Nicholas J. Ganjei United States Attorney for the Southern District of Texas | U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas
A Houston man has admitted to participating in a fraud scheme involving electricity theft, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas, Nicholas J. Ganjei, announced. Daniel Rodriguez-Martinez, 51, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his role in the operation.
The scheme, which ran from March 2021 to May 2024, involved creating a fictitious utility company to hide the proceeds from the illegal enterprise. Rodriguez-Martinez and others used stolen personal information, including Social Security numbers, to establish electricity accounts with legitimate providers. These stolen identities were tied to real service addresses, leaving unsuspecting victims responsible for the charges.
According to court documents, when utility companies disconnected service due to nonpayment, the group would open new accounts using other false identities. Customers paid a fixed monthly fee of $80 to the fraudulent company to maintain uninterrupted electricity service, enabling participants to avoid legitimate charges while the organizers profited.
Rodriguez-Martinez admitted to forming a fake electricity service company specifically to disguise the scheme. He received payments from clients via peer-to-peer applications like CashApp and Zelle, then funneled these payments into a business account to obscure their origins. Through this scheme, Rodriguez-Martinez earned at least $1.4 million.
As part of his plea deal, Rodriguez-Martinez agreed to forfeit $456,859.76 in U.S. currency and his stake in multiple properties. Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane has set the sentencing for July 15, where Rodriguez-Martinez could face a prison sentence of up to 20 years and a fine of up to $250,000.
Rodriguez-Martinez remains in custody awaiting the sentencing hearing. The investigation was conducted by the FBI, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jose A. Garcia led the prosecution.
