PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) — An Italian man living illegally in Oregon has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for being involved in a scheme that stole more than $2.4 million in food assistance benefits from low-income families across multiple states.
Giovanni Spirea, 29, received a 24-month prison sentence, three years of supervised release, and must pay $61,874.32 in restitution. Prosecutors said Spirea and his co-conspirators used electronic skimming devices from August 2023 to October 2024 to steal data from Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients, then cloned the information onto fake Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards.
According to court documents, the group allegedly used the cloned cards to buy large quantities of infant formula, energy drinks, and other food items from stores in Oregon, Washington, and California. The goods were later sold on the black market. Investigators said more than 120,000 pounds of products were purchased and shipped from Oregon and Washington to California…