Plymouth County

Brockton man wanted for multiple murders in Cabo Verde arrested for passport fraud, DOJ says

BOSTON — A man was arrested for allegedly lying to officials that his United States passport was lost when really it had been confiscated by prosecutors in a foreign country because he was arrested for murder there.

Johnny Barros Brandao, 40, of Brockton, was charged with one count of passport fraud.

Charging documents say that on March 27, 2014, Brandao fatally shot someone in the head in Cabo Verde with a revolver and dumped the victim’s body on the side of the road. He also stole one million and five hundred thousand Cape Verdean Escudo, according to law enforcement officials.

Furthermore, on July 26, 2021, authorities allege Brandao shot and killed another person and threw the victim’s body over a cliff.

He was arrested in Cabo Verde on these charges and was released with supervision after a period of pretrial detention on December 12, 2022. The court ordered Brandao to stay in the country and confiscated his national ID card along with his U.S. and Cabo Verde passports.

A little more than two weeks later, Brandao applied for a replacement U.S. passport at the U.S. Embassy in Dakar, Senegal, where he filled out a form that his previous passport was lost while out to dinner, according to charging documents.

The charge of passport fraud provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Brandao appeared in federal court on Tuesday and was detained pending a hearing on May 12.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW