Mother, son accused in $3 million federal food stamp fraud

MILWAUKEE — A Wisconsin woman and her son have been indicted for allegedly stealing $3 million from the federal government through a benefits program intended to help the poor, according to court records.

The indictment, released late Wednesday, says the fraud was committed at a Family Super Saver store between 2009 and 2014. The indictment was handed down by the grand jury Tuesday.

Elham M. "Brenda" Abdul Rahim and Ahmad Zaki Abdul Rahim were both indicted on a count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Elham Rahim also was indicted on counts of fraud and unauthorized use of food stamps, while Ahmad Rahim was also indicted on a count of lying to investigators from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The conspiracy count carries up to 20 years in prison, but the defendants are likely to get much less time in prison under federal sentencing guidelines if they are convicted.

Ahmad Rahim said Wednesday he didn't know that he and his mother had been indicted and he denied being involved in any fraud. He said his father, who has since died, used to run the store and he could not account for how he ran the operation.

According to the indictment:

The Rahims used the store to exchange Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP cards for cash. Through the program, recipients get a debit card. The defendants would swipe the card for a certain amount, say $400, and give half the amount to the recipients in cash and keep the rest. The store would charge the government for the entire $400.

Ahmad Rahim also was charged with lying because in February he told investigators from the Department of Agriculture that he was "100% certain" that such fraud had not occurred. The indictment says that was false because he had personally committed the fraud.

No court date has been set in the case.

Through the scheme, the store received about $3 million more than it was entitled to receive.

a Program designed to be used fraudulent!

Elham M. Abdul Rahim & Ahmad Zaki Abdul Rahim

Are they American citizens?

Because Rahim ...

Rahim Pronunciation of Rahim [rahim] as a boys' name is of Arabic origin, and the meaning of Rahim is "compassionate". In Islam, one of the ninety-nine attribute names of Allah.

Sooo... I am thinking, additional charges of Government Fraud (against the country itself, that gets it's money from it"s taxpayers, that are Americans)

 And deportation, AFTER time served....... IF.... they don't flee back to the father land.
Smfh

But, that would make too much sense

Government aid is supposed to be to help people (hopefully until they get on their feet) and not to support or take advantage of like these losers

the article is confusing,, you cant get cash for snap, ,you can for TANF

and you cant just swipe for any amount of food, you have to actually ring food items up,,


unless she fraudulently entered food item bar codes ?


I wish it included more detail about it,, but fraud/embezzlement of money in any system or business should be dealt with as a crime

not hard, they just "sell" the food back to the store, for a lessor price... usually .50 on the dollar...

Small buisnesses/ family buisnesses don't use scanners/ bar codes. It is not mandatory. So ANY item they sell, can be rung up as a food item.

One day soon it will be mandatory, because of people like this.

food stamps have no nutritional values, any foods, except hot foods - foods sold cooked by the store - can be purchased with FS... no alcohol or tobacco products... people can but other people groceries and then the others give them cash for the food bought ... there is always a way to scam cash outa FS...

Yep... happens all day, every day. Say someone has $100 on an EBT card but needs some cash....they call Leroy Farquar over from down on the corner and he gives em $50 in cash in exchange for the $100 in food from the EBT card.
Now they have $50 for crack, hair-on, some Mad Dog, or Newport's or whatever they want....It's the Ghetto ATM

lol... but this guy took it to a whole new level, by buying the card money flat out... it doesn't take long for the snap services to figure it out...