Woburn Raids Targeted International Human Smuggling Operation: U.S. Attorney

WOBURN, MA — Four men are facing charges related to human smuggling following a series of coordinated raids by federal agents in Woburn on Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Massachusetts announced.

Jesse Moraes, 64, and Hugo Moraes, 42, ran Taste of Brazil – Tudo Na Braza and The Dog House on Main Street in Woburn. Prosecutors this week said Jesse and Hugo worked with Jesse’s brother, Chelbe, and others to smuggle individuals from Brazil to the United States for fees ranging from $18,000 to $22,000. Prosecutors said Jesse and Hugo Moraes then employed the individuals while withholding wages to pay off their debts.

Federal agents from Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Labor mobilized in Woburn early Tuesday morning in coordination with Woburn Police, according to a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson.

There, they raided a set of homes and residences, including Tudo Na Braza and The Dog House.

Agents arrested father and son Jesse and Hugo Moraes to face charges of conspiring to encourage and induce people to come to the U.S. illegally “for the purpose of commercial advantage or private financial gain,” according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors said Marcos Chacon, 29, of Woburn is also facing charges that he sold fake documentation to individuals at the request of the Moraes family.

As Jesse and Hugo Moraes and Chacon appeared in federal court in Boston, prosecutors also unsealed a previous indictment against Chelbe Moraes. He faces the following charges:

• Conspiracy to encourage and induce an alien to come to, enter, and reside in the United States for financial gain
• Encouraging and inducing an alien to come to, enter, and reside in the United States for financial gain.
• Money laundering
• Money laundering conspiracy.

Chelbe, Jesse and Hugo Moraes and Chacon could each face a decade or more in prison in addition to probation and fines, according to prosecutors.

Boston25, though, reported that officials have no plans to extradite Chelbe Moraes, who is living in Brazil.

Officials still on scene at the Dog House as of 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday were seen loading items into boxes marked as evidence.

Continuing toward midday, the police and media presence attracted attention from passersby.

Among them, community member Ted Keating paused while walking by the Dog House with his dog.

“It’s very odd,” he told reporters. “A strange world we live in.”

Jesse Moraes, Hugo Moraes and Chacon remained in custody pending a detention hearing after their initial court appearance on Tuesday, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.