Latest news with #UnsolvedMysteries
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Yahoo
Conman who travelled the world posing as F1 driver dies
A conman who travelled the world posing as a Formula One driver and rock stars to swindle women out of cash has died after 30 years of avoiding justice. Jonathan Kern, 71, died in France last month from a stroke and a heart attack while wanted by authorities in the US, one of his victims has revealed. Kern rose to attention in 1996 after being featured on US documentary series Unsolved Mysteries where he was described as a 'sweetheart swindler' for conning Elizabeth Ballard, now 69, after posing as a British racing driver. Ms Ballard met Kern in Miami in 1994 while he was posing as Jonathan Palmer, a former Williams F1 driver, on a business was dining alone at an outdoor café in South Beach when Kern arrived in a forest green Jaguar and introduced himself. He wooed her with a British accent and designer clothes, and promised her ski trips to the Alps. After about three weeks he moved into her home in Milford, Connecticut. When she questioned why he wanted to settle down with her she claims he said he was 'tired' of jet-setting. During their six-week whirlwind romance, however, Kern drained Ms Ballard's bank accounts of $250 a day, without her knowledge and emptied her savings account. Kern convinced Ms Ballard to rent a mobile phone and used it to make calls under false pretences. 'He told me he was staying in the US for me,' Ms Ballard said. 'He didn't have personal credit cards because he wasn't planning to stay long, so I let him use mine.' After he had stolen $15,000, he left without a trace. 'I remember coming home one day and everything was gone – his cars, his suitcases,' Ballard, a retired clinical monitor from Chapin, South Carolina, said. 'I called him, and he just laughed it off.' After checking her phone bill, she discovered calls to unfamiliar numbers including one which led to Kern's supposed cousin in Los Angeles, another connected her to his mother in England. 'She told me, 'Jonathan's ruined my life too','' she said. 'I couldn't afford rent or even my car payments. I had to borrow money from my aunt just to get by.' An $8,000 cheque Kern had given her from an Italian bank bounced nearly a year later, leaving her responsible for the amount and she was forced to file for bankruptcy on her 40th birthday. Ms Ballard began piecing together Kern's identity and a call to the real Jonathan Palmer's office confirmed he was not the racing driver. Kern had been impersonating the F1 driver across Europe and the US, defrauding victims with similar schemes. Ms Ballard worked with US Federal Marshals to identify Kern using evidence such as photos of him with his sports car. They told her he was a career conman with an extensive history of fraud. Having begun his criminal career at the age of 18 when he was convicted of impersonating a police officer, he went on to pose as various celebrities including Mick Taylor, former Rolling Stones guitarist, and the Kid Rock, the US singer. While she filed charges in Milford, Connecticut, including felony larceny, second-degree forgery, and criminal impersonation, Kern fled the jurisdiction before authorities could apprehend him. Authorities issued warrants for his arrest in multiple jurisdictions as he grew increasingly known for impersonating Palmer as the real driver's office became inundated with unpaid invoices, clothes, jewellery and outstanding hotel bills and even escorts. In 1998, Ms Ballard testified against him in a Paris court case involving another woman he had conned. That helped lead to his conviction and jail time, but he was released before he could be extradited to the US. Kern was also convicted in 1999 of stealing a Lotus from the company's headquarters after posing as a journalist who wanted to test drive it for the weekend. Authorities across the world struggled to make Kern serve significant jail time due to jurisdictional challenges, as many of his crimes occurred across multiple states and countries. 'It took me 10 years to get back on my feet,' Ms Ballard admitted. 'My self-confidence was gone.' While rebuilding her career and life, she continued to hear from other victims over the years. 'I wanted to forget about it,' she said. 'But every time I tried to move on, someone else would reach out with their story.' Ms Ballard heard he had died on March 12 in Lunay, France, after suffering strokes and a heart attack, according to his death certificate. The Hartford Courant, a Connecticut newspaper, reported that Det Marilisa Anania of the Milford Police Department, which still had an active warrant, wrote in an email to Ms Ballard: 'I am sorry we were unable to ever serve the warrant, but your dedication to your case has helped many others in similar situations.' Ms Ballard now feels a sense of closure after decades of hearing his name. She found love with, Stephen, 70, a retired US Air Force veteran who become her husband. 'I'm feeling tremendous relief that this journey is over,' she said. The allegations were put to Kern a number of times over the years, but when the New Haven Register, another newspaper in Connecticut, reached out to him in 2018, he said that Ms Ballard 'really needs to get a life'. 'Her accusations are exaggerated and fictitious and my family, colleagues and I are fed up to the back teeth of this attention seeker,' Kern said. The newspaper said he posted a video of himself on YouTube which broadly describes his exploits around the globe, 'pretending to be a famous rock star or racing driver'. In 1999, while serving time for the Lotus theft, he gave an interview to The Guardian where he claimed he pushed back against claims he was a 'James Bond figure' or a 'professional conman'. 'I ended up paying a very heavy price for what had started out as nothing more than a bit of fun,' he said. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
27-04-2025
- Telegraph
Conman who travelled the world posing as F1 driver dies
A conman who travelled the world posing as a Formula One driver and rock stars to swindle women out of cash has died after 30 years of avoiding justice. Jonathan Kern, 71, died in France last month from a stroke and a heart attack while wanted by authorities in the US, one of his victims has revealed. Kern rose to attention in 1996 after being featured on US documentary series Unsolved Mysteries where he was described as a 'sweetheart swindler ' for conning Elizabeth Ballard, now 69, after posing as a British racing driver. Ms Ballard met Kern in Miami in 1994 while he was posing as Jonathan Palmer, a former Williams F1 driver, on a business was dining alone at an outdoor café in South Beach when Kern arrived in a forest green Jaguar and introduced himself. He wooed her with a British accent and designer clothes, and promised her ski trips to the Alps. After about three weeks he moved into her home in Milford, Connecticut. When she questioned why he wanted to settle down with her she claims he said he was 'tired' of jet-setting. During their six-week whirlwind romance, however, Kern drained Ms Ballard's bank accounts of $250 a day, without her knowledge and emptied her savings account. Kern convinced Ms Ballard to rent a mobile phone and used it to make calls under false pretences. 'He told me he was staying in the US for me,' Ms Ballard said. 'He didn't have personal credit cards because he wasn't planning to stay long, so I let him use mine.' After he had stolen $15,000, he left without a trace. 'I remember coming home one day and everything was gone – his cars, his suitcases,' Ballard, a retired clinical monitor from Chapin, South Carolina, said. 'I called him, and he just laughed it off.' After checking her phone bill, she discovered calls to unfamiliar numbers including one which led to Kern's supposed cousin in Los Angeles, another connected her to his mother in England. 'She told me, 'Jonathan's ruined my life too','' she said. 'I couldn't afford rent or even my car payments. I had to borrow money from my aunt just to get by.' An $8,000 cheque Kern had given her from an Italian bank bounced nearly a year later, leaving her responsible for the amount and she was forced to file for bankruptcy on her 40th birthday. Kern convicted in Paris court Ms Ballard began piecing together Kern's identity and a call to the real Jonathan Palmer's office confirmed he was not the racing driver. Kern had been impersonating the F1 driver across Europe and the US, defrauding victims with similar schemes. Ms Ballard worked with US Federal Marshals to identify Kern using evidence such as photos of him with his sports car. They told her he was a career conman with an extensive history of fraud. Having begun his criminal career at the age of 18 when he was convicted of impersonating a police officer, he went on to pose as various celebrities including Mick Taylor, former Rolling Stones guitarist, and the Kid Rock, the US singer. While she filed charges in Milford, Connecticut, including felony larceny, second-degree forgery, and criminal impersonation, Kern fled the jurisdiction before authorities could apprehend him. Authorities issued warrants for his arrest in multiple jurisdictions as he grew increasingly known for impersonating Palmer as the real driver's office became inundated with unpaid invoices, clothes, jewellery and outstanding hotel bills and even escorts. In 1998, Ms Ballard testified against him in a Paris court case involving another woman he had conned. That helped lead to his conviction and jail time, but he was released before he could be extradited to the US. Kern was also convicted in 1999 of stealing a Lotus from the company's headquarters after posing as a journalist who wanted to test drive it for the weekend. Authorities across the world struggled to make Kern serve significant jail time due to jurisdictional challenges, as many of his crimes occurred across multiple states and countries. 'It took me 10 years to get back on my feet,' Ms Ballard admitted. 'My self-confidence was gone.' 'I feel relief this journey is over' While rebuilding her career and life, she continued to hear from other victims over the years. 'I wanted to forget about it,' she said. 'But every time I tried to move on, someone else would reach out with their story.' Ms Ballard heard he had died on March 12 in Lunay, France, after suffering strokes and a heart attack, according to his death certificate. The Hartford Courant, a Connecticut newspaper, reported that Det Marilisa Anania of the Milford Police Department, which still had an active warrant, wrote in an email to Ms Ballard: 'I am sorry we were unable to ever serve the warrant, but your dedication to your case has helped many others in similar situations.' Ms Ballard now feels a sense of closure after decades of hearing his name. She found love with, Stephen, 70, a retired US Air Force veteran who become her husband. 'I'm feeling tremendous relief that this journey is over,' she said. The allegations were put to Kern a number of times over the years, but when the New Haven Register, another newspaper in Connecticut, reached out to him in 2018, he said that Ms Ballard 'really needs to get a life'. 'Her accusations are exaggerated and fictitious and my family, colleagues and I are fed up to the back teeth of this attention seeker,' Kern said. The newspaper said he posted a video of himself on YouTube which broadly describes his exploits around the globe, 'pretending to be a famous rock star or racing driver'. In 1999, while serving time for the Lotus theft, he gave an interview to The Guardian where he claimed he pushed back against claims he was a 'James Bond figure' or a 'professional conman'. 'I ended up paying a very heavy price for what had started out as nothing more than a bit of fun,' he said.
USA Today
30-03-2025
- USA Today
These kids went missing for years. Why experts say parental abductions need attention.
These kids went missing for years. Why experts say parental abductions need attention. Parents who are left behind face skepticism, but family abductions are more common than those committed by strangers and can be just as dangerous for kids. Show Caption Hide Caption Kidnapped boy found 7 years later After seven years, Abdul Aziz Khan will soon reunite with his dad. He was reportedly abducted by his noncustodial mother when he was 7-years-old. Advocates say there needs to be more awareness of the dangers of parental abductions and a cultural shift in how people think about them. Parental abductions are more common than stranger abductions and can be just as dangerous for children. On June 12, Chase Desormeaux kissed his two young children goodbye, told them he loved them and said he would see them as soon as they got back from vacation with their mother. He hasn't seen or heard from them since. Desormeaux said his ex-wife was supposed to return 7-year-old Cohen and 5-year-old Colton to him in Louisiana after a soccer tournament in Texas. Instead, she cut contact and absconded with the boys, Desormeaux said. Their story was featured on the television show On Patrol: Live and shared on social media by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and though the attention could lead to a break in the case, Desormeaux said he fears his ex-wife could become a danger to his children as the exposure grows. He's starting to feel like he's exhausted all his options. "I'm holding on by a thread, to be honest, emotionally and mentally," Desormeaux told USA TODAY. Kids illegally taken by one of their parents years and even decades ago were found by law enforcement this month in Colorado and Mexico. Many others are still missing. Advocacy organizations and programs like Netflix's Unsolved Mysteries have helped parents reconnect with long-missing children, but that level of attention can be hard to come by for family abductions. The parents who are left behind often face skepticism about the severity of these cases, which can sometimes take years of searching, the work of multiple law enforcement agencies and protracted legal battles to resolve. Experts say parental kidnappings are significantly more common than those committed by strangers, and living the life of a fugitive can have long-term or even life-threatening consequences for kids. "They're not necessarily safe because they're with a parent..." said Angeline Hartmann, communications director at the center for missing children. "You're talking about kids who may not have seen a doctor, be allowed to play outside, may never see sunlight." As weeks of radio silence turned into months for Desormeaux, the panicked father secured a court order mandating his sons be returned to him and a warrant for his ex-wife's arrest was issued in November. But the search continues. Attempts to reach Desormeaux's ex-wife by USA TODAY were unsuccessful. Family abductions more common, just as dangerous Nearly 1,200 cases of missing children reported to the center for missing children in 2023 were family abductions. Kidnappings by strangers accounted for far fewer − about 290 cases. The vast majority of children wrongfully taken by relatives were recovered alive, the center found in a 2018 report, but abducted kids still face grievous risk. Custody disputes can be particularly dangerous. 'Unimaginable': Woman arrested after stepson was kept captive for 20 years, police say Over 940 children have been killed by a divorcing or separating parent or another parental figure since 2008, and more than 14% of those deaths were preventable, according to a 2023 report from the Center for Judicial Excellence. Family courts involved in these kinds of cases often miss warning signs and put children at risk by prioritizing parental visitation even where there is evidence of abuse, advocates previously told USA TODAY. Hartmann said there needs to be more awareness of the dangers of parental abductions and "a cultural shift in how people think and what people know regarding these cases." "It's an uphill battle," she said. Abductions can years to solve. Media, police and the public can help A little more than a third of children abducted by family members were found thanks to police work, according to the missing children's organization. Police say Andrea Reyes is one of them. Reyes, who disappeared with her mother 25 years ago, was found in Mexico this month after police in New Haven, Connecticut, revived the cold case. Investigators used interviews, search warrants and social media to find her and confirmed her identity through DNA testing. There is still an active warrant for the mother who allegedly kidnapped her. Media attention can also help find abducted children even many years after their disappearance. In 2023, then-15-year-old Kayla Unbehaun was found safe in North Carolina six years after she disappeared with her mother when a store owner recognized her from an episode of "Unsolved Mysteries." Heather Unbehaun has been charged with child abduction and is expected to appear in court next month. Unbehaun told USA TODAY that she plans to fight the criminal charge against her, hopes to eventually reconnect with her daughter, and the situation is still "very emotional." Kayla's father has been awarded full custody. "Kayla's doing really, really well with the help of family and therapy," Ryan Iserka told USA TODAY. Sometimes, sheer luck can help break a case. A 14-year-old who went missing in Georgia in 2017, was found this month with his mother in Colorado, according to the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. That case was featured on "Unsolved Mysteries," but police found the teen after responding to a trespassing call. They said his mother, Rabia Khalid, was spotted on security cameras illegally entering a vacant home. Khalid, now charged with kidnapping, has not entered a plea, according to court officials, and could not be reached for comment. "It's very important that people understand, yeah, missing children - even after years and years - can be found," Hartmann said. International child abductions add additional legal wrinkles Even when a missing child is located, parents still may have to jump through legal hoops to get them back particularly if they've been taken out of the country, according to Vicki L. Francois, an attorney who practices family law and criminal defense. More than 3,000 children abducted by family were taken out of the U.S. between 2008 and 2017, more than a quarter of the cases reported to the center for missing children during that timeframe. International abductions were more likely to last longer or go unresolved entirely, the organization found. Last year, the State Department tapped Francois to represent a young mother whose 6-month-old baby had been kidnapped. The mother surmised − correctly − that the father had taken the child from Mexico to Martinsville, Virginia, where he had family. The mother temporarily moved in with Francois in Virginia as the attorney worked her case pro bono. "She cried every single day, was praying every single day," Francois said. Francois successfully proved in Virginia state court that the child had been wrongfully removed from its "habitual place of residence," as is required by the Hague Convention. The child was immediately returned to the mother and taken back to Mexico. What happened to Hannah Kobayashi? Why the public - and the police - may never know What can parents do to prevent child abduction? The mother Francois represented was initially hesitant to file a police report, but the lawyer said the decision to involve law enforcement quickly helped expedite the case. She urged other parents to do the same. "Don't delay. If you send if you think something is happening or the child has been taken, you know, report it to law enforcement. Immediately," she said. "Reach out to the friends and family, watch social media if you can." Do Amber Alerts work? Data shows how often they help bring missing kids home. Francois said parents who are worried about a possible international abduction can also have the State Department notify them if a duplicate passport is requested. She said that unmarried parents in particular should secure a custody agreement, which can make it easier to get a court order requiring the return of the child if they are wrongfully taken out of state or abroad. "It's obviously a lot easier to do − to be proactive and prevent it on the front end − than it is once the child is already gone or moved," Francois said. Contributing: Ken Alltucker and Julia Gomez, USA TODAY; Joe Johnson, Athens Banner-Herald
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Yahoo
Amid word the man who conned her had died, a CT woman cried. It was not tears of grief
When Elizabeth Ballard learned recently that Jonathan Kern of France had died she burst into tears and toasted with a glass of wine. They weren't tears of grief, but rather relief. And that wine? It was celebratory 'I didn't feel bad, but was relieved,' Ballard said. After 30 years of reminding the world and Kern of the way he allegedly conned her out of money and broke her heart, he was gone from a massive heart attack. 'I felt like I had protected other women,' she said of the journey these last 30 years. For her, there's no more looking over her shoulder wondering if he was back to harm her Her case made worldwide news when it aired in a 1996 episode of Unsolved Mysteries, she still gets emails on the episode; she wrote a self-published book; she traveled across the ocean to testify against him in court in another case and she started a now globally popular Facebook group, 'Conned But Not Conquered' to help other victims. In Milford, where the Milford Police Department had an arrest warrant on file for decades for Kern in Ballard's case, Detective Marilisa Anania wrote in an email to Ballard this week, 'I am sorry we were unable to ever serve the warrant, but your dedication to your case has helped many others in similar situations.' The charges were felony criminal impersonation, second-degree forgery and second degree larceny. Ballard never forgave nor forgot, even though she went on to have a great career, life and marriage. Kern stood accused of numerous scams around the globe involving women, luxury cars. He'd even done jail time for scams. Ballard kept the case alive and illuminated his missteps along the way, spreading the word. In Ballard's case Kern posed as Formula One race car driver Jonathan Palmer on a business trip. He wooed her with a British accent, designer clothes, luxury cars and promise of a future that included activities such as skiing in the Swiss Alps. In addition to breaking her heart Kern allegedly squandered all her money, driving her to file bankruptcy on her 40th birthday. When Ballard discovered the deceit, she had to rebuild her career and heal emotionally from the heartbreak. 'It left me financially devastated,' she said. 'I couldn't pay my rent.' In a video on his Facebook page years ago Kern admitted to impersonating famous people, said it was wrong, but wrote it off as 'youthful indiscretion.' He even once impersonated Mick Jagger, he said. Although Ballard had an intuition that something wasn't right from the beginning, she hadn't listened to that voice inside, she has said. Her 'gut' told her something wasn't right. Kern told her he came from a wealthy family, but his money was tied up in overseas banks, she said. That seemed plausible to Ballard because at one point he had a Mercedes Benz dealership deliver a car to Milford for his use. They had also allegedly been scammed. He allegedly bilked Ballard out of $15,000 through use of her ATM card and other money he 'borrowed' until his money from England could be transferred, she said. Ballard said she learned that in addition to using her ATM to withdraw up to $250 per day, he was also seeing other women during his daily trips to Manhattan. Seeing other women in New York was part of his agenda, she said. At one point, Kern reimbursed her $7,000 plus through a check from an Italian bank, but that bounced about a year later, leaving Ballard on the hook for the money, she said. When she learned he wasn't Palmer, 'That was the moment my heart just sank,' Ballard said. 'I had fallen in love with him. He conned me. It's conflicting.'
USA Today
23-03-2025
- USA Today
Jane Doe found on California cliff identified by DNA nearly 60 years later
Jane Doe found on California cliff identified by DNA nearly 60 years later The woman's body was "badly decomposed," a local news paper reported almost 60 years ago. Now, thanks to DNA testing, we know the Jane Doe's true identity. Show Caption Hide Caption Ted Bundy, Jack the Ripper and DNA: New tech solving murders From Ted Bundy to Jack the Ripper, new DNA technology is solving murder mysteries, finding serial killers, and exonerating innocents. Just the FAQs, USA TODAY Fifty-eight years after the body of a woman was found by a hunter on a California cliff, a company says it has finally solved the mystery of her identity. On Dec. 18, 1966, a hunter found the body of an unidentified woman on a cliff near Paradise Drive in Tiburon, California, around 15 miles north of San Francisco, according to a press release from Othram, a company specializing in forensic genetic genealogy. The Jane Doe has been identified as Dorothy Williams, according to Othram. Her cause of death could not be determined. Who was Dorothy Williams? Othram said the woman was identified as Dorothy Jean Williams, with a married name of Dorothy Jean Vaillancourt. She was originally from Tasmania, Australia. During the initial investigation, authorities discovered that three months before the body was found, a woman matching the Jane Doe's description asked the local fire department if she could spend the night at the station because she was stranded and had no money for a taxi, according to Othram. When firefighters refused, Othram said in the press release that she walked away. Williams was wearing a red cotton dress and an off-white trench coat at the time her body was discovered, according to the press release. She had red hair, was 5'2" and weighed 105 pounds, but her body was "badly decomposed," according to a newspaper clipping pictured in the press release. She did not have any identification on her when she was discovered. "Authorities said the body had lain in the underbrush for several months about 20 feet below Paradise Drive," according to the newspaper clipping from 1966. Prior to her identification, she was was buried at Mt. Tamalpais Cemetery and Mortuary in San Rafael, California. Mystery solved: A boy's kidnapping case was on Netflix's 'Unsolved Mysteries'. He has now been found safe. Identity remained a mystery for years Williams remained a Jane Doe for years despite several attempts to identify her. "Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP12018," Othram said in the press release. "Over the years, attempts were made to identify the woman to no avail." In 2022, the Marin County Sheriff's Office, while working with the California Department of Justice, submitted evidence from the case to Othram's lab in Texas. Using crowdfunding, Othram said its scientists were able to put together a DNA profile that led to her relatives. Williams' identity is the 56th case in California to be solved by technology developed by Othram, according to the press release. Julia is a trending reporter for USA TODAY. You can connect with her on LinkedIn, follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, Instagram and TikTok: @juliamariegz, or email her at jgomez@
