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Mattapan store owner pleads guilty in $6.7M SNAP fraud scheme
Federal prosecutors say the Boston retailer exchanged food assistance benefits for cash and ineligible items over several years.
A Mattapan store owner has pleaded guilty to processing at least $6.7 million in fraudulent food assistance transactions, court documents show.
74-year-old Antonio Bonheur, of Mattapan, reached a plea agreement Feb. 21 with the office of Leah Foley, the U.S. attorney for the District of Massachusetts. Bonheur agreed he is guilty of the offenses charged, including one count of wire fraud and one count of unauthorized use, transfer, and possession of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
According to the plea agreement filed Monday in Boston federal court, Bonheur admitted to trafficking SNAP benefits through fraudulent electronic benefit transfer transactions at the Jesula Variety Store (JVS) in Mattapan, which he owned.
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Between February 2021 and December 2025, Bonheur exchanged SNAP benefits issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for cash and ineligible items, according to the charging documents. The transactions were processed through the store’s point-of-sale terminal, resulting in deposits into bank accounts Bonheur designated to receive SNAP redemption payments.
Court filings show Bonheur processed at least $6.7 million in fraudulent EBT transactions during that period.
Charging documents also show SNAP redemptions at the store increased dramatically in recent years. Monthly redemptions rose from $6,467 in October 2023 to $157,937 by March 2024 and reached a peak of $540,870 in August 2024. Throughout 2025, monthly redemptions remained above $200,000, with a high of $358,472 in October.
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Investigators conducting undercover operations at JVS observed SNAP benefits being exchanged for cash on multiple occasions, according to charging documents. They also said the store sold liquor in exchange for the benefits, which is prohibited under program rules.
Authorities further alleged that the store sold donated MannaPack meals — food aid manufactured by the nonprofit Feed My Starving Children — for about $8 a package.
Bonheur was arrested and charged in December along with Saul Alisme, 21, of Hyde Park, according to a statement from Foley’s office.
Alisme, a Haitian national, operated the Saul Mache Mixe Store from the same Mattapan storefront and trafficked more than $121,000 in SNAP benefits between May and December 2025, according to charging documents.
Alisme’s case has been delayed until mid-May, according to the court records.
Bonheur is a naturalized U.S. citizen and acknowledged in his plea agreement that his immigration status could be affected by the conviction.
The food stamp fraud charge carries a potential sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000, Foley’s office said.
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