Monday, March 17, 2014 | 5:14 p.m.
Shawnanna Starr Flores
A Mesquite woman was sentenced to a year in jail today for tricking community members into thinking she needed money to help her 7-year-old fight cancer.
According to a release by the Mesquite Police Department, Shawnanna Starr Guerrero Flores, 36, staged a benefit on Aug. 24, 2013, at a Mesquite gas station under the guise that her son had been diagnosed with liver cancer, which was untrue. People in the community donated supplies and volunteered to help, raising $404. The scam also included a donation fund at a bank and money jars that were put in shops around town.
Flores pleaded guilty in Mesquite Municipal Court to obtaining money under false pretenses, obstruction of justice and unlawful acts involving electronic mail or transmission of other data.
Mesquite Municipal Court Pro Tem Judge Ruth Kolhoss sentenced Flores to a year in jail. Additionally, Kolhoss ordered Flores to undergo a mental evaluation, pay $745.26 in restitution and perform 500 hours of community service with an organization that helps cancer victims.
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