Tennessee Grandmother Jailed for Months After Facial Recognition Error Triggers Her Wrongful Arrest [WATCH]

A Tennessee grandmother spent more than five months behind bars after law enforcement relied in part on facial recognition technology that incorrectly identified her as a suspect in a bank fraud case in a state she had never visited, as reported by The New York Post.

Angela Lipps, 50, was arrested at her rental home in Tennessee in July and later extradited to Fargo, North Dakota, at the end of October, according to information shared in a GoFundMe campaign created on her behalf.

The case stemmed from a fraud investigation in West Fargo, where police used facial recognition software that flagged Lipps as a possible suspect.

OMG. Angela Lipps, a 50yo grandmother from Tennessee, was arrested at gunpoint at her home and jailed in South Dakota for over 100 days because AI facial recognition mistakenly linked her to a fraud case.

She lost everything she owned, including her home, dog, income, health… pic.twitter.com/O44cAdaCtc

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) March 17, 2026

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Dave Zibolski, chief of the Fargo Police Department, said the West Fargo Police Department initially used facial recognition technology to identify Lipps.

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He told CNN that additional investigative steps were taken after the initial identification to confirm her as a suspect.

However, Zibolski later acknowledged during a press conference that the technology used by West Fargo police was “part of the issue” in the wrongful arrest.

The West Fargo Police Department confirmed that it uses Clearview AI, which “identified a potential suspect with similar features to Angela Lipps.”

Lipps remained in custody in Tennessee for approximately three months before being transferred to North Dakota.

AI error jails innocent grandmother for months in Fargo fraud case | Matt Henson, InForum

A grandmother from Tennessee is working to get her life back after what she says was a case of mistaken identity linked to North Dakota that nearly cost her everything.

Angela Lipps spent… pic.twitter.com/K9QZ853TP9

— Owen Gregorian (@OwenGregorian) March 17, 2026

According to reports, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office did not notify North Dakota authorities that Lipps had signed an extradition waiver, delaying the process.

After her transfer, Lipps said the experience marked several firsts for her.

She stated that the trip to North Dakota was “the first time I had ever been on an airplane,” adding that it would also be the last time she would ever travel to the state.

By the time she arrived in Fargo, Lipps described herself as “terrified and exhausted and humiliated,” according to statements she later posted in the fundraising campaign.

Once she obtained legal representation, her attorney quickly secured bank records showing that she was in Tennessee at the time the fraud occurred.

“It took five minutes for the whole thing to fall apart. Five minutes,” Lipps wrote.

On Dec. 23, just over five months after her initial arrest, authorities moved to dismiss the charges. According to Fargo police, a detective, the state’s attorney, and a judge “mutually agreed to dismiss the charges without prejudice to allow for further investigation.”

Lipps was released the following day, on Christmas Eve.

Despite her release, Lipps reported significant personal and financial consequences resulting from her time in custody.

She said her reputation had been damaged, she lost her rental home, and her belongings were taken after she was unable to keep up with payments on her storage unit.

“I am not the same woman I was. I don’t think I ever will be,” she wrote.

The GoFundMe campaign established to assist Lipps had raised more than $68,000 as of Sunday.

In response to the case, Zibolski said the Fargo Police Department will stop using information provided by West Fargo’s Clearview AI system, stating that the department does not oversee how that system operates.

He also said facial recognition identifications will now be reviewed monthly by the department’s Investigation Division commander to monitor how the technology is used.

NEW: Tennessee grandmother spends five months in jail after facial recognition links her to crimes in North Dakota, a state she says she never visited

Angela Lipps, 50, was arrested at gunpoint by U.S. Marshals at her home in Elizabethton while babysitting four children

She was… pic.twitter.com/iR2M4W7E8O

— Unlimited L’s (@unlimited_ls) March 30, 2026

Zibolski acknowledged that investigators should have submitted surveillance images related to the fraud case to agencies trained specifically in facial recognition analysis.

Following Lipps’ release, the department said it had “immediately began measures to address” the situation and is continuing efforts to identify other potential suspects connected to the fraud investigation.

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