Seventeen people charged with welfare fraud out of Marshall County

By: Maura Johnson

Posted: Oct 21, 2022 5:10 PM EDT

Brooke E. Gardner Cameron M. Gardner Evan T. Gardner Charles J. Sell Kiersten K. Sell Dustin A. Kanschat Brittnie M. Kanschat Albert Preston Miller, Jr. Windie E. Cherrone Chad E. Hickey Renee S. Atkins Dustin Whitaker Justin P. Sanders Josefina M. Cabrera Alicia D. Ark Joe C. Shepherd

MARSHALL COUNTY, Ind. - The Marshall County Prosecutor's Office filed welfare fraud charges against 17 people after an investigation found that several inmates were applying for unemployment while incarcerated.

Several inmates had people who were not incarcerated fill out the online application and weekly vouchers in order to get the unemployment funds.

Charges were filed against the following individuals:

Brooke E. Gardner, 45, of Culver, was charged with two counts of welfare fraud.

Cameron M. Gardner, 28, of Plymouth, was charged with one count of welfare fraud. A warrant has been issued for his arrest. He is currently serving time with the Westville Correctional Facility. His bond was set at $3,000.

Evan T. Gardner, 27, of Culver, was charged with one count of welfare fraud. A warrant for his arrest was served on August 2.

Charles J. Sell, 40, was charged with welfare fraud. He is currently being held at the Marshall County Jail.

Kiersten K. Sell, 31, of Ossian, was charged with welfare fraud.

Dustin A. Kanschat, 42, was charged with welfare fraud. He is currently serving time with the Westville Correctional Facility. His bond was set at $3,000 cash.

Brittnie M. Kanschat, 38, of Plymouth, was charged with welfare fraud. She was booked into the Marshall County Jail on August 15. She is being held on a $3,000 cash bond.

Albert Preston Miller, Jr. was arrested for welfare fraud in Plymouth on September 8. He is being held at the Marshall County Jail on a $3,000 cash bond.

Windie E. Cherrone of Bremen, was arrested for welfare fraud on September 9. She is being held on a $3,000 cash bond at the Marshall County Jail.

Chad E. Hickey, 38, of Bremen, was arrested for welfare fraud on September 9. He is being held on a $3,000 cash bond.

Renee S. Atkins, 53, of Bourbon, was arrested on September 10 for welfare fraud. She is being held on a $3,000 cash bond.

Dustin Whitaker was arrested for welfare fraud after allegedly getting unemployment while incarcerated in the Marshall County Jail. He is currently serving time with the Westville Correctional Facility for an unrelated charge.

Justin P. Sanders was arrested for welfare fraud for allegedly getting unemployment while incarcerated in the Marshall County Jail. He is currently serving time with the Westville Correctional Facility for an unrelated charge.

Josefina M. Cabrera, 33, of Plymouth, was arrested on October 10 for welfare fraud. She is being held at the Marshall County Jail on a $3,000 cash bond.

Amy Reese, 45, of North Liberty, was charged with one count of welfare fraud. On November 7, an arrest warrant was issued for Reese. On November 15, the warrant was recalled.

Alicia D. Ark, 24, was charged with one count of welfare fraud. An arrest warrant was issued on September 7 but Ark's location is currently unknown. Her last known address was Nappanee. If you have any information, please contact the Marshall County Sheriff's Office.

Joe C. Shepherd, 51, was charged with one count of welfare fraud. An arrest warrant was issued on September 7 but Shepherd's location is currently unknown. His last known address was Bourbon. If you have any information, please contact the Marshall County Sheriff's Office.