ObamaNation - Black Muslim Welfare Cheats Receive Prison Sentences

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Nevada couple sentenced in Oregon's largest case of welfare fraud
Rick Bella, The Oregonian By Rick Bella, The Oregonian
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on May 16, 2013 at 4:10 PM, updated May 16, 2013 at 10:48 PM
The largest welfare-fraud case in Oregon history came to a close Thursday
when a Clackamas County judge sentenced a Nevada couple to prison for
scamming state and county agencies, as well as an insurance company.

Lakisha Emma Louise Muhammad, 36, was sentenced to five years in prison.
Her husband, Donte Marquis Muhammad, 37, received a three-year sentence.
Together, they must repay a total of $229,000 in unjustified payments
they received over a five-year period.

The case has triggered an internal investigation by the Oregon Department
of Human Services into how so many clues were missed as the Muhammads
used state benefits to buy a Las Vegas home in a gated community. State
officials believe the fraud case is the largest in state history.
The Muhammads were arrested in August, after a lengthy investigation by
state and county officials. After negotiations between prosecutors and
defense attorneys, the Muhammads pleaded guilty April 1 to felony charges
of racketeering, making false claims for health-care payments and first-
degree aggravated theft. Lakisha Muhammad pleaded to eight counts; Donte
Muhammad to six. Additional charges of false swearing and perjury were
dropped.

Circuit Judge Douglas V. Van Dyk approved the plea agreement Thursday and
imposed the agreed-upon sentences. Donte Muhammad stood to face Van Dyk;
his wife sitting at his side, in a wheelchair.

"The crime is utterly reprehensible," Van Dyk said. "To my mind, what the
Muhammads did was to steal from the poor to enrich themselves... You
misled the state about your disability, Ms. Muhammad, and Mr. Muhammad,
you were complicit."

The Muhammads did not address the court.

According to court documents, the Muhammads received Oregon housing,
welfare, food stamps and other assistance at several Portland-area
addresses before moving to Nevada, claiming the move was necessary for
Lakisha Muhammad's health.

Lakisha Muhammad claimed that she suffered from a variety of disabilities
that forced her to use a wheelchair although mental health evaluations as
early as 2001 found that she was "malingering."

"We have video of her at Costco, walking and hoisting a 5-gallon
container of oil," Assistant Attorney General Melissa M. Chureau told the
court Thursday. "We have video of her walking unassisted. She even got up
and walked away from the defense table after she pleaded guilty."

From 2010 to 2012, the Muhammads continued to collect Oregon benefits
while living in Las Vegas, where they purchased a five-bedroom, 3,500-
square-foot home in a gated community for $330,000. Donte Muhammad failed
to disclose that he earned more than $70,000 last year working for a
company that stages convention events and continued to be paid by Oregon
to serve as his wife's full-time caregiver.

Defense attorney Zack M. Lorts, who represented Donte Muhammad, told the
court that the Muhammads took advantage of a favorable real estate market
when they bought their home in Las Vegas.

However, Chureau said the Muhammads made a $12,000 down payment after
receiving mileage reimbursement from state welfare authorities for
driving between Portland and Las Vegas.

Defense attorney Lawrence L. Taylor said Lakisha Muhammad's ailments may
not be physical, but mental.

Van Dyk was not persuaded, ordering the Muhammads to pay $211,473 to the
Oregon Department of Human Services, $8,413 to the Housing Authority of
Washington County and $10,000 to Assurant Inc. insurance company.

-- Rick Bella