The Mystery of Lori Erica Ruff

[Maureen_jacobs]

If someone from Seattle actually knew her, then the police should know by now. Here is a really fantastical theory, perhaps she was in the Witness Protection and Relocation Program. Perhaps she helped bust some pretty bad dudes etc. The suicide was a result of being stressed about being found.

[mbrn30000]

If someone from Seattle actually knew her, then the police should know by now. Here is a really fantastical theory, perhaps she was in the Witness Protection and Relocation Program. Perhaps she helped bust some pretty bad dudes etc. The suicide was a result of being stressed about being found.

That was addressed in the story. The investigator claims the FBI confirmed she was not in the witness protection program. I am not sure they FBI needs to steal a dead baby's identity to change identities. She still could have been a witness or perhaps a unknown coconspirator in a crime and was hiding from both the crooks and the police. Of course it could be she is hiding from her past as a stripper/prostitute (though apparently she stripped with her new identity), an abusive ex-spouse or ex boyfriend. She clearly wanted to escape the link between Lori Kennedy and who she really was. I think whatever happened it was near 1987-88 when she put her plan into motion. I am thinking Los Angeles mid to late 80's. But LA might be where she ran first the scrap of paper with all the notes seems to suggest Los Angeles is where she was based at one time.

[Maureen_jacobs]

Why would the FBI deny or confirm her presence in the program? Also, she could have been in a program from another agency. Like an abused woman's group.

[mbrn30000]

Why would the FBI deny or confirm her presence in the program? Also, she could have been in a program from another agency. Like an abused woman's group.

You would have to ask the feds why they said she was not in a witness protection program. She was dead by that time, so protecting her would not be important any longer. I don't think when the feds create a false identity they need to find a dead baby to do it. So it clearly is not the feds. Of course it could be a private organization that helped her, or she found out how to disappear on her own. There is no doubt she found out how to change her identity somewhere and from May 1988 to July 1988 her transition was complete from dead baby tucker's birth certificate, Social Security number for Tucker, false Idaho ID, name change in Texas and Texas id's in new identity Lori Kennedy. She took each step. Feds would have done all of that in a day with no trail at all. There is no doubt she is running from her past.

[mbrn30000]

Here is her obit. How did they know she lived in Scottsdale? And when did she live there? http://projects.news-journal.com/obituaries/2010/dec/31/lori-erica-ruff/ Did that have something to do with the buckeye parachute certificate? Why did the family think it important to mention Scottsdale in the Obit? Was that the only place she claimed to be from? Do any of you have more on the Scottsdale connection? The newspaper seems to suggest Arizona came between Idaho and Texas. But she went to Texas a month after getting her new Identity to change her name again. The more I read about this, the less I know.

[Maureen_jacobs]

Sometimes secrets are to remain that way.

[docyabut2]

Evidently she was a run away prostitute, that took the name of a family and child she knew. As of her true identity could`nt they have taken DNA samples of who she really was ?

Edited January 8, 2015 by docyabut2

[mbrn30000]

Yes some mysteries will remain mysteries. I do think this one is solvable. I just recently found out about it. I know it has had some regional coverage and some on fox news. But since I never heard of it, I assume maybe there are a few people who know who she is but have not seen this story. Doc they have done DNA and tried to match it with databases but so far no match. I am thinking nobody is looking for her, but she did not just pop out of the ground. She was able to get a college degree, so that tells me she went to school somewhere./ I am thinking some old classmate from her school days as a child and teen might just recognize her. I hope some major national news outlet that broadcasts show in Canada does the story again. Fox is nationwide but really plays to a very small segment of the population. It needs to go major network.

[Regi]

Here is her obit. How did they know she lived in Scottsdale? Why did the family think it important to mention Scottsdale in the Obit? Was that the only place she claimed to be from?

Well, if it was what she told the husband, I'd doubt it was truthful.

Doc they have done DNA and tried to match it with databases but so far no match. I am thinking nobody is looking for her, but she did not just pop out of the ground.

I think it's a reasonable assumption that her family hasn't reported her missing because the way I understand it, when someone is reported missing, the family submits DNA which is entered into the data bank so that a future match is possible.

[docyabut2]

Hi all, it was said the Mother of the child and the Attorney did not know her.She looks Latino and may have been a illegal. I believe she took the name of the child at 17 years old.The 402 months adds to eleven years could mean something.

[petermattson]

Does anyone else get a methamphetamine or cocaine vibe? There is a mention of a possible ADHD medication which is often an amphetamine-based stimulant. The description of her talking in circles and writing scribbles over top of other writing also reminds me of people I have witnessed on coke or meth. My understanding of the "come-down" from meth is that people sleep for extended periods, which could explain her naps when visiting with in-laws and remaining inside her house most of the day. When they searched her house postmortem, the extreme neglect reminded me of descriptions of meth or crack houses. I don't believe she was using throughout her marriage and perhaps she was abusing prescriptions rather than street drugs but it seems like much of her behavior mimicked that of a meth user.

[Regi]

Hi all

She looks Latino and may have been a illegal.

Hi, Docy.

I'm curious about early education, which is (obviously) already questionable. (Keep in mind, we don't conclusively know the reason there's a GED.)

One thing I find remarkable is the penmanship of the signature on the Idaho ID because to me, the signature doesn't appear to be that of a young woman accustomed to writing in cursive.

[docyabut2]

Here's the scribble sheet, can anyone make it out .

[docyabut2]

Hi, Docy.

I'm curious about early education, which is (obviously) already questionable. (Keep in mind, we don't conclusively know the reason there's a GED.)

One thing I find remarkable is the penmanship of the signature on the Idaho ID because to me, the signature doesn't appear to be that of a young woman accustomed to writing in cursive.

Regi, I was thinking maybe this lawyer was into selling or making false document's, is perhaps why he`s not fessing up in knowing her

[docyabut2]

To add regi she does appear to know English in a earlier education, but could have learn in another country. I believe her first appearance was in Calif at the age of 18, so she might have been a illegal from South America.

[MissMelsWell]

There's never been any speculation she was from s. America. There was speculation she may have been from Canada though, and speculation she may have had some connections to Thailand or Asia.

[Regi]

Regi, I was thinking maybe this lawyer was into selling or making false document's, is perhaps why he`s not fessing up in knowing her

Well, there are two different Perkin's on that sheet and so the first thing that comes to my mind is that it's the last name that was somehow meaningful to her.

[docyabut2]

There's never been any speculation she was from s. America. There was speculation she may have been from Canada though, and speculation she may have had some connections to Thailand or Asia.

First, she got a copy of Becky Sue’s birth certificate from Bakersfield, Calif, what makes me think she had to be in Calif. I have two daughters born in 1981- 83 and I had to go the Bureau of Vital Statistics to get theirs, they did`nt just mail them out,thats if she got the certificate herself

Edited January 9, 2015 by docyabut2

[Regi]

For some reason, I've never considered that she wasn't a citizen of the U.S..

[Regi]

The description of her talking in circles and writing scribbles over top of other writing also reminds me of people I have witnessed on coke or meth.

I see the "talking in circles" circumstance as merely an impression offered by a single witness, observed at a (rather bizarre, for reasons I hope are obvious) couple's counseling session.

Anyway, the excessive writing sounds like it was a condition called hypographia.

[Regi]

First, she got a copy of Becky Sue’s birth certificate from Bakersfield, Calif, what makes me think she had to be in Calif. I have two daughters born in 1981- 83 and I had to go the Bureau of Vital Statistics to get theirs, they did`nt just mail them out,thats if she got the certificate herself

(I didn't see your edit, Docy.)

Bravo! I believe you are precisely right!

I don't buy that it was 'it's just that it was so easy' to obtain a birth certificate and/or a SS # in the eighties! Don't accept it! I certainly don't!

[docyabut2]

If not a illegal, what is a puzzle is how Jane Doe got that`s child name, if someone did not get that name for her. The child died in a fire in Tacoma WN. Perhaps thats where under age Jane Doe was from in reading a newspaper of the child` death and birth place as Calif. To where she wanted to go as a runaway to get a older identity. Her family or who ever she lived with just did not report her missing. She then went there and got the birth record. Another question would`nt the Bureau have records of who came in to get certificates or mail to if that's the case. I had to show my identification, when I pick up my daughters and had to pay for them.

Edited January 9, 2015 by docyabut2

[Maureen_jacobs]

People do things that are wrong and get away with it. If someone wants something bad enough, they will most certainly get it!

[Angel13]

Has it been suggested yet that she could've grown up in a cult or something similar to one and she escaped? That may explain having no one looking for her and a new identity. I've heard there are things that can be pretty horrible that go on sometimes in some of those cults. That could also contribute to her mental health issues. Her behavior, to me, seem like that of someone who is having a mental break triggered by her failing marriage. Sorry if this was brought up already. I haven't read all of the comments yet.

[MissMelsWell]

If not a illegal, what is a puzzle is how Jane Doe got that`s child name, if someone did not get that name for her. The child died in a fire in Tacoma WN. Perhaps thats where under age Jane Doe was from in reading a newspaper of the child` death and birth place as Calif. To where she wanted to go as a runaway to get a older identity. Her family or who ever she lived with just did not report her missing. She then went there and got the birth record. Another question would`nt the Bureau have records of who came in to get certificates or mail to if that's the case. I had to show my identification, when I pick up my daughters and had to pay for them.

A couple of years ago I followed a thread on that Slueths website (I forget what it's called, but it's a well known site) about this case. They did a lot of extensive research. The only tie they could find that might indicate she was in the country illegally was that she could have potentially been from British Columbia Canada. Most believe she was likely from the Puget Sound region, probably. Many believe a cult is a viable option given there were many in western Washington. She has a lot of ties back to this area. The "Slueths" came up with possible ties in Seattle, Tacoma, Puyallup, and Marysville. Then there was her Idaho ties as well. it's always been assumed that she got Becky Sue's name, and her parents names from the newspaper, probably off microfiche in a library.

You could always get birth certificates by mail, you still can (you can order them on the internet). I live in Washington, but I got my boyfriends b-cert for him and he didn't even know I'd done it. I just popped online, filled in all the necessary information about his parents, paid $25, and it was, shockingly, at my house in my mailbox 2 days later.

In roughly 1986, I knew kids who would go to the library and research though microfiche for deceased children older than they were, so they could get a real State ID card that made them 21. They'd just send a letter and a check to the state and it would get mailed back. Some of them even made requests from out of state. It wasn't that hard. In fact it was dang easy. Of course it's not as common a scam today because the state records are all computerized and they'd catch you if you tried to get an ID with a dead persons cert. AND most babies born in the USA in the last 20 years are required to have a social security number before they leave the hospital. That wasn't the case in the 80s (or earlier). My daughter, born in '87 didn't have a SS# until she was in grade school (she needed a passport and I had to have a SS# before she could get a passport). I didn't have one until I turned 16 and got my first job. Getting the b-cert is easy, getting a SS# is a bit more difficult.

Edited January 11, 2015 by MissMelsWell