She then moved to Idaho and procured a drivers license using the deceased girls birth certificate. After several miscarriages, the couple finally had a daughter in 2008. Perhaps because of these miscarriages, Lori was ultra-protective of her daughter. Over time the pair grew closer and eventually, they eloped to Dallas. When problems became too difficult for him to continue, Blake finally accepted that their marriage wasnt working and subsequently moved out of the home they shared. Yes! After she died, her ex-husband's family discovered a lockbox in a closet in her home. 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. [6], Ruff was "extremely protective" of her daughter, often refusing to let anyone else hold her and even taking the baby with her to use the bathroom. As far as the police officers could tell, Lori never traveled abroad before 1990, as there is no passport with that name. By changing her name, she created a clean identity a person with no past.. Related: The Strange Case of the Isdal Woman. 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. The only person in attendance was the preacher. The Minds of Madness - True Crime Stories. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. In 2016, she was identified as. And she had no accent, leading Velling to believe she originally came from the Pacific Northwest or West Coast. But, it didn't happen easily and it took the hard work of a number of people and a little bit of luck to learn the truth.Join Mike and . The house was discovered in disarray, with piles of dirty dishes, laundry, and trash stacked up around the house, as well as shredded documents and papers with incoherent scribblings on them. She enrolled in Dallas County Community College,[7] and in 1997 she graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington with a degree in business administration. Numerous theories regarding her identity can be found on various internet websites. The suicide notes were quickly determined to be incoherent ramblings that offered no clues to Ruff's identity. Lori Erica Ruff's true identity was Kimberly McLean. Velling traveled to the city and approached a member of the Cassidy family, who saw Loris drivers license photo. IMDb is the world's most popular and authoritative source for movie, TV and celebrity content. Blake had enough with her inability to get along with his family. She told them her parents were dead and that she had no living siblings or extended family. Where is the Body of the Legendary King Gorm of Denmark. Lori Erica Ruff was the alias of an unidentified American woman and identity thief who committed suicide on December 24, 2010 in Longview, Texas. [8] Other papers included the birth certificate of Becky Sue Turner and a judge's ruling granting a name change to Lori Erica Kennedy. [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. Then, in September 2016, the case of Lori Erica Ruff was finally solved: her real name wasKimberly McLean. The harassment was so severe that the Ruffs filed a cease and desist order just before Lori's death. She then moved to Idaho and obtained a driver's license using Becky's birth certificate, according to news.com.au. Want more real-life mysteries? With the help of investigator Joe Velling, he traced the DNA to a family in Pennsylvania. Or at least they should. 2021 Emash Digital & Mike Ferguson, Mike Morford. Copyright 2023 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. [3], On Christmas Eve 2010, Ruff's body was discovered in her car in the Ruffs' driveway, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot. Ruff described her as being incredibly secretive, particularly regarding her past. Her mothers remarriage didnt help either and she told her family she was going away. According to the Seattle Times, a crowd-sourced investigation into Ruffs background began after the paper ran a story on her in 2013. But, it didn't happen easily and it took the hard work of a number of people and a little bit of luck to learn the truth.Join Mike and Morf as they discuss the mysterious Lori Erica Ruff. 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. According to the man, whom Velling did not name, Jane Doe had more problems than he could deal with.. Other commentators noted that Ruff briefly attended UT Arlington and may have become familiar with the film prior to changing her identity. Everyone in Dallas has an accent and she did not. Lori Erica Kennedy / Lori Ruff - Identified. The harassment was so severe that the Ruffs were planning to file a cease and desist order just before Lori's death. [3], After getting married, the Ruffs moved to Leonard, Texas. Within a few months of Blake moving out, Lori had completely deteriorated. After earning a GED and a college degree, she married into a wealthy East Texas family and gave birth to a daughter. Dismayed by having to move and attend a new school, she told Deanne shed be leaving for good. Marriage is a sacred act between two people that care deeply for one another. Some people can explain all of this with nothing more sinister than the Witness Protection Program. 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. [1], Fitzpatrick informed Joe Velling, who had in the meantime retired from the SSA. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, 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. By the time Blake Ruff's wife died, he realized he didn't know her at all. 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. Lori Erica Kennedy Ruff (October 16, 1968 - December 24, 2010), was an identity thief who remained unidentified for nearly six ye Lori Erica Ruff - Top podcast episodes 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. Authorities inspected both letters, which they described asramblings from a clearly disturbed person.They contained no reference toLoris life as an identity thief, nor a confession of her trueidentity. When a woman known as Lori Erica Ruff died in Texas three years ago, she left behind a mystery that has investigators baffled. Lori Erica Ruff, a Texan who committed suicide in 2010 and left behind a series of puzzling documents hinting that she wasnt who her family thought she was, has now been identified. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. "My God, that's Kimberly!," one Pennsylvania relative exclaimed, the Seattle Times reported. [3], Ruff was incredibly overprotective of her daughter, often refusing to let anyone else hold her, which angered her husband's family. Her father-in-law discovered her body inside Blakes car. All rights reserved. Various identification cards of Lori Ruff (AKA: Kimberly McLean) retrieved from the Social Security Administration. [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]. ", "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. Both fingerprints and DNA testing turned up nothing to help get to the bottom of her true identity. As with the birth certificate, it was relatively straight forward to acquire a new social security number. The Bizarre Truth About Lori Ruff, The Woman Without An Identity. Accept Read More, Jeffrey Alan Lash: His Remarkable Mystery. At some point in the past, Lori had been a dancer at an exclusive gentlemans club, and a post-mortem examination revealed that Lori, not Becky, had received breast implants. In the days following her death, he began the grim task of sorting . "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. It was in 2010 when events finally took their toll on her. Perhaps Lori was creating parents for the benefit of Blake. Such things have happened in other cases, and are often traumatic events. Last spring, we brought you 8 Mysterious People Without a Past, a list of individuals who seemed to have had much of their early existence wiped from history. All rights reserved. Now, as he opened it, he understood why it was forbidden territory. After four years of attempts, miscarriages, and disappointments, the couple had a daughter. 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.' Lori and Blake tried to have a child almost immediately after they were married, but found themselves experiencing fertility issues. 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.. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Who was she? To her husband, she was Lori Kennedy. In life, Lori hadwarnedhimto stay away from it. Police also found a curious letter within the safe. or redistributed. 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. 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. In 2010, he moved back across the state to live with his parents. She wasnt Lori Erica Ruffshe was a Pennsylvania woman named Kimberly McLean. For years, it was nothing but a series of dead ends. In July 1988, she moved to Dallas, where, according to court documents, she legally changed her name to Lori Erica Kennedy. Lori kept to herself, rarely speaking Finally, in 2008, the pair had a daughter, conceived with in vitro fertilization. Lori Erica Ruff Kept Her Past Locked Up in a Secret Safe Blake Ruff thought he had found someone special. She left behind an 11-page suicide note but apparently no clue that she had lived a secret life. As many of you know, "Lori Ruff" is the assumed name of an otherwise anonymous woman who died in 2010. Based on her own research, and a DNA sample the Ruff family submitted that indicated Lori had a first cousin named Michael Cassidy, Fitzpatrick suggested Velling contact the Cassidy family in Philadelphia. After some failed marriage therapy sessions, Blake Ruff moved back to his parents' house in Longview and filed for divorce, leaving Lori with their daughter in Leonard. The request was made in Bakersfield, California. 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. Market data provided by Factset. [1] Velling approached a relative, who immediately identified the deceased Lori Ruff as Kimberly McLean.[1]. Why had Lori begun behaving so erratically? Lori acquired Turner's birth certificate in 1988, a time when you could just send a letter requesting a birth certificate with little resistance. 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. If you can never get enough true crime Congratulations, youve found your people. A week later, she obtained a Social Security number, removing traces of her true identity. 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 . [7] She then traveled to Idaho, where she used the document to obtain a state ID card on June 16.[8]. [3] 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 visited an "identity broker".[3]. Pic credit: Family pic. A man who knew Ruff during this time has stated that she worked as a stripper in the early 1990s. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. And, why had she changed her identity and hid her past from those closest to her?You can help support the show at patreon.com/criminologyAn Emash Digital productionLearn more about your ad choices. Les currently resides in London and is a freelance writer with a long standing passion for the unexplained and paranormal. Lori acquired Becky Turners birth certificate in 1988. Lori definitely was not who she portrayed herself to be, so who was she? In 1989, her new identity was completed with a Texas drivers license. A friend of the family verified that Becky Sue Turner had died in a house fire at the age of 2. Find a Grave Authorities believe she initially traveled to the home with the intent of harming the family.[6]. Lori Erica Ruff. It is one thing to suspect Lori Erica Ruff of being a simple identity thief, but it is another thing to understand why. One of these had notes written and a collection of phone numbers and names. I think she was born sometime between 1960 and 1968., Records gathered by Velling provide tantalizing clues. Ruff gradually acquired more documents in her new name, including a Social Security number. Blake Ruff married the woman he had known asLori in2004. [1] After two years, Fitzpatrick finally identified Ruff when she discovered a third cousin match who was related to the Cassidys. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices. The house belonged to his parents and it was his father who discovered her [] The post Lori Erica Ruff 93 Generation Why appeared first on The Generation Why Podcast.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. She was very private and didn't open to people about her past. [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. Before she took her own life with a shotgun, Lori placed a pair of letters inside the car. Lori definitely was not who she portrayed herself to be, so who was she? Historic Mysteries provides captivating articles on archaeology, history, and unexplained mysteries. Using DNA analysis from Ruff's daughter, investigators were able to trace Ruff's identity back to a family in Pennsylvania, whose teenage daughter had disappeared in 1986, per Mental Floss. Lori Ruffs handwritten notes. [2] The writings on the paper found in the lockbox included the scribblings "North Hollywood police", "402 months", and "Ben Perkins", who turned out to be an attorney. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! She began to lose weight and attended counseling sessions held at the local church. Or, Lori Erika Kennedy? [6] The article was subsequently republished in numerous newspapers around the world. Lori would also spend time fidgeting and stare at the palms and back of her hands. Kimberly Maria McLean, a.k.a. 1,529 likes. RedHanded the podcast jumps head first into all manner of macabre madness. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. It wasnt until the Ruffs found a safebox hidden inside their daughter-in-laws bedroom closet that showed the woman wasnt who she had claimed to be. Erica Kelley is a native Tennessean exploring historical and contemporary true crime in the South. He describes her as being incredibly secretive, particularly regarding her past. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. They tried several times to have a child, but she had trouble conceiving and suffered multiple miscarriages. 2021 Wondery LLC. But this could have simply been a number picked for convenience purposes only. Within the next two years, she . As far as the authorities were concerned, once Blake called them in, she was an identity thief now given the name "Jane Doe.". [9][6], After Lori's funeral, some of the Ruffs drove to Leonard to see if they could find out more about her in her house. 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. After several months living as Becky Sue Turner, she legally changed her name to Lori Kennedy and moved to the Dallas area, where she met Blake Ruff. [1] She eventually graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1997, with a degree in Business Administration. DNA taken from the body might also help crack the case. Join Jim Clemente (former FBI profiler), Laura Richards (criminal behavioral analyst, former New Scotland Yard) and Lisa Zambetti (Casting director for CBS' Criminal Minds) as they profile behavior from real criminal cases. Ruff did his best to find out as much about his new partner as he could. Different cultures define matrimony in different ways and tie the knot for various reasons. After the birth of their daughter, Lori's behavior became increasingly strange. Blake and Lori married in 2004the only witness to their marriage was the priest. Ruff gradually acquired more documents in her new name, including a Social Security number. It's the best podcast app and works on Android, iPhone, and the web. Lori Erica Ruff was a secretive person. Follows Toni, who has a complete breakdown and ends up in a mental facility after the unexpected news that her husband was murdered, and even she is a suspect. This has led investigators to believe that Ruff was much older than she claimed to be. The Ruff family declined to comment on the story, which was first reported by the Seattle Times on Saturday. Or, Becky Sue Turner? Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices. As Blake began the daunting task of sorting through his wife's possessions, he knew that he would have to deal with one thing that Lori had always told him he was to never touch. It's a big Universe full of wonders. 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). Whilethe file on Lori Erica Ruff may be closed, her bizarre case continues to fascinate, and will forever raise thechillingquestion: Just how well do you know those closest to you? Although Blakes family was suspicious of Lori from the beginning, Blake himself was very much in love. This page was last modified on 5 May 2016, at 17:33. A 2013 Seattle Times feature article about the case was published in news outlets around the world and created enormous interest in the online "websleuth" community. The following people have been ruled out as possible identities for Ruff:[5], Ruff was a white female, who was approximately 41 to 50 years old when she committed suicide. He noticed the car and called the police. Sign up for The Lineup's newsletter, and receive our eeriest cases delivered straight to your inbox. But to a dogged federal investigator, she is "Jane Doe," a Texas mother who killed herself three years ago in her famil. Apparently, after Becky Sue Turner perished, a woman turned up and requested a copy of the birth certificate. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Lori Ruff & The Dark Secret She Hid From Everyone 864,142 views Feb 5, 2019 13K Dislike Share Save Weird History 3.81M subscribers Few stories have fascinated the Internet quite like the one of. On Christmas Eve 2010, the body of 42-year-old Lori Erica Ruff was found in acar parked outside the Rufffamily home in Longview, Texas. The tension between the Ruffs continued to grow as the new grandparents were rebuffed from visits. Days later, she applied for and received a Social Security number a move that effectively erased her past. In his spare time he enjoys astronomy and Xboxing. Lori Erica Ruff was as evasive as she had always been but did reveal that both of her parents had passed away and that she had no living relatives. Blake Ruff thought he had found someone special. This led investigators to believe that Ruff was older than she claimed, although the difference turned out to be less than a year. Watch 48 Hours Saturday 10/9c on CBS and Paramount+ and hear all new episodes every Sunday. So, join us, plug in, sit back and prepare for scares. She obtained a Texas drivers license in 1989, listing her age as 19. 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. Blake was caught in the middle, and eventually he couldn't take it anymore. 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. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. But Blake was in love. Hosts Mike Ferguson and Mike Gibson guide you through the most interesting true crime stories. Ruff's earliest known activity dates back to May 1988, when she requested the birth certificate of Becky Sue Turner, a two-year-old girl who was killed, along with two of her siblings, in a house fire in Fife, Washington in 1971. Join us for a good mix of lesser known cases as well as our take on what we call the "Big Timers". Ruff did his best to find out as much about his new partner as he could. Eager to meet her, the family invited her to lunch. Lori Erica Ruff was a secretive person. Also found in the lockbox was a paper with several seemingly random scribblings. Image: http://reallifeishorror.blogspot.co.uk/. Four years filled with miscarriages and disappointments passed. Loris behavior was highly erratic in the timebetween theseparationand her death; she sent threatening emails to Blake and his family, and might have even attempted a break-in at Blakes parents home. When Lori Erica Kennedy took her own life, she left behind evidence that she'd stolen another's identity. Just click the "Edit page" button at the bottom of the page or learn more in the Plot Summary submission guide. [3], The suicide notes were quickly determined to be incoherent ramblings that offered no clues to Ruff's identity. Find ratings and reviews for the newest movie and TV shows. The tall and slender brunette met Ruff at a bible study group and introduced herself as Lori Kennedy. In 2013, a nuclear-physicist-turned-forensic genealogist Collen Fitzpatrick worked on Ruffs case and new details emerged about her past. Investigation Discovery's ' Where Murder Lies: The Girl in the Lockbox' chronicles the story behind Lori Ruff's past. In 2010, after she took her own life, secrets were revealed and the truth about her past began to unravel. Requires subscription and macOS 11.4 or higher. Be the first to contribute! Using a DNA analysis from Ruffs daughter, investigators were able to trace Ruffs identity back to a family in Pennsylvania, whose daughter had disappeared in 1986, when she was 17. [6], On December 24, 2010, Ruff's body was discovered in her car in the Ruffs' driveway, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot. All rights reserved. In 2003 McLean met Jon Blakely "Blake" Ruff, the son of a socially prominent family in East Texas,[8][6] in a Bible study class. She was overly protective, and she refused to let other people hold their daughter. One was for her daughter. There was a birth and death certificate in the box. When given the chance for an extravagant and lavish wedding day to remember, Lori declined the offer. And why didn't she see any other option but to end her own life? She was very private and didn't open to people about her past. His wifewas not who she claimed to be. That created a lot of heartburn for the family.. But it wasn't until Lori ended her life on Christmas Eve that the Ruffs would get answers. 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. He revealed that Lori considered it to be a personal item that must never be opened. Lori Erica Ruff was a secretive person. Blake did learn that Lori was born somewhere in Arizona. 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. Lori Erica Ruff The Generation Why Podcast. This site uses cookies to improve user experience. They tried several times to have a child, but had trouble conceiving and suffered multiple miscarriages. 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. A neighbor recalled that she and her daughter appeared to be undernourished and that Lori would often ramble incoherently to herself while pacing back and forth outside. We don't take ourselves too seriously but we take true crime very seriously. Follow along with 48 Hours every week as award-winning CBS News correspondents investigate the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience. Velling agreed to help identify her as a case of identify theft. Yes! Prior to marrying Blake, Loriwas known as Lori Erica Kennedy. Nothing. Interesting history topics are just a click away. Get personalized recommendations, and learn where to watch across hundreds of streaming providers. Lori's behavior caused immense tensions between Lori and the Ruffs, even keeping the new grandparents from visiting their granddaughter. She created a false identity for the sole purpose of getting lost in America, Velling told FoxNews.com. She was eventually identified as a native of suburban Philadelphia who left home at age 18, in the fall of 1986, because she did not get along with her mother and stepfather. 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. The tall and slender brunette met Ruff at a bible study group and introduced herself as Lori Kennedy. Legal Statement. Or, maybe she was none of them. 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.
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