COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Families in Cobb County are among the latest to report food stamp theft.
“I’ve got a few friends that have them,” said Charlie Bean. “They’re like, it’s gone. Five, six hundred dollars are gone.”
Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco spoke with Bean as he was picking up food for friends who have no car to get to Must Ministries pantry in Smyrna.
“They have kids, and their kids are hungry,” said Bean.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
Workers at the pantry said theft is not the only problem clients are reporting, according to MUST Spokesperson Katie Ruth Camp.
“We’re seeing a lot of delays with people getting their food stamps, issues with renewals,” said Camp.
Georgia’s Department of Human Services said staff has been working overtime since Oct. to relieve a backlog of SNAP renewals. Last month, DHS donated $2.8 million to support the food banks forced to fill the gap.
TRENDING STORIES:
- Manhunt underway for ‘armed and dangerous’ suspect with AR-15 after chase, GSP K9 shot
- Workers at metro Atlanta Amazon facility vote to authorize strike days before Christmas
- 2 men dead, suspect in custody after incident in South Fulton neighborhood
“For so many, food stamps are the only way that they can get food,” said Camp.
In response to the theft, DHS blames card skimmers and phishing schemes.
This month, DHS created a new security feature that allows clients to lock their SNAP cards when not in use.
Channel 2 Action News is still waiting for DHS to tell us how many days people could have to wait for refunds.
DHS said in the last year, it has received more than 25,000 reports of fraud and has spent $7.5 million on reimbursements. You have 30 days to report theft or risk losing a refund.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2024 Cox Media Group
