Release No. 0224.96

                                    Tom Amontree   (202) 720-4623
                                    Alicia Bambara (703) 305-2039

USDA CATCHES 331 FOOD STAMP RETAILERS IN FRAUD SWEEP

     WASHINGTON, May 1, 1996--Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman said today
that USDA undercover investigators, working intensively in three areas of the
country, last month caught 331 merchants in the act of committing food stamp
fraud.

     Glickman said the investigation, dubbed "Operation Trident," identified
Food Stamp Program retailer violations ranging from trafficking, or exchange
of food stamps for cash, to the sale of ineligible items in exchange for food
stamps.

     The Secretary said the violations will bring penalties ranging from
warning letters to fines to permanent disqualification from the Food Stamp
Program.  In addition, he said, retailers in some states may face the loss of
their state liquor licenses, and some may be subject to civil prosecution
under the False Claims Act.  

     "These are tough penalties that will put many of these violators out of
business," Glickman said.  "This operation sends a simple message -- we will
not tolerate any kind of fraud in the Food Stamp Program."

     Glickman said Operation Trident focused an intensive three-week
investigation on three areas of the country: Tidewater Virginia; Jacksonville,
Florida; and Seattle-Tacoma, Washington.  Undercover investigators from the
Compliance Branch of USDA's Food and Consumer Service, posing as customers,
exchanged food stamps for cash or purchased ineligible items with food stamps
at each of the stores.  

     Of the 331 food stamp retailers caught in the sweep, 82 were caught
trafficking, and face permanent disqualification from the program or stiff
fines.  Another 249 sold ineligible items in exchange for food stamps.  Of
those 249 violations, 113 are serious enough for the stores to be considered
for temporary disqualifications or fines.  The remaining 136 stores will
receive warnings.  All the authorized retailers caught in the sweep have been
sent letters notifying them of the charges against them.

     The stores caught in violations redeemed over $11 million worth of food
stamps last year, and the 82 caught trafficking redeemed more than $3.2
million.  The stores caught trafficking bought $13,500 worth of food stamps
from Operation Trident investigators for just over $6,900 in cash -- about
half the stamps' face value.

     "Trafficking, or exchanging food stamps for cash, is the worst type of
food stamp violation, but all of these illegal activities literally take food
out of the mouths of hungry families who need it," Under Secretary for Food,
Nutrition, and Consumer Services' Ellen Haas said.

     Haas said that only food for human consumption is eligible for purchase
with food stamps.  In addition to those who engaged in trafficking, she said,
some of the violating retailers sold ineligible items ranging from alcohol and
tobacco to clothing in exchange for food stamps.  

     Haas said USDA's Food and Consumer Service and Office of Inspector
General, along with investigators from state and local police and other
federal agencies, catch stores committing fraud every day, but that Operation
Trident was a special initiative designed to focus attention on particular
areas.

     "This was FCS' first test of the effectiveness of an intensive sweep to
detect violations in a particular area, and it worked well," Haas said.  "We
will do this again -- and I want those retailers who violate Food Stamp
Program rules to know that we're out there, and they will be caught."

     Haas said some 203,000 food retailers in all parts of the country are
authorized to accept food stamps.  The three Operation Trident locations were
chosen for technical and logistical reasons, and not because they had
especially high fraud rates.  In fact, she said, an additional 439 stores
visited during the sweep committed no program violations at all, and another
28 committed only minor violations.  

     Of the 331 stores caught committing fraud, 104 were in Tidewater
Virginia; 126 were in Jacksonville; and 101 were in Seattle-Tacoma.  Lists of
the stores identified in each of the three areas are available from the
following USDA Food and Consumer Service regional offices: 

Jacksonville: Southeast Regional Office, Atlanta, 404-730-2588

Virginia: Mid-Atlantic Regional Office, New Jersey, 609-259-5000

Seattle-Tacoma: Western Regional Office, San Francisco, 415-705-1311

     As a by-product of Operation Trident, USDA investigators donated to
charitable organizations an estimated six tons of food and non-food items
purchased with food stamps during the investigations.

                                #

NOTE: USDA news releases and media advisories are available on the Internet.
Access the USDA Home Page on the World Wide Web at http://www.usda.gov