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CRIME Medford woman, 76, stole $190,000 using fake identities Comment By Nick Morgan Mail Tribune Follow @@mtcrimebeat MailTribune.com By Nick Morgan Mail Tribune Follow @@mtcrimebeat Posted Jul. 28, 2016 at 3:00 PM Updated Jul 29, 2016 at 9:49 AM By Nick Morgan Mail Tribune Follow @@mtcrimebeat Posted Jul. 28, 2016 at 3:00 PM Updated Jul 29, 2016 at 9:49 AM » Social News A 76-year-old Medford woman told a federal judge today she stole six figures' worth of public assistance because she was supporting her nine children and grandchildren by herself. "I knew I was doing wrong, and I'm sorry I did it, but I was thinking of my family," Edubigen M. Gonzalez said in U.S. District Court in Medford. "I was the only one working." Gonzalez was sentenced to probation and community service for taking more than $190,000 in assistance using other identities over a 12-year period. She pleaded guilty in February to a felony charge of theft of government funds, admitting she used and maintained two additional identities, one created in 1981 and one in 1996, which she used to illegally collect Social Security, food stamps and medical benefits from 2002 through September 2014. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Helen Cooper, who prosecuted the case, said maintaining the separate identities and keeping paperwork straight for the different identities took "tremendous skill." Gonzalez told Magistrate Judge Mark Clarke in broken English that she has no formal education and can barely read. Neighbors assisted her with various applications, she said. Gonzalez and federal public defender Brian Butler asked Clarke for leniency. Gonzalez said she does not currently work, but watches her grandchildren, ages 7 and 5, one of whom is autistic. Gonzalez's younger daughter works full time as a bookkeeper and helps with rent, she said. "Besides my baby, nothing else worry me," Gonzalez said. Gonzalez had three driver's licenses when investigators contacted her in September 2014. Gonzalez was issued an Oregon driver's license under the false identity Concepcion Cantu-Gonzalez in 1981, which she renewed twice. In 1996, she obtained driver's licenses under the name Oralia Osuna and under her actual name, renewing them as needed. The U.S. Inspector General's Office determined that the Social Security number for the Osuna identity had been issued in 1984, and she began collecting benefits under both her true name and the Osuna identity in 2002. She collected $113,376 in retirement and medical benefits under as Osuna. In January 2005, on her 65th birthday, Gonzalez collected Social Security benefits under her true identity, but submitted falsified documents. She collected $40,663 in retirement and widow benefits to which she was not entitled. She received food stamps under her true name beginning in 1997 and under her Osuna identity starting in 2002. From 2002 through 2014, Gonzalez collected $29,540 in food stamp benefits for which she didn't qualify. Prior to issuing his sentence, Clarke marveled at Gonzalez's life story, saying it should be a memoir. He said Gonzalez was placed in an orphanage at age 10, married at age 15, did field work until age 66, and raised nine children, mostly by herself. "You've got an amazingly interesting life," Clarke said. "I understand bad decisions can be made when you're thinking about children." Clarke sentenced her to federal probation for five years and ordered her to have only one checking and one savings account, issued under her own name, and authorized probation to monitor her finances. Any lines of credit issued must be approved by probation. Prosecutors had sought restitution in the amount of $190,004, but Clarke saw a restitution judgment as futile, because Gonzalez doesn't have an income. Prosecutors also had sought six months of home detention, but Clarke said her current role caring for her grandchildren already meant she was housebound. He told Gonzalez he wants her to have a life in the community outside the house, and ordered her to perform 100 hours of community service. "You took $190,000 from the government," Clarke said. "You have to give something back." Reach reporter Nick Morgan at 541-776-4471 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @MTCrimeBeat. By Nick Morgan Mail Tribune Follow @@mtcrimebeat MailTribune.com By Nick Morgan Mail Tribune Follow @@mtcrimebeat Posted Jul. 28, 2016 at 3:00 PM Updated Jul 29, 2016 at 9:49 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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