Three charged in food stamp fraud scheme

Authorities say they've broken up a food stamp fraud scheme in the Twin Cities.

Noni Shanita Snider, 39, of Eden Prairie and Walter Carr Cooper, 38, of Plymouth each face felony charges of wrongfully obtaining public assistance. Nyla Jean Newburgh,40, of Minneapolis was charged with misdemeanor conspiracy.

According to the charges filed Wednesday, the three allegedly bought food stamp cards, known as EBT cards, from homeless people for 50 cents on the dollar and then purchased more than $11,000 worth of non-perishable items such as soda pop and ramen noodles, which they shipped to Liberia.

Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said investigators got a tip that Snider had been buying large amounts of non-perishable items with EBT cards.

"This was what I would describe as a commercial criminal exporting enterprise that these defendants were involved with," Choi said.

Snider, Cooper and Newburgh could be reached for comment.

Create a More Connected Minnesota

MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.