The New England Signal
Independent journalism covering all six New England states
Massachusetts

Revere woman indicted in alleged romance scam that cost 85-year-old more than $1 million

Federal prosecutors say Maria Auxiliadora Rezende, 66, persuaded an elderly Massachusetts man that she stood to inherit Brazilian farmland and needed his help paying taxes and legal fees that did not exist.

BOSTON — A Revere, Massachusetts, woman has been indicted by a federal grand jury on a wire fraud charge in what prosecutors describe as a romance and investment scheme that cost an 85-year-old Massachusetts man more than $1 million, the U.S. attorney's office in Boston said Friday.

Maria Auxiliadora Rezende, 66, was indicted on one count of wire fraud. She was arrested and charged by criminal complaint Tuesday, prosecutors said.

According to the charging documents, Rezende entered a romantic relationship with the man, who prosecutors said has health and memory problems. She is accused of leading him to believe that she stood to inherit farmland in Brazil and that he could profit from it if he helped her pay a Brazilian inheritance tax and related legal fees.

Prosecutors said the farmland, the inheritance tax, the lawyers and the legal fees did not exist. The man sent Rezende and her associates more than $1 million as a result of the scheme, according to the charging documents.

Wire fraud carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The case was announced by U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley and the Internal Revenue Service's criminal investigation division in Boston.

The charge is an allegation, and Rezende is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

This brief was drafted by AI from a public agency or political press release and published by The New England Signal. Why we use AI for stories like this one.

Massachusetts