DOJ and USDA announce actions against more than 40 defendants over SNAP and farm program fraud
A nationwide enforcement effort from 1 September to 21 October 2026 covered schemes with nearly $45 million in intended losses, including one case with a money laundering conspiracy charge.
On 21 October 2026 the Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division, the US Department of Agriculture and the USDA Office of Inspector General announced a nationwide enforcement effort against fraud on USDA programs. Between 1 September and 21 October 2026, thirteen US Attorneys' Offices and the Utah Attorney General's Office took actions against more than 40 defendants. The Justice Department says the alleged or proven schemes caused nearly $45 million in intended losses, of which nearly $42 million involved the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the federal food benefit program.
The largest case listed is in the Southern District of Ohio, where Jorag Yaseen and Rami Kanaan are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, with an estimated loss of about $29.7 million. Prosecutors allege they ran approved retail stores in Chicago that, from about February 2024 to April 2025, processed thousands of transactions using stolen Ohio and other state EBT (electronic benefits transfer) card information when no real sales took place. Some of the proceeds allegedly bought cars that were shipped overseas.
Other cases include an indictment in the Northern District of Georgia alleging that phone numbers linked to one defendant contacted the SNAP EBT system more than 9,000 times and accessed more than 350 accounts, and a case in the Eastern District of Michigan where fraudulent SNAP applications allegedly used the identities of more than 650 people. In the District of Oregon, according to the Justice Department, a conspiracy used stolen SNAP benefits to buy infant formula, with more than 124,000 pounds shipped. The Justice Department notes that an indictment, information or complaint is only an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Why it matters to AML professionals
Benefit fraud reaches the banking system through the businesses that process benefit cards, often retail stores whose deposits do not match real sales. When proceeds are used to buy goods shipped overseas, the case can also involve trade-based laundering. AML professionals with retail or small-business customers can spot this by comparing card-settlement deposits with a store's size and expected sales.
Red flags in this case
- A small retail store receiving EBT settlement deposits far above what its size and location suggest
- Many benefit card transactions in round amounts or in quick succession with no matching inventory purchases
- Proceeds from a retail account used to buy vehicles or goods for export
- One person or phone number linked to access of many different benefit accounts
If this landed in your queue
- Compare the merchant's EBT and card settlement deposits with its stated business type, size and history
- Review outflows for vehicle purchases, export shipments or transfers abroad that do not fit the business
- Check whether the business owners are linked to other merchants showing the same pattern
- File a suspicious activity report where activity suggests benefit trafficking or laundering of program proceeds
Key terms
- SNAP
- The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, a US federal program that gives food benefits to eligible low-income households.
- EBT card
- Electronic benefits transfer card, a payment card used to spend government benefits such as SNAP.
- Benefit trafficking
- Exchanging benefits for cash or ineligible items, often through a store that processes fake or inflated transactions.
Interview angle
How might government benefit fraud appear in a retail merchant's bank account?
Point to benefit-card settlement deposits that exceed plausible sales, quick movement of funds to unrelated parties, and spending such as vehicle purchases for export.
Sources
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