During the government shutdown from October 1 to November 12, 2025, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana continued its law enforcement activities and public safety operations. U.S. Attorney Tom Wheeler acknowledged the commitment of his office and other federal partners during what he described as “the longest government shutdown in history.”
“U.S. Attorney Wheeler also wishes to specifically acknowledge the dedication of the Federal Judges of the Southern District of Indiana, their staff, the Clerk and her staff, as well as the Marshalls Service during this time as well.”
Despite limited resources during this period, charges were filed against 41 defendants for various criminal offenses. The office secured a total of 30 criminal sentencings over the course of the 43-day shutdown. These cases are now being made public following the resumption of normal government operations.
Among those sentenced was Kimberly Dumes, who received three years probation after pleading guilty to wire fraud related to fraudulent CARES Act loan applications between 2020 and 2021. Dumes obtained $51,664 by falsely claiming business ownership while employed at the U.S. Postal Service.
Mitchell Gibson, an inmate at Terre Haute Federal Correctional Complex, was sentenced to an additional 25 years in prison for second-degree murder after torturing his cellmate in 2020. Gibson was already serving a sentence for assaulting his pregnant wife.
Desha Morris was sentenced to five years in federal prison and ordered to pay $335,589 in restitution after pleading guilty to mail and benefits fraud involving SNAP benefits between 2020 and 2022.
Michael Martinez received a sentence of 15 years in federal prison with an additional 20 years supervised release for distributing child sexual abuse material while on probation for similar offenses.
In Evansville Division cases, Samuel Kirkwood was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison with lifetime supervised release after admitting to producing and possessing child sexual abuse material involving a minor under his care.
Anita Perez received an 18-month sentence and nearly $2 million restitution order after pleading guilty to preparing fraudulent tax returns through her business ChuliTodo from 2021-2023. She filed hundreds of false returns that resulted in more than $1.5 million lost by the IRS.
Uchechukwu Gideon Eze was sentenced to nearly two years in prison and ordered to pay over $182,000 restitution for his role in a business email compromise scheme that targeted a Clark County company. The fraud forced significant financial hardship on its victims.
Dennis Carter and Kyle Wade Owens were sentenced to federal prison terms for producing counterfeit currency used at businesses across Indiana and Kentucky earlier this year.
Further details on these cases can be found at Justice.gov/usao-sdin/news-and-press-releases.
