Perry Woman Pleads Guilty to Drug and Food Stamp Fraud Charges

Perry Woman Pleads Guilty to Drug and Food Stamp Fraud Charges

The following press release was published by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys on Nov. 19, 2014. It is reproduced in full below.

Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Tonia

Smith, 42, of Perry, Maine, pled guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court to fraudulently acquiring

Hydrocodone and food stamp fraud.

According to court records, from July to November 2013, Smith used her position as a

pharmacy technician at the Indian Health Service Center on Pleasant Point Reservation in Perry

to steal the pain medication Hydrocodone from the pharmacy and then shredded records that the

pharmacy was required to keep in order to conceal her thefts. The investigation also revealed

that from January to November 2013, Smith bought EBT cards from food stamp recipients for

amounts less than the credit assigned to each card and then used the cards to make unauthorized

purchases.

Smith faces up to 4 years in prison on the drug charge, up to 5 years in prison on the food

stamp fraud charge and a fine of up to $250,000 on each charge. She will be sentenced after

completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.

The investigation was conducted by the Offices of Inspector General of the U.S.

Departments of Health and Human Services and Agriculture and the Pleasant Point Police

Department.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys

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