DHS Says ICE Begins Nationwide SNAP Fraud Operation

The Department of Homeland Security says Immigration and Customs Enforcement has begun a nationwide operation targeting immigrants accused of fraudulently obtaining Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, and announced five arrests. DHS identified the people arrested as Haitian nationals Jhensly Charles, Louis Jean, Wilbert Jean Baptiste and Rubstony Junior Theodore, and Cuban national Elizabeth Povea Rodriguez. The agency said all five entered the United States unlawfully and accessed SNAP benefits fraudulently. The allegations have not been independently established in the information released about the arrests. DHS described the arrests as the beginning of a sustained enforcement effort. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the administration would continue pursuing people accused of benefits fraud. The agency has not provided case-level details about the alleged conduct or benefit amounts involving the five people. DHS said the first campaign uncovered nearly $42 million in SNAP fraud. That figure is an agency claim, and the supplied details do not attribute that amount to the five people arrested. The Department of Justice separately announced...