Florida state investigators arrested a Miami man on Thursday, October 29, accusing him of coordinating a public assistance fraud scheme that diverted $862,394.95 in federal food assistance funds into his own bank accounts, the state's Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia announced.
Source: Florida CFO / Department of Financial Services
Anwar Jouda was arrested by the Department of Financial Services' Bureau of Public Assistance Fraud (BPAF). He has been charged with grand theft, organized scheme to defraud, and criminal use of personal identification information. The charges are allegations, and Jouda has not been convicted of any offence in this case.
How investigators say the scheme worked
According to the CFO's office, BPAF investigators found that Jouda allegedly used the identity information of a victim — and of that victim's SNAP-authorized business — without their knowledge or consent. Through fraudulent merchant applications, forged documents, falsified banking information and deceptive communications, he allegedly set up and operated fraudulent merchant accounts so that SNAP deposits meant for a legitimate food business were diverted into bank accounts he controlled, including his personal and business accounts.
Investigators also allege that a portion of the fraudulently obtained SNAP funds was sent overseas by wire transfer to Ramallah, in the West Bank. The department's Criminal Investigations Division (CID) said it is working with federal law enforcement partners to share that information.
What the officials involved said
CFO Ingoglia, whose department houses the investigators, said: 'If you try to steal from the taxpayers, I can guarantee that the law will catch up with you and ensure that you face the consequences of your crimes. Under my watch, public assistance fraud will not be tolerated in Florida.'
Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez-Rundle called the alleged scheme 'well organized, well planned and well executed,' saying it 'literally took food from the mouths of needy families and children,' and she praised the BPAF detectives and the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office fraud detectives for building the case. Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz said fraud 'robs people of their security and trust' and thanked the CFO's office for its partnership. Bridget Royster, Assistant Secretary for Economic Self-Sufficiency at the Florida Department of Children and Families, said SNAP is 'a critical resource for Floridians who need support getting back on their feet' and that the department works daily to identify potential fraud.
Background: SNAP and the merchant system
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — SNAP, still widely called food stamps — is the federal food assistance program that helps low-income families buy groceries, administered in Florida by the Department of Children and Families. Retailers must be authorized to accept SNAP, and the program's deposits flow to those authorized merchants. That merchant-payment stream is exactly what investigators say was hijacked here: by allegedly posing as a legitimate authorized business, the scheme redirected government deposits rather than skimming benefits from individual shoppers' cards.
Most SNAP fraud cases involve trafficking benefits for cash or skimming shoppers' EBT cards. Investigators describe this case differently: a stolen business identity and fake merchant accounts allegedly diverted the program's own payments — $862,394.95 — before the money ever reached a real store.
Part of a national crackdown
The Miami arrest lands a week after the U.S. Department of Justice announced the results of its first National USDA Benefits and Program Fraud Enforcement Surge, which between September 1 and October 21 took action against more than 40 defendants in cases involving nearly $42 million in SNAP benefit fraud, working with 13 U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the USDA's Office of Inspector General. South Florida has already seen a separate federal case in which four men were indicted over an alleged $19 million scheme at Miami-area stores. Florida's own CFO investigators have also made similar merchant-identity arrests before, including a case earlier this year in which a man was accused of siphoning $2.88 million using stolen SNAP retailer identities — a separate case from Jouda's.
What happens next
Jouda's case now moves into the Miami-Dade criminal court process on the three charges announced by the CFO's office. Investigators said the overseas wire-transfer allegation is being shared with federal partners, which could draw federal interest alongside the state case. As with every defendant, Jouda is presumed innocent unless and until the allegations are proven in court.