The Knife: Off Record 136 – The Many Lives of Dana Lawrence (A.K.A. Jenna Kaplan): A Female Con Artist Hiding in Plain Sight

Date: December 11, 2025
Hosts: Hannah Smith, Patia Eaton
Episode Theme:
This gripping episode of "The Knife: Off Record" investigates the true story of Dana Lawrence, a notorious and ongoing female con artist who operated under a slew of aliases (Jenna Kaplan, Genevieve Morgan, among others), leaving a trail of identity theft, fraud, and devastated families across the eastern United States. Through an in-depth interview with retired FBI agent Mark Kasbaka, the hosts unravel how Lawrence manipulated communities, scammed romantic partners, and disrupted countless lives—while managing to remain largely undetected and continuously on the move. The episode highlights the ripple effects of her crimes, especially on her children and those who tried to help her.

Episode Structure

• Introduction to the case and setting in Nashua, New Hampshire
• Investigation unfolds: Mark Kasbaka’s involvement
• Deconstruction of Lawrence's fraud tactics and aliases
• The search for the truth about Lawrence's daughter and parental custody battle
• Unveiling Lawrence’s criminal past and compounding impact on her children
• Reflections on why serial scammers evade real justice
• Notable quotes and memorable segments

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Unfolding Mystery in Small-Town New Hampshire

• Patia introduces the episode’s focus: a female con artist currently still at large, revealed through Mark Kasbaka’s investigative work. The story begins in Nashua, a quintessential New England town (03:29).
• "Unless you run into someone named Jenna Kaplan. So, actually, that’s not her name, but we’ll get there." - Patia Eaton [04:47]

2. How the Investigation Began

• Mark, an off-duty FBI agent, is contacted by a friend in the mayor’s office about “Jenna Kaplan,” a “Harvard-educated attorney” who is suspiciously pushing for access to the city’s grant account numbers—well outside protocol (05:41–06:13).
• “Nobody really knew where she came from... She claimed to be a Harvard educated attorney. But what caused concerns...she was really pressuring her to get the account numbers from the Citibank accounts...” – Mark Kasbaka [05:41]

3. The Early Red Flags

• Mark’s background check on “Jenna Kaplan” raises immediate suspicions: the only Jenna Kaplan is an elderly person in New York, the address history is inconsistent, she uses a burner phone, and her rental application contains a stolen Social Security number (07:37–09:28).
  • “I checked it on my systems and I found it belonged to some woman in her late 50s in Western Massachusetts...” – Mark Kasbaka [09:28]

4. The Layers of Deception Emerge

• Upon visiting Jenna’s (Dana’s) residence, Mark interrogates her boyfriend, a criminal defense attorney, who reveals that Jenna and her child are supposedly in NYC. The situation escalates when Mark persuades the attorney to let him inside, revealing a chaotic scene—Legos scattered, piles of paperwork and burner phones—evidence inconsistent with her story (13:51–16:34).
• The attorney eventually confesses that Dana was hiding in the basement with the child as police arrived (17:01).

5. The Custody Twist and Identity Reveal

• Mark’s interview with the woman (“Jenna”) at the police station exposes her real name: Dana Lawrence. She claims to be fleeing abuse, but evidence of identity theft and fraudulent IDs is overwhelming (20:04).
• The child’s paternity is ambiguous; the boyfriend vacillates on whether he is the father, later admitting he is not, nor the legal adoptive parent (21:38).

6. Tracking Down the Child’s Father

• Mark’s clue from a Colorado nurse leads him to the biological father, Matt, who had been searching for his missing daughter for years. DNA confirms paternity, and after a tense custody hearing, the child is reunited with her rightful father (31:18–33:31).
• "Dana kept insisting she didn't know who the father was until all of a sudden, the doors swing open and here comes the dad. And then she's like, oh yeah, now I remember. He is the father." – Mark Kasbaka [33:14]

7. The Scope of Lawrence’s Crimes and Impact

• As Mark and the hosts reconstruct Lawrence’s criminal history, a complex pattern emerges: six children with six different men, repeated use of fake pregnancies to manipulate others for financial support, and perpetual use of aliases (35:42–37:22).
• “She destroyed my life, my siblings lives, and every person she touched.” – Mark Kasbaka, quoting Kennedy, Dana’s daughter who testified against her [35:14]

8. Victims Left Behind: Her Children

• Dana’s abandonment and manipulation deeply traumatized her children. Multiple siblings were separated, some placed for adoption or into foster care, siblings forced to lie about their identities, and one daughter left alone as a teenager with $20 in Miami (47:51–48:25).
  • “Her mother and Jonathan, my boyfriend, gave her $20 and left her in an apartment by herself in Miami.” – Mark Kasbaka [48:00]

9. Lawrence’s Ongoing Deceptions and Systemic Shortcomings

• Despite an 18-month federal prison sentence, Lawrence was soon out and immediately running new scams—posing as a reality TV producer and recruiting unsuspecting strangers (50:22).
• Mark describes a conversation with her first daughter, adopted as a baby, who reached out after a 23&Me match: even reunited, Dana tried to rope her into the same web of lies (51:06–53:55).
  • “...Being connected to the Royal Family or to Jack Nicholson, and she was, you know, sucking Britney in. Now Britney is not Britney anymore.” – Mark Kasbaka [52:39]
• The episode ends with frustration at the inability of the legal system to meaningfully halt serial non-violent scammers and a reflection on female con artists’ often invisible harm.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “You don’t picture someone in the mayor’s office using a burner phone.” – Hannah Smith [08:26]
• “I think I can speculate a reason why she does this, but we’ll get into that later... everything about her is like she’s a chameleon.” – Patia Eaton [34:21; 59:21]
• “Female con artists, I think, is less talked about in how violating it is. But if you’re in a relationship with someone and they've completely lied to you about everything...have you consented really to anything? No.” – Patia Eaton [58:24]

Timestamps for Core Segments

• [03:15] Introduction & set up of the mystery in Nashua, NH
• [05:41] FBI agent Mark starts the investigation: the first clues
• [07:37] Alias discovery, identity theft, burner phones, and red flags
• [13:51] Visit to residence: attorney boyfriend, deceptive living arrangements
• [17:01] The moment Dana is revealed to have been hiding, confrontation at police station
• [20:04] Dana confesses real identity, paternity/custody in question
• [31:18] Father discovered, DNA match, emotional reunion and custody
• [35:14] Testimony by daughter Kennedy, impact on children, sentencing
• [37:22] Reconstruction of Lawrence’s past cons, children, movements
• [48:25] Stories from children: abandonment, living on the run
• [51:06] First daughter’s discovery, failed reunion, continuing deception
• [58:24] Broader impacts, reflections on con artists and criminal justice system

Final Reflections and Analysis

• The hosts and Mark express deep empathy for the victims, especially Lawrence’s children, and frustration at how serial fraudsters like her often evade serious consequences due to the non-violent nature and fragmented prosecution of their crimes.
• The episode closes with Patia reflecting on how Lawrence’s deliberate confusion is key to her strategy, marking her as “a chameleon.”
• Hannah points out the essential challenge: “It’s so difficult to actually stop people like this because they just continue to move and do the same thing over and over again.” [56:41]

For Further Listening / Viewing

• TV Recommendation: The Gilded Age (HBO) noted by Hannah as an entertaining portrayal of old vs. new money and, coincidentally, featuring a scam storyline.

Takeaway:
This episode is a rollercoaster of true crime storytelling that exposes not just a string of victimizations and frauds, but the deep ripple effects left behind by a skilled, manipulative con artist still (possibly) out there today. Through the lens of those who tried to help—law enforcement, romantic partners, and children—the story underscores the havoc such criminals wreak, and the challenges of bringing them to true justice.

For story submissions, reach out to the hosts at theknifexactlyrightmedia.com or on social @theknifepodcast.