Adult who posed as teen at White Bear Lake High charged
Ramsey County prosecutors have charged 22‑year‑old Kelvin Micaiah Luebke with two counts of aggravated forgery and one count of forgery after he allegedly posed as a 17‑year‑old and enrolled at White Bear Lake Area High School in September 2025 using a fake Liberian birth certificate. According to the criminal complaint, Luebke registered under the name “Kelvin Ciatte Perry Jr.” and provided a foreign birth record listing a 2007 birth date, allowing him to attend classes and participate in football practices for 19 days before suspicions triggered a police investigation on Sept. 29. Investigators say they later matched him to jail booking records and confirmed through a Minnesota driver’s license, U.S. passport and U.S. birth certificate that he was actually born May 30, 2003. Luebke told detectives he has both U.S. and Liberian birth certificates with different ages and claimed he used the Liberian document to enroll as an unaccompanied minor under protections of the federal McKinney‑Vento Act, while his adoptive father told authorities he’d been expelled from Forest Lake High School for behavioral issues. No court date has been set yet, but the case puts a spotlight on how easily an adult managed to get inside a large Twin Cities high school posing as a minor, despite years of hand‑wringing about school security.
📌 Key Facts
- Defendant: 22‑year‑old Kelvin Micaiah Luebke charged by summons with two counts of aggravated forgery and one count of forgery in Ramsey County.
- Allegation: Used a Liberian birth certificate under the name “Kelvin Ciatte Perry Jr.” listing a 2007 birth date to enroll at White Bear Lake Area High School and attend for 19 days, including football practices.
- Evidence: Authorities tied him to existing jail booking records and confirmed his true 2003 birth date via Minnesota driver’s license, U.S. passport and U.S. birth certificate; he acknowledged having conflicting U.S. and Liberian birth certificates and said he enrolled as an unaccompanied minor under McKinney‑Vento.
📊 Relevant Data
Minnesota is home to the largest Liberian immigrant community in the United States, with an estimated population of approximately 35,000 Liberians.
Why Liberians in Minnesota Have Newfound Hope — Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota
As of 2023, the Liberian population in Minnesota constitutes about 0.25% of the state's total population, with higher concentrations in certain cities like Brooklyn Park.
Percentage of Liberian Population in Minnesota by City — ZipAtlas
White Bear Lake, Minnesota, has a population of approximately 23,908, with 97.3% citizens and 7.16% foreign-born residents as of 2024.
White Bear Lake, MN — Data USA
The population of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, decreased by 7.93% since the most recent census, with a current estimated population of 23,479 in 2024.
White Bear Lake, Minnesota Population 2026 — World Population Review
There have been multiple recent cases of adults posing as teenagers to enroll in U.S. high schools, including a 32-year-old woman in Boston in 2023 and a 27-year-old man in Nebraska in 2024.
32-year-old woman faces charges after allegedly posing as teen in Boston high schools — ABC News
Adults have posed as high school students to participate in sports, such as a 21-year-old in Michigan in 2012 who forged documents to play football.
The McKinney-Vento Act requires immediate enrollment of students experiencing homelessness, and there are reports of system abuse, such as families manipulating it for school placement.
Is anyone else struggling with students and families abusing McKinney Vento? — Facebook
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