'Operation Point Break' Gets Alleged Boston Fraudster

BOSTON, MA — A Dominican national living in Dorchester pleaded guilty to his role in a stolen identity refund fraud scheme that resulted in claiming hundreds of thousands of dollars in refunds, the Office of Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb said.

Junior Alberto Lopez, 32, pleaded guilty to one count of false claims conspiracy, three counts of access device fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 18.

Lopez was first arrested in April 2015 but fled to the Dominican Republic shortly after his release on bail. He was arrested again in December 2016 and extradited to the United States in March 2017.

Lopez and his co-conspirators unlawfully obtained the names, addresses and dates of birth of more than 700 residents of Puerto Rico and elsewhere between May 2011 and February 2013, according to the Department of Justice. They then allegedly created and filed with the IRS false income tax returns for 2010, 2011, and 2012, claiming refunds on behalf of those identity fraud victims.

Lopez and his co-conspirators had the IRS issue tax refund checks and to put refunds on prepaid debit cards, delivered to addresses in Boston and elsewhere. They then allegedly cashed and redistributed the checks and debit cards.

The arrest is part of Operation Point Break, a multi-agency federal law enforcement initiative aimed at combatting stolen identity refund fraud across the country.