Eight Charged in Federal Crackdown on Treasury Check Fraud

BOSTON – Eight individuals have been charged as part of an ongoing investigation into the theft of U.S. Treasury tax refund checks in Massachusetts.

According to the charging documents eight defendants in communities throughout Eastern Massachusetts have allegedly been involved in the theft of tax refund checks, totaling more than $8.8 million in 2023 and 2024. As alleged, each of the U.S. Treasury checks the defendants stole represented a tax refund or tax credit due to a bona fide taxpayer, but had been altered to be payable to shell companies the defendants controlled. Each defendant allegedly deposited one or more fraudulent checks at banks or credit unions in and around Metro Boston. The following defendants are charged in separate indictments:

1. Gino Rosario Tyler Alexander Allegra, 31, of Brockton, charged with theft of $861,646 in government funds;
2. Eric Banks, 70, of Quincy, charged with theft of $1,173,482 in government funds;
3. Jesse El-Ghoul, 31, of Leominster, charged with theft of $1,355,863 in government funds;
4. Nnamdi Opara, 30, of Woburn, charged with theft of $700,767 in government funds;
5. Gurprit Singh, 34, of Framingham, charged with theft of $2,547,508 in government funds;
6. Amarpreet Singh, 33, of Framingham, charged with theft of $536,214 in government funds;
7. Lonnie Smith-Matthews, 33, of Hyde Park, charged with theft of $150,000 in government funds and bank fraud of $232,588; and
8. Domingo Villari, 49, of Framingham, charged with theft of $1,288,575 in government funds.

Banks, El-Ghoul, G. Singh, Opara and Smith-Matthews are in federal custody and will appear in Federal Court in Boston later today. Allegra, A. Singh and Villari remain at large.

“As alleged, these defendants stole millions in tax refunds owed to hardworking Americans and used Massachusetts businesses and community banks to defraud the U.S. Treasury,” said United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. “Would-be thieves should understand that taking government money is not a victimless crime. If you cash or deposit a refund check that you know is not yours, you will be prosecuted. This office and its law enforcement partners are committed to rooting out fraud and abuse in the federal tax system.”  

“Today’s arrest demonstrates IRS-CI’s commitment to identifying, investigating, and prosecuting all instances of Treasury check theft,” said Thomas Demeo, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office. “The theft and altering of Treasury checks is a growing issue that impacts all Americans. IRS-CI will continue to work diligently to bring all those who prey on American taxpayers to justice.”

“The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) aggressively investigates individuals who attempt to exploit U.S Treasury refund checks meant for hard working taxpayers for their own private gain,” said TIGTA Special Agent in Charge Michael Carpenter. “TIGTA’s mission is to protect the integrity of our nation’s tax administration system.  We are committed to working with our law enforcement partners to ensure that those who violate federal laws are prosecuted to the fullest extent possible.”

The charge of theft of government funds provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of bank fraud provides for a sentence of up to 30 years in prison, five of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.

U.S. Attorney Foley; IRS Acting SAC Demeo; Treasury Inspector General SAC Carpenter; and Matthew Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Postal Service Office of the Inspector General, Northeast Area Field Office, made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Needham Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kriss Basil and Brian Sullivan of Foley’s Criminal Division are prosecuting the cases.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in the court of law.