….but get this! He stays out while his wife serves her time and neither will be deported!
I have a bunch of food stamp fraud bust stories I haven’t posted from earlier this month, this is the first I’m posting to catch up on the backlog. There is lots of interesting information and some new twists in the case about this Pakistani pair in Kansas. Readers take note that one of the food stamp sellers was also convicted.
Wichita, Kan. —
A Kansas grocery store owner and his wife were sentenced Wednesday to federal prison for a food stamp scam that profited by targeting people at homeless shelters who were willing to sell their government benefits for cash.
U.S. District Judge J. Thomas Marten sentenced Muhammad Qadeer Akram, 47, to 18 months in prison and gave his 38-year-old wife, Shama Qadeer, six months in prison plus six months of home confinement. The judge put the husband’s sentence on hold until after his wife serves her time to allow one of the parents to be home with their young children.
The couple, who owned Alnoor Grocery and Biryani House in Wichita, pleaded guilty in September to one count each of conspiracy to commit food stamp fraud, food stamp fraud and wire fraud. Authorities say they typically gave recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as food stamps, 50 to 60 cents on the dollar for the value of their food stamps. [they then collect the full dollar from you—the US taxpayer!–ed]
This is a new one! They scoured homeless shelters looking for people willing to sell their food stamp privileges!
The couple was accused along with the owners of another small Wichita grocery store of conspiring with Wally Mikhael Gaggo, the runner who scoured homeless shelters for people willing to sell their government benefits. The government charged 13 people in two federal indictments alleging schemes that defrauded the government out of more than $580,000.
Judge went soft on them:
James McIntyre, Shama Qadeer’s attorney, argued for a lower sentence for his client based on her cooperation with the government, her community standing and the needs of her family. He contended the crime was out of character and based “on a wrongheaded effort to save a family business.”
Marten said he gave her a sentence shorter than her husband’s because he believed she would be better suited to care for the couple’s young children. “I don’t believe your culpability is any less, and may be greater than your husband,” Marten said.
Both sentences were far below the federal sentencing guidelines that called for 41 to 51 months in prison for each count, based on the findings that the fraud amounted to $450,000 and the couple had leadership roles in the conspiracy. The judge told them he was not giving them sentences that long because he wanted them to make restitution. [How on earth will they make restitution, it would take them a lifetime to pay that much money back through legal work!—ed]
So surely the wife will be on welfare with four kids! How about deportation to save the US taxpayer from more expense!
McIntyre had argued in his court filings that his client married Muhammad Akram, her first cousin, at age 15 in an arranged marriage and has limited education. She is a naturalized U.S. citizen from Pakistan and has four children who live at home.
Warning to all refugees and other immigrants, selling your food stamps is also illegal!
Also Wednesday, Marten sentenced Tequita Higgins, a 28-year-old food stamp recipients who sold her government benefits, to two years of probation and ordered her to pay nearly $2,000 in restitution.
If you are new to RRW and want to know more about this massive type of fraud being perpetrated on the US taxpayer through these convenience store food stamp fraud schemes use our search function for ‘food stamp fraud.’ You will be amused (sort of!) by how many scammers are named Muhammad!
LOL! I wonder how long Hillary will let me say stuff like this? Islamic countries angling for speech curbs in the US, here.