LINDON — David Frank Pflegl II has a driver's license in two states, a passport and a $140,000 home mortgage. But David Frank Pflegl II died in a car crash in 1987.
Since then, his father, David Frank Pflegl, has been using his son's identity for all of the above, investigators say. Pflegl was arrested Thursday after a lengthy investigation involving Oregon investigators, the Utah Department of Public Safety and the U.S. State Department.
According to agent Scott Nesbitt, a Utah Department of Public Safety investigator, Pflegl used his son's name to get an Oregon driver's license after his own was suspended, eight years after his son was killed. He also got a passport with his son's name before moving to Lindon and getting a $140,000 home mortgage in the same name.
The 63-year-old man continued to use his son's name and Social Security number to get hunting and fishing licenses and buy vehicles, Nesbitt said. He also racked up several Utah traffic citations under the false identity.
"By the time we arrested him, there were actually warrants for his son's arrest," Nesbitt said.
After Oregon authorities caught the inconsistency, Nesbitt said the U.S. State Department became involved because Pflegl had a passport under the false name. The investigation then followed him to Utah and ended with Pflegl's arrest Thursday. He was booked into Utah County jail on suspicion of communication fraud, identity theft and forgery.
"Identity theft is pretty common," Nesbitt said, "but this is the first case I can remember where someone has used the identity of their own children."
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