Two Northampton County Men Plead Guilty to Welfare Fraud

Two Northampton County men were among nearly two dozen Pennsylvania residents recently sentenced for welfare fraud, according to the Pennsylvania Office of Inspector General.

Jose Bracero, 54, of Bath, fraudulently received more than $950 in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) reported in a news release. Bracero pleaded guilty to the charges against him and was sentenced to one year of probation and was ordered to pay full restitution, court costs and fees, the OIG said. He was disqualified from receiving SNAP benefits for 24 months.

Bracero had been disqualified once before, in 2000, for a six-month period in North Carolina, the OIG reported. A third conviction of welfare fraud would result in permanent disqualification.

The second Northampton County man sentenced for welfare fraud is Matthew Noone, 40, of Easton.

The OIG reported, Noone pleaded guilty to receiving more than $3,850 in fraudulent SNAP benefits and was sentenced to one year probation and was ordered to pay restitution, court costs and fees. Noone was also disqualified from receiving SNAP benefits for a period of 12 months, the inspector general said.

None of the other 18 residents sentenced for welfare fraud were from the Lehigh Valley region.

Click here to read the entire news release and list from the Pennsylvania Office of Inspector General.