A Professional Con-Artist

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Police say several surveillance cameras caught Garvin in the act. This photo shows her in a women's locker room in NY.

Lizzette Garvin is a self proclaimed con-artist from New York and cops claim she has been for more than twenty years. Since the 1980's, Garvin has allegedly finagled hundreds of victims out of their hard earned money  to support her lavish lifestyle. Cops say she's used to flashy cars, expensive jewelry, and jetting around the country no matter who's paying the bill. Garvin is supposedly so good at conning people out of their most private information that authorities believe she almost bought a home under someone else's name. 

Police say Garvin first began swindling money by breaking into locker rooms in health clubs in New York to steal people's gym bags. They say she would use a bolt cutter hidden in her workout bag to sneak into the changing room. Then, when no one was around, she allegedly broke open the door to the locker and stole what was inside. Once she left with their items, Garvin would call the victim -- posing as a bank official. The victims were so happy to have someone for assistance that cops say Garvin could easily fool them into surrendering their personal identification numbers to unlock their bank accounts. After she took all of their money, authorities claim Garvin would call the gym and tell the victim she had put a stop on their credit cards.

The plan worked out so well for Garvin that she continued for another ten years. That was until cops say Garvin began creating even more elaborate scenarios. But this time the set-up was so good that officials say it fooled even them.

One Step Ahead

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Here is a surveillance photo of Garvin just after authorities believe she commited a crime in St. Charles, Missouri.

Garvin began reading up on cops and learning any law she could get her hands on. Eventually, she became so knowledgeable that police say she started pretending to be one of their own. Her scheme: police say she would recruit a crew of people to help her with the gym break-ins.  Then, police say anytime she got in trouble she would give up members of her crew to get herself out of harm's way. 

Police say that's what she was doing in 1999 when she was arrested in Los Angeles.  But, she wasn't locked up for long. She managed to post bail and get back into mainstream society. Cops say this time, Garvin came back with more of a vengeance. Garvin allegedly began touring the U.S breaking into gyms and stealing people's belongings. Police believe she hit in Des Moines, Iowa, Port Orange, Florida, Independence, Missouri, New York City, New Jersey, Virginia, Oklahoma City, Mississippi, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and nearly every place in between.

But this time, police say she would call the victims and tell them she was the police officer investigating the thefts of their items. Or, police say she would pose as a credit fraud investigator for a credit card company.  At that point, people would give up their personal information to the person they believed was trying to help them.  What's more: Garvin would give tutorials to her crew on how to steal cars and impersonate cops. They say she began making hundreds of thousands of dollars and she used it to open up her own brothel.

Over the years, Garvin became so cocky that she wanted the police to know what she had been up to over the last few years. That's why cops say she began making calls to a detective in New York.

A Fugitive's Name In Lights

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Garvin was also spotted in these cameras at a Walmart in West Virginia where cops say she spent her victim's money.

In 2005, NYPD Detective Marisa Valle came face to face with her elusive suspect Lizzette Garvin. She had been hunting Garvin for impersonating a New York City Police Detective and for duping people out of thousands of dollars with her elaborate gym break-in scheme. Her cases were from 2003 and 2004. She id'd her suspect off of surveillance video and was glad to finally have caught up with her. The face to face meeting was in a jail cell.

Garvin had been picked up on a number of break-ins in Alleghany, Pennsylvania and she was getting ready to be extradited to New York to face similar, more serious charges. During that meeting police say she told Detective Valle  that she had been responsible for hundreds of break-ins across the country.

Before the meeting was over, Garvin asked the detective for her cell phone number in case she needed to share more information.  The detective gave it to her, and left, comfortable that the next time she would see Garvin would be in a New York City courtroom to face the charges she was investigating.

The next time the detective heard from Garvin was two weeks later when she received a call on her cell phone from her. Garvin informed her she was free. Pennsylvania let her post bail --and become a free woman.  Detective Valle was shocked!

Detective Valle tried to talk her into turning herself in and Garvin said she would -- in time. The pair talked more than a dozen times over the next year. Police tried to track the cell phone, but Garvin kept using disposable phones. In May 2006, Garvin called Det. Valle and said she was ready to turn herself in. But, she never showed up. That was the last time the detective heard from Garvin, until January 8, 2007. Lizzette Garvin called Det. Valle and said she was up to her old ways because she needed to live and take care of her 2 year old daughter. During this conversation, Garvin told Det. Valle that maybe if she saw herself on "America's Most Wanted" she would turn herself in.

That's what America's Most Wanted is counting on --someone to come forward and put this scam artist behind bars once and for all.

Crazy Coincidence

While AMW was putting the finishing touches on Garvin's case something exciting happened. A producer from the Mississippi Valley phoned her police contacts searching for stories in her region. The detective claimed he didn't have much to give her except for a case he thought AMW might find interesting. He had surveillance video of a woman who was ripping off gyms and stealing victim's money by saying she was a police officer. The producer quickly realized this unknown fugitive he was talking about sounded a lot like a fugitive from New York, Lizzette Garvin.

AMW called Det. Valle and asked her to take a train from New York to the AMW Crime Center to hear the exciting news. Once she arrived, Det. Valle was connected with Mississippi cops over the phone who described their fugitive. Then, they asked Det. Valle to turn around and watch the surveillance video of their unknown suspect. After viewing the tape for less than 5 seconds Det. Valle was able to ID the suspect as Garvin. She told the cameras that she had seen Lizzette in person, spoken to her over the phone, and spent three hours with her. There was no doubt in her mind that this woman was Lizette. Thanks to Det. Valle,  the Mississippi police were able to put a name to their face and issue a warrant for Garvin's arrest in their state.

Det. Valle also learned through their conversation that Garvin had commited several more crimes since January 2007. It seems that Garvin was up to her old tricks again in the months since she had last spoken to her. Det. Valle says with this new information Garvin is at the end of the road.  She hopes AMW tipsters lead her right to them.   

Hot Tips

Finally, on the night of April 28, 2007, cops got the lead they wanted. Right after the airing  on America's Most Wanted, a great tip came into the AMW crime center.  The tipster gave us information on fugitive Lizzette Garvin.  Now, detectives are hot on her trail and hope to have her locked up soon. What's more -- callers to our hotline told us they believe Lizzette has been very busy over the past several months.  Those callers told us there are similar crimes in Wisconsin, Louisiana, New York State, Alabama and and New Jersey.  The crimes are all identical to the ones Lizzette is accused of committing. Now, cops are trying to find out if she is responsible for those too.

Timeline:

AMW Capture #938

Conwoman Captured 22 Hours After AMW Airing

As soon as Lizzette Garvin's face aired on AMW, the phones began to light up at the Crime Center.  Within minutes, police had information that Lizzette Garvin may have been hiding in Georgia, but that she had just watched America's Most Wanted and was now on the move.  Tipsters told the hotline operators the vehicle Garvin was driving, what she looked like now, and every other detail imaginable.  The NYPD, and the U.S Marshals Fugitive squad out of Atlanta, Ga. worked the leads all night long.  And, 22 hours later, U.S. Marshals in Indianapolis had Lizzette Garvin in handcuffs. 

The Marshals tracked a rental car she was driving  to a parking lot at a motel near the Indianapolis airport.  Soon after they found the car, they found Lizzette, and her game was over.  What's more, in the hours after the airing Lizzette called NYPD Detective Marisa Valle on her cell phone -- saying she was upset that she had been portrayed as a "monster" on nationwide television.  One of the first things Lizzette told cops after she was picked up was "I want to talk to America's Most Wanted". 

One On One With Lizzette

Lizzette Garvin got her wish and sat down to talk with AMW correspondent for two and a half hours inside a room in the Marion County Jail in Indianapolis, Indiana.  The lengthy interview covered Lizzettes twenty plus year crime spree.  During the interview, Lizzette said she was sorry to her victims, but she didn't realize how serious the charges were against her until she saw "America's Most Wanted".  Here are some experts from the interview::

Jon Leiberman, America's Most Wanted: "In your 20 years of doing this, have you scammed millions of dollars?"

Lizzette Garvin:"If I stole 500 dollars from you, 500 dollars from that person, 1000 dollars from that person, 20,000 from that person and lump it all together then it's possible.  I've been addicted to money. I've been addicted to this.  The adrenaline is an addiction.

Jon Leiberman, America's Most Wanted: "When did you start stealing?"

Lizzette Garvin: "I probably started stealing nickels, dimes and pennies out of her and her friend's purses when i was six or seven years old. My parents tried to get me help and tried to get me therapy. I went to therapy one time and I stole the therapist's wallet."

More States Want Lizzette

What's more: America's Most Wanted continues to get calls from law enforcement agencies from across the country who want to get their hands on Lizzette Garvin.  Cops say she may be even more prolific than they originally thought.  A dozen more detectives have contacted AMW for information on Lizzette.  For now, she's in New York city to face the New York charges first, but that definitely won't be the last jurisdiction where she'll face charges.