Press Release
Indictment: Woman Serving Fraud Sentence Walked Away from Halfway House
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Kansas
KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Texas woman was charged today with escaping from custody at a halfway house where she was serving a sentence for fraud, U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister said.
Chrystal Rippey, 38, formerly of Marshall, Texas, is charged with one count of escaping federal custody. In May 2015, she was sentenced to five years in federal prison for wire fraud. She pleaded guilty to defrauding a Texas couple who gave her more than $22,000 as part of a plan to adopt her unborn twins. In fact, Rippey lied to the couple and she was not pregnant.
On July 17, 2018, Rippey turned up missing from the Grossman Residential Reentry Center in Leavenworth, Kan. She was arrested later in Monroe, La.
If convicted, she faces up to five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. The U.S. Marshals Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley is prosecuting.
OTHER INDICTMENTS
Scott Joseph Skibo, 54, Chetopa, Kan., is charged in a superseding indictment with two new counts, including one count of growing marijuana and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction. Charges remaining from an earlier indictment include one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The crimes are alleged to have occurred Sept. 18, 2017, in Labette County, Kan.
Upon conviction, the crimes carry the following penalties:
Manufacturing marijuana: Up to five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.
Possession with intent to distribute marijuana: Up to 20 years and a fine up to $250,000.
Possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking: Not less than five years and a fine up to $250,000.
Unlawful possession of a firearm following a felony conviction: Up to 10 years and a fine up to $250,000.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation, the Labette County Sheriff’s Department and the Chetopa Police Department investigated. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Rodebaugh is prosecuting
Carlos Jaquez-Terrazas, 33, who is not a citizen of the United States, is charged with one count of possessing a firearm while in the United States unlawfully. The crime is alleged to have occurred July 18, 2018, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces a penalty up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. A deportation officer with Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Barnett is prosecuting.
Jose Vincente Lira-Ramirez, 44, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found July 1, 2018, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. A deportation officer with Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Barnett is prosecuting.
Ignacio Hernandez-Mendez, 48, who is not a citizen of the United States, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found June 27, 2018, in Wyandotte County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces up to two years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask is prosecuting.Pedro Carrera-Ramos, 27, who is not a citizen of the United States, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found July 12, 2018, in Johnson County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces up to two years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Rask is prosecuting.
Carlos Ramirez-Reyes, 41, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found May 7, 2018, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. A deportation officer with Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Barnett is prosecuting.
Marco Antonio Cardenas-Rodriguez, 40, a citizen of Mexico, is charged with unlawfully re-entering the United States after being deported. He was found July 27, 2018, in Sedgwick County, Kan.
If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000. A deportation officer with Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Barnett is prosecuting.
In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. The indictments merely contain allegations of criminal conduct.
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Updated August 8, 2018
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