Man Who Lived 40 Years Under Dead Arkansas Identity Pleads Guilty to Federal Fraud
Stephen Craig Campbell pleaded guilty in New Mexico federal court to identity theft, passport fraud and firearms offenses after assuming the name of a deceased man in 1984. The plea triggers mandatory sentencing proceedings and closes a decades-long fugitive case that allowed Campbell to obtain government documents and purchase firearms under a false identity.
indianexpress.comALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Stephen Craig Campbell, who assumed the identity of a dead Arkansas man and lived under that name for more than 40 years, pleaded guilty June 1 to federal charges of aggravated identity theft, passport fraud and firearms offenses.
Campbell faces a mandatory two-year prison term on the identity-theft count alone that must run consecutive to any other sentences. The plea agreement, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico, resolves a case that began when authorities discovered Campbell had been using the stolen identity since 1984.
Under that name he obtained a U.S. passport, Social Security benefits and purchased multiple firearms, all while the real individual had died decades earlier.
The charges specify that Campbell knowingly used the identity of the deceased Arkansas resident to secure official documents and to make false statements on federal firearms transaction records. Federal law prohibits possession of firearms by anyone who has made a false statement material to the lawfulness of the sale.
The passport fraud count stems from Campbell’s applications that contained the stolen biographical data.
Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 8. The aggravated identity theft conviction carries a statutory two-year sentence that cannot be reduced for time served or good conduct and must run after any other term of imprisonment. Campbell remains in federal custody pending sentencing.
This case concludes one of the longest-known instances of stolen-identity fugitive flight uncovered by the Justice Department. The department’s announcement lists the plea as resolving all three counts contained in the indictment returned by a grand jury in New Mexico. No additional co-defendants or related enforcement actions are mentioned in the filing.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Mexico handled the prosecution. Campbell was arrested after investigators matched fingerprints and other records confirming he was not the individual named on his documents.
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