An 85-year-old Massachusetts man allegedly sent more than $1 million to a woman he was dating for taxes on farmland she said she would inherit in Brazil; prosecutors say the land and inheritance never existed

An 85-year-old man from Massachusetts who had health and memory problems sent more than $1 million to a woman he was dating. She allegedly told him she needed the money to pay taxes and legal fees on farmland she was expected to inherit in Brazil, federal prosecutors say. According to the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, the farmland, inheritance tax and lawyers did not exist. Maria Auxiliadora Rezende, 66, of Revere, Massachusetts, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of wire fraud. Federal agents arrested her and charged her through a criminal complaint on 10 November 2026. The grand jury indictment was announced on 13 November 2026.

How prosecutors say the scheme worked

Court documents filed in federal court in Boston say Rezende began a romantic relationship with the 85-year-old man. Authorities have not released his name or hometown. Prosecutors say Rezende falsely told the man that she was going to inherit farmland in Brazil. She allegedly convinced him that he could earn money from the property if he helped pay a supposed Brazilian inheritance tax and related legal costs. Federal investigators say the entire story was made up. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the farmland did not exist. Neither did the Brazilian inheritance tax, the lawyers or the legal fees. During the alleged fraud, the man transferred more than $1 million to Rezende and her associates, according to the court documents. The filings mention other people who allegedly helped receive the money. However, prosecutors have not announced charges against anyone else.

How the allegations came to light

According to reporting by Brazilian Times, a Massachusetts newspaper that covers the Brazilian community, the victim is a retired professor who had been in a relationship with Rezende since 2013. Brazilian Times reported that the man’s relatives became worried after noticing repeated money transfers. They began asking questions about why he was sending so much money and why the requests kept coming. The family then hired a lawyer in Brazil to check whether the farmland actually existed. They also asked the lawyer to examine the documents and claims that had been shown to their relative. According to Brazilian Times, the private investigation found problems with the inheritance story. This led to further checks by US federal authorities. The newspaper also reported that federal agents arrested Rezende on 10 November 2026, as she was preparing to travel to Brazil.

Federal agencies and potential penalties

The case was announced by United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of the Boston Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation division. Homeland Security Investigations in New England and the U.S. Secret Service’s Boston Field Office also helped investigate the case, according to the Department of Justice. Assistant US Attorney Kristen Kearney, who works in the Securities, Financial and Cyber Fraud Unit, is handling the prosecution. Under federal law, wire fraud carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. A conviction can also lead to up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. However, these are the maximum possible penalties. The final sentence would be decided by a federal district court judge. The judge would consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other legal factors before deciding the punishment.

A pattern of romance fraud against older adults?

Federal consumer protection figures show that romance scams and investment fraud continue to cause major financial losses for older Americans. In its annual report to Congress, Protecting Older Consumers 2025-2026, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reported that older adults reported losing around $3 billion to fraud in 2025. This was a sharp increase from approximately $600 million in 2020. The FTC said much of this increase came from individual cases involving losses of more than $100,000. These cases often involved investment scams, romance scams and schemes in which criminals pretended to be trusted people or organizations. The FTC also found that older adults reported much higher median financial losses than younger people. They were also more likely to report losing money to romance scams.Many victims do not report fraud because they feel embarrassed or afraid to tell others what happened. For this reason, the FTC estimated that the actual cost of fraud against older adults in 2025 could have been between $13.3 billion and $119.5 billion, depending on the method used to calculate the losses. Figures from law enforcement agencies in New England show a similar problem. In a public warning issued in February 2026, the FBI’s Boston division reported that more than 700 people across Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Rhode Island said they had lost around $20 million to romance scams during 2025.The figures were included in an FBI Boston warning published on 9 February 2026. The agency urged people to watch out for criminals who use romantic relationships to steal money. The FBI advises people to be careful if someone they are dating asks for money to receive an inheritance, pay taxes in another country or cover legal costs. Anyone who suspects they are being targeted should stop sending money and contact their bank immediately. They should also report the suspected fraud to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov. Rezende will face further proceedings in federal court in Boston, including her arraignment and the pretrial process in which both sides review evidence. As with all federal indictments, the charge against Rezende is an allegation. She is presumed innocent unless prosecutors prove her guilt in court.