Lone Star Rip Off

dozen of them are stealing big money from the rest of us. in tonight’s special report, evan folan uncovers the shocking details of el paso’s “lone star ripoff.” it’s a story you’ll see only on abc-7. “how helpful is this lonestar card? well i don’t know what i would do without it.” nat pop beep beep sot: “the whole purpose of the program is to provide to people in need.” in the early 2000’s, texas replaced paper “food stamps with the plastic – “lonestar benefit card. the change aimed to reduce the stigma associated with the program – and el paso district attorney jaime esparza says, combat fraud. sot: je “it is a need-based program – so what you tell us matters – we have to know what your income is and how many people are in your household. because the amount of food stamps you receive is based on that. nat pop “beep beep” but that assistanc is jeopardized by fraud. sot: ig “there ar people who abuse it and there are crooks that lie and who use this little card the lone star card… state inspector general xxx bowen and his team hunt down the abusers. sot: my job the job of the 17 investigators in el paso is suppose to crack down on those crooks that are stealing this money. standup: in the past year, bowen says – they have referred 42 el paso cases for prosecution, involving 750 thousand dollars in stolen benefits. sot: i think the allocation of the government money is not a infinite resource it is a finite resource and if you are one who takes advantage of they system then you are making it more difficult to give to those in need” prosecutors say the most common fraud in el paso stems from lying about income or the number of household members to boost the monthly allowance. sot: “ther are those two and deception about address, whether you are at that location where you are claiming benefits those are the three primary forms of crime” sot: jaime:”s received the following in excessive benefits. so she received 22k extra up to $45k.” evan: “that she did not deserve?” jaime: “that s did not deserve correct.” the amounts differ, but the story’s the same, over and over: nenfri sanchez pleaded guilty to fraud and two other counts. she’s serving five years probation, and owes $17-thousand in restitution. nat – card swipe other accused offenders in el paso include: aida isais – facing 7 charges of fraud and set for trial next week. elizabeth ochoa – faces 10 charges of fraud involving more than $20-thousand dollars and is expected in court next april. although we were unable to find them – their records will follow them. sot: “we are the fron line in fighting that fraud. when we find it we take it to the prosecutor and get those people convicted … even so, guilty verdicts rarely result in time behind bars… sot: “the most significanc consequences besides the felony conviction and how that affects your record. the defendant will have to pay the restitution if they want probation.we wont give you probation unless you pay that and you will lose your ability to use food stamps for a period of time. those two and the felony conviction really make the consequences severe. and if you are taking advantage of the system inspector general bowen is certain you’ll be caught – reagardless of how much you are stealing. evan folan, abc-7. if you know of someone who’s caught – reagardless of how much you are stealing. evan folan, abc-7. if you know of someone who’s abusing the system, you can report the offenders by calling 1-800-424-9121.