The U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts’ office announced the federal indictment of a local man, handed down on Thursday, June 17.
Police arrested Brandon Brouillard, 27, of Worcester, on Thursday, May 20, on bank fraud charges. The indictment includes charges of aggravated identity theft.
Court documents allege Brouillard used the identity of a New Hampshire resident to open a bank account at Avidia Bank in February. Brouillard allegedly wired $108,000 to the Avidia Bank account from another individual’s Bank of America account.
Brouillard allegedly agreed to buy a 2021 Chevrolet Camaro in Norwood for $83,000 on April 17 and paid with a cashier’s check.
A few days after Brouillard picked up the new vehicle on April 19, the dealership learned the account listed on the bank check was frozen. Brouillard told the dealership he would wire the funds for the vehicle.
On April 26, an Arizona man contacted local police and reported an attempted fraudulent wire transfer from his account. The bank contacted the man for verification of the transfer, which was denied.
The allegations suggest the Arizona man’s accounts became compromised in August 2020. Large, fraudulent purchases, made with the compromised account, shipped to Brouillard’s address.
Estimates suggest approximately $500,000 stolen from the victim’s account.
The charge of bank fraud provides for a sentence of up to 30 years in prison and a fine of $1 million. The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a mandatory sentence of two years in prison to be served consecutively to any other sentence and a fine of $250,000.
Image Credit: Beyond My Ken, 2017 Moakley US Courthouse from Central Wharf, CC BY-SA 4.0