Nine Charged in Benefit Fraud Crackdown

BOSTON - Nine individuals have been charged in a coordinated federal crackdown on benefit fraud schemes that exploited stolen identities to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxpayer-funded programs - including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), MassHealth and Social Security benefits. Nearly $9 million in benefit fraud has been uncovered since December 2025.

The following defendants have been charged over the past nine weeks as part of the United States Attorney's ongoing enforcement priority to investigate and prosecute benefit fraud involving federal and state assistance programs:

1. Juan Felipe Chalas, 58, a Dominican national unlawfully residing in Salem, N.H., was charged with making a false statement in a passport application, aggravated identity theft and unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits;
2. Efrain Rivera, 54, a United States citizen from Puerto Rico, living in New Bedford, Mass., was charged with unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits, misuse of a Social Security number and aggravated identity theft;
3. Danis Piron Lara, 51, a Dominican national unlawfully residing in Dorchester, Mass. was charged with aggravated identity theft, unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits and making false statements relating to a health care program;
4. Erpawi Roque Collado, 53, a Lawful Permanent Resident living in Boston, Mass. who was born in the Dominican Republic, was charged with unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits;
5. John Doe aka Wilkin Emilio Pimental Pereyra, 44, a Dominican national unlawfully residing in Boston, Mass., was charged with aggravated identity theft, theft of government benefits and unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits;
6. John Doe, an individual whose true identity is unknown, who was living in Hyde Park, Mass., was charged with unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits, misuse of a Social Security number and aggravated identity theft;
7. Mercedes Soto Capellan, 53, a Dominican national unlawfully residing in Lawrence, Mass., was charged with unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits;
8. Oscar Gonzalez Melo, 59, a Dominican national unlawfully residing in Boston, Mass., was charged with unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits, making false statements related to health care benefits, making false statements related to Social Security benefits and aggravated identity theft; and
9. Cruz Augusta Pena Arias, 58, a Dominican national unlawfully residing in Salem, Mass., was charged with making a false statement in an application for a United States passport, aggravated identity theft and unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits.

As alleged, the defendants used stolen identities - often belonging to U.S. citizens from Puerto Rico - to obtain government-issued identification, including Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) credentials and, in some instances, U.S. passports, which were then used to apply for and receive public benefits.

In some cases, the defendants are alleged to have used stolen identities over extended periods of time - including one individual who allegedly lived under a stolen identity for more than 20 years. Certain defendants are further alleged to have obtained benefits across multiple programs, including SNAP, MassHealth and Social Security.

In multiple instances, the defendants allegedly provided stolen identities to law enforcement during prior arrests, and at least one defendant has a prior conviction under the same identity.

According to the charging documents, the alleged schemes resulted in approximately $943,197 in total losses to public assistance programs - including approximately $149,775 in SNAP benefits, approximately $776,715 in MassHealth benefits and approximately $16,707 in Social Security benefits.

The charge of unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a mandatory two-year sentence to run consecutively to any other sentence imposed, one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of misusing a Social Security number provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of theft of government property provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of making a false statement in an application for a United States passport provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of making false statements relating to a health care program provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, one year of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; Amy Connelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, Boston Field Division; Charmeka Parker, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Agriculture - Office of Inspector General, Northeast Region; Nathan Hebert, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service, Boston Field Office; and Roberto Coviello, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General made the announcement today.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Grady, Suzanne Sullivan Jacobus, David G. Tobin, Jennifer Zacks, Allegra Flamm, Eric Hawkins, Julissa Walsh and Aidan Lang of the Major Crimes Unit are prosecuting the cases.

The details contained in the charging document are allegations. The defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.