PORTLAND, Maine (WGAN) A Westbrook man has been convicted of conspiracy to defraud and to commit offenses against the United States.
Abdulkareem Daham, who worked at the Ahram Halal Market on Forest Avenue in Portland, was charged after prosecutors say he and his brother, Ali Ratib Daham, gave cash to customers in exchange for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Women, Infant and Children benefits, plus a fee.
Prosecutors say the 22-year-old and his brother did this from 2011 through April 2016, receiving $4 million in SNAP and WIC receipts, at least $1.4 of which were obtained illegally.
Daham faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He will be sentenced at a later date.
His brother plead guilty in November to SNAP and WIC trafficking conspiracy, money laundering and theft of federal MaineCare funds and is awaiting sentencing.
