Wyoming Man Accused Of Posing As Dead Man For Decades
Federal prosecutors say a Wyoming took the identity of a dead man for decades and was only recently found out.
Peter Jeremy Martin is charged with making a false statement in an application for a passport, making false statements and aggravated identity theft in US District Court for Wyoming.
According to a criminal complaint, Martin used the name James Delbert Libbey when applying for passports on multiple occasions.
Court documents state Diplomatic Security Service special agents learned that the real James Delbert Libbey died in 1964 in Twin Falls Idaho. The investigation also revealed that Martin had a driver's license under Libbey's name.
Agents visited Martin at his Greybull home in November and told him that they were visiting in response to "repeated inquiries" from Martin regarding his passport application. They reportedly told Martin that they needed to ask some biographical questions to confirm that he was who he said he was. Martin allegedly found that odd as he'd applied for and been granted two passports in the past.
Asked to confirm his date of birth, Martin apparently struggled. He also struggled to remember the name of the high school from which he graduated.
"(Martin) asked why I was asking these questions, stating for a second time he'd already received two passports," a special agent writes in the complaint. "I replied that the problem was that his passport application and his two previous passports were in the identity of a deceased person and that the true James Delbert Libbey had died in 1964."
Martin terminated the interview shortly after, court documents state.
The ensuing investigation reportedly revealed that the man claiming to be Libbey was actually Martin.
According to the complaint, Martin has an extensive criminal history including serving prison time for theft, armed robbery, burglary, attempted murder, reckless driving, assault and prison escape.
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