Woman Stole Daughter's Identity To Enroll In College, Date Young Guys And Secure Loans

A 48-year-old Missouri mother who spent two years impersonating her estranged 22-year-old daughter has pleaded guilty to fraud charges. She posed as a young woman to enroll in college, secure loans and get a driver's license.

Laura Oglesby stole the identity of her daughter, Lauren Hays, in 2016. She applied for a Social Security card in her daughter's name and received it through the mail. Oglesby, who lived with her daughter in Jonesboro, Arkansas, then moved to Missouri, and the two lost contact, New York Post reported.

After moving to the small town of Mountain View, Oglesby convinced the local residents that she was 22-year-old Lauren Hays and worked at a local library. Oglesby stayed with a local couple, Avery and Wendy Parker, who believed she was a young girl running away from an abusive relationship.

By using the Social Security card, Oglesby also secured a driver's license in her daughter’s name and enrolled herself in Southwest Baptist University.

Oglesby reportedly also started dating young men in their 20's by convincing them that she was just 22 and even made Snapchat accounts using Hays' identity.

"She had completely adopted a younger lifestyle: clothing, makeup and personality. She had completely assumed becoming a younger person in her early 20s," Detective Stetson Schwien told KY3.

Oglesby also obtained several loans using Hays' identity. Reports said she received $9,400 in federal student loans, $5,920 in Pell grants and $1,863 in finance charges.

The elaborate fraud came to light in August 2018 after authorities in Arkansas contacted the police in Mountain View on reports of financial fraud committed by Oglesby using her daughter's identity. Though Oglesby initially denied committing the crime, she later admitted it and was arrested.

After pleading guilty to one count of intentionally providing false information to the Social Security Administration, Oglesby now faces five years in prison, Toronto Sun reported. As part of the plea agreement, she has to pay $17,521 in restitution to her daughter and the university in Missouri.