A couple who operated a shell company to fraudulently obtain millions from U.S. programs by claiming it gave away dental prosthetics to homeless individuals and other at-risk groups were found guilty, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
A jury convicted Jael Watts, 45, of Alloway, NJ, of false statement, aggravated identity theft, and five counts of wire fraud. Watts and her husband, Luis Pino-Copete, 42, of Bogota, Colombia, were convicted of wire fraud conspiracy, false document, and aggravated identity theft, according to a press release dated October 2 from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York.
Watts and Pino-Copete are scheduled to be sentenced in January 2027. They face a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison, a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, fines of up to $250,000, and supervised release terms of up to three years. Also, they face a restitution order of at least $1.9 million. Additionally, Pino-Copete, who is not a U.S. citizen, faces removal and deportation following completion of his prison sentence.
At trial, prosecutors showed that Watts and Pino-Copete bankrolled their lavish lifestyle, including Porsche rentals and a yearlong travel spree, with U.S. funds they fraudulently obtained from multiple U.S. programs, including the U.S. Federal Transit Administration’s Section 5310 Program, the U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant, and the Emergency Solutions Grant, according to the DOJ press release.
Between 2019 and 2025, Watts and Pino-Copete operated a shell company called Pearl Transit Corporation that purportedly employed drivers all over the U.S. who gave rides to elderly and disabled individuals and engaged in street outreach for homeless individuals. However, Pearl didn’t employ any drivers or perform any services.
Instead, Watts reportedly devised and executed a scheme to defraud numerous state and local administrators of funds designed to help vulnerable populations by submitting false employment and customer information using stolen identities. Watts and Pino-Copete sought reimbursement of more than $13 million in funds through false claims and submissions, according to the press release.
Additionally, court records claimed that Watts and Pino-Copete sought reimbursements by saying they provided free dental prostheses to homeless individuals. The pair purportedly used an unsanitary 3D printer to make dentures out of their house. They reportedly charged homeless individuals fees for scanning their mouths and fitting the dentures. During a video call with Watts, who was in jail, Pino-Copete showed cash a homeless dental client had paid him, according to the press release.
