Teen found in Times Square doesn't know who she is

Authorities are pleading for the public's help identifying a "Jane Doe" teen with amnesia who has been in the city's care for two weeks.

One of the few clues to her background is that she's able to recall words from a 2003 fantasy novel, "Fool's Fate."

"I just want to know who I am," the teen, estimated by doctors to be between 14 and 17 years old, was quoted as saying. "I want to know who I am and what happened to me."

In what an official described as an "extraordinary case," cops picked up the teen on Oct. 9 at 12:30 a.m. outside the Covenant House shelter at 460 W. 41st St., near the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

She was wearing tattered clothing, including green army pants, but had no ID.

She had no memory of her name, home or family. A fingerprint check produced nothing.

Tom Manning, a Covenant House spokesman, said she wasn't a resident at the shelter and workers there don't know her.

Officials said the blond, spiky-haired, soft-spoken girl has undergone testing by police experts and psychiatrists, who are convinced she isn't faking.

For two weeks, the Administration for Children's Services has been trying to track down her identity without luck.

"She is safe with us, and we are doing all we can to help her, but she needs to find her family," said ACS Commissioner John Mattingly.

Officials believe the young woman isn't from the city.

She is 5-foot-6 with a medium build, with poorly maintained teeth and blue eyes.

She has been reviewing materials designed to help students pass GED exams for high school and says she's able to do the math but has no memory of reading the history and science materials.

At one point, she wrote down the name "Amber" and responded when called by that name.

But she says she has no idea if that's really her name.

One of the weirdest clues to her identity is that she recently found herself recalling words that turned out to be an excerpt from the fantasy novel "Fool's Fate," by best-selling author Robin Hobb.

The book is part of a well-reviewed trilogy that has sold more than 1 million copies.

According to the ACS, the girl also said she has been writing a fantasy story featuring a heroine named Rian "who's been raised by the commander of the guard post on the edge of a fantasy kingdom."

Officials declined to make her available for an interview.

They asked anyone with information to contact the NYPD Missing Persons Squad at (212) 694-7781.

VIA