Kevin Eduardo Hernandez Meza, of Port Jefferson Station, charged with opening fraudulent SNAP benefits cases, reaping $79,000

A former Suffolk County Department of Social Services employee accused of stealing more than $78,000 in SNAP benefits was charged with second-degree grand larceny on Wednesday, prosecutors said.

Kevin Eduardo Hernandez Meza, of Port Jefferson Station, opened seven Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program cases in the names of people who had not applied for benefits, Suffolk District Attorney Ray Tierney said in a statement. Hernandez Meza then allegedly issued them ongoing monthly payments as well as unauthorized additional payments, totaling $78,904.

Authorities are trying to determine who received the money after it was sent, the district attorney’s office said.

Hernandez Meza, 23, was arrested on Tuesday by detectives from Tierney’s office. He pleaded not guilty to second-degree grand larceny during an arraignment on Wednesday in Riverhead before Town Justice Lori Hulse. He was represented by Legal Aid of Suffolk County, which did not return a request for comment.

Second-degree grand larceny is not eligible for bail under New York State law, meaning prosecutors cannot ask for bail and judges cannot set it. Hernandez Meza is scheduled to return to court on Oct. 20.

Investigators said that between Sept. 9, 2025, and Sept. 5, Hernandez Meza worked as a Social Services examiner, responsible for reviewing SNAP cases to determine if recipients were eligible for benefits.

Officials conducted an internal audit of Hernandez Meza’s work after a case he created was flagged as suspicious. The audit found he opened SNAP cases for seven recipients who neither applied for benefits nor requested public assistance.

“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.”