A Wisconsin man is facing decades behind bars for a 36-year identity theft scheme in which the victim was sent to jail and even a mental hospital because authorities did not believe his story.
Matthew Keirans, 58, faces up to 32 years in prison for making false statements to a National Credit Union Administration insured institution and aggravated identify theft.
In 2019, the victim, William Woods, was homeless man living in Los Angeles when he found out someone was racking up debt using his name. Woods walked into a California bank, said he didn’t’ want to pay, and tried to close the accounts that Keirans had opened in his name.
He provided his social security card, as well as his California ID. The branch manager asked the real Woods a series of security questions. Unable to answer them, the bank called police, according to court records.
Keirans, listed as Woods on the account, told police he didn’t …