Gainesville Police searched three local convenience stores Thursday as part of a months-long investigation into extensive food stamp fraud. GPD Cpl. Marc Plourde said the potential fraud could amount to hundreds of thousands of misspent dollars.
GPD issued search warrants for the following establishments: the S.M.I. Food Mart at 404 S Main St., the Shiblu Kwik Stop at 727 SW Fourth Ave. and the 99 Cents and More Convenience Store at 1308 E University Ave.
No one was arrested.
The searches were part of a covert investigation that is ongoing, said Plourde, the case agent for the investigation.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and other agencies have also been involved in the operation, according to Cpl. Tscharna Senn, GPD public information officer.
The joint investigation centered on concerns that local stores had fraudulently handled the Electronic Benefit Transfer cards given to participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as the Food Stamp Program. For example, cards could have been accepted for items that aren't permitted for use by government regulations.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program has various regulations for the use of its EBT cards. The cards can be used for food items, for example, but not cigarettes, alcohol or prepared, hot food items, said Regan Hopper, spokeswoman for the Food and Nutrition Service of the USDA.
"There is a certain population of people who need these food stamps," Senn said. "They're using them in a way that's counterproductive for them."
The stores were roped off with caution tape and closed to customers while officers conducted the searches.
Other stores may be involved in the fraudulent practices being investigated, Plourde said.
"All taxpayers contribute to the food stamp (program), so this affects everyone," he said. "We hope by serving these search warrants today that it will send a message to other stores."
The businesses, including their owners and employees, are under investigation. Retail stores must be authorized to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.
Members of the program may also be investigated because they are informed of its regulations when they are accepted into it, Senn said.
The searches may help GPD discover the customers involved in the fraudulent practices, she said. Each card has a unique number that could help identify program participants who purchased items from the stores.
Felony charges may be applicable, and the stores could be shut down, depending on the outcome of the investigation, Plourde said.
This is the first time to her knowledge that GPD has dealt with a food stamp fraud investigation in Gainesville, Senn said.
As of May 2011, 45.7 million Americans were accessing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits each month, Hopper said. Half of those recipients were children under the age of 18. It's the highest amount of participation the program has ever had.
In the 2010 fiscal year, states conducted 847,136 fraud investigations regarding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and disqualified 44,483 people, Hopper said. Over the past decade, 8,045 retail stores have been permanently disqualified for trafficking, which is the illegal selling of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for cash.
A person's eligibility for the program depends on various factors, including his or her income and the number of people in their household.
Gainesville Police officers searched the property of S.M.I. Food Mart and two other convenience stores Thursday. The stores are under investigation for extensive food stamp fraud.
Gainesville Police officers searched inside the store and vehicles on the business's properties for evidence in the ongoing investigation.
