Perla Serrano, Homeless Man, Allegedly Posed As a Woman For Medical Care

A homeless man in California is accused of stealing a woman's identity for 13 years and racking up more than $100,000 in medical care expenses.

Police in San Clemente say they found Perla Serrano -- who appeared to be a woman -- sleeping Sunday in a public area. But a deputy noted a hospital wristband with a different name than the one the person gave. Soon, the 51-year-old suspect's gender became in doubt, according to ABCNews.com.

“The deputy called San Clemente Hospital and was informed by San Clemente personnel that the person was actually a man, not a woman,” Orange County Sheriff’s spokesman Jim Amormino told ABC.

The victim, who is only being named as "Perla K," has apparently suffered a long ordeal because of the alleged identity theft.

"It's been a nightmare for 13 years," Amormino told Mission Viejo Patch.

The victim has had to go to court several times to straighten out various arrest warrants for various infractions.

Serrano now faces two felony counts, each of unauthorized use of personal identifying information and false impersonation, as well as single felony counts each of second-degree burglary and grand theft, Patch reports.