Two years later, Lightbody was named in a 39-count indictment in New York that accused nine men of stealing people’s identities by posing as employees of the Department of Homeland Security. Using the personal information they collected from unsuspecting people they telephoned, they bought goods worth more than $1 million, authorities said.

When police arrested Lightbody at his 6,000-square-foot Revere home, the house was so full of allegedly stolen merchandise — including plasma TVs, designer handbags, cameras, and jewelry — they had to rent a tractor-trailer to haul the loot away, according to news coverage at the time. Lightbody eventually pleaded guilty, though he claimed much of the merchandise taken from his home was not stolen. He was ordered to pay $16,000 in fines and sentenced to three years’ probation.