KANSAS CITY, KS (KCTV) -
A Kansas City woman has been sentenced to federal prison for running an adoption scam after swindling 14 couples.
Prosecutors think the woman and her accomplice swindled more than 20 couples.
Roxanne Janel Jones, 35, of Kansas City, MO, was sentenced to 87 months after she pretended to be pregnant with twins and said she was willing to let couples adopt her newborn twins in return for money and gifts. Court officials said she received tens of thousands of dollars in cash and gift cards.
She pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. She received the maximum sentence.
Taj A. Isaiah, 29, also from Kansas City, who assisted Jones by pretending to be her landlord or boyfriend, was sentenced to two years in prison. He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud.
Isaiah picked up money orders and wire transfers from prospective adoptive families and he made false statements to the couples.
In her plea, Jones admitted she contacted adoption agencies, claimed to be pregnant and sought to meet couples who wanted to adopt. She asked the couples for money for rent and other living expenses.
The couples were from Bonner Springs, Overland Park, Florence, Olathe, Shawnee and Leavenworth, as well as Minnesota, Georgia, California, Tennessee and Massachusetts.
A Minnesota couple paid nearly $19,000 to Jones for her expenses for babies that never came. A California couple was told to pick up their babies at KU Med. The couple, who had paid for massages, haircuts, groceries and food for Jones, traveled to the Kansas City area after she texted them that she had given birth. Jones and Isaiah met the couple in the hospital cafeteria. When they went to the nursery to see their babies, the couple learned the heartbreaking truth that Jones had never given birth.
Jones provided a variety of reasons for why she couldn't keep her twins. They included the babies being conceived as a result of a sexual assault, a brain tumor and financial reasons.
An Iowa couple told KCTV5 that they fear Jones' and Isaiah's crimes will deter other couples from adopting.
"We sent out emails to friends and family letting them know we were having a baby," The woman said. "We were really excited and the birth mom was unselfish and just wanted the baby to go to a great home. We were excited to finalize our family. And then, of course, three weeks later, we had to send out a not-so-good email."
The husband said it's been devastating for him and his wife. He said they wanted a child and thought they were going to have two, only to have the rug yanked out from under them.
Prosecutors believe there are more victims but that they are too embarrassed to come forward. If you are a victim or know someone, call the U.S. Attorney's Civil Rights Hotline at 855-321-5549.
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