A former Chicago police officer was sentenced Tuesday to four years in prison for defrauding a low-income food program.
Prosecutors say Hassan “Eric” Abdellatif, 37, illegally billed $14 million to the federal Women, Infants and Children program, or WIC, as owner of the El Milagro Mini Market and Harding Grocery in Chicago.
Abdellatif, who lost his Chicago Police Department job after his 2021 arrest, asked for mercy before U.S. District Judge Jorge L. Alonso handed down his sentence at the Dirksen Federal Courthouse. Alonso also ordered Abdellatif pay $8 million in restitution.
Defense attorneys said they were pleased Abdellatif got less than the eight to 10 years federal prosecutors asked for. But they still plan to appeal the ruling.
“While we’re pleased the judge ruled substantially below the guidelines, my client will spend four years in prison and come out $8 million in debt,” Steven Hunter, one of Abdellatif’s attorneys in the case, told the Chicago Sun-Times after the hearing. “We’re not pleased about that.”
In 2021, Abdellatif was among nine owners and workers at several Chicago-area convenience stores charged with accepting checks from the WIC program for ineligible items at the stores, often at inflated prices.
After a jury trial last April, Abdellatif was convicted of wire fraud, fraudulently obtaining government benefits and failure to file taxes.
Federal prosecutors said they calculated the extent of Abdellatif’s fraud by comparing his stores’ WIC billings to that of similar stores. The fraud happened from 2010 to 2018, prosecutors said. Abdellatif became an officer in 2018, two months after the fraud ended, according to prosecutors.
Abdellatif appeared for his sentencing in a gray suit, frequently speaking with his attorneys, rubbing his hands and looking toward family members in court to support him. At one point, he was seen looking to the ceiling and mouthing what appeared to be a prayer.
Abdellatif told the judge he already faced several consequences from his arrest and conviction, such as the loss of his police career and the emotional hardship brought onto his family.
“For all the pain and disappointment this caused … I am truly sorry,” Abdellatif said. “I regret the circumstances that brought me here.”
Prior to pronouncing sentence, the judge noted Abdellatif is educated, hardworking and supportive of his family.
“That bodes well for [his] rehabilitation,” the judge said.
