A Brazilian man was sentenced on September 26, 2025, after being found guilty of running a scheme to help over 1,000 people get New York and Massachusetts driver's licenses they were not supposed to have.
The details: Cesar Agusto Martin Reis, who lived in Connecticut without legal status, was behind a plan that helped mostly illegal immigrants get these licenses between 2020 and 2024. He worked with others, charging about $1,400 per customer and using fake documents.
- He and his team got licenses for more than 600 people by making up proof of state residency and faking paperwork from driving schools.
- They even uploaded staged webcam photos so it looked like the actual applicants took permit tests, when in reality the conspirators did the tests.
- Customers were also driven from Massachusetts to New York DMV offices, where they used these fake records to get permits and licenses.
Officials say Reis collected at least hundreds of thousands of dollars from the scam. On February 4, 2024, police found him with 50 fake licenses during a traffic stop in Massachusetts, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Reis pleaded guilty in June and was sentenced to time served—about 290 days in jail. He now faces deportation. The case involved several law enforcement agencies across multiple states.