Former Suffolk DSS Examiner Charged With Stealing Nearly $79,000 in SNAP Benefits

A former Suffolk County Department of Social Services examiner has been charged with stealing $78,904 in food assistance by opening seven fake SNAP cases and sending the money to people who never applied, District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney said Wednesday, Oct. 7.

Kevin Eduardo Hernandez Meza, 23, of Port Jefferson Station, was arrested Tuesday, Oct. 6, by detectives from the district attorney's office. He was arraigned Wednesday before Riverhead Town Justice Lori Hulse on one count of second-degree grand larceny, a class C felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Hernandez Meza worked as a social services examiner from Sept. 9, 2025, to Sept. 5, 2026, reviewing existing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program cases to decide whether recipients still qualified, prosecutors said. An internal audit began after a case he created was flagged as suspicious. The audit found he had opened seven cases for people who had neither applied for benefits nor asked for public assistance, then issued them monthly payments and additional unauthorized payments that together totaled $78,904, the district attorney said.

The charge does not allow bail under state law, and Hernandez Meza was released on his own recognizance. He is represented by the Legal Aid Society and is due back in court Oct. 20. The district attorney's office said its investigation into the full extent of his conduct is continuing.

"This defendant was entrusted with protecting the integrity of our public assistance system," Tierney said. "Instead, he allegedly abused that trust by creating fraudulent SNAP cases and directing tens of thousands of dollars in unauthorized benefits." Tierney said County Executive Ed Romaine's office referred the case.

"The actions of a few will not undermine aid for those in need or tarnish our dedicated DSS staff," Romaine said.