BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — A Battle Creek couple has been sentenced after pleading guilty to fraud charges. Antonio Mixon has been sentenced to four months in prison. Keturah Mixon has been sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay $180,000 in restitution.
According to the Department of Justice, Antonio committed wire fraud by falsely claiming that he was entitled to financial assistance under the federal Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program. He claimed that he ran Kingdom Warriors Ministry, and said that the nonprofit organization helped children in Battle Creek. He received $36,000 in grants and loans based on the number of his purported employees. However, Kingdom Warriors Ministries never operated, never helped children, and had no employees.
After the money arrived in Antonio’s bank account, it was immediately withdrawn by Keturah.
Keturah also obtained benefits from SSI and the Food Assistance Program. However, she did not qualify for the programs because she owned several parcels of real estate, ran a business, and has access to Antonio Mixon’s income. She received approximately $180,000 in funds from the programs.
Antonio and Keturah were charged with federal offenses in December 2021. They pleaded guilty in January 2023.
“These programs were meant to protect people who had fallen on hard times,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. “My office will continue to aggressively hold accountable scam artists and cheats who steal hard-earned taxpayer dollars.”
“Ms. Mixon knowingly concealed from and failed to disclose information to the Social Security Administration (SSA) which would have made her ineligible to receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI). By doing so she abused the SSI program, a needs-based safety net for the most vulnerable among us,” said Gail S. Ennis, Inspector General for SSA. “My office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to pursue those who defraud SSA. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its support of our investigation and holding Ms. Mixon accountable for her actions.”
