The Teacher Next Door: Identity Theft in Plain Sight

In 2015, high school teacher Sarah Martinez noticed inconsistencies in her new neighbor's stories about his past, leading her to uncover a complex web of identity theft spanning three decades. Through meticulous observation and amateur sleuthing, Martinez discovered that 'James Wilson' was actually using the identity of a deceased child from New Mexico, living under this false persona since 1982. The episode explores how Martinez's initial suspicion about contradicting details in Wilson's employment history led to the exposure of a man who had been evading federal charges for investment fraud, revealing the surprising ease with which someone can steal and maintain a false identity in modern America.