The owner of a small Tacoma grocery store was indicted in an alleged food stamp fraud scheme, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington announced Wednesday.
Manjit Bedi, a 64-year-old from Kent, pleaded not guilty to multiple counts of wire fraud and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit fraud.
In February 2024, Bedi’s store was authorized to accept SNAP benefits, known as food stamps. In March 2024, Bedi allegedly agreed to provide SNAP recipients with cash in exchange for the money loaded on their electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card, according to the indictment. For example, Bedi would charge $200 to a recipient’s EBT card, give $100 in cash to the recipient, and keep the other $100 as profit…