Brockton Man Accused Of Murders Abroad Charged With Passport Fraud

BROCKTON, MA — A Brockton man accused of killing two people abroad in Cape Verde years apart has been charged with passport fraud after lying in hopes of obtaining a passport to enter the United States, the United States Attorney's Office said in a Tuesday news release.

Johnny Barros Brandao, 40, wrote on an application form at the U.S. Embassy in Senegal that his United States passport had been lost when actually it had been confiscated by prosecuting courts in Cabo Verde following his arrest for murder, officials said.

According to charging documents, Brandao shot a person in the head in March 2014 using a .45 caliber revolver, took 1,500,000 Cape Verdean Escudo, and then dumped the victim’s body on the side of a road. Brandao is also accused of fatally shooting another person using a 9mm caliber firearm in July 2021 before throwing the victim's body over a cliff.

He was arrested in Cabo Verde on these charges, but following a brief period of pretrial detention, was released subject to supervision on December 12, 2022, officials said. The Cabo Verde court also ordered that Brandao stay in Cabo Verde—confiscating his Cabo Verdean ID card and his United States and Cabo Verde passports.

Brandao was charged with one count of passport fraud and was detained pending a hearing set for Friday, officials said.

The charge of passport fraud provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.