Bodega owners rep pleads with needy New Yorkers not to loot after SNAP benefits expire: ‘They could be shot’
Longtime New York bodega owners rep Fernando Mateo urged the needy not to look stores after SNAP runs out. Matthew McDermott
A leading voice for New York City’s bodega owners is urging struggling residents to stay calm and avoid turning to theft if federal food assistance programs temporarily lapse due to the ongoing government shutdown.
Fernando Mateo, who this week announced the creation of a new organization called the Bodega Alliance, said shop owners may be forced to defend themselves if looting breaks out — a scenario he hopes to prevent.
“Let’s face it, when people go hungry and they don’t have money to feed their kids, they’ll do whatever they have to do,” Mateo said Thursday. “We’re afraid that if looting begins and a bodega owner or worker intervenes, someone could get shot, stabbed, or killed. That’s what we want to avoid.”
Mateo’s comments came as he split from the United Bodegas of America following a dispute over the group’s endorsement of Zohran Mamdani, a left-wing mayoral front-runner who has pledged to establish city-run grocery stores in all five boroughs. Mateo said he felt “betrayed” by the endorsement and resigned to form his own group, which will coordinate closely with the NYPD to maintain order if food benefits run out.
He urged residents not to resort to theft, but instead to turn to their local community stores for help. “If you know your neighborhood bodega, go in and ask for food or supplies — don’t steal,” Mateo said. “Most of us will help. We’re part of the community, and we’ll come through for you.”
The potential crisis stems from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which provides food benefits to roughly 42 million Americans. The program is expected to run out of funds by November 1 due to the ongoing budget stalemate in Washington that has kept the federal government shuttered for nearly a month.
Anger over the looming cutoff has already spilled onto social media, where some users have threatened to shoplift if benefits expire — raising alarms among small business owners and major retail chains alike.
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