If you live in eastern Pennsylvania, this is a common sight (late at night, and at a certain time of the month). I asked a Brick and Mortar store employee what this is all about, as you'll see them loading up a full-size van, emptying entire shelves of goods; and even demanding that full cases be brought from the store's storage area/warehouse.
The story is... they typically live on the outskirts of NYC/east NJ. There's a relative that "lives" in Pennsylvania, and therefore the whole family supposedly lives at that address. Each member of the family applies for and gets PA state welfare.
Once a month, when the "magic cards" refill with cash, they cross the state border (back to PA where they supposedly live) to buy multiple cases of cereal, soup, soda, shampoo, tampons, paper plates, TP, clothes detergent, trash bags... mostly dry goods that won't spoil shortly (like milk and bread will). They do this late at night, because the stores are mostly empty of people, and the shelves are restocked, or being restocked. And of course, they're less likely to draw attention to themselves if it's dark out, and there are only a handful of customers in the store.
After they empty the "magic cards" of their monthly allotment of cash; it's back to NJ/NY, to stock the shelves of their stores with all the goodies that was paid for by cheating the taxpayers of Pennsylvania.
[–] Kensboro ago
If you live in eastern Pennsylvania, this is a common sight (late at night, and at a certain time of the month). I asked a Brick and Mortar store employee what this is all about, as you'll see them loading up a full-size van, emptying entire shelves of goods; and even demanding that full cases be brought from the store's storage area/warehouse.
The story is... they typically live on the outskirts of NYC/east NJ. There's a relative that "lives" in Pennsylvania, and therefore the whole family supposedly lives at that address. Each member of the family applies for and gets PA state welfare.
Once a month, when the "magic cards" refill with cash, they cross the state border (back to PA where they supposedly live) to buy multiple cases of cereal, soup, soda, shampoo, tampons, paper plates, TP, clothes detergent, trash bags... mostly dry goods that won't spoil shortly (like milk and bread will). They do this late at night, because the stores are mostly empty of people, and the shelves are restocked, or being restocked. And of course, they're less likely to draw attention to themselves if it's dark out, and there are only a handful of customers in the store.
After they empty the "magic cards" of their monthly allotment of cash; it's back to NJ/NY, to stock the shelves of their stores with all the goodies that was paid for by cheating the taxpayers of Pennsylvania.