Non-citizen among 16 that stole $2.4M in food

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

Giovanni Spirea, a 29-year-old Italian man living unlawfully in Oregon, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release for his involvement in a substantial multi-state criminal operation. This conspiracy resulted in the theft of over $2.4 million in benefits targeted at low-income and food-insecure individuals and families.

In addition to his prison sentence, Spirea was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $61,874.32. According to court documents, from August 2023 to October 2024, he and his co-conspirators utilized electronic skimming devices to unlawfully access Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. They encoded the stolen data onto cloned Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards and fraudulently used these cards to make purchases.

Spirea was known to share the compromised account details with other members of the organization, which led to the acquisition of large quantities of items such as infant formula, energy drinks, and other SNAP-eligible nonperishable food products. These purchases occurred at grocery stores across Oregon, Washington, and California, as well as through websites that provided curbside pickup options.

Throughout the conspiracy, the group reportedly secured more than 120,000 pounds of goods, which were stored in various residential properties and storage units in Oregon and Washington. These items were then packaged and transported to California using private vehicles and commercial carriers. The stolen goods, valued at more than $2.4 million, were subsequently sold on the black market.

On October 9, 2024, a federal grand jury in Portland indicted Spirea along with sixteen co-conspirators on 16 counts, including Conspiracy to Defraud the United States and Unauthorized Use of Access Devices. Spirea pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge on July 30, 2025.