San Francisco's Most Committed Identity Thief Serves Prison Time as His Victim

The real Gregory Harville

A San Francisco man is behind bars today after he allegedly stole his friend's identification and used it to get money, a job, and traffic tickets, and even served his jail sentence under his friend's identity.

Officer Gordon Shyy says San Francisco police received a call from a man in Michigan who claimed that someone in San Francisco had been using his name, birthday, and social security number to obtain health benefits. The victim knew this was true, because he had been denied health benefits in Michigan, where authorities informed him he already had insurance in California, a state the victim had never even visited.

After some investigating, police learned 58-year-old Gregory Harville was allegedly using the victim's identification and collecting general assistance money. 

What's more unbelievable, is that Harville also collected citations, tickets, and a criminal record under his friend's name; he served time in state prison, not as Harville, but as the victim, police said.

Investigators later learned Harville and the victim had been acquaintances in Michigan some 30 years ago.

Yesterday, police spotted Harville on the 500 block of Fell Street. When police confronted him, he identified himself as the victim -- and that's about all police needed. In addition, Harville had an assortment of documents with the victim's name.

He was arrested and booked into county jail -- under his real name.

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