Bluffton woman pays restitution for food stamp fraud after pleading guilty to lesser charge
A 45-year-old Bluffton woman pleaded guilty to fraudulently using $2,000 in food stamp funds after prosecutors reduced her charge from a felony to a misdemeanor. She avoided prison time due to the one day she spent in the Beaufort County jail following her arrest in summer 2024.
The woman was ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution, which she brought to her Jan. 15 plea healing at the Beaufort County Courthouse. Prosecutors said the woman had been eligible for the state’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program but claimed more benefits than she was owed, according to Jeff Kidd, a spokesperson for the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.
The woman was initially charged with a felony offense of food stamp fraud in July 2024, when agents from the South Carolina Department of Social Services accused her of wrongfully receiving $12,571 in SNAP benefits between February 2019 and December 2021. She waived her indictment before pleading to the misdemeanor offense, which is applied when the amount of alleged fraud is $2,000 or less.
Reports of program fraud can be made to the DSS Office of Inspector General at dss.sc.gov/about/fraud or by calling 1-800-694-8518.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhy didn't we name the suspect?
The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette typically do not name those charged with misdemeanor crimes unless they are in a position of authority or public trust.
This story was originally published January 28, 2025 at 12:44 PM.
