'Davis Edwards': Federal agents searching for fraud fugitive

WANTED BY SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION -- Federal agents say friends know him as ‘Davis Edwards’. He was born Teddy Lithgoe. At work, he went by ‘Charles Simmons’. Now, he's a fugitive wanted on five federal felonies:

This is a man agents say is on the run, while the people who care about him -- think he's dying of cancer. According to Special Agent in Charge Joseph Velling, "Agents from the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General, along with special agents from Diplomatic Security, and Health and Human Services, have spent the last 8 months investigating Davis Edwards.” Be sure to checkout all the photos of him below. Edwards was born under his real name in Walla Walla, in the 1950's. Social Security Administration Special Agent Todd Salter says his uncle, Charles Simmons, was born in the '40's -- also in that area. In ‘66, Charles Simmons died in a boating accident. In the early ‘90's, Teddy Lithgoe went into a Social Security office in San Diego, and applied for a card under his uncle's name, birthdate and Social Security number. He then used that card to basically change his identity and start to use multiple identities." Salter says Lithgoe eventually settled on the name 'Davis Adder Edward' -- but went to work using his uncle's name -- then went on disability with the Social Security Administration. "At the time that we got this case, he'd stolen approximately $120,000 from the government while doing this." All the while, Agent Salter says his loved one’s thought he was dead. "It appears that everything Mr. Edwards tells his friends and family is a lie." In November of 1993, he sent a letter to them saying he was in Australia -- had cancer -- and wouldn't be seeing them again, writing,  "I have bad news, and by the time you receive this letter I will have died." Agents say the truth is, he was likely living in Washington or Oregon -- not on his death bed -- and not happy when Special Agent Salter found him in Portland last April. "I showed him these two driver's licenses. They’re both the same person pictured in them with different dates of birth, and when I showed them to him and looked at them pretty closely and he said, ‘it looks a lot like me doesn't it’, and then he slammed the door in our face." Salter says Edwards quickly cleaned out his bank account and took off -- but not before posting a virtual memorial online -- telling his friends his cancer was back and was taking one final road trip. He writes, "I have had a really good life. I will say the last 21 years were the best, because of all of you." His friends quickly responded, one saying, "Devastated to hear the news of your prognosis.” Agents have found no evidence Edwards is dying, and say he's alive and well. "We do know that he came to Seattle. We know that he's bought several things in the Seattle area to include a backpack, sleeping bag, pillow and several throw-away phones." He could still be going by the name ‘Davis Edwards’, or ‘Edward Charles Davis’ -- another one of his fake identities. Special Agent Salter says cases like this are important because those are your retirement funds. "They're stealing the money that all of us have paid into for years and when we get to that stage in our lives, we want to know that that money is there so by holding these people accountable and catching them it helps to preserve those funds and know that they're there when we need them." Agent Salter says Edwards works in construction management, and could be in Seattle, Portland or San Francisco -- where he's been spotted. If you know where Federal agents can find this accused identity thief, call an anonymous tip into: CRIME STOPPERS: 1-800-222-TIPS You must call the Crime Stoppers hotline with your tip to be eligible to receive a cash reward for information leading to a fugitive’s arrest. CLICK HERE for information on how to TEXT A TIP to Crime Stoppers