Food Stamp Trafficking: Who’s in on the Act? | Fox Business.
Recently, a husband-and-wife duo from Waco, Texas plead guilty to charges of food stamp abuse that allegedly scammed the government of $350,000
Magdalena and Jamal Akhter, who run a convenience store, allowed customers using Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) debit cards to choose the “cash-back” option when buying items—something that’s not allowed under the program’s rules. The two then pocketed half the cash and paid the SNAP beneficiary the rest.
A similar scheme was uncovered in Tampa that also involved a convenience store owner who reportedly pocketed $735,886 in SNAP benefits 2010 through 2012.
And where does the fraud occur…
Experts say that independently-owned dollar stores and bodegas in low-income areas are where SNAP fraud runs rampant, not the mega-retailers like Wal-Mart, that get a large payout from SNAP. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that 82% of SNAP benefits are redeemed at supermarkets and superstores. The remaining 18% of SNAP beneficiary stores is where the majority of scams take place.
Government cheese gone wild.
