Defendants allegedly conspired to fraudulently apply for licenses for greater than 1,000 people
BOSTON — A federal indictment unsealed on December 11, 2024, costs 5 people with taking part in a conspiracy to fraudulently safe driver’s licenses for undocumented people and out-of-state residents by way of false functions in New York and Massachusetts.
The Indicted People
Based on the indictment, every of the next defendants have been charged with one rely of conspiracy to unlawfully produce and possess with intent to switch identification paperwork, two counts of possession with intent to make use of or switch unlawfully identification paperwork and one rely of furnishing a false passport to a different to be used:
- Edvan Fernandes Alves De Andrade, 34, previously of Worcester, now in Brazil
- Leonel Texeiera De Souza Junior, 38, previously of Milford, now in Brazil
- Gabriel Nascimento De Andrade, 26, of Boston
- Cesar Agusto Martin Reis, 28, of Waterbury, Conn.
- Helbert Costa Generoso, 39, of Danbury, Conn.
How the Scheme Labored in Massachusetts & New York
From November 2020 to September 2024, the defendants allegedly orchestrated a fraudulent operation to acquire driver’s licenses for undocumented residents and out-of-state candidates. This included circumventing utility processes in New York and Massachusetts by fabricating residency paperwork, faking allow check outcomes, and forging driver’s schooling certificates.
With a view to receive these driver’s licenses, the defendants reportedly:
- Faked on-line allow check participation by submitting staged applicant images.
- Created fraudulent driver’s schooling certificates.
- Transported Massachusetts-based purchasers to New York DMV places of work.
- Submitted fabricated residency paperwork to DMV officers.
- Organized for licenses to be mailed to addresses they managed.
The next is how the Division of Justice defined the method:
“In New York, earlier than acquiring a driver’s license, candidates have been required to move a written allow check and full driver’s schooling coursework from a New York driving faculty. The New York Division of Motor Automobiles (NY DMV) required on-line allow test-takers to permit the NY DMV to take photos of the test-takers, with an internet digicam, throughout the check. This was to make sure that the test-taker was the applicant, and that there was not an individual sitting with and serving to the applicant with the check.
To keep away from the purchasers having to take the allow exams, the defendants allegedly conspired to acquire, from the purchasers, a number of photos of the purchasers, sitting down, making it look as if the purchasers have been taking the exams. The defendants then allegedly accomplished the allow exams for the purchasers on-line, and throughout the exams, when prompted by the NY DMV, brought on the images that the purchasers took of themselves to be uploaded, purporting to indicate that it was the purchasers who have been taking the exams, not the defendants. The defendants additionally allegedly created fraudulent driver’s schooling certificates of completion, purportedly from New York driving colleges, cast the signatures of driving faculty workers on the faux certificates, and gave these paperwork to the purchasers to offer to the NY DMV.
The NY DMV additionally required that candidates seem at a NY DMV location and supply paperwork to show their identification and residence in New York. The defendants and different co-conspirators allegedly conspired to satisfy the purchasers who have been Massachusetts residents at areas in Massachusetts, and drove them to NY DMV department areas, usually a number of clients at a time. Once they arrived on the NY DMV areas, the defendants allegedly gave the purchasers fraudulent paperwork falsely purporting to reveal that the purchasers resided in New York. The shoppers supplied these faux data to the NY DMV workers, and the NY DMV relied on the misrepresentations to problem New York driving permits to the purchasers. The defendants allegedly organized for the NY DMV to mail the permits to areas in New York that have been managed by the defendants, who then supplied the permits in hand to the purchasers. The defendants allegedly scheduled street driving license exams for the purchasers with the NY DMV, and drove the purchasers once more to New York, the place the purchasers took the street exams. If the purchasers handed the exams, the NY DMV mailed the driving force’s licenses to addresses in New York, which the defendants allegedly managed, and the defendants and different co-conspirators then supplied the licenses to the purchasers.”
Based on the charging doc, previous to July 2023, undocumented people residing in Massachusetts weren’t permitted to acquire Massachusetts driver’s licenses. After the state revised its licensing laws in July 2023, the defendants allegedly started to make use of fraudulent overseas passports as identification proof when making use of for Massachusetts driver’s licenses for patrons who didn’t reside within the Commonwealth.
The defendants allegedly usually charged $1,400 per buyer to acquire a driver’s license by way of these means.
Authorized Proceedings and Potential Penalties
Authorities estimate the conspiracy concerned over 1,000 fraudulent functions, leading to greater than 600 licenses issued and producing a whole bunch of 1000’s of {dollars} in illicit proceeds.
Gabriel Nascimento De Andrade, Cesar Agusto Martin Reis and Helbert Costa Generoso have been arrested, and appeared in federal court docket in Worcester for an preliminary look. Gabriel Nascimento De Andrade was ordered detained pending trial. Cesar Agusto Martin Reis and Helbert Costa Generoso have been ordered detained pending a detention listening to on Dec. 16, 2024.
The costs carry important penalties, together with as much as 10 years in jail for offering false passports and 5 years for document-related offenses, together with potential fines of as much as $250,000.
Ongoing Investigation:
The investigation stays lively, led by the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace for the District of Massachusetts in collaboration with Homeland Safety Investigations, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and a number of legislation enforcement businesses.
Presumption of Innocence:
The costs outlined within the indictment are allegations. All defendants are presumed harmless until confirmed responsible in a court docket of legislation.
