Dateline: The Devil Wore White - What do we know about Sante and Kenny Kimes' trail of crimes? 

Some crime stories feel like they belong in a Hollywood thriller, full of deception, mystery, and shocking murders. The case of Sante Kimes and her son, Kenny Kimes Jr., is one of them.

Their trail of crime spanned decades, involving theft, fraud, arson, and even cold-blooded murder. NBC’s Dateline is revisiting this chilling story in its latest episode, The Devil Wore White, airing on Friday, January 31 at 9/8c p.m. Let’s break down the twisted history of this mother-son crime duo and the chilling secrets that remain unsolved.

Sante Kimes was no ordinary criminal, she was a master manipulator, a con artist who could charm her way into anything. Born in 1934, she spent most of her life running scams, stealing money, and avoiding the law.

Her son, Kenny Kimes Jr., followed in her footsteps, not just committing petty crimes but engaging in murder. Together, they became one of the most infamous criminal duos in U.S. history.

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The list of crimes

Sante’s criminal record stretched back decades, mainly involving fraud, theft, and financial schemes. However, in the 1980s, she took things even further.

She and her husband, Kenneth Kimes Sr., were convicted of human trafficking, forcing young undocumented women into indentured servitude in their home. Sante served three years in prison, while her husband took a plea deal. But prison didn’t change her. If anything, her crimes became more violent.

In 1991, a man named Elmer Holmgren, a lawyer working for Sante and her husband, vanished without a trace. Before disappearing, he had warned his son, Ken Holmgren, that if he ever went missing, he should contact the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

At the time, Elmer was a federal witness in a case against Sante and her husband for suspected arson in Honolulu. But the case never moved forward, and Elmer was never seen again. By the late 1990s, Sante and Kenny had turned to murder. Irene Silverman was a wealthy New York socialite who rented out luxurious apartments in her Manhattan mansion.

In 1998, Sante and Kenny hatched a plan to steal her $7 million townhouse. They moved in under fake identities and tried to forge property documents. When Irene began to suspect them, they murdered her and got rid of her body, which was never found. A few months earlier, in Los Angeles, the duo had executed another deadly scheme.

Sante and Kenny had forged a $280,000 loan using the identity of David Kazdin, a banker. When Kazdin discovered the fraud, they shot him in the head and dumped his body in a dumpster near Los Angeles International Airport.

During his trial, Kenny Kimes shocked the courtroom by confessing to another previously unknown murder. In 1996, a bank executive in the Bahamas went missing while investigating suspicious offshore accounts linked to the Kimes family. Kenny admitted that he and his mother had murdered him as well.

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The investigation and evidence lost with time

Despite overwhelming evidence against Sante and Kenny, one major obstacle remained, missing records. After the 9/11 attacks, key government files related to their suspected arson cases were destroyed in the collapse of the World Trade Center. This meant that some parts of their criminal past would forever remain a mystery.

Sante and Kenny’s downfall came in 1998 when they were arrested for fraud and identity theft in New York. During the investigation, police uncovered evidence of murder, including forged documents and guns.

In 2000, both were convicted of multiple crimes, including murder, fraud, and grand theft.

• Sante Kimes was sentenced to 120 years in prison.
• Kenny Kimes Jr. was sentenced to life without parole.

Sante died in 2014 in a New York prison at the age of 79.

Even though Sante and Kenny were convicted, one mystery remains, What happened to Elmer Holmgren? No one was ever charged in connection to his disappearance, and the case remains unsolved.

The story of Sante and Kenny Kimes is one of deception, greed, and ruthless ambition. From fraud to murder, they left a trail of destruction wherever they went. Even after their deaths, the full extent of their crimes remains a mystery.

Stay tuned with Soap Central for more updates!