Brian S. Castillo, a 25-year-old resident of the Bronx, New York, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his involvement in a large-scale check fraud operation. The sentencing took place on February 13, 2026, with Chief United States District Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. presiding over the case.
Castillo was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and mail fraud after orchestrating a scheme that impacted thousands of victims and led to losses exceeding $1.8 million. In addition to his prison sentence—10 years for each count, to be served concurrently—Castillo was ordered to pay $1,852,532.98 in restitution and will undergo five years of supervised release following his incarceration.
The fraudulent activities occurred between January 3, 2023, and July 30, 2024. During this period, Castillo worked with co-conspirators who obtained legitimate checks through theft or other illegal means. These checks were then altered by Castillo—sometimes referred to as “cooking” the checks—to create counterfeit versions payable to associates involved in the scheme. The altered checks were distributed via mail or sent electronically as PDFs.
Communication among those involved primarily took place on Telegram, an encrypted messaging platform. At least one co-conspirator operated out of Nebraska. For his role in the operation, Castillo received over $800,000 in Bitcoin.
A search warrant executed at Castillo’s residence in August 2024 uncovered evidence illustrating the scale of the operation: law enforcement found approximately 30,000 PDF files containing altered or counterfeit checks on Castillo’s cell phone. The total face value of these checks was estimated at around $496 million. Authorities identified at least 5,000 individuals and businesses as potential victims.
Chief Judge Rossiter remarked during sentencing that Castillo “played a big role” in the scheme and stated he had seen “nothing to this level” before.
U.S. Attorney Lesley A. Woods commented on the outcome: “The United States Postal Inspection Service is to be commended for the exceptional investigative effort that led to this just result. The sentence fairly and justly adjudged in this case is an accurate reflection of the financial harm that resulted from this deliberate and insidious scheme that harmed thousands of innocent victims.”
Bryan Musgrove, Inspector in Charge of the Denver Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service added: “One of the missions of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service is to safeguard the U.S. Mail from criminals. Mr. Castillo executed a sophisticated check fraud scheme that resulted in almost two million dollars in losses from victims across the country. Last week’s sentencing shows the commitment of postal inspectors to aggressively investigate and pursue individuals who exploit the nation’s mail system for their criminal activities and to safeguard the U.S. Mail.”
The investigation was conducted by agents from the United States Postal Inspection Service.
