A 38-year-old woman has been arrested by the police for attempting to impersonate her 21-year-old daughter during a traffic stop.
Heather Garcia was driving a silver BMW when she was pulled over on Main Street in the town of Farmington in Utah after a Davis County police officer noticed that her car was missing a license plate. The police officer questioned the clearly middle-aged woman, before he noticed some pretty damning paraphernalia in the back of the vehicle.
During a search of her car, police recovered a number of drug-related objects, and a white powdery substance which was quickly identified as an illicit narcotic. Rather than confess to the felony drug possession however, Garcia attempted to dodge the charges by impersonating her own daughter.
Garcia sneakily attempted to fool law enforcement by claiming that her name was Mercedes. Garcia furthermore insisted that she had been born in 1998, despite the fact that her appearance suggested that she was far older. After being taken into custody, officers performed a cursory background check, and almost immediately realised that the identity Garcia had offered was actually her daughter's.
After making a positive ID check on Garcia, the police learned that she had several outstanding warrants for her arrest as well. Court documents show she is currently in Davis County Jail, and has since been charged with possession or use of a controlled substance, marijuana possession and possession of drug paraphernalia. She has also been charged with driving without insurance and driving with a suspended or revoked license or registration.
However, there have been cases where criminals have assumed a false identity and gotten away with it. Check out our special feature article all about the con man in a silicone mask who impersonated a French politician and managed to steal millions.
