A coordinated federal crackdown in Massachusetts has resulted in charges against nine individuals for social welfare benefit fraud schemes that exploited stolen identities to steal from taxpayer-funded programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), MassHealth, and Social Security benefits.
The investigation, which began in December 2025, uncovered nearly $9 million in fraudulent activity. According to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the accused allegedly used stolen identities belonging to U.S. citizens from Puerto Rico to access government-issued identification, including Massachusetts driver’s licenses and U.S. passports, for the purpose of unlawfully obtaining public benefits.
“We are working hand-in-hand with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts and our other partners to identify, investigate, and bring to justice those who perpetrate fraud against taxpayer-funded benefit programs,” said Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in New England. “We will continue every day in this fight until we bring those responsible to justice.”
The defendants include Juan Felipe Chalas, Efrain Rivera, Danis Piron Lara, Erpawi Roque Collado, John Doe (a.k.a. Wilkin Emilio Pimental Pereyra), another unidentified John Doe, Mercedes Soto Capellan, Oscar Gonzalez Melo, and Cruz Augusta Pena Arias. Their charges range from aggravated identity theft to making false statements in passport applications.
ICE reports that the alleged fraud resulted in approximately $943,197 in direct losses to public assistance programs, with the perpetrators stealing over $1.1 million in taxpayer funds. The penalties for these crimes include up to 20 years in prison for unlawfully obtaining SNAP benefits, mandatory consecutive sentences for aggravated identity theft, up to five years for misuse of a Social Security number, and up to 10 years for the theft of government property.
