HOUSTON – A woman who attempted to rent several properties in Southeast Texas using a stolen identity has plead guilt.
As part of a plea agreement, Kalah Flowers received deferred adjudication for three years. She must also take an antitheft class, cannot use drugs or alcohol, and must complete 40 hours of community service, among several stipulations.
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The investigation into Flowers started in mid-February 2024, when native Houstonian Melissa Darlow started getting calls from Houston-area realtors.
“I wasn’t even in the process of looking for an apartment here or anywhere,” Darlow said. “It was very rattling to receive that call and that information that my identity was being used in that way.”
The New Yorker of five years didn’t know her identity had been stolen but she said six realtors reached out to verify if she truly wanted to lease their properties.
“She could see the ID that was submitted and then looking us up online, it was a different image, different person,” Darlow said.
The ID featured Darlow’s name, birthdate, and Houston address, but the photo was a woman who looked nothing like her. The signature also didn’t match.
The case landed in the hands of Harris County Precinct 2 Constable Deputy Francisca Cabral.
“It seemed like once she obtained ‘no’ from one, she would move on to another,” Cabral said. “Pretty quickly, and I have some information where she was very persistent that she wanted to move in now.”
Deputy Cabral reviewed documents provided by at least four realtors to piece together the puzzle. With information like phone number, vehicle details, and money orders, she was able to pinpoint Flowers as a suspect.
Her photo, on the realistic-appearing ID that had Darlow’s information on it, matched a recent mugshot from an unrelated Houston Police Department theft charge.
Flowers has been wanted on the three felony charges since March 19.
Deputy Cabral arrested Flowers while she was attending a criminal court hearing on the theft charge.