Westchester Square academy, located within the Lehman educational campus, in the Bronx, New York. Photograph: Google MapsView image in fullscreenWestchester Square academy, located within the Lehman educational campus, in the Bronx, New York. Photograph: Google MapsWoman charged after allegedly posing as 16-year-old Bronx studentSuspect, 28, accused of enrolling under false identity before arrest, in case echoing similar US incidents
A 28-year-old woman pretended to be age 16 and enrolled at a Bronx high school under a false identity before New York City police jailed her recently, according to officials.
Kacy Claassen pleaded not guilty to charges of criminal impersonation in the second degree as well as trespassing on 28 April, the day after her arrest, Bronx court records show.
The case against Claassen joined a series of others in the US calling to mind the plots of movies such as 1987’s Hiding Out or 1999’s Never Been Kissed.
A criminal complaint first reported by Manhattan-based WABC and the New York Post alleged that Claassen enrolled at Westchester Square academy on 13 April while claiming her name was Shamara Rashad and that her date of birth was in 2010.
Claassen also allegedly told Westchester Square’s principal that she had just moved from Ohio, but police said her ruse fell apart when the school director confronted her with a social media page revealing her true age and identity.
Investigators maintain that Claassen at that point confessed to what she had done, saying a friend made her lie so that she could receive more public assistance.
Police arrested Claassen at the school, and court records indicated that she was later released without being required to post a bond pending the outcome of the case against her.
A public defender listed for Claassen didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for New York City’s public school system issued a statement to WABC and the Post saying “enrollment fraud is a serious crime that fundamentally undermines [the district’s] values”.
“[Police are] actively investigating these allegations and will pursue all appropriate legal action against those responsible,” the statement continued. “We are providing all necessary and suitable support to the school community.”
Claassen’s next court appearance was tentatively scheduled for 15 June.
Her arrest unfolded a little more than 50 miles (80km) from a New Jersey high school where a woman who was 29 at the time was arrested on allegations of fraudulently enrolling as a student.
Investigators in that case – from January 2023 – alleged that Hyejeong Shin provided a fake birth certificate aimed at convincing officials that she was eligible to enroll at New Brunswick high. Shin later reportedly enrolled in a pre-trial program for three years while also being required to undergo mental health testing and pay fines.
Four years before Shin’s arrest, a man in his mid-20s was found to have gained admission into Dallas’s Hillcrest high school under a false name and then emerged as the best player on his campus’s basketball team.
The man in that case, Sidney Gilstrap-Portley, was ultimately sentenced to six years’ probation after he pleaded guilty to records tampering and indecency with illicit sexual contact involving an underage girl, who was 14 and a Hillcrest high student, news media reports said.
