A woman's sister is accused of stealing her identity and giving birth to a child under her name

LAS CRUCES, NM (KFOX) – A woman in New Mexico was left stumped after receiving hospital bills for a child she didn't have. Ultimately it was revealed that her identity had been stolen, but there was more to the story.

When Blue Cross Blue Shield contacted Tania Golden in May and said they needed to make referrals for a baby, she thought they were talking about her youngest son because he had a speech delay.

“She said, 'No, ma'am. “We're talking about the baby that was just born on the 24th. And that's when I thought, 'Okay, you got the wrong person,'” Golden said.

That's when it became clear that Golden's sister, who she doesn't speak to, had sent her a text message telling her she was going into labor at Memorial Medical Center.

When she went to the records department, Golden said hospital staff didn't ask for identification or an insurance card.

“This is ridiculous,” Golden said. “I gave birth three times and each time I gave them my ID and insurance card.”

Golden said she filed a police report at that point, claiming her sister had stolen her identity.

“I found out where she lived. I called the police. They arrested her. “She was out within a few days, but the baby was placed in foster care,” Golden said.

Additionally, Golden had a child protection case that she felt should have been under her sister's jurisdiction.

“The authorities conducted their own investigation and I went to court to prove that I was not CPS’s biological mother,” she said.

Golden's sister Adriana Robbins Cruz is currently facing nine counts of forgery and one count of identity theft.

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