Detective uses relative’s credit for lease, then skips paying rent, MA prosecutors say

A former detective sergeant in Massachusetts has been accused of not revealing his history of evictions, using a relative’s credit card score to obtain a lease, then refusing to pay rent, officials said.

Robert Kennedy, 53, of Stoneham, was arrested and charged with one count of wire fraud on March 31, according to an April 27 news release from the Massachusetts U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The man is accused of “defrauding his last three landlords” and giving false information on his rental applications, officials said.

He would not pay his rent, “despite making $141,000 to $187,000 a year from the Stoneham Police Department,” according to the release.

One of Kennedy’s landlords asked him to submit to a tenant screening to check his credit score and eviction history, officials said. Instead, Kennedy used the social security number and date of birth of a relative who shared his first and last name.

Kennedy also gave his “landlord bad checks for his rent and security deposit,” according to the release.

The man lived in the apartment without paying rent for four months and owes the landlord $14,000, officials said.

Wire fraud charges can hold a sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000, according to the release.

Stoneham is about 10 miles northwest of Boston.

This story was originally published April 28, 2023 at 2:45 PM with the headline "Detective uses relative’s credit for lease, then skips paying rent, MA prosecutors say."