Mercedes Reshard New faces 63 federal counts in alleged $4 million SNAP fraud

Atlanta rapper and social media personality Mercedes Reshard New, known as Shawty Dred, has been indicted on 63 federal counts related to an alleged $4 million Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) fraud scheme. The charges include 46 counts of mail fraud, 15 counts of aggravated identity theft, one count of SNAP fraud, and one count of illegal transactions with access devices.

Prosecutors allege the scheme operated from January 2020 through July 2026. New is accused of using stolen identities to control more than 350 fraudulent SNAP accounts and directing benefit cards to various addresses in the metro Atlanta area. Investigators also traced approximately 9,000 calls from associated numbers to Georgia’s benefit information system.

Additionally, New allegedly used his business, Shawty Dred LLC, to process more than $660,000 in benefits between April 2024 and November 2025 by using fraudulently obtained electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards through the company’s payment device. The Agriculture Department revoked the business's authorization in November 2025. New was arrested in Las Vegas following his indictment on October 7.