Two Venezuelan nationals pleaded guilty on June 12, 2026, in federal court in Worcester to using fraudulent Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit cards to illegally purchase food to stock a local restaurant. This criminal activity is part of a bigger fraud scheme that used the stolen identities of over 100 people to receive $440,000 in SNAP benefits from Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The stolen identities were utilised to establish 24 “households” in SNAP applications. All of these applications, submitted in the names of more than 100 people, said that they lived in two single-family apartments in Providence, Rhode Island.
According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, 32-year-old Roman Vequiz Fernandez and 24-year-old Coralba Albarracin Siniva, both Venezuelan nationals, reside and live in Leominster, Massachusetts. have pleaded guilty to unauthorised use, transfer, acquisition, and possession of SNAP benefits. Judge Margaret R. Guzman of the United States District Court has set sentencings for September 22, 2026. The defendants were accused in February 2026, alongside Joel Vicioso Fernandez and Raul Fernandez Vicioso.
The defendants and their co-conspirators reportedly utilised false SNAP benefits cards to purchase huge quantities of expensive bulk food goods (such as multiple-pound packages of chicken, beef, and pork) from local wholesalers and food markets in order to fill El Primo Restaurant for free. They created and then sold menu items at El Primo Restaurant for a total profit using goods obtained for free through fraudulent SNAP benefits, later sending the fraud funds to persons in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, among other countries.
On March 26, 2026, United States Attorney Leah B. Foley announced the formation of the Benefit & Voter Fraud Team, a district-wide programme launched in response to widespread fraud being discovered in Massachusetts. The team is led by two senior federal prosecutors who serve as fraud coordinators. Their objective is to aggressively investigate and prosecute the misuse of taxpayer-funded benefits in Massachusetts.
The public is encouraged to report suspected benefit fraud in Massachusetts by calling 1-855-SCAM-MA-1 (855-722-6621).
On April 7, 2026, the Department of Justice announced the formation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The Fraud Division investigates and prosecutes individuals who perpetrate fraud against the American people. The department’s efforts to combat fraud complement President Trump’s Task Force to Eradicate Fraud, a whole-of-government initiative led by Vice President J.D. Vance to eradicate fraud, waste, and abuse in federal benefit programmes.
The offence of illegal acquisition or use of SNAP benefits carries a maximum term of five or twenty years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. A federal district court judge imposes sentences based on the United States Sentencing Guidelines and the legislation that governs sentence determination in criminal cases.
United States Attorney Leah Foley; Charmeka Parker, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Office of Inspector General, Northeast Region; Anthony D’Esposito, Inspector General, Department of Labour, Office of Inspector General; Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office; and Jeff Grimming, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England, made the Social Security Administration’s Office of Inspector General, the United States Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the United States Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, the Rhode Island Office of Internal Audit’s Fraud Detection and Prevention Unit, the Massachusetts State Police, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island, and the Fitchburg and Leominster Police Departments all provided valuable assistance. Danial Bennett, Assistant US Attorney for the Worcester Branch Office, is prosecuting the case.
The details in the charge document are allegations. The remaining defendants are assumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
Leave a Reply