A Lawrence man who copped to a shady scheme involving stolen identities to fraudulently score vehicles has been hit with a two-year prison sentence, authorities said. Joshua Cruz, 35, faced the music in a Boston courtroom where U.S. District Court Judge Patti B. Saris also slapped him with three years of supervised release and ordered him to cough up $75,346 in restitution to those he scammed, according to a Department of Justice announcement released yesterday.
In a scheme operated between December 2018 and January 2019, Cruz took on the identities of unsuspecting U.S. citizens from Puerto Rico to carry out his criminal endeavors, where he struck car dealerships in Massachusetts and walked out with vehicles under 100% financing, a maneuver facilitated by stolen personal details, fake driver’s licenses and Social Security cards he shamelessly presented as ID. The fraudster's exploits didn’t just end at the dealership; Cruz also manipulated bank accounts and credit cards to flesh out his illegal activities. The feds say the con artist managed to illegally snag three cars valued at a staggering sum over $170,000, collectively.
The crackdown on Cruz's illicit operations was a coordinated effort by federal and local law enforcement, including Homeland Security Investigations, the Massachusetts State Police, the Brockton Police and several other local departments, forming a formidable front line against identity theft and fraud. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elianna J. Nuzum and Adam W. Deitch led the charge in court where Cruz's past caught up with him, despite his previous two-year stint in state custody for similar misdeeds, the investigation conducted by a special task force proved to be his downfall.
Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy emphasized the seriousness of the crimes and the dedication of law enforcement in pursuing individuals involved in such fraudulent activities. This perspective was reiterated by Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England, highlighting the significance of the Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force—a specialized team focused on eliminating this type of fraud.
