Minnesota Woman Jailed After $325K SNAP Fraud Involving Fake Identities

A Minnesota woman’s Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) fraud scheme has ended with a 12-month prison sentence and an order to repay funds.

Latasha Thomas, 39, was sentenced to 12 months in prison after a federal jury convicted her of mail fraud tied to a $325,000 SNAP abuse. According to multiple reports, Thomas faked pregnancies and submitted falsified doctors’ certificates to increase benefits.

On February 7, U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen said Thomas must repay the stolen funds to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

According to the Department of Justice, Thomas spent two years conspiring with family members, including her daughter Ambrosia Thomas and relative Cynthia Thomas, to illegally obtain Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards.

An Electronic Benefit Transfer card is a magnetically encoded, debit-style card used by eligible residents to access federal and state welfare benefits, primarily for SNAP food assistance and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) cash assistance. The cards function like debit cards and require a four-digit PIN for transactions.

Benefits are loaded monthly, and balances can be checked through mobile apps, websites or customer service lines.

Investigators said the conspirators manufactured fake Minnesota temporary driver’s licenses by placing their photos on documents featuring stolen or invented names. They submitted the documents to Hennepin County in application for EBT cards.

Believing SNAP allotments could increase if recipients were confined to bed rest, Thomas and her co-conspirators repeatedly claimed to be women experiencing a “high-risk pregnancy,” prosecutors said. The defendant's exploited the system’s provisions to obtain benefits.

Authorities later discovered the fraud. Thomas used the false name Sofia Gold and lived in an apartment in Roseville, Minn. Investigators found multiple pieces of mail addressed to pseudonyms used in the scheme.

Authorities said law enforcement discovered notes inside the apartment building’s mailbox area, accessible only to management and mail carriers, directing mail for several pseudonyms to Cynthia Thomas's apartment.

Investigators also found that the group withdrew government funds from ATMs and used the money for purchases. They also sold access to EBT cards, by allowing customers to use a portion of monthly benefits and return the card afterward.

In exchange for access to the benefits, customers agreed to pay the conspirators between 50 and 60 percent of the funds.

After completing her prison sentence, Thomas was ordered to repay $325,159 in restitution to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Her co-conspirators have also faced consequences. Cynthia Thomas was convicted in 2025 of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and was sentenced in December 2025 to three years of probation, according to Alpha News. Ambrosia Thomas has agreed to plead guilty to mail fraud, the outlet reported, and her case remains in the presentencing phase.