ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Criminals are targeting Georgia’s SNAP recipients, draining accounts and leaving vulnerable families without a safety net.

Mary Klase, who is undergoing chemotherapy for triple-negative breast cancer and battling cervical cancer, said her account was emptied over the weekend, for the second time in less than a year.

“I need to be focusing on my cancer, and I can’t focus on that,” Klase said.

She relies on SNAP, a federal program that helps low-income families afford groceries, because neuropathy in her hands and feet makes it nearly impossible to work.

When she went to pay for groceries at Walmart on Sunday, the $292 that was supposed to be on her card had vanished.

“They took everything but one penny,” Klase said.

Her SNAP benefits were previously stolen in November 2024. Back then, she turned to food pantries for support. But this summer, Klase said that’s no longer an option.

“They’re not even open to the public for you to go and get food that you may need,” she said. “Because they’re providing for these kids.”

Klase is among 1.4 million Georgians who rely on SNAP.

Federal reimbursement for stolen SNAP funds ended in December 2024, meaning victims like Klase are unlikely to get their money back.

She’s reached out to the governor’s office, which referred her to the Gwinnett County Department of Human Services Division of Family and Children Services (DHS) office. That office, in turn, gave her an email address.

Klase said she plans to visit the office in person this week in hopes of finding answers.

“They need to dig deeper. They need to find out exactly what’s going on,” she said. “And if they need to put an entirely new system into place, then they need to.”

Georgia DHS encourages all SNAP recipients to monitor their accounts regularly and report suspicious activity immediately.

Download our Atlanta News First app for your latest news and information.

Atlanta News First podcasts are available now on: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Amazon Music | YouTube

Copyright 2025 WANF. All rights reserved.