A “deceased” criminal stole an HR professional’s identity from LinkedIn to successfully apply for a position. Unfortunately, this was just the latest in her long history of fraud.
Serial Identity Thief
Cindy White had quite the criminal history back in the ‘90s, with charges such as forgery and theft. However, according to court documents, convincing her probation officer she was deceased in 1999 helped her avoid paying her debt to society.
She kept a low profile for over a decade but when she resurfaced, she was ready to start an identity fraud crime spree.
According to the Times-Picayune, the New Orleans Museum of Art hired White, who was using the alias Cindy Carmen, as a Human Resources Manager in June 2012.
Within a month, she requested a raise, but something made the employer curious about her qualifications and she was asked to provide proof of her credentials. White somehow managed to avoid being fired until January 2013—and was granted unemployment even though she had committed fraud!
From Deceased to Six-Figure Salary
In September of 2015, White was again hired as a Human Resources Manager—this time by Diversified Foods and Seasonings with a salary of $95,000.
According to the Times-Picayune, Diversified believed they were hiring a professional with a bachelor’s degree from Tulane and a master’s degree from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. In fact, they were hiring a different Cindy White—one who had stolen the identity of the accomplished scholar.
White had applied for the job using the details from the other Cindy White’s LinkedIn profile– along with stolen driver’s license and social security numbers.
After only five months on the job, White somehow managed to secure a promotion as Senior Human Resources Director, which came with a $10,000 raise.
When Diversified became suspicious of White’s qualifications, they took a closer look at her personnel file, where company officials found discrepancies that helped them uncover the fraud.
Within eight months, this phony employee collected $56,209 in salary from Diversified.
This time, the employer filed a criminal complaint and White was prosecuted, but not before she committed yet more fraud.
In August 2016, White was hired as a Medical Practice Manager at a prominent eye clinic with an annual salary of $65,000, according to the Times-Picayune. Once again, she asked for a raise within a month of her hire—this time a $7,000 raise. By then, her employer had noticed deficiencies in White’s performance and she was terminated in November 2016.
White’s checkered past finally caught up with her on April 17, 2018 when she was convicted of felony identity theft in Saint Tammany Parish, Louisiana.
She was initially sentenced to ten years imprisonment but when the prosecutor discovered that she had previously faked her death back in 1999 to get out of serving probation in a felony forgery case, the court increased her sentence to 15 years.
The Best Part?
While White was awaiting her trial in the Diversified Foods case, she applied for an office manager position with yet another fake resume. She wasn’t hired, but the reason why is quite astonishing.
Her resume and interview were so impressive that she did not get the job because the employer believed she was overqualified.
Previous Criminal History
Imperative ran our own Critical Criminal Background Investigation on Cindy White, and here’s what we uncovered:
- FORGERY: In 1997, White pleaded guilty to two counts of forgery after she assumed a coworker’s identity and emptied the victim’s bank account. The crime happened while she was employed by the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office in New Orleans.
- THEFT: In 1998, White was found guilty of attempted theft of goods and spent six months in confinement, six months in probation, and paid $250 in fines and court fees.
- FORGERY: In 1999, White pleaded guilty to two felony counts of forgery and received probation. However, her probation was terminated early when she somehow convinced her probation officer she was dead!
All of this is in addition to her most recent felony conviction for identity theft.
A “deceased” criminal stole an HR professional’s identity from LinkedIn to successfully apply for a position. Unfortunately, this was just the latest in her long history of fraud.
Serial Identity Thief
Cindy White had quite the criminal history back in the ‘90s, with charges such as forgery and theft. However, according to court documents, convincing her probation officer she was deceased in 1999 helped her avoid paying her debt to society.
She kept a low profile for over a decade but when she resurfaced, she was ready to start an identity fraud crime spree.
According to the Times-Picayune, the New Orleans Museum of Art hired White, who was using the alias Cindy Carmen, as a Human Resources Manager in June 2012.
Within a month, she requested a raise, but something made the employer curious about her qualifications and she was asked to provide proof of her credentials. White somehow managed to avoid being fired until January 2013—and was granted unemployment even though she had committed fraud!
From Deceased to Six-Figure Salary
In September of 2015, White was again hired as a Human Resources Manager—this time by Diversified Foods and Seasonings with a salary of $95,000.
According to the Times-Picayune, Diversified believed they were hiring a professional with a bachelor’s degree from Tulane and a master’s degree from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. In fact, they were hiring a different Cindy White—one who had stolen the identity of the accomplished scholar.
White had applied for the job using the details from the other Cindy White’s LinkedIn profile– along with stolen driver’s license and social security numbers.
After only five months on the job, White somehow managed to secure a promotion as Senior Human Resources Director, which came with a $10,000 raise.
When Diversified became suspicious of White’s qualifications, they took a closer look at her personnel file, where company officials found discrepancies that helped them uncover the fraud.
Within eight months, this phony employee collected $56,209 in salary from Diversified.
This time, the employer filed a criminal complaint and White was prosecuted, but not before she committed yet more fraud.
In August 2016, White was hired as a Medical Practice Manager at a prominent eye clinic with an annual salary of $65,000, according to the Times-Picayune. Once again, she asked for a raise within a month of her hire—this time a $7,000 raise. By then, her employer had noticed deficiencies in White’s performance and she was terminated in November 2016.
White’s checkered past finally caught up with her on April 17, 2018 when she was convicted of felony identity theft in Saint Tammany Parish, Louisiana.
She was initially sentenced to ten years imprisonment but when the prosecutor discovered that she had previously faked her death back in 1999 to get out of serving probation in a felony forgery case, the court increased her sentence to 15 years.
The Best Part?
While White was awaiting her trial in the Diversified Foods case, she applied for an office manager position with yet another fake resume. She wasn’t hired, but the reason why is quite astonishing.
Her resume and interview were so impressive that she did not get the job because the employer believed she was overqualified.
Previous Criminal History
Imperative ran our own Critical Criminal Background Investigation on Cindy White, and here’s what we uncovered:
- FORGERY: In 1997, White pleaded guilty to two counts of forgery after she assumed a coworker’s identity and emptied the victim’s bank account. The crime happened while she was employed by the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office in New Orleans.
- THEFT: In 1998, White was found guilty of attempted theft of goods and spent six months in confinement, six months in probation, and paid $250 in fines and court fees.
- FORGERY: In 1999, White pleaded guilty to two felony counts of forgery and received probation. However, her probation was terminated early when she somehow convinced her probation officer she was dead!
All of this is in addition to her most recent felony conviction for identity theft.
How to Avoid Employment Fraud
These employers could have avoided wasting scarce payroll dollars and time managing, investigating, and firing an unqualified and dishonest employee by following a few employment screening best practices:
- Require every candidate to complete an employment application. Too often, employers allow applicants to simply provide resumes, which are often scant on details, making it easier to fudge previous employment or other claims. We call resumes “polite lies.”
- Early in the interview process, ask very specific questions about previous employment: questions about the kinds of projects on which the person worked, the names of supervisors, and reasons for termination can all produce red-flags that may suggest further validation is required.
- Conduct reference checks with previous supervisors. While many companies have policies prohibiting supervisors from sharing information about former employees’ performance, this information is often still shared anyway. Also, always verify the basic details of employment, including dates and title, with the previous employer’s HR or payroll department.
- Ensure that the background check includes corroboration by a professional analyst of the identity information provided by the candidate, not just a printout of names and addresses associated with the social security number.
- Conduct thorough criminal background checks that do not limit the reporting of criminal records to items in the past seven years, except where required to do so by law. In most states and under federal law, there is no limitation on employers’ use of criminal convictions, regardless of age.
To ensure that you are making well-informed, fair, and legally-compliant hiring decisions, contact Imperative today to discuss how we can improve your employment background check process.
Don't become the victim of a Bad Hire Day!
Download our eBook 7 Steps to Making Bulletproof Hiring Decisions to learn how to create a thorough background screening process that starts before an applicant even walks through your door.
Don't become the victim of a Bad Hire Day!
Download our eBook 7 Steps to Making Bulletproof Hiring Decisions to learn how to create a thorough background screening process that starts before an applicant even walks through your door.
