A federal grand jury has indicted Stockton brothers Hector Perez, 34, and Flavio Perez, 29, on charges related to wire fraud conspiracy. Hector Perez faces additional charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, according to Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith. The arrests took place on June 17, 2025.
Court documents indicate that between May 2018 and November 2020, the brothers orchestrated a scheme targeting at least four invoice factoring companies. Invoice factoring involves providing businesses with immediate cash flow in exchange for their outstanding invoices. The factoring company then collects the owed money from debtors.
The indictment alleges that the brothers established corporate entities masquerading as legitimate businesses to sell fabricated debt through fraudulent invoices. These invoices were sold to various factoring companies. Consequently, these companies transferred funds into bank accounts controlled by the defendants. In many cases, the victim companies either did not receive payment for the fake invoices or received less than what was due. Payments made often came from accounts under fictitious debtor names to conceal the fraud and allow it to continue undetected. The scheme reportedly resulted in losses exceeding $1.8 million between May 2018 and September 2020.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation leading to this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Denise N. Yasinow and Matthew Thuesen are handling prosecution duties.
If convicted, Hector Perez could face up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for wire fraud and conspiracy counts, along with an additional mandatory two-year sentence for aggravated identity theft. Flavio Perez could face up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for conspiracy alone. Sentencing would be subject to court discretion based on statutory factors and Federal Sentencing Guidelines after conviction.
It is important to note that these charges are allegations at this stage; both defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
