31 SUBJECTS FEDERALLY CHARGED IN FOOD STAMP
FRAUD SCHEME
San Juan, Puerto Rico- ROSA EMILIA RODRIGUEZ-VELEZ, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, Luis S. Fraticelli, Special Agent in Charge, San Juan Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Manuel Oyola Torres, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Charles E. Hunter, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division (IRSCI), announce the indictments and arrests of thirty-one (31) individuals who were charged with violations of Title 7, United States Code, Sections 2024 (b) and Title 18, United States Code, Sections 371. Some of the defendants were also charged with Laundering of Monetary Instruments, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956(a)(1)(A)(i) and (a)(1)(B)(I). Forfeiture counts were also included pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, Sections 981(a)(1)(C) and 982; Title 28, United States Code, Section 2461(C); and Title 7, United States Code, Section 2024(h).
The fraud scheme involved the Nutritional Assistance Program, otherwise known in Puerto Rico as the APrograma de Asistencia Nutricional@ (APAN@). This program originates at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which through the Food and Nutrition Service, assigns to Puerto Rico a block grant of approximately $1.5 billion dollars per year to the Administration for the Social Economic Development of the Families (ADSEF) in Puerto Rico to provide nutritional assistance to low income families. AADSEF@ handles the funding and all matters related to the distribution of the food stamp block grant, as well as the certification of the retail or wholesale stores authorized to handle purchases paid with food stamp funds.
From the year 2002, through 2006, the scheme perpetrated by the defendants in this case involved approximately $30 million of the Food Stamp program. The investigation revealed that several grocery stores and food markets engaged in a scheme to defraud the PAN, by providing participants cash drawn against the 75% of the benefits deposited in their PAN debit cards when that money should have been used exclusively to buy groceries, and could not be withdrawn as cash by the cardholder. The businesses engaged in the scheme would register a false grocery sale for the amount requested by the participant, provide a portion of the cash to the participant, and charge a fee of approximately twenty (20) to twenty-five (25) percent of the money provided to the participant. These businesses are: La Bodega de Harry, Colmado Mildred , Colmado Ortiz, Colmado Nuevo Ambiente, and the Aguas Vivas Group.
The indictments were issued by a federal grand jury on March 14, 2007. The following individuals were indicted: (1) Wilfredo Ortiz-Alicea, owner of Colmado Ortiz grocery store; (2) Harry William Jim้nez-Vazquez, owner of La Bodega de Harry grocery store; (3) Mildred Maldonado-Luna, owner of Colmado Mildred grocery store; (4) Jorge Monta๑ez-Guzman, owner of Colmado Nuevo Ambiente grocery store; and (5) Bepsy O. Aguasvivas-Castillo, president of the corporations : Aguavivas Borinquen, Inc.; Aguasvivas Food Market, Inc.; and Multico Enterprises, Inc.; Employees of the stores involved in the scheme, and also charged in the indictment, are: (1) Manuel Col๓n-Jim้nez, (2) Angel L. Orengo-Echevarria, (3) Kaysmara Col๓n-Jim้nez, (4) Marํa de los Angeles L๓pez a/k/a Chachi, (5) Robin A. Aguasvivas-Castillo, (6) Midland Aguasvivas-Castillo, (7) Sumaya Aguasvivas-Castillo, (8) Porfirio Alexia Castillo-Tejada. The PAN participants are: (1) Noemi Medina-Mel้ndez, (2) Nydia Febus-Febus, (3) Eugenic Gonzแlez, (4) Lourdes Sotomayor, (5) Paula Jim้nez-Mosquea, (6) Nidia Rivera-Febus, (7) Carmen Campos-Rodriguez, (8) Elizabeth Cordova-Martinez, (9) Rosally L๓pez-Correa, (10) Myrna Siares-Lacen, (11) Griselle Vazquez-Villalongo, (12) Margarita Aponte-Cruz, (13) Aida P้rez-Medina, (14) Sonia Martinez-Encarnaci๓n, (15) Marie P้rez-Sosa, (16) Ana Rivera-Rodriguez, (17) Luz Massa-Vazquez, and (18) Diana Ramos-Pedroza
The penalties for these charges are a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years and a maximum fine of $500,000.00 dollars. The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial and the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
This indictment is the result of a joint investigation conducted by agents of the IRS-CI, FBI, ICE and the U.S. Attorney's Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ernesto López and Myriam Fernández. |
