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A woman residing in Miami Gardens was arrested after being accused of using a fake Cuban marriage certificate to fraudulently collect Social Security benefits belonging to a deceased person.
The accused, identified as Marilyn P. Mato, 62 years old, is facing charges of grand theft and participation in an organized scheme to defraud, according to an arrest report cited by Telemundo 51.
According to the authorities, Mato —born in Cuba and later naturalized as a U.S. citizen— presented a Cuban marriage certificate to the United States Social Security Administration in order to access economic benefits.
Suspicion arose after an official verification of the document. The United States Department of State requested the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the authentication of the certificate, and the Cuban authorities determined that it did not match their official records, concluding that it was a fraudulent document.
According to the report, the woman is said to have received a total of $73,627 in Social Security payments between April 2022 and January 2026 using the allegedly fake document.
Mato was taken into custody on Thursday and appeared before a judge the following day, who set her bail at $7,500 while the legal process continues.
The case once again highlights the controls over the use of foreign documents in federal procedures, as well as the international verification mechanisms to prevent fraud in the public benefits system in the United States.
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