10th FLDS leader pleads guilty to food stamp fraud

All the defendants that have been apprehended in the Fundamentalist LDS Church food stamp fraud case have reached a plea deal, while one remains on the run. Preston Yates Barlow, 42, has pleaded guilty in federal court to a misdemeanor charge of diverting Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits to people who weren't eligible to receive them. Barlow is one of 11 FLDS members who were originally charged with conspiracy to commit SNAP benefits fraud and money laundering. So far he has not received any actual sentence.

Prosecutors claim the group fraudulently used millions of dollars in federal benefits, using money to front companies as well as paying for a tractor, a truck and other items. None of the others went to jail but were required to attend a Department of Agriculture training session on the proper use of SNAP benefits.

Lyle Jeffs, the highest-ranking FLDS leader indicted in the case, remains on the run. He managed to escape a GPS ankle monitor and fled home confinement last summer. The FBI has offered a $50,000 reward for his capture.


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