Charges against the Atlanta rapper
Shawty Dred, whose legal name is Mercedes Reshard New, was indicted on October 7 and arrested in Las Vegas on October 13. The 39-year-old is charged with 46 counts of mail fraud, 15 counts of aggravated identity theft, one count of SNAP fraud and one count of illegal transactions with access devices.
Prosecutors in the Northern District of Georgia allege that New controlled more than 350 fraudulent SNAP accounts from January 2020 through July 2026. They say he used stolen identities to open the accounts and directed benefit cards to addresses across metro Atlanta.
"New allegedly stole over $4 million meant for poor families who need help putting food on the table," U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg said in the announcement.
Prosecutors also cited posts featuring private jets, luxury cars and stacks of cash, alleging that New used food benefits to finance an extravagant lifestyle. His Instagram account, richlifeshawtydred, has more than 2 million followers, according to prosecutors, as reported by USA Herald.
Retailer transactions and the 2025 arrest
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, provides food-buying assistance to low-income households. In Georgia, recipients use electronic benefit transfer cards, known as EBT cards, at authorized stores. Benefits cannot legally be sold or traded.
According to prosecutors, New sought SNAP retailer approval for Shawty Dred LLC, then used the company's payment device to process fraudulently obtained cards. They allege those transactions took more than $660,000 in benefits from April 2024 through November 2025.
The Agriculture Department withdrew the store's authorization in November 2025. Roughly two weeks afterward, New was arrested on suspicion of selling SNAP benefits. The Justice Department's national announcement identifies the location as a Walmart in East Point, Georgia, where he allegedly solicited customers to buy SNAP EBT cards.
East Point police seized 14 Georgia EBT cards issued to other people during that arrest. Prosecutors allege that New subsequently arranged for replacement cards to be delivered to his store and other addresses in the Atlanta area.
Account records and loss estimates
The Georgia prosecutors' announcement distinguished between money entering the allegedly fraudulent accounts and money taken from them: about $4.6 million was transferred in, and roughly $4 million was siphoned out.
In its national release, the Justice Department listed New's Northern District of Georgia case, No. 26-CR-473, with an intended loss of $4.4 million. That release said investigators ultimately connected more than 500 Georgia EBT cards to New. An initial estimate in 2025 had put transactions on cards linked to him at $1.8 million.
Investigators also reviewed calls to the phone system recipients use to access SNAP accounts. According to the national release, phone numbers associated with New contacted the system more than 9,000 times and accessed over 350 accounts.
A nationwide benefits-fraud operation
New's case was included in the Justice Department's first National USDA Benefits and Program Fraud Enforcement Surge. Running from September 1 through October 21, 2026, the operation involved the department's National Fraud Enforcement Division, 13 U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Utah Attorney General's Office.
The DOJ's Office of Public Affairs said the coordinated effort brought actions against more than 40 defendants. Their alleged or proven schemes involved nearly $45 million in intended losses to the federal government, including nearly $42 million involving SNAP.
Among the other cases, a federal grand jury in the Southern District of Ohio indicted Jorag Yaseen and Rami Kanaan over alleged fraudulent EBT transactions. The department said they operated authorized food retailers in Chicago and processed thousands of transactions with stolen EBT account information from Ohio and other states between approximately February 2024 and April 2025. The estimated loss to the United States was about $29.7 million.
The department said its anti-fraud efforts support President Trump's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud. Chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance, the task force is a whole-of-government effort to eliminate fraud, waste and abuse in federal benefit programs.
Custody and legal status
The indictment contains allegations, and New remains presumed innocent unless prosecutors prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said New was remanded to U.S. Marshals Service custody while awaiting further proceedings. The announcement named no defense attorney and provided no response from New.
