A mother has been taken into custody for allegedly continuing to collect food stamp benefits in her missing daughter’s name for nearly a decade, according to police reports.
Shannon Anderson, who is both homeless and a registered sex offender, faces charges of felony food stamp fraud. Authorities claim she unlawfully received benefits intended for her daughter, Jodie “Brooke” Anderson. Brooke disappeared from a Nashville restaurant at the age of 18, as reported by WSMV.
“It’s unacceptable to exploit the system like this,” expressed Brooke’s aunt, De’Anna Anderson, in an interview with the outlet. “While our veterans struggle to access essential benefits, she’s capitalizing on her daughter’s disappearance.”
The troubling case dates back to June 2018, when Brooke was officially reported missing. At the time, both Brooke and her mother were struggling with homelessness and substance abuse issues, and had last been seen at a Jack in the Box fast-food restaurant.
Brooke was reported missing in June 2018 after she and her mother — who were both homeless and drug addicts — went to a Jack in the Box.
Shannon, 51, who was the last person to see her alive, went to use the bathroom and found her gone when she returned.
Her daughter wasn’t reported missing until August 2018, while her mother was incarcerated, her aunt said.
The case went cold, but De’Anna hopes that her mom’s latest arrest will bring new attention to Brooke’s missing persons case.
“I was hoping for years we would find her, but everything points to murder,” she said, adding that her niece’s lifestyle leads her to believe she was likely killed.
“Finding her would take a huge load off of me and finding out what happened. Then I would want justice. If I said I didn’t, I’d be lying.”
Shannon previously worked for the Davidson County Criminal Court Clerk’s Office and as a school bus driver — before drugs upended her life.
She is listed as homeless and has a long criminal history dating back to 2013, including a charge for promoting prostitution in 2017 that landed her on the Tennessee sex offender registry, according to court records.
Shannon remains in custody on a $22,000 bond on all seven charges related to food stamp fraud, violating her sex offender registration and failure to appear.