A New York City retailer has been indicted on charges that he stole more than $643,000 in food assistance benefits from Ohio residents, officials announced Monday.
Raed Subhi Abu Mohammad, 52, and his Brooklyn business, Hot Spot Convenience 2, face charges of illegal use of SNAP benefits, telecommunications fraud, aggravated theft and money laundering, according to the Ohio Investigative Unit and Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office.
Investigators allege Mohammad fraudulently obtained the federal Food and Nutrition Service permit number of a legitimate retailer, then used it to run unauthorized transactions on stolen Ohio EBT card numbers between March 2024 and January 2025.
In that time, agents say Mohammad allegedly conducted 2,823 fraudulent transactions — more than $260,000 of which came at the expense of Cuyahoga County SNAP recipients. In December 2024 alone, Ohio recipients allegedly lost nearly $240,000.
Most transactions occurred between midnight and 4 a.m., with as many as 12 consecutive charges on a single EBT account to drain the entire balance, according to investigators. The stolen money was quickly liquidated through cash withdrawals and wire transfers, investigators allege.
Victims interviewed by OIU agents said they had never traveled to New York.
“We hope this case serves as a reminder that the Ohio Investigative Unit will pursue anyone, anywhere when they victimize our most vulnerable population,” OIU Senior Enforcement Commander Greg Croft said in a statement. “We have a duty to protect the citizens of the State of Ohio and the integrity of Ohio’s EBT program, regardless of where these bad actors operate from.”
According to court records, Mohammad and his business were indicted in February. Officials say he was arrested June 4 by New York City police and will be extradited to Ohio, where an arraignment date will be set in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.
The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services has since implemented automatic locks on Ohio EBT cards for out-of-state use. ODJFS Director Matt Damschroder encouraged cardholders to use hard-to-guess PINs, change them frequently, and use the card lock feature through ConnectEBT.
“Nationally, we are seeing an increase in food assistance fraud, and criminals from other states and online continue to prey on vulnerable Ohioans who rely on SNAP to feed their families,” Damschroder said.