A lady was detained for allegedly impersonating a nurse and working in various California hospitals without a license.
Amanda Leeann Porter was arrested by the Burbank Police Department on November 7 after hospital staff at the city’s Saint Joseph Medical Center reported her impersonating a nurse while caring for patients, according to a statement.
Porter, who is originally from Virginia, was accused by police of falsely applying for a position at the hospital and getting hired. According to the statement, she cared for around 60 patients between April 8 and May 8, before staff discovered she was impersonating an actual registered nurse who did not live in California.
“By the time Porter was terminated, she received two paychecks for the time she was fraudulently employed,” according to the police.
Porter, 44, is also accused of committing a similar offense at the Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Santa Clarita, north of Los Angeles. Police say he does not have a nursing license.
“During this investigation, detectives learned that Porter continued to obtain employment with various local hospitals using a variety of false identities,” according to a police report.
Porter had bonded out of the custody of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department after being detained in Santa Clarita, officials said.
Porter is charged with felony identity theft, felony false impersonation, and felony grand theft. Porter, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, pled not guilty to all counts on Wednesday, Nov. 13.
“Ms. Porter’s alleged actions are deeply troubling and egregious as she deceived patients and medical professionals alike, betraying the trust of those who rely on our medical community in their most vulnerable time of need,” the district attorney, George Gascón, said in a statement.
“We acknowledge the profound distress that this situation may have caused those who were treated by the defendant,” according to the statement. “Our office will work relentlessly to hold this individual accountable and ensure that justice is served.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, Porter is also on federal probation for a fraud violation in Virginia, while Amanda Porter-Eley pled guilty to impersonating a nurse and bank fraud in the state.
According to the publication, Burbank police would not confirm whether Amanda Leeann Porter and Amanda Porter-Eley were the same individual, but their ages match and both identities had appeared in previous court documents.
Porter-Eley was convicted of impersonating a nurse in Virginia and working as a nursing supervisor without a license for six months, according to the US Department of Justice. From September 2015 to 2016, the lady was accused of using the nurse’s identity to open bank accounts and obtain loans for cash, services, and products totaling almost $450,000.
According to Burbank police, Porter is being held without bail at the Los Angeles County Central Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood.
Authorities are now looking for more information in Porters’ case, with Burbank police claiming that she “may have committed additional similar offenses in the Southern California area during the past year.”
Anyone with additional information is encouraged to call local law enforcement or Burbank detectives at (818) 238-3210.