's true identity baffles ex-husband, authorities years after her suicide", "Live chat with investigator, reporter about Jane Doe case", "Mystery woman: After 30 years and a suicide, Lori Ruff's real identity emerges", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lori_Erica_Ruff&oldid=1125479355, Articles with minor POV problems from October 2022, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from October 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from October 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 4 December 2022, at 06:14. Lori and Blake tried to have a child almost immediately after they were married, but found themselves experiencing fertility issues. She wasn't Lori Erica Ruffshe was a Pennsylvania woman named Kimberly McLean. She had told him she was from Arizona, that both her parents were dead, and that she had no siblings. How had their marriage fallen apart? But this could have simply been a number picked for convenience purposes only. Little Beckywas just two years old when she diedin a house fire outside of Seattle, Washington in 1971. Blake had enough with her inability to get along with his family. McLean used the child's birth certificate to obtain an Idaho state identification card, then moved to Texas and had her name legally changed to Lori Erica Kennedy. For example, Lori would often ramble to the minister on a variety of topics; mainly her perceived flaws, problems, and the failure of her marriage. Hersuicide cameafter Blake had filed fordivorce and moved back in with his parents. We cover everything from big time serial killers (and those you may never have heard of), to hauntings, possessions, disturbing mysteries, bizarre whodunits and basically anything that tickles our creepy fancy. Every day, stories unfold that have no resolution. He revealed that Lori considered it to be a personal item that must never be opened. She had told him she was from Arizona, that both her parents were dead, that she had had an unhappy childhood, and that she had no siblings; she also said her father had been a failed stockbroker. Velling said hes determined to uncover Jane Doe's true identity because he suspects she may have used a so-called identity broker to pull off such a complex crime. Player FM is scanning the web for high-quality podcasts for you to enjoy right now. [4] She also said her father was a failed stockbroker. This is a true crime podcast that spares none of the details and delves into what makes these killers tick. Signup to sync subscriptions across devices. After they married, Lori and Blake moved across the state from his parents, and they tried to have a child almost immediately. In 2010, a woman in Texas named Lori Ruff parked her Tahoe in the driveway of the house where her estranged husband Blake had been living since he had walked out on her after their relationship had soured. Southern charm is attempted but southern sass is bountiful. When Lori Erica Kennedy took her own life, she left behind evidence that she'd stolen another's identity. After obtaining the driver's license, Ruff went before a judge in Dallas on July 5 1988 and legally changed her name to Lori Erica Kennedy; a week later she obtained a social security number, effectively erasing her past. Lori definitely was not who she portrayed herself to be, so who was she? And, why had she changed her identity and hid her past from those closest to her? Lori Erica Kennedy Ruff (October 16, 1968 - December 24, 2010), was an American identity thief who remained unidentified for nearly six years after her death. After she died, her ex-husband's family discovered a lockbox in a closet in her home. Lori left behind two suicide notes, one of which was addressed to her husband and the other to her young daughter. Dismayed by having to move and attend a new school, she told Deanne shed be leaving for good. IMDb is the world's most popular and authoritative source for movie, TV and celebrity content. She had stolen the identity of deceased Becky Sue Turner in May 1988 before legally changing her name to "Lori Erica Kennedy ." Following her marriage in 2001, she assumed the surname "Ruff." Late in 2015, Velling received a call from a former nuclear physicist and forensic genealogist named Colleen Fitzpatrick, who had been following the case online. After Lori Erica Ruff's death, Blake Ruff realized his wife was a complete stranger. She also took a birth date of July 18, 1969. [3], On Christmas Eve 2010, Ruff's body was discovered in her car in the Ruffs' driveway, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot.
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