'No answers': Woman tells ABC13 her name is in several entities after finding out identity was taken

Chaz Miller Image
Saturday, April 29, 2023
Unpaid toll tags leads woman to find out her identity was stolen
After receiving mail regarding unpaid toll tags, LaNishia Moore-Munoz concluded that her new driver's license was taken and her identity was stolen.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A Houston teacher who believes her identity was stolen after her new driver's license was taken from her mailbox turned to ABC13 after growing frustrated with a lack of results in the investigation.

LaNishia Moore-Munoz says she first noticed something was wrong back in January.

RELATED: Former Harris County mail room clerk held on $30,000 bond after allegedly stealing man's identity

"I got some toll violations from Harris County," she said. "When I looked at the license plate, I noticed it was not registered to my car."

Moore-Munoz said she knew she had no unpaid tolls and reported the license plate on the invoice to the Houston Police Department.

Memorial Villages Police Department pulled over the car with those plates on Jan. 28 due to it being reported as stolen.

The driver, Keana Odell Owens, was charged with failing to identify to a peace officer. The police report stated Owens initially told police her name was LaNishia Moore-Munoz.

"It's disheartening. It makes me feel unsafe," Moore-Munoz told ABC13. "There's so much apparently going on under my name, and I don't even know about it."

SEE HERE: ID theft: What can happen if you're a victim

That charge against Owens was dropped as part of a plea deal for a 2019 fraud charge that had nothing to do with Moore-Munoz.

As a result, Owens is serving one year in the Harris County Jail, but Moore-Munoz says she wants justice.

"I just can't seem to get any answers," she said.

ABC13 asked the Harris County District Attorney's Office if any charges were in the works, but it couldn't comment on anything that hasn't been filed.

SEE HERE: What to do when your credit card numbers are stolen

The moment you find out your credit card or social security number has been compromised, you have to act fast to stop the damage.

In the meantime, Moore-Munoz is working to put her life back together.

"I've taken off many, many days for this," she said.

Moore-Munoz said her identity had been used to work for UBER, rent a U-Haul, and take out insurance, and that she often spends hours each night working to clear her name with multiple entities.

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