More Than 150 Cloned Benefit Cards, Over $95,000 Stolen: Indianapolis Man Luis Rodolfo Valero Aldana Agrees to Plead Guilty in SNAP Fraud Scheme
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana announced that Luis Rodolfo Valero Aldana, 26, of Indianapolis, Indiana, has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit food stamp fraud, benefits fraud, and possession of device-making equipment. The charges were brought as part of the Trump Administration's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.
According to court documents, beginning as early as December 1, 2024, and continuing through approximately December 2025, the defendants allegedly conspired to produce and use more than 150 fraudulent Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards. The cards were cloned using data stolen from legitimate cardholders in Indiana, Tennessee, California, New York, Texas, and other states.
The defendants allegedly enriched themselves by using the cloned EBT cards to purchase merchandise at multiple Sam's Club locations and then selling the items for cash, using both their own Sam's Club memberships and memberships belonging to relatives.
Investigators allege that Valero Aldana purchased stolen EBT card data and used device-making equipment in his residence to manufacture cloned cards. The cards were used for bulk purchases such as energy drinks, cooking oil, and various soft drinks, sometimes using multiple EBT accounts to complete a single transaction. The stolen goods were then sold to small businesses, including local Mexican restaurants, in exchange for cash or checks.
On February 5, 2026, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Valero Aldana's residence and recovered an MSR605X 3-Track Card Encoder used to create fraudulent EBT cards from stolen data.
To date, the unauthorized use of SNAP benefits attributed to the scheme exceeds $95,000 and involves more than 150 victims.
His co-defendant, Ana Virginia Lopez Macias, 29, of Indianapolis, has been charged by indictment with conspiracy to commit food stamp fraud, seven counts of benefits fraud, and possession of device-making equipment. A jury trial is scheduled to begin on January 4, 2027. An indictment is merely an allegation, and Macias is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Valero Aldana's sentence will be determined by a U.S. district judge at a later date. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Eakman is prosecuting the case.
Source: U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana press release
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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