NEW: 4 International-Born People Charged In $1.1 Million SNAP Fraud Scheme
Federal prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced in a press release that four foreign-born individuals — one naturalized citizen and three foreign nationals — have been charged in connection with a $1.1 million public welfare fraud scandal.
The case involves fraudulent applications for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) funds across multiple states. The charged individuals allegedly utilized over 115 stolen identities to obtain more than $1.1 million in government benefits, prosecutors allege.
Raul Fernandez Vicioso, 37, of Fitchburg, a naturalized U.S. citizen from the Dominican Republic and owner of El Primo Restaurant in Leominster, is the lone U.S. citizen indicted in connection with the scheme. The other three individuals have been identified as: Joel Vicioso Fernandez, 42, of Fitchburg, a green card holder from the Dominican Republic; Roman Vequiz Fernandez, 32, of Leominster, a Venezuelan national who previously held temporary protected status but no longer has lawful status; and Coralba Albarracin Siniva, 24, of Leominster, also a Venezuelan national who previously held temporary protected status but no longer has lawful status.
According to charging documents, the group allegedly stole personal information from victims in eight states and Puerto Rico. This information was then used to create 24 fraudulent “households” listed at two apartments in Providence, Rhode Island
Between 2023 and 2025, they submitted online applications for SNAP benefits in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, resulting in approximately $440,000 in benefits—$325,000 from Rhode Island and $115,000 from Massachusetts. These benefits were loaded onto electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards, prosecutors allege.
Prosecutors state that the defendants removed printed names from the EBT cards, reset PINs, and used them to purchase bulk food items such as beef, chicken, and pork from wholesalers like BJ’s. These items were then stocked at El Primo Restaurant, where they were prepared and sold.
The complaint notes that “with their supplies obtained for free through fraudulent SNAP benefits, prosecutors said they prepared and then sold menu items at El Primo Restaurant at a complete profit, later wiring the fraud proceeds, among other places, to individuals living in Venezuela and the Dominican Republic.”
Investigators determined that these cards were used for fraudulent purchases through surveillance and store records.
In addition to the SNAP fraud, the defendants allegedly submitted fraudulent PUA applications between April 2020 and December 2021 in six states: Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Washington, and Nevada. Using at least 29 stolen identities, they obtained over $700,000, with funds deposited into bank accounts or prepaid cards controlled by the group.
All applications listed El Primo Restaurant’s address as the residential address. Bank records show approximately $276,021 in PUA benefits deposited into accounts held by the restaurant and defendants.
Authorities became aware of the scheme in June 2024 during a Rhode Island internal audit, which identified over 100 identities linked to two Providence apartments. Rhode Island notified Massachusetts authorities, which led to the discovery of fraudulent benefits in that state.
“It is no secret there is rampant fraud across this nation. The charges announced today are just a snapshot of the bigger picture, not just in Massachusetts but across the country,” said U.S. Attorney Leah Foley.
Foley further noted that her office is adding a fraud coordinator “as a result of the rampant benefit fraud we are seeing here in Massachusetts,” adding, “You should anticipate seeing more and more of these cases coming here in Massachusetts.”