Suspected fraudster wanted in US captured in India over alleged SNAP scam

An India-born U.S. citizen accused of stealing at least $600,000 through a federal food-benefits scheme has been arrested in India.

His arrest marked the fifth capture under the FBI’s newly launched Most Wanted Fraudsters initiative.

Manjit Singh Bedi was arrested Friday in Jalandhar, Punjab, after U.S. authorities alleged that he fled the country while facing federal fraud charges. 

The FBI is currently working with Indian authorities to return him to the United States, Fox News reported.

Investigators have accused Bedi of running a scheme through an Asian grocery store in Tacoma, Washington. 

According to the FBI, he allegedly used customers’ Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits cards to complete transactions that were not for eligible food purchases.

 Instead, he allegedly gave customers cash and kept roughly half of the benefits for himself.

The alleged scheme ran from March 2024 through June 2025 and resulted in losses of at least $600,000 to the federal government, according to investigators.