Just so you don’t get the idea that all immigrant food stamp fraud involves Middle Easterners and Africans, here is news about one of the biggest heists I’ve seen so far and it involves a Chinese immigrant this time.
From King 5:
SEATTLE — The owner of a small Seattle herb store walked into a federal courtroom Wednesday morning and pleaded guilty to defrauding the food stamp program.
Elsa Kwong agreed to pay back more than $1.5 million that she improperly obtained from the federal food program. She also forfeited $140,000 cash and two expensive automobiles. [How many times have I heard the complaints about immigrants with expensive cars!]
Kwong was charged last fall after Seattle Police and the United States Department of Agriculture, which runs the food stamp program, raided two businesses at 12th Ave. South and South Jackson Street.
Charging documents showed Seattle Chinese Herb and Grocery had around $100,000 in inventory in its store, yet it submitted more than $1.5 million in food stamps to be redeemed by the USDA.
RedState posted a graph today showing the astronomical rise in the use of food stamps in just the last few years, here.
It’s not just the economy stupid—it’s the reality that the redistribution of wealth is happening through the buying and selling of food stamp benefits. For newbies, here is how it works—owner of benefit (immigrant or “poor” person) doesn’t want food and is paid cash at 50 cents on the dollar by the store manager/owner who then redeems the food stamp for the full one dollar from the US taxpayer. And, you thought you were just feeding the hungry!
Where is an investigative reporter when you need one?
Type food stamp fraud into our search function and see dozens more stories like this one!