SIOUX CITY – An Iowa couple – the male half of which is an illegal alien from Mexico – were punished for lying to get food stamps and other benefits over the last approximately 20 years.
Kimberly Calles-Sheker, 43, and Oscar Calles, 44, both from Fort Dodge, Iowa, received their prison terms after May 16, 2017 and July 6, 2017, guilty pleas. Calles-Sheker pled guilty to one count of theft of government funds and Calles pled guilty to three counts of fraud or misuse of documents to obtain employment.
At the guilty plea hearings, Calles-Sheker admitted that from 1995 through April 2016, she improperly received benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); Family Investment Program (FIP); and Medical Assistance (Medicaid Title XIX). Eligibility for these programs is based on an applicant’s income, household composition and resources. Between about August 2012 and March 2016 Calles-Sheker and Oscar Calles resided together. During this time, Calles’s income was being deposited into a joint bank account with Calles-Sheker. Even though Oscar Calles was residing with Calles-Sheker and was employed, Calles-Sheker did not report his income when completing the required documentation for eligibility for these assistance programs. In fact, the only household income reported was approximately $753 in Social Security and Social Security Disability income that Calles-Sheker received each month. It has been determined their household received $32,080.57 in overpaid public assistance between November 2012 and April 2016. Oscar Calles admitted that he was an illegal alien from Mexico, but was employed by various employers and committed fraud by using the stolen identity of a deceased United States citizen, Francisco Aguilera to obtain and maintain employment in the United States. Specifically, Calles was employed at the following companies: D&H Poultry of Sibley, Osceola County, Iowa; Sparboe Farms of Eagle Grove, Iowa; Centrum Valley Farms of Clarion, Iowa; and Daybreak Foods, Inc. of Webster City, Iowa.
Both were sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand. Calles-Sheker was sentenced to 5 years’ probation and was ordered to pay $32,080.57 in restitution to Iowa Department of Human Services. She must also pay a special assessment of $100. Calles was sentenced to time served of 191 days’ imprisonment. He must also pay a special assessment of $300. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Calles is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin C. Fletcher and Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by USDA-OIG, Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals (IDIA), and U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
