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Bruno Lopes-Ferreira, 30, is charged with criminal usury, engaging in the business of criminal usury, and possession of usurious loan records, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago said on Friday, Nov. 10.
The investigation found that Lopes-Ferreira, of Long Branch, operated an illegal money loaning operation, with victims saying they took out loans from him and were charged interest rates typically of 120 percent annually (10 percent monthly), far exceeding the 30-percent maximum annual rate allowable under state law, Santiago said.
Lopes-Ferreira also held as collateral victims’ jewelry, passports, and Motor Vehicle Commission documents, which he would refuse to return until the principal and interest on the loans were paid in full, Santiago said.
The investigation led by Long Branch Police Department Detective Daniel Cunha revealed that Lopes-Ferreira’s criminal activities began while he was still employed as a SLEO — a classification of police officers in New Jersey who are not fully sworn, but work on a provisional basis, handling matters such as traffic direction and crowd control.
Lopes-Ferreira was served the charges against him via summons last week pending a first appearance tentatively scheduled to take place on Dec. 19 in Monmouth County Superior Court.
Information about Lopes-Ferreira’s legal representation was not immediately available.
Anyone with information about this defendant’s activities is being asked to contact Detective Cunha at 732-222-1000.
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