Woman who stole identities to work in health care is sentenced to 6-plus years in prison
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$1 per week for 24 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $4.00 plus GST every four weeks. After 24 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
Monthly Digital Subscription
$4.99/week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) — A woman who stole identities to work as a nurse or physician’s assistant in multiple states has been sentenced to more than six years in federal prison.
U.S. Attorney Tim VerHey in western Michigan said it was a “happy accident” that Leticia Gallarzo didn’t harm anyone while starting intravenous lines, distributing medications, removing catheter lines and supervising others.
Gallarzo pleaded guilty in 2023 to identity theft after she was accused of creating a false nurse’s license and other credentials to work at a Michigan nursing home. This followed a conviction and prison sentence a few years earlier for impersonating a nurse in Texas.
Authorities said Gallarzo left Michigan in 2024 while awaiting her sentence and worked in the Chicago area as a physician’s assistant under the license and identity of another person. She was finally caught last September near Los Angeles where she again was working as a nurse despite failing to have real credentials.
U.S. District Judge Paul Maloney sentenced Gallarzo to more than six years in prison Tuesday. Defense lawyer Rachel Frank said Gallarzo has a history of mental health struggles.
“She loved taking care of people, and felt she was doing something important. However, she now recognizes that her conduct, especially after being punished for it in the past, is unacceptable, and that her reasons for committing this offense are irrelevant,” Frank said in a court filing.