|
|
| |
| |
Criminal Records - Most Wanted |
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
Profile |
|
| |
Name: Carol Silva
|
|
| |
Race: Unknown |
|
| |
Height: Unknown |
|
| |
Weight: Unknown |
|
| |
Hair (Color, Description, Facial Hair): Unknown
Always wears a wig during her thefts. |
|
| |
Eyes (Color and Correction): Unknown |
|
| |
Other Physical Characteristics: Constantly changes her appearance by using wigs, scarves, and accessories as disguises. |
|
| |
Wanted for :
Fraud, Washington, DC;
2005
Fraud, Montgomery County, MD;
2005
Identity Theft, Washington, DC;
2005
Identity Theft, Montgomery County, MD;
2005
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
Location(s) |
|
| |
Last Seen : Washington, DC
Montgomery County, MD |
|
| |
Possible Location : Washington, DC
Maryland |
|
| |
Last Known : Unkown |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Traits |
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
Case Story |
|
| |
The "Wig Lady" -- A Master Of Disguise |
|
| |
Police in Montgomery County, Md. and Washington D.C. are calling their latest fugitive one of the most brazen -- and resourceful -- scam artists they've ever seen. They've dubbed her the "wig lady," a thief who transforms herself into the very person from whom she's about to steal, using wigs, scarves, and accessories to pull off the masterful disguises.
By visually becoming her victims, cops say the thief has successfully stolen more than $200,000 in cash and hit at least 23 banks since September 2005. And cops say that despite constant changes in her appearance, her MO is always the same. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
The Scam |
|
| |
According to police, she begins by stealing her targeted victims' purses or wallets. Some victims say they were approached in grocery store by a stranger -- then noticed later their wallets were missing. Others say their entire purses were stolen from restaurants as the women sat eating their meals.
Once the wig lady has the wallets, she looks for identification -- preferably with photographs of her victims on them. Then, she dons a disguise depicting her victims' appearance and withdrawals money from the bank, using their real IDs. Cops say the wig lady has also used a different method -- depositing a check made out to the account holder she's about to scam, and obtaining the victim's account number during the transaction. Then, she goes back to the bank, disguised as her victim -- armed with false identification and the victim's debit card. The wig lady then withdrawals thousands of dollars and leaves before the initial check bounces and victims become savvy of the irregular account activity.
The wig lady uses wigs in varying colors and styles to depict her victims -- in some surveillance photos her hair is white, in others black, and sometimes it's even blond. Cops say she's stolen from women as young as 22 and as old as 80 -- but most victims are middle-aged woman. Because she is always in disguise, it is difficult to determine what the wig lady truly looks like -- but police describe her as either a white or light-skinned black woman in her 40s or 50s. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
Does The "Wig Lady" Work Alone? |
|
| |
Cops say the wig lady isn't working alone. They suspect she is part of a bigger circle of fraud and identity thieves. Additionally, police say surveillance videos from several of her scams show a well-dressed, unidentified black man in the background. Although he never makes a transaction, police say his presence at the scene of the crimes suggests he is involved. They are searching for this man and the wig lady to put an end to the string of theft in their area. |
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
 |
|
| |
|
|