The other shoe has dropped.
Three Gainesville convenience stores were busted for food stamp fraud on September 1st and Thursday police issued 31 warrants related to that bust.
The USDA estimates food stamp trafficking defrauds taxpayers of $330 million each year. So on the federal and local level investigators are monitoring EBT patterns.
The owners of SMI are accused of using food stamps to stock their shelves, buying people's EBT benefits for 50 cents on the dollar.
After months of undercover work, GPD had enough to shut down the store and arrest Syed Hossain, Sharifo Mino and Syed Islam.
Just at Sam's, police say the family used 47 different EBT cards 135 times, amounting to more than $19 thousand dollars in fraud.
Police are also going after the EBT card holders and the former owner and clerk at 99 Cents and More, also busted in September. Police arrested 8 people Thursday and will charge two already in jail and two already in prison...but police are still looking for 19 more, including Jahedul Chowdury, former owner of 99 cents and More.
They will all be charged with racketeering.