Woman accused of assuming ID
Associated Press
Tuesday, March 04, 2008

GREENVILLE, S.C. --- Esther Elizabeth Reed is accused of stealing Brooke Henson's identity in 2003 and posing as the missing woman to obtain false identification documents, take a high school equivalency test and get into one of the nation's top universities.

Ms. Reed was indicted last year and made her first court appearance Monday on federal charges of identity theft, mail and wire fraud and obtaining false identification documents. A magistrate entered a plea of not guilty to all the charges. Ms. Reed, 29, was arrested earlier this month in Chicago.

Investigators have said they don't think Ms. Reed had anything to do with Ms. Henson's 1999 disappearance.

During the 10-minute hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Walt Wilkins gave what prosecutors believe is a chronology of Ms. Reed's crimes involving Ms. Henson's identity, including: obtaining an Ohio ID card using her name, date of birth and Social Security number; getting a high school equivalency degree; taking a California college entrance exam, then applying to Columbia University; attending Columbia; getting more than $100,000 in student loans; applying for a duplicate birth certificate in South Carolina; and getting a U.S. passport.

Ms. Reed faces a $1 million fine and 47 years in prison.

Reader Comments
Note: Comments are not edited and don't represent the views of The Augusta Chronicle. Please read our full comments policy. To report a post that may be inappropriate, click the icon.
Your comment will be attributed to
YOUR MESSAGE:
You have 1200 characters left.


advertisement

advertisement

TopJobs


Augusta-area Top Jobs
Heavy Equipment >OPERATORS< $13-15 | hr + Excellent Benefits. Operate different types of equipment. Call us at 706.868.6800 J#318 Pro Resources $185 Job located in Aiken County! (more)
Forklift Warehouse $-13 | hr Load & unload freight onto trucks. Call 706.868.6800 Full time position with full benefits package. Pro Resources $185 J#3414 Job located in West Augusta! (more)
Coding Medical Records Reviews, verifies coding accuracy, codes, abstracts, and coordinates. Call us at 706.868.6800 Full Time & Permanent Pro Resources $185 J# 229 PERM Work for Local Hospital!... (more)


© 2009 The Augusta Chronicle|Terms of service|About our ads|Help|Contact us|Subscribe|Local business listings


advertisement
advertisement