A convicted identity thief who confessed masquerading as a nurse in Virginia about ten years ago is suspected of impersonating two nurses in at least two Southern California hospitals this year, according to officials.
The police department of Burbank identified the accused as Amanda Leeann Porter.
She was arrested on November 7 in connection with a nursing employment she acquired at a Burbank medical centre using the name of a certified nurse who resided out of state, according to a statement released Thursday by the city's police department.
Porter, 44, who does not possess a nursing license, was charged with identity theft, grand theft and false impersonation, the department said. According to Jail records, she is being held without bail.
This was not the first time that Porter was arrested in a case linked to identity theft, the department said. She was taken to custody previously over similar allegations linked to a hospital nearby Santa Clarita, California.
Porter's Identity Theft In Virginia
According to the Burbank police statement, Porter was on probation for a different federal fraud case in Virginia at the time of her arrest on November 7. In a statement of facts in the federal case that Porter acknowledged as accurate, she confessed impersonating a registered nurse in New York in 2015 and used it to obtain a position as a supervisor at a nursing facility near Norfolk.
The accused had the position for five months before she was fired in March 2016, the document says.
Porter also confessed to opening multiple bank accounts and acquiring loans more than $100,000 using the name of the original nurse, date of birth and Social Security Number. She used the amount to buy diamond jewelry, Mercedes Benz, a Ford Mustang for her son, and other items, according to the document.
The Accused Oversaw Around 60 Patients
Porter, 44, allegedly applied for a job in Burbank's Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center this year and oversaw around 60 patients between the period of April 8 and May 8, the police said.
Soon after the hospital authorities found out she was impersonating a out-of-state nurse, they immediately terminated her services, the department said.
"Once discovered, we took immediate and appropriate action, including terminating her employment and reporting to regulatory and law enforcement authorities," the hospital said in a statement.
Amid the ongoing investigation, the police department of Burbank have asked people to contact law enforcement if they came into contact with the accused at a medical facility.