Former Bank Employee Sentenced for Stealing More Than $125,000 from Elderly Customer with Dementia

The U.S. Department of Justice reports in its press release (quotation, not an independent finding): “PROVIDENCE – A former employee of Santander Bank has been sentenced in federal court for stealing more than $125,000 from the bank account of a 78-year-old customer with dementia. Carlos Bras, 41, of East Providence, was sentenced on October 8, 2026, by U.S. District Court Judge Melissa R. DuBose to 30 months of imprisonment to be followed by 3 years of supervised release and a $200 special assessment. Bras was also ordered to pay $126,000 in restitution. Bras previously pleading guilty to mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, beginning in or about May 2023, Bras accessed the account of the 78-year-old victim, who resided in an assisted living facility and had a court-appointed conservator in Massachusetts. Bras admitted that he enabled online banking access to the victim’s account; ordered checks sent to addresses he controlled; obtained a debit card for personal use; and conducted numerous unauthorized transactions, including transfers to accounts controlled by him and his family and multiple wire transfers to a bank account in Portugal. Investigators also discovered a purported real estate contract in Portugal bearing the signatures of Bras and the victim. The victim’s conservator reported that the victim was unaware of the transaction and that the signature and listed address were not the victim’s. “Mr. Bras exploited his position at a financial institution and took advantage of an elderly man who could not protect himself,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Charles C. Calenda. “Today’s sentence reflects the seriousness of tha”