Jorge Luis Rivera, 53 of Fresno, owned the El Ranchito Bakery in Fresno. Google Street View photo

A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment earlier this month against Fresno business owner Jorge Luis Rivera, 53, charging him with various wire-fraud-related counts.

The May 4 indictment was unsealed following Rivera’s arrest Tuesday morning.

According to court documents, Rivera owned El Ranchito Bakery in Fresno. Beginning in 2005, El Ranchito was authorized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, formerly known as Food Stamps. These benefits cannot be exchanged for cash.

Between approximately 2011 and August 2018, Rivera directed his employees to exchange SNAP benefits for cash and to accept SNAP benefits for unauthorized items at the request of customers, according to U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert.

The loss to the United States is estimated to be over $5 million.

Two of Rivera’s employees are named in the indictment as participating in the crime. They were charged in 2020, pleaded guilty earlier this year and await sentencing.

This case is the product of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General (USDA-OIG) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alexandre Dempsey and Joseph Barton are prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Rivera faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count, which include conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and attempted wire fraud.