From: Office of Inspector General/United State Department of Agriculture
Investigation Developments Bulletin/November 13, 2014
OIG participated in a joint investigation into possible money laundering, sale of untaxed cigarettes, SNAP trafficking, and other criminal violations at a store in Providence, Rhode Island. On October 9, 2014, in U.S. District Court in Rhode Island, two brothers were sentenced for their roles as leaders of a scheme to transport and sell untaxed cigarettes at their store, where SNAP trafficking also took place. They were sentenced to 42 months and 33 months in prison, respectively. Restitution will be ordered at a later date. The charges involved in the brothers’ respective guilty pleas were possessing/selling in excess of 10,000 contraband cigarettes, conspiracy to defraud SNAP, conspiracy to commit Social Security fraud, and the illegal structuring of financial transactions.
A third brother was previously sentenced in this case. He was sentenced in September 2014 to 2 years’ imprisonment and $1.3 million in restitution. In October 2014, he attempted to flee the country prior to incarceration. He was apprehended on an airline flight with the ultimate destination of Lebanon. After being taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Service and a court appearance, he was permitted to surrender and begin serving his prison sentence immediately.
