They are also accused of fraudulently obtaining $700,000 in pandemic unemployment funds from Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Washington and Nevada.
As part of the SNAP scheme, Raul Fernandez Vicioso, the owner of El Primo Restaurant in Leominster, along with his brother, an employee and her partner, allegedly used fraudulently obtained EBT cards to buy bulk quantities of chicken, beef, pork and other products at BJ’s Wholesale Club and various supermarkets, according to court filings.
“As a result, they sold menu items at the restaurant at a complete profit,” then wired some of the profits to people in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, US Attorney Leah B. Foley said during a press conference Tuesday announcing the charges.
“This is the tip of the iceberg,” said Foley, alleging that a lack of state oversight has led to “rampant benefit fraud” in Massachusetts. She said her office has named a “fraud coordinator” to oversee investigations that will lead to more charges involving SNAP, formerly called food stamps.
In December, federal prosecutors charged two Mattapan store owners with orchestrating a $7 million SNAP fraud scheme.
On Tuesday, Foley said there’s been an extraordinary spike in such cases nationwide, and called on state officials to cooperate more with federal authorities.
Fernandez Vicioso, 37, of Fitchburg, has been charged with conspiracy to commit SNAP fraud and wire fraud, SNAP benefit fraud and money laundering. He plans to plead guilty at a date that has yet to be set, according to court filings.
The others arrested Tuesday include: Joel Vicioso Fernandez, 42, of Fitchburg; and Roman Vequiz Fernandez, 32, and Coralba Albarracin Siniva, 24, who are both Venezuelan nationals and live in Leominster.
They made brief appearances in federal court in Worcester, and were released on bonds.
Attorney Ed Ryan, who represents Siniva, said, “The complaint is only an accusation. She has no criminal record and intends to defend herself from these charges.”
Lawyers for the others were not immediately available for comment.
The four defendants are accused of fraudulently obtaining SNAP benefits of about $325,000 from Rhode Island and $115,000 from Massachusetts using stolen identities of more than 100 adults and juveniles from multiple states, according to an affidavit filed in federal court.
They used stolen identification “to exploit states permitting online applications for SNAP benefits without requiring in-person interviews,” the affidavit alleges.
The alleged fraud was first detected in June 2024 by Rhode Island state officials, who found during an audit that 117 people who had applied for SNAP benefits all claimed to be living in just two apartments in Providence, according to Foley. State officials referred the case to federal authorities for prosecution.
Rhode Island officials also shared information with the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance, which discovered that the agency had paid $115,000 in fraudulent SNAP benefits and shut down those accounts.
Foley criticized Massachusetts officials for not referring the case to federal authorities for potential prosecution.
A spokesperson for Governor Maura Healey’s office and the Department of Transitional Assistance did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Massachusetts House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones, Jr., a North Reading Republican, issued a statement Tuesday saying the Governor’s unwillingness to share information about SNAP beneficiaries with federal officials is “unacceptable and opens the door to continued fraud and abuse.”
The Trump administration has threatened to withhold SNAP funding from Democratic-led states unless they provide information about recipients with the US Department of Agriculture to help “root out fraud.”
