Shakopee Man Ordered to Pay Back Nearly $30,000 for Food Stamp Fraud

A Shakopee man was sentenced in federal court on Thursday for using other people's food stamps, according to the United States Department of Justice.

Chin Son Kim, 47, received three years of probation for food stamp fraud. He must also pay restitution of $29,816, which is the the approximate amount the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program (SNAP) loss due to his actions.

Kim pleaded guilty to the charges in June 2013.

According to the news release:

In his plea agreement, Kim admitted that between November 2010 and July 2012, he obtained Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program (“SNAP”) cards, commonly known as food stamps, from the true recipients of those benefits. To acquire the cards, he waited near a charity facility in St. Paul, as well as at other locations, and then approached people he thought might be in possession of them. 

After obtaining a card, Kim would go to cooperating local markets, where he would use the card in an unauthorized manner. Typically, he would present the card to the grocer, who would swipe it through a food-stamp scanner, routinely noting a transaction of approximately $200. 

Kim would then receive cash, groceries, or store credit in that amount. Afterwards, he would return the card to its rightful owner, providing that person with cash in the amount of approximately half of the transaction total.

“SNAP is the largest program in the domestic hunger safety net, and those who prey on the poor by illegally purchasing SNAP benefits erode the public trust in the program,” Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Robert Wagner of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Office of Inspector General said in the release.

Individuals receive their monthly allocation of SNAP benefits on an electronic benefit transfer (EBT) card, which they can use to purchase eligible items. Participating retailers receive reimbursement of redeemed benefits from the USDA. The benefits cannot be redeemed for cash or used for items such as tobacco or alcohol.

This case was the result of an investigation by the USDA-Office of Inspector General, the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office, and the St. Paul Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David P. Steinkamp.