Store Owner Sentenced for Operating Multi-Million-Dollar SNAP Fraud Mill

BOSTON - The owner of a small convenience in Boston was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for fraudulently obtaining millions of dollars' worth of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. The defendant's monthly SNAP redemptions in his 150 square foot store ranged from $100,000 - $500,000 per month, far outpacing full-service supermarkets which redeem approximately $82,000 per month in SNAP benefits.

The defendant also sold liquor and emergency food supplies intended for food-insecure children overseas.

Antonio Bonheur, 75, of Mattapan, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to two years in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Bonheur was also ordered to pay restitution of $1 million in the form of a money judgment and approximately $400,000 in seized funds were ordered forfeited. In March 2026, the defendant pleaded guilty to one count of food stamp fraud and one count of wire fraud. Bonheur was arrested and charged in December 2025.

"SNAP is a lifeline for hardworking Americans - not a slush fund for criminals," said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. "Antonio Bonheur came to the United States and repaid this country's generosity by orchestrating a multi-million-dollar scheme that robbed taxpayers and stole from families who genuinely depend on this program to put food on the table. His so-called "convenience store" was a sham - a 150-square-foot fraud storage closet with bare shelves and virtually no food inventory. The only thing moving across his counter in any meaningful volume was stolen taxpayer money. Even more outrageous, while looting millions from SNAP, Mr. Bonheur was collecting SNAP benefits himself after state authorities accepted his claims of "poverty" with little meaningful scrutiny. That spectacular failure of oversight gave him exactly the opportunity he needed to exploit a system built on trust. Every dollar he stole had to be earned by an honest taxpayer first, and every dollar diverted weakened a program meant to protect our nation's most vulnerable. This office will relentlessly pursue and prosecute those who treat public assistance programs as criminal profit centers to steal from the American people."

"The outcome of this investigation should send a message of deterrence to those individuals who choose to steal taxpayer funds for personal use. Maintaining the integrity of USDA funding remains a priority for our agency. We appreciate the partnership with the U.S. Attorney's Office in pursuing this type of fraud and holding bad actors accountable," said Charmeka Parker, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations - Northeast Region.

"Food-stamp fraudster Antonio Bonheur came into our country and took total advantage of it, setting up a tiny shop in Mattapan that was essentially nothing more than a front for massive fraud. He stole millions from a taxpayer funded program aimed at helping the poor, to instead make himself rich, and double dipped on a critical safety net that he too claimed he needed to survive," said Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division. "The selfishness and unremitting greed on display in this case is astonishing, and this sentence makes it clear that fraud is never the ticket to lasting financial gain. The FBI and our partners are working hard to crack down on crooked businesses of all kinds, whether they're cheating the public, the government, or as in this case, both."

Bonheur owned Jesula Variety Store, which operated as a small variety store within a single street-facing storefront in the Mattapan neighborhood of Boston. Jesula Variety Store occupied approximately 150 square feet. The store had a single cash register, no shopping carts, no handbaskets, no refrigerators or freezers and only minimal food inventory.

According to the charging documents, for more than three years, Bonheur operated the store primarily as a vehicle for large-scale SNAP trafficking rather than a legitimate retail business. Despite the store's limited size, inventory and food offerings, Jesula Variety Store exhibited extraordinarily high SNAP redemption volumes, far beyond what could reasonably be supported by legitimate food sales. Transaction data revealed that the store had exceptionally large and anomalous average monthly SNAP redemption rates when compared to similarly situated businesses of the same size, type and location. Specifically, Bonheur's monthly SNAP redemptions for Jesula Variety Store regularly exceeded $100,000 - with many months exceeding $300,000 and, at times, $500,000. By comparison, one full-service supermarket in the same area redeems approximately $82,000 per month in SNAP benefits.

Additionally, transaction-level data showed that only approximately 10% of SNAP transactions were for amounts under $40, while more than 70% of transactions exceeded $95. Such transaction patterns are typically associated with large supermarkets, not small variety stores with limited food inventory.

During undercover operations conducted over the course of the investigation, SNAP benefits were trafficked for cash from Jesula Variety Store on four occasions. In each instance, the defendant worked the cash registers and personally exchanged SNAP benefits for cash. Bonheur also sold liquor in exchange for SNAP benefits.

Additionally, Jesula Variety Store also sold MannaPack meals, a donated food product manufactured by the nonprofit Feed My Starving Children. These meals are paid for entirely by charitable donations intended for shipment and distribution to food-insecure children overseas and are never authorized for retail sale. Bonheur sold donated MannaPack meals in his store for approximately $8 per package, profiting from food intended for humanitarian relief.

Jesula Variety Store carried little legitimate food inventory and generated minimal lawful revenue, therefore Bonheur relied almost entirely on USDA-funded SNAP redemptions as his source of income. To conceal the nature and source of these funds, Bonheur maintained numerous secondary bank accounts through which SNAP proceeds were transferred, withdrawn as cash and redeposited to create the appearance of legitimate business activity while obscuring the true source of funds. The scheme generated approximately $7 million in fraudulent SNAP redemptions, from which Bonheur personally retained roughly 20 percent of the proceeds.

Despite receiving millions of dollars per year in SNAP redemptions through Jesula Variety Store, Bonheur was issued a SNAP card for himself by the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance. In applying for his SNAP benefits, Bonheur made multiple false statements concerning his income and assets. Using those false representations, he obtained SNAP benefits that he then trafficked for cash through his own store while simultaneously operating the multi-million-dollar fraud scheme.

On March 26, 2026, United States Attorney Leah B. Foley announced the creation of the Benefit & Voter Fraud Team, a district-wide initiative established in response to the rampant fraud being uncovered across Massachusetts. The Team is led by two senior federal prosecutors serving as Fraud Coordinators, whose mission it is to aggressively investigate and prosecute misuse of taxpayer-funded benefits in Massachusetts.

Members of the public are encouraged to report suspected benefit fraud in Massachusetts by calling 1-855-SCAM-MA-1 (855-722-6621).

On April 7, 2026, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The Fraud Division is investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department's work to combat fraud supports President Trump's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

U.S. Attorney Foley; USDA OIG SAC Parker; FBI SAC Docks; and Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Mallard of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit is prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The remaining defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.