20 Facts About Esther Reed

Esther Elizabeth Reed was born on March 8,1978 and is an American woman convicted of fraud and identity theft charges.

Esther Reed is best known for attending California State University, Fullerton and Columbia University School of General Studies using stolen identities, including that of missing person Brooke Henson.

Esther Reed dropped out of Mountlake Terrace High School in 1995; three years later, her mother died of colon cancer.

In October 1999, Esther Reed pleaded guilty in King County, Washington to attempted possession of stolen property.

Shortly after, Esther Reed disappeared and her family did not hear from her again.

Esther Reed was reported missing in 2004 by her father after social security checks revealed she was alive.

Esther Reed's situation is unusual because, unlike most identity thieves, she did not use the identities to run up credit card debt.

In 2001, Esther Reed assumed the identity of Natalie Bowman and enrolled as an adjunct student at California State University in Fullerton, California.

At CSUF, Esther Reed became friends with several debaters at the United States Military Academy at West Point and at the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis.

Esther Reed dated one of the cadets for an extended period of time.

In 2003, Esther Reed moved on and earned her GED, using the identity of Brooke Henson, another missing person from Travelers Rest, South Carolina.

Esther Reed attended Columbia for two years, where she majored in psychology and had a 3.22 GPA.

Esther Reed relocated to Chicago and changed her identity to Jennifer Myers.

Esther Reed was featured on the United States Secret Service's 10-most-wanted fugitive list and America's Most Wanted on the Fox Television Network.

Esther Reed was featured twice in 48 Hours Mystery episodes on CBS: the first, Capture the Queen, aired in 2007, and the second, Catch Her If You Can, aired in 2009.

On February 3,2008, in Tinley Park, Illinois, Esther Reed was captured by Tinley Park Police who were searching the entire area for a gunman who shot and killed five women at a Lane Bryant store.

Esther Reed's car was in a Sleep Inn motel parking lot in the area.

At her sentencing, Esther Reed's attorney argued that her behavior was the result of mental health issues stemming from the death of her mother and severe social anxiety.

The lawyer said that Esther Reed began to experience social phobia during her freshman year of high school, that her difficulties were mitigated by the presence of her mother, and that once she lost her mother's support, Esther Reed's life began to unravel.

Esther Reed was sentenced to 51 months in prison and was released from federal prison on October 27,2011.