Identity theft charges have been dismissed against U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent who filed a bizarre complaint with Plymouth police while posing as Town Manager Derek Brindisi.
Plymouth District Court Judge John Canavan last week dismissed the charge against Christopher Marden, 36, of Holliston, on grounds there was no financial incentive behind the false report.
Marden remains a Customs agent assigned to Logan International Airport in Boston. Agency officials did not respond to questions about his job status.
The bizarre case first made news last year after Plymouth Police arrested Marden on the charge after he sent an email to the police department that read:
“Nature of Concern: ‘Christmas Lights on Vehicles While Driving.’”
In the complaint, sent under Brindisi’s name, Marden wrote he had seen reports on Facebook that Plymouth police were ignoring violations by drivers who wrapped their vehicles in Christmas lights.
Plymouth police officers, he claimed, were praising people for violating the law.
“Please address this ASAP and inform the public this is not allowed,” said the email, which was supposedly from Brindisi.
When town officials received Marden’s original email they initially thought it was legitimate.
Police Chief Dana Flynn questioned Brindisi about the complaint, but the town manager had no idea what Flynn was talking about.
Plymouth police detective Brian Pierce was assigned to investigate.
Using multiple technological tools, Plymouth police detective Brian Pierce traced the IP address on the email — the unique number assigned to every device on the internet — back to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
A Homeland Security officer then determined the email came from a U.S. Customs and Border Protection workstation at Logan Airport, from a user account assigned to Marden.
Marden’s lawyer, Anthony Riccio, tried repeatedly to get the case thrown out, arguing his client had a “valid” medical condition called “light sensitivity” that caused Marden to file the complaint.
In court documents, Marden acknowledged posing as Brindisi, but he did not obtain money or anything of value by pretending to be Brindisi, nor did he have “the intent to defraud,” his lawyer wrote in a motion to dismiss filed in November 2025.
He wasn’t looking for any financial gain, Riccio argued, a required element of the crime of identity fraud.
Last week, Judge Canavan agreed.
“I do not believe Mr. Marden should have ever been charged in this matter but appreciate the judge appropriately applying the law to the facts and dismissing the case,” said Riccio in an email.
To document Marden’s light sensitivity, Riccio offered a 2016 letter from the state Registry of Motor Vehicles allowing him to outfit much of his car with tinted glass, which is generally prohibited. The letter does not explain why he requested the special glass.
“While his actions may not have been appropriate,” wrote Riccio, Marden “was making a valid complaint based on his medical condition and attempted to do so anonymously.”
The court documents don’t explain why Marden filed the traffic complaint with Plymouth police, since he lives in Holliston and works at Logan Airport.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection spokesman Ryan Brissette didn’t respond to a request for comment.
When Marden was charged in Sept. 2025, Brissette said the agency’s Office of Professional Responsibility was “actively investigating the matter.”
“As a matter of policy, CBP does not comment on ongoing investigations; however, CBP employees are held to the highest standards of professional conduct, and any allegations of misconduct are taken seriously and thoroughly reviewed in accordance with established procedures,” he wrote.
Andrea Estes can be reached at andrea@plymouthindependent.org.