Four people accused of attempting to defraud the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in two separate schemes pleaded innocent in recent arraignment hearings.
Abderahamane "Abe" Eloirzazi, 44, owner of the Huntington convenience store ALLINONE along with co-defendants Stephanie Pauley, 35, and Cynthia Gibson, 40, allegedly redeemed approximately $127,000 in SNAP benefits, according to a Department of Justice news release.
According to the release, Eloirzazi, Pauley and Gibson swiped cards by charging a certain dollar amount against the value of the recipient's card.
The indictment stated all three gave recipients 50 to 65 cents on the dollar in cash or on ineligible items and the full amount of the transaction would be wired to ALLINONE's bank account.
A trial for Eloirzazi, Pauley and Gibson is set for 8:30 a.m. April 17 in Huntington.
A fourth Huntington business manager was charged in a similar scheme. The manager of the Huntington Mart, Ibrahim Osman Owayda, 34, is accused of exchanging cash for SNAP benefits on a discounted basis from various customers. Owayda allegedly redeemed $297,871 in SNAP benefits, the DOJ release stated.
Owayda's trial is set for 8:30 a.m. April 10 in Huntington.
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