Man pleads guilty to $1.5 million in SNAP fraud

(The Center Square) – An Illinois man pleaded guilty to illegally getting $1.5 million in benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps. 

David Quinones, 44, of Chicago, pleaded guilty to a federal wire fraud charge. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

SNAP is a federal program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. states. The program was designed to provide benefits to supplement the food budgets of eligible individuals and families. Retail stores authorized to participate in SNAP can accept SNAP benefits through EBT cards, also known as Link cards, as payment for eligible food items. It is illegal for stores or people to exchange Link cards for cash or other items.

Quinones admitted in a plea agreement that from 2018 to 2023, he gave cash or other items to SNAP recipients in exchange for access to their Link cards and associated identification numbers.

Quinones used the cards to buy goods at authorized retail stores, fraudulently representing himself as the authorized user of the cards. He then re-sold most of the goods, keeping the proceeds for himself.

Quinones admitted that he used more than 1,200 cards and fraudulently caused the USDA to pay out approximately $1,554,804 in SNAP benefits.

U.S. District Judge Steven Seeger set sentencing for June 18.