Did you hear the story about the 33 year old mom who stole her daughter’s identity so that she could attend high school, join the cheer leading squad and basically fulfill her lost teen dreams?
Wendy Brown, the mom in question, is now facing a felony identity theft charge after she enrolled in ashwaubenon High School in Green Bay, as her 15 year old daughter. She was able to briefly get away with this because her daughter lives in Nevada with her mother.
According to the complaint, brown wanted to get her high school diploma and become a cheerleader because she didn’t have a childhood and wanted to regain a part of her life that she missed. She even went so far as to attend cheer leading practices before school started and received a cheer leading locker. She also attended a pool party at the cheer leading coach’s house.
The $134.50 check Brown gave to the cheer leading coach for her uniform bounced, the complaint said.
A high school employee, Kim Demeny, told authorities that the woman, posing as the teen, seemed very timid. Demeny said she told her she was not good at math and even cried when she talked about moving from Pahrump Valley High School in Nevada. Demeny said she looked older than a student but had the demeanor of a high school girl.
A school liaison officer started investigating after Brown only attended the first day of classes last week, the complaint said.
Assistant Principal Dirk Ribbins later learned Brown’s daughter was enrolled at Pahrump Valley High School. Ribbins also spoke with Brown’s mother, who told him she had custody of the girl. She said Brown has a history of identity theft crimes, the complaint said.
Brown made her first court appearance Friday by video conference. The judge set bond at $8,000.
If convicted, she could face up to six years in prison and a $10,000 fine.