Federal prosecutors say a neighborhood restaurant in Leominster turned public benefits into free inventory, stocking its kitchen with food meant for low-income families. Four people are accused of using 115 stolen identities to obtain more than $1 million in government aid and then running much of that money through El Primo Restaurant.
According to a criminal complaint from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, the defendants allegedly drew about $440,000 in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits from Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and more than $700,000 in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance from several other states.
The alleged activity stretched from the early months of the Covid emergency into late 2021, a period when benefit programs were expanding at high speed.
How the alleged scheme worked
Prosecutors say the group bought stolen names, birth dates and Social Security numbers belonging to more than 100 real people in states that included Connecticut, Florida, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Puerto Rico.
Those identities were then used to create 24 fictitious households in applications for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, all supposedly living in just two single-family apartments in Providence.
Court papers say some defendants also mixed their own personal details into the paperwork and backed it up with images of counterfeit passports and passport cards, with digital data showing that at least some photos were taken inside or near the restaurant.
Once benefit agencies issued electronic benefit transfer cards in the names of those unsuspecting victims, investigators say the conspirators removed the printed names and reset the personal identification numbers.
With the cards effectively laundered, surveillance footage allegedly shows them buying bulk packages of chicken, beef and pork at wholesale and grocery stores, then hauling the food into the back of El Primo to become menu items for paying customers. Prosecutors say some of the profit from those sales was later wired to people in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.
During searches at the restaurant and at a home linked to the case, agents recovered stacks of fraudulently obtained benefit cards, fake documents tied to the Providence addresses, printed ledgers and handwritten lists of more than 100 identities, along with mail related to SNAP.
The complaint also says that Raul Fernandez Vicioso admitted buying stolen personal information and using it to apply for benefits.
Real people left without groceries
On paper, the case reads like a ledger of account numbers and dollar amounts. At the grocery checkout line, it looks very different. Federal agents interviewed victims whose identities were used in the scheme, including at least one person who legitimately relied on SNAP but suddenly lost access to their benefits after a fraudulent application appeared in their name.
Imagine walking into a supermarket with a cart full of food and finding out on the spot that your card no longer works because someone else has drained your balance.
And that is the human cost behind what looks like a bookkeeping crime. For families living paycheck to paycheck, even a temporary interruption in food assistance can mean skipping meals, running up a credit card or leaning on relatives who are barely managing their own bills.
The unemployment angle
Prosecutors say the same group also exploited Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, the temporary program that extended jobless benefits to workers who were left out of traditional unemployment insurance.
They are accused of filing claims in Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Washington and Nevada using at least 29 stolen identities, almost all linked to the El Primo address. Investigators say more than $276,000 in benefits flowed into bank accounts connected to the restaurant or the defendants, with additional funds loaded onto prepaid cards.
A local case in a bigger national problem
To a large extent, the Leominster charges mirror what watchdogs have been warning about since the pandemic began. The Government Accountability Office estimates that unemployment programs nationwide were hit by between $100 billion and $135 billion in fraud during the Covid years, much of it fueled by identity theft and duplicate claims.
That creates a familiar tension. Benefit programs need to stay accessible enough that people can apply without a lawyer, but secure enough that stolen identities do not open the door to free money. In practical terms, that means state agencies have to keep tightening verification tools without building so many hurdles that struggling families simply give up.
Officials say tips from Rhode Island helped unravel the alleged scheme after that state noticed dozens of SNAP applications tied to the same two Providence addresses. From there, investigators followed grocery receipts, surveillance footage and bank records back to Leominster.
What it means for people using benefits
The defendants are presumed innocent while the case moves through federal court, and the complaint is only an allegation at this stage. Still, the story carries a practical message for anyone who uses SNAP, unemployment benefits or other aid loaded onto cards or deposited to accounts.
If a benefit balance changes unexpectedly or a card fails at the register, it can be tempting to blame a glitch and try again later. Consumer advocates suggest treating those moments as a warning sign and checking your account online or calling the number on the back of the card to see whether benefits have been redirected to an unfamiliar address.
It is also worth being cautious with any letter, text or call that asks for your personal details in order to “fix” a problem with benefits. Real agencies will not ask for your full PIN, and they already know your account number.
If something feels off, experts say it is safer to contact the agency directly using the number on an official website than to respond through a link or phone number in the message.
For people who suspect fraud, state benefit offices usually list dedicated fraud hotlines, and unemployment agencies provide forms to report bogus claims. Federal officials also point people to the national fraud reporting portal at Oversight.gov, which routes complaints to the appropriate inspector general.
At the end of the day, those plastic cards are not just anonymous pieces of plastic. They are lifelines that keep food on the table and the lights on, and when criminals turn them into a source of profit, the people left holding empty cards are the ones who pay the real price.
The press release was published on Justice.gov.
