Oklahoma City Pair Indicted in Adoption Scam

OKLAHOMA CITY—Today, a federal grand jury has charged SERENA CAROL MATHEWS, 41, and SCOTT THOMAS SMITH, 34, both of Oklahoma City, with conspiracy, mail fraud, and production of false identity documents in connection with an adoption scam, announced Sanford C. Coats, United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma.

It is alleged that from November, 2010, to June 2011, Mathews and Smith conspired to defraud prospective adoption providers (i.e. law firms specializing in adoption and adoption agencies) and adoptive parents to obtain money. As part of their conspiracy, it is alleged that the defendants agreed Mathews would falsely pose as a pregnant woman who wished to place her child for adoption and receive money for expenses of the “birth mother” such as rent, utilities, food, and other personal items.

The indictment alleges that Mathews received and filled out a number of adoption application forms using false information regarding her personal identification, the conception of a child, the identity of the “birth father,” and false medical documentation such as a positive pregnancy test, blood work, and ultrasound pictures of an unborn child. It is alleged that Smith created false documents for Mathews to use in this scheme, including Oklahoma driver’s licenses created in the false names used by Mathews and false rental leases. The indictment alleges that the defendants used the adoption providers to arrange meetings between Mathews and prospective adoptive couples who hoped to adopt a baby. The indictment alleges that the adoption providers entered into an agreement with Mathews to place her purported unborn child with an adoptive family and to cover certain expenses on her behalf such as rent, utilities, and living expenses. The rent checks, it is alleged, were to be made payable to her “landlord,” Scott Smith, who was not her landlord but rather her boyfriend.

The indictment charges Mathews and Smith with conspiracy to defraud, 14 counts of mail fraud, and five counts of production of false identity documents. Mathews is also charged with five counts of misuse of a Social Security number and an additional five counts of mail fraud. If convicted, each defendant faces up to 20 years in prison on each count of conspiracy and mail fraud and up to 15 years on each count of producing false identity documents. Mathews faces up to an additional five years on each count of misusing a Social Security number.

Both defendants are currently in custody.

The public is reminded that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Each defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

This case was the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kerry Kelly and Susan Dickerson Cox.