Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins Posts Fraudster Image as Midterms Approach
The Trump administration is facing fresh criticism over online posts featuring inflammatory imagery just days before the midterm elections, NBC4 Washington reported. The posts align with a government campaign highlighting aggressive immigration enforcement and efforts to crack down on fraud to save taxpayer money as rising healthcare costs and economic affordability drive voter concerns.
On Saturday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins posted a photo on X showing a Black man standing in front of stacks of U.S. currency with the headline “SNAP FRAUDSTER,” referring to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program formerly known as food stamps. The man is holding up what appears to be a burning banknote against a backdrop designed to resemble Spirit Halloween costume packaging, with text reading: “Some costumes come with a price tag. This one comes with a prison sentence.”
Federal Charges Against Social Media Influencer Shawty Dred
The image posted by Rollins appears to originate from a September 2025 Instagram post by an account under the name Shawty Dred, according to NBC4 Washington. Earlier in October, federal authorities arrested Mercedes Reshard New, a social media personality identified by the Department of Justice as “Shawty Dred,” on federal charges for fraudulently obtaining more than $4 million in SNAP benefits in Georgia.
Federal prosecutors stated in an Oct. 21 press release that New controlled more than 350 fraudulent SNAP accounts using stolen identities between January 2020 and July 2026. New allegedly applied for his company, Shawty Dred LLC, to become an authorized SNAP retailer and used EBT debit cards to extract roughly $4 million. New’s Instagram account, which amassed over two million followers, displayed an extravagant lifestyle featuring private jets, Rolls-Royce vehicles, and large stacks of cash.
A federal grand jury indicted New on Oct. 7 on dozens of counts of mail fraud and aggravated identity theft, alongside one count each of SNAP fraud and illegal transactions with access devices. Arrested on Oct. 13, New remains in federal custody. Fulton County jail records show prior arrests on suspicion of identity theft, insurance fraud, financial transaction card fraud, forgery, and simple assault. A federal defender listed in court records as representing New, Joseph Austin, did not return a phone message.
Sombrero Pumpkin Post and Prior White House Meme Controversies
The SNAP post follows a separate Thursday post by the White House on X displaying a pumpkin carved with the outline of a sombrero and the caption, “Spooky szn is here,” which critics condemned as inflammatory while users flooded the threads with accusations of low-effort stereotypes and racism.
The administration has previously faced criticism for sharing controversial media on official government channels. During the government shutdown a year prior, the White House reshared a deepfake video posted by Trump of House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries wearing a fake mustache and sombrero to accuse Democrats of acting for illegal immigrants instead of U.S. citizens. Jeffries criticized that meme as bigoted. Although Vice President JD Vance promised that the “sombrero memes will stop” once Democrats agreed to end the shutdown, the administration has continued deploying similar imagery.
Broader Investigations and Punitive Steps Against Democratic-Led States
Alongside the social media posts, the Trump administration has ratcheted up anti-immigrant rhetoric and fraud accusations in recent weeks. Federal agents searched the Washington, D.C., home of U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar earlier in October as part of an investigation into potential fraud in her family’s immigration paperwork. Omar, born in Somalia, is a naturalized U.S. citizen.
The federal government has also initiated punitive steps linked to fraud allegations in mostly Democratic-led states, including California and Minnesota. Governors in both states accused federal authorities of targeting them for political reasons. Neither the White House, Agriculture Secretary Rollins, nor the NAACP responded to emails seeking comment on the social media posts.
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