Former state employee pleads guilty to food stamp fraud
Food stamp recipients who sell their benefits to others in exchange for cash or retailers who wrongly collect reimbursements often are the targets of criminal prosecutions meant to crack down on fraud in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
But a federal prosecution in Albuquerque highlights another avenue criminals use to siphon taxpayer money away from the program intended to help low-income Americans feed themselves and their families.
Former state Human Services Department employee Joseph Martin Padilla pleaded guilty this week to processing fraudulent applications as part of a conspiracy to scam the federal program.
In a deal with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Padilla, 34, agreed to pay nearly $181,400 in restitution to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which funds the SNAP program. He also faces up to five years in federal prison. His sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
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