08/21/2026
A ROUTINE TRAFFIC STOP UNCOVERS AN IMPOSTER AND KNOWN DRUG TRAFFIKER
Sometimes great police work begins with something very small.
On the morning of August 10, Officer Jared Meegan was working uniformed patrol and monitoring traffic on Route 1 near Newbury Comics when he noticed a Honda Accord traveling southbound without a front registration plate.
Officer Meegan checked the registration and learned that the vehicle had never been inspected, despite having been registered in September 2025. He pulled onto Route 1, activated his emergency lights near Sumner Street, and stopped the vehicle.
What appeared to be a relatively routine motor vehicle stop was about to become interesting. This is a common theme when you do a lot of traffic enforcement.
The driver spoke limited English, so a coworker assisted with the translation. The driver produced a Dominican Republic identification card identifying himself as Yancarlos De La Cruz and said he was working delivering auto parts.
Officer Meegan noticed that the driver appeared extremely nervous and that his hands were visibly shaking. The driver did not have a valid driver's license and, while Officer Meegan was checking his information, he unexpectedly got out of the vehicle and opened the trunk, asking the officer if he wanted to search it.
Officer Meegan ordered him to remain at the rear of the vehicle while he continued his investigation.
The records check then revealed name that the man had given had an active arrest warrant.
Officer McDonough arrived to assist, and the individual was placed under arrest, handcuffed, searched and transported to the Norwood Police Department for booking.
During the booking process, the individual continued to identify himself using the same name and information he had provided during the traffic stop.
As part of our booking process, arrested individuals are fingerprinted. Those fingerprints can be compared against existing criminal justice records regardless of what name someone provides.
When the fingerprint results came back, Sgt. Greene noticed a problem.
The fingerprints didn't match the identity the man had given police.
Sgt. Greene had previously attended specialized training on identifying imposters, individuals who use another person's identifying information to obtain legitimate government-issued identification. The training specifically addressed cases involving individuals using stolen personal information and obtaining identification under someone else's name. Often these imposters steal Puerto Rican identity’s because they are from Spanish speaking countries.
That training and Sgt. Greene's attention to detail became extremely important here.
The fingerprint records connected the individual to another name, Josean Ayala-Alicea, as well as other aliases and previous arrests. Officers began reviewing old arrest reports, booking photographs, RMV information, driver's licenses and fingerprint records.
But there was another twist.
When Sgt. Greene and Officer Meegan located and reviewed the actual Puerto Rico driver's license belonging to Josean Ayala-Alicea, they determined that the person standing in their booking room wasn't him either.
In other words, officers now knew they weren't simply dealing with someone who had given police a false name.
They were dealing with an imposter whose true identity was still unknown.
The investigation continued.
Sgt. Greene contacted the Department of Homeland Security and provided investigators with the information and photographs developed during the investigation. Homeland Security was able to coordinate with a DEA Task Force Officer who was familiar with the individual from previous drug trafficking arrests.
That investigator confirmed another important piece of the puzzle: the individual had previously been arrested under the Josean Ayala-Alicea identity, but investigators had already determined that he had stolen that Puerto Rican identity.
The DEA Task Force Officer was able to provide police with the real Josean Ayala-Alicea's driver's license, further confirming that the man in Norwood's custody was not that person either.
The investigation ultimately involved Norwood officers working through fingerprint records, multiple aliases, booking photographs, motor vehicle records, previous arrests and information from other law-enforcement agencies to determine who they actually had in custody.
Homeland Security eventually provided Dominican Republic documentation identifying the individual as Yancarlos De La Rosa Cruz.
According to federal authorities there was no record of Yancarlos De La Rosa Cruz entering the US.
Confused yet, so were we.
A simple traffic stop and officers who are doing good police work led to a solid arrest of a foreign national and imposter who has a history of drug trafficking. His last arrest involved 9 kilos or drugs.
This is a great example of why attention to detail matters in police work.
It also demonstrates the importance of training, experience, technology and cooperation between law-enforcement agencies.
Many of our officers have taken the extra training classes that involve identifying imposters and that training has paid off. Had our officers simply accepted the identification presented to them, or had not had this great training, the story could have ended very differently.
Instead, they kept asking questions until the pieces fit.
Outstanding work by Officer Jared Meegan, Sgt. Greene, Sgt. Dixon, Det. Sgt McDonagh, Officer McDonough and the other officers and agencies who assisted with this investigation.
Sometimes the best police work starts with routine patrol work and noticing that something just doesn't look right.
Sadly, because our charges were only for minor traffic offenses, the suspect was released on $100.00 bail and a promise to come back to court for his court date.
In any case, great work by our officers.
