A citizen of the Dominican Republic, Kelvin Prado-Robles, also known as Frankely Robles-Guzman, pleaded guilty in New Haven federal court to charges of fraud and immigration offenses. The announcement was made by David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Court records show that Prado-Robles never held legal immigration status in the United States. In 2008, he was sentenced to 24 months in prison in Delaware for crimes including false representation of citizenship, passport fraud, and identity theft. He was deported to the Dominican Republic in February 2009 but was arrested again by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Newark, New Jersey, in February 2011 and deported a second time later that year.
Authorities stated that after illegally reentering the country, Prado-Robles conspired with Domingo St. Hilaire Rosario and Jamie Pinto beginning in late 2017 to use stolen identities to obtain vehicles and motorcycles from dealerships across Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. According to court documents, Rosario arranged for vehicles to be purchased or leased using information from identity theft victims while Prado-Robles or Pinto impersonated those victims at dealerships to finalize transactions. The group used fraudulent identification documents combining victim details with co-conspirator photographs.
Through their scheme, they acquired at least 13 vehicles and attempted to obtain two more. Some vehicles were recovered by law enforcement and returned to dealers; overall losses exceeded $200,000 for affected dealerships.
Rosario and Prado-Robles fled to the Dominican Republic around 2018. In June 2023, authorities arrested Prado-Robles in New Mexico under the name “Kelvin Prado-Roble” on charges related to illegal reentry into the U.S., leading to a guilty plea and a sentence of ten months’ imprisonment issued in November 2023. He was then transferred to Connecticut where he remains detained.
Prado-Robles admitted guilt on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud—which carries up to 20 years’ imprisonment—and one count of reentry of a removed alien—with a maximum penalty of ten years’ imprisonment. Sentencing is scheduled for October 31.
Rosario was extradited from the Dominican Republic in May 2020; he pleaded guilty to fraud and identity theft offenses and received a sentence of 65 months’ imprisonment on October 20, 2021. Pinto also pleaded guilty on similar charges and was sentenced on October 27, 2021, receiving a term of 60 months’ imprisonment.
The investigation involved collaboration between the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with significant assistance from the Vernon Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anastasia E. King is prosecuting the case.
“This matter has been investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with substantial assistance from the Vernon Police Department,” according to David X. Sullivan’s office.
