(NEW YORK) — A woman accused of impersonating four nurses from other states and using around 20 aliases since 2020 has been arrested and charged with dozens of counts, police said.
Shannon Nicole Womack, 39, has been charged with 43 counts, including endangering the welfare of a care-dependent person, identity theft, forgery and falsely pretending to hold a license, according to court records.
Womack is also charged with use and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to court records.
Womack was arrested on Monday, court records show.
Womack gave police false identification when she was pulled over by police in a routine traffic stop in April on Interstate 79, according to Pennsylvania State Police.
An investigation revealed that approximately 20 different aliases and seven different Social Security numbers were associated with Womack, according to police.
A search warrant was then executed on her vehicle, and investigators found multiple forms of identification, prescription medications prescribed to different victims, medical documents and various pieces of medical equipment, police said.
Womack posed as a licensed practical nurse, registered nurse and registered nurse supervisor at multiple rehabilitation and nursing home facilities throughout Pennsylvania, police said.
She was using the identities and credentials of four confirmed nurses from southern states, police said.
“Womack was able to secure these nursing positions through staffing agencies by submitting fraudulently signed documents and also by creating a false LLC to self-deploy herself to multiple jobs,” police said in a statement.
“Womack obtained employment through staffing agencies and even … was able to create her own host agency,” Pennsylvania State Police trooper Rocco Gagliardi said at a press conference. “So she was picking up the phone and transferring those employment jobs, careers, to herself.”
Police believe she began the deception in 2020 and continued it across many states on the eastern side of the country.
“During that COVID time, they got hit hard, and they needed help,” Gagliardi said. “So it wasn’t uncommon for these different residence locations, agencies, to reach out to host agencies and say we need some extra shifts filled. That started in 2020 and it was such an easy transition, she just kept going after that.”
The investigation remains ongoing, police said.
Womack’s bail was set at $250,000. Her next court appearance was scheduled for July 29.
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