Piotr Kucy is a man who’s dead tired of trying to prove he’s alive and well and living in the city of Polkowice (top left) in southwest Poland. His problems started when a body washed up on the shore of a local lake last August.

For reasons he can’t explain, authorities identified the deceased as Kucy. But when he showed up a few days after his own funeral, family and friends soon realized everyone had gotten the wrong man. They seemed overjoyed to find out he was still among the living, but government officials weren’t quite so happy.

Hopelessly mired in red tape, authorities have steadfastly and stubbornly refused to change the name on the death certificate or restore the resident to life. And that means since the summer, Kucy has been unable to get a job (dead men apparently aren’t considered good employment risks and have no documentation) and can’t collect any benefits or social insurance.

There is one positive from his battle with the bureaucrats, however. For the past six months, he hasn’t had to pay a cent in taxes.

“We are nearly through January, and my documents still say I’m dead,” he told a local newspaper. “It’s a bit of a joke.”

But not to local registry office officials, who had a comment of their own. “This citizen does not exist,” one insists.

Kucy continues to be a man in limbo and until he gets it resolved, he’s finding that being dead is killing him.

Photo courtesy: Jan Jerszynski Wikipedia

