Cash Cartier drugged and beat his girlfriend and then blamed his dog for her death. Now he got sentenced.
The influencer Cash Cartier drugged and brutally beat his girlfriend to death. Then he called police to report his dog attacking and killing her. Now his lie was exposed and he got sentenced to 40 years in prison.
Dog Attack?
The 34-year-old Texas influencer Kaleb Mickens, known online as Cash Cartier, called authorities on October 8, 2023 to report the death of his girlfriend Sheila Cuevas. He claimed his dog Soldier had attacked her and she was no longer breathing. Cuevas was found at the foot of her bed with several broken ribs and puncture wounds at the time of her death.
As a result, Soldier the dog got taken by animal control and euthanized.
Mickens expressed his sadness and mourning by writing the names of his girlfriend and dog in his Instagram bio with a dove next to them and "Goodbye my sweet family" above.
It looks like such a sad story for everyone involved and people felt for the Influencer, who lost his girlfriend and his dog at the same time.
The Charges
On April 7 however, the Tarrant County DA released a statement in which this whole story gets flipped on its head. Turns out:
The dog was taken and euthanized by animal control, but later determined by animal control to have nothing to do with Ms. Cuevas’ injuries and death.
So Mickens himself had drugged and beat his girlfriend to death and the innocent dog was killed for an attack he did not commit.
Kaleb Mickens was sentenced to 40 years in prison.
— Tarrant County DA (@TarrantCountyDA) April 7, 2026
Several women delivered impact statements that included details of torment, torture, manipulation, and sexual assault. pic.twitter.com/LwsU3y9ubn
The statement followed a guilty plea to first-degree aggravated assault and family violence in connection with the fatal assault and drugging of Sheila Cuevas from Kaleb Mickens. He could not be charged with murder because of complications with the medical examiner proving the cause of death, Fort Worth attorney Peter Gieseking said, according to Fox 4.
There were some complications with the case with the medical examiner proving the cause of death, so we weren’t able to charge him with murder, so he was ultimately charged with a first-degree felony offense. But ultimately, what happened on that day we don’t really know.
Mickens was also sentenced to 20 years in prison on a probation revocation stemming from a charge of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury, as well as 15 years in prison on an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charge in Dallas County. Both of these charges are related to different offenses with women he had been in relationships with.
The DA's statement also claims that multiple women spoke in the courtroom against the influencer, revealing details of torment, torture, manipulation, and sexual assault and stating their devastation for Cuevas' death. Her family also got a chance to speak in court.
The family of Ms. Cuevas, including her brother, addressed the Defendant, stating, ‘there can be no justice that brings Sheila back, but there can be outcomes, and there can be accountability, and you deserve this.’
Cash Cartier is also known for running a multi-level marketing group called IM Academy, where he used his online fame and wealth to recruit and scam young people, promising them thousands of dollars.
He used his perceived wealth and status to manipulate men and women with threats and promises while hiding his very violent private persona.
That means Mickens has a history of scamming, threatening and abusing all kinds of people, but especially his girlfriends. He had abused over a dozen women during the prosecutor's investigation of this case.
Assistant district attorney Allenna Bangs told Fox 4:
He is a master of manipulation. He’s just incredibly abusive. He, by his nature, is just an abuser, and that’s kind of what we found by investigating his case.
Now his Instagram bio shines in a different light. He now is the violent abuser that killed his girlfriend and is responsible for his own dog's death. He acts like the grieving boyfriend that lost his little family when it was all his fault. He is not the innocent victim he claims to be to rake in sympathy. This bio leaves such a bitter taste.
