An artificial intelligence mistakenly identified a Tennessee resident as being involved in bank fraud, resulting in her spending nearly six months in custody.
This is reported by Business • Media
How facial recognition led to the arrest
50-year-old Angela Lipps from Tennessee is trying to return to her normal life after a serious error by facial recognition software powered by artificial intelligence. The system linked her to a bank fraud investigation in North Dakota, despite her having no connection to the crime.
Reportedly, Lipps spent nearly six months in custody. This occurred after Fargo police used the facial recognition program to identify a suspect in a bank fraud case. The woman insists she has never been to North Dakota and is not involved in any crimes being investigated by law enforcement in that state.
“The victim is a mother of three and a grandmother of five. She told reporters that she has lived most of her life in north-central Tennessee and had never flown on a plane before this incident.”
In July of last year, U.S. Marshals arrested Lipps right at her home. According to her, law enforcement threatened her with a weapon and placed her in the county jail, considering her a likely fugitive from North Dakota.
Evidence of innocence and consequences for the victim
The woman spent nearly four months in a Tennessee jail without the possibility of bail, awaiting extradition. She was charged with unauthorized use of personal information and theft. Fargo police analyzed surveillance video showing an unknown woman using a fake ID to withdraw large sums of money. To identify the suspect, law enforcement used an AI facial recognition system, which mistakenly pointed to Lipps. In court documents, a detective referenced similarities in facial features, build, and hairstyle.
Later, Angela Lipps’ attorney provided bank statements confirming that at the time of the crimes, she was more than 1200 miles away from Fargo—in Tennessee. After presenting this evidence, the court released the woman just before Christmas. Following her release, Lipps stated that the police had never apologized to her. Due to her prolonged incarceration, she lost her home, car, and pet.
This case is not the first in the US where facial recognition systems have made mistakes. Previously, one security algorithm mistook a bag of chips for a weapon, leading to the police detaining a student. On the other hand, such technologies sometimes aid in solving crimes, as was the case in the UK during the arrest of a gang of ATM robbers using the AI system Palantir.
