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BOSTON – A defendant charged under the pseudonym “John Doe” pleaded guilty last week to fraud charges. In addition to pleading guilty, the defendant admitted that his true name is "Jose Then." [Hilarious that the U.S. attorney accepted another false name, that is clearly a reference to another former - potentially "real" name. Neither the word "then" nor the name "Then" exists in Spanish! Nor did he provide the U.S. attorney with an age or place of birth! So he'll serve his prison term be released "Then" and presumably get a driver's license in Massachusetts with that name, now legitimized by his prison records. Home free! Perhaps "then" he'll legally change his name to "Jose Now" or Jose Later!]Jose Then, age unknown, pleaded guilty to mail fraud; false statement in an application for a passport; misuse of a social security number; and aggravated identity theft. U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns scheduled sentencing for July 10, 2024. Then was indicted by a federal grand jury in October 2023.Then acquired the name and identity of an individual and has been using the victim’s name, date of birth and Social Security for decades. Then used the victim’s stolen personal identifying information to acquire a U.S. passport, a Massachusetts driver’s license and receive thousands of dollars in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) benefits. The victim has suffered garnishment of his wages for child support costs that Then has failed to pay under the stolen identity. The charge of misuse of a social security number provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of false statement in a passport application 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 mail fraud provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, three years supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of aggravated identity theft calls for a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison to be added to the felony committed while using the means of identification of another without lawful authority. 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.