A federal grand jury in Massachusetts has indicted a Worcester man on charges that he collected about $12,623 in food stamps while living under the identity of a person who died in 2006. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced the indictment on October 1. Prosecutors name the defendant only as “John Doe” because his true identity is not known.
The charges are allegations. The release says the defendant “is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law,” and it does not say when he will be arraigned. He was arrested in April 2026 on a criminal complaint and remains in federal custody.
For anyone who receives food stamps, formally the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, the case raises one narrow question: what happens when an application is approved on a stolen name. The release describes a Social Security number check and a death-record match that did not stop the claim, and it puts the total over nearly four years at roughly $270 a month, based on the 47 months from April 2022 through February 2026.
The next step is an arraignment in U.S. District Court, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office has not said when it will be held.
Get the next update the morning it lands →
How the application got through
According to prosecutors, the man has lived in Massachusetts under the identity of a deceased U.S. citizen from Puerto Rico since at least 2001. Under that name he allegedly obtained a Massachusetts ID card and MassHealth benefits, the state’s Medicaid program. The release says he was released from state prison in January 2022 and then applied for SNAP using the stolen identity.
In April 2022, the release says, he told an employee of the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance that he was the person listed on the application, a U.S. citizen, and verified the Social Security number. The employee’s file note read: “Death match ??? – reviewing with supervisor [sic].” The application was approved anyway, according to the release, and the benefits ran from April 2022 through February 2026.
The release also cites convictions under the same identity. It says the man was convicted in Worcester Superior Court in September 2012 of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, a gun, and of trafficking cocaine, and was sentenced to 8 to 10 years and 11 to 15 years in state prison on those counts.
Four counts and what each carries
The indictment charges four federal offenses. The release lists the maximum penalties for each:
- Unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits: up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
- False representation of a Social Security number: up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
- False statements relating to health care matters: up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
- Aggravated identity theft: a mandatory minimum of two years in prison, up to one year of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
The SNAP count carries the heaviest maximum, 20 years, and the aggravated identity theft count is the only one of the four with a floor, two years. The statutory maximums on the other three counts add up to 30 years, though the release makes clear that these are ceilings and not predictions of a sentence. The Health and Human Services inspector general’s page for the case is time-stamped October 1, 2026, at 8:20 a.m., the same day as the U.S. Attorney’s announcement.
The release adds that a federal district court judge, not the prosecutors, decides any sentence under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the governing statutes.
Four agencies behind one case
The investigation drew on four federal agencies. Jeff Grimming, acting special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England, Amy Connelly of the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General in Boston, Charmeka Parker of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s inspector general in the Northeast, and Roberto Coviello of the Department of Health and Human Services inspector general are named in the announcement alongside U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan O’Shea of the Worcester office is prosecuting.
The agencies match the benefits involved: SNAP, MassHealth, a Social Security number and a state ID. The Health and Human Services inspector general lists the case on its own enforcement page, dated October 1, and describes the scheme as using a deceased U.S. citizen’s identity to obtain SNAP and MassHealth benefits.
Following the Worcester case from indictment to ruling
An indictment is a formal accusation, not a finding. The next dated event is the arraignment, where the defendant enters a plea, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Massachusetts published the charges on its announcement page.
Two details matter when reading later coverage. The $12,623 is described as “approximately,” and the release attributes it to the charged period of April 2022 through February 2026.
Households that depend on SNAP or MassHealth are not asked to do anything in the release, which describes the case as one man’s alleged use of a single stolen identity.
More Financial Reading
- 24 Ways to Stretch a $2,087 Social Security Check
- 17 Places to Find Your Share of the $4.25 Billion States Give Back
- 17 Ways Retirees Are Tapping a Record $14.9 Trillion in Home Equity
This article was produced with AI assistance and reviewed by The Financial Wire’s editorial team.
Warren Cohen is a finance writer based in Phoenix, Arizona, covering personal finance topics including credit, banking, and beginner investing. He earned his degree in business administration from Arizona State University and began his career working in consumer finance, where he gained direct experience with lending and credit systems. He now writes for personal finance websites and fintech platforms, focusing on clear, practical content that helps readers make informed financial decisions.
