2 Boston Store Owners Charged in a $7 Million SNAP Benefits ‘Trafficking’ Case

Two convenience store owners in Boston are facing federal charges after investigators allege they orchestrated a years-long scheme to illegally exchange Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for cash, a practice known as “benefits trafficking,” resulting in more than $7 million in fraudulent redemptions.

According to court records obtained by PEOPLE,  federal prosecutors in Massachusetts have charged Antonio Bonheur, owner of Jesula Variety Store, and Saul Alisme, who operates Saul Mache Mixe Store, with food stamp fraud tied to separate undercover transactions that allegedly occurred in October 2025. The two small shops are located in the same building on Blue Hill Avenue in Mattapan, a detail investigators say proved critical to uncovering the scope of the operation.

According to an affidavit submitted by USDA Office of Inspector General Special Agent Todd Bucci viewed by PEOPLE, investigators began scrutinizing the stores after noticing unusually high SNAP redemption totals that did not align with the stores’ size, inventory or equipment. Jesula Variety Store, which measures roughly 150 square feet, has no shopping carts, baskets, optical scanners or refrigeration: features investigators highlighted would make it nearly impossible to process hundreds of thousands of dollars in food purchases each month legitimately.

Despite those limitations, authorities allege Bonheur’s store redeemed more than $6.9 million in SNAP benefits between 2021 and 2025, with a significant share of transactions exceeding $150. By comparison, similarly classified grocery stores in the same ZIP code averaged about $16,000 per month in SNAP redemptions, according to the filing.

Alisme’s store, which began accepting SNAP benefits in May 2025, allegedly followed a similar pattern on a smaller scale, per the filing. Investigators estimate Saul Mache Mixe Store trafficked more than $121,000 in SNAP benefits within just a few months, again through transactions that appeared inconsistent with the store’s limited food offerings.

The case hinges largely on a series of undercover operations conducted by federal agents, per court documents. Between June and October 2025, investigators say undercover officers repeatedly exchanged SNAP benefits for cash at both stores while purchasing minimal food items. In some instances, items allegedly purchased are explicitly prohibited under SNAP rules, including alcohol.

In an Oct. 22 transaction, cited in the complaint, Bonheur allegedly exchanged $140 in SNAP benefits for $100 in cash while processing a transaction that included a malt alcoholic beverage. In a separate October 16 transaction, Alisme is accused of exchanging $120.55 in SNAP benefits for $100 in cash after selling small amounts of flour and donated food products.

Those donated products — known as MannaPacks, produced by the nonprofit Feed My Starving Children — are intended solely for humanitarian aid overseas and are never authorized for retail sale in the U.S., investigators noted. Their presence on store shelves raised additional red flags.

Surveillance footage also played a role. Investigators reviewed camera recordings showing customers leaving the stores empty-handed or with only small bags after SNAP transactions totaling hundreds of dollars. On multiple days, the stores were surveilled, and agents reported that no customers were seen carrying groceries consistent with the amounts charged to their benefit cards.

Bonheur is further accused of fraudulently applying for SNAP benefits himself in 2022, allegedly claiming zero income while failing to disclose his ownership of Jesula Variety Store. Authorities say he went on to redeem those benefits almost exclusively at his own business — despite the store’s high-volume SNAP activity.

Both men are currently charged with a single count of food stamp fraud involving transactions over $100 but under $5,000; however, investigators say the charged offenses represent only a fraction of the alleged conduct outlined in the affidavit. The investigation was conducted jointly by the USDA Office of Inspector General and the FBI.

Neither Bonheur nor Alisme, as of this writing, has entered a plea. Attorneys for the defendants were not immediately identified, and the case remains pending in the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts.