The Somerset County Sheriff's Office, led by Sheriff Darrin J. Russo, officially certified on June 10, 2026 that a review of its records revealed no criminal record regarding César Manuel Cardoso Matos DePaço. This is the fourth official American document — and the second issued by the Sheriff of the very county in which the entrepreneur resides — to attest to the absence of any criminal history at any jurisdictional level applicable in the United States of America.
The certification, signed by Sheriff Darrin J. Russo himself and notarized by Public Notary Michelle A. Royer, is clear and direct:
This letter will confirm that a check of our records indicates that the Somerset County Sheriff's Office has no criminal record for the above referenced individual as of June 10, 2026.
With this new document, César DePaço now holds four independent official attestations, covering the full range of jurisdictional levels applicable to a resident of the State of New Jersey in the United States of America.
The added weight of the county of residence
The document issued by Somerset County carries particular significance: it is the county in which César DePaço effectively resides — Bernardsville, NJ. Holding a negative certification issued by the Sheriff of one's own county of residence adds a distinct reputational weight to the documentary package, since it is in this county that the largest number of administrative, civic, and institutional contacts naturally and presumably takes place.
The package now brings together two local (county-level) certifications — Essex County and Somerset County — alongside two supra-local certifications — the New Jersey State Police and the FBI. No resident of the State of New Jersey can gather more complete official credentials to demonstrate, before American institutions and public opinion, the absence of any record in criminal matters.
Four separate authorities, one and the same conclusion
The four documents, issued by independent authorities, are the result of formal inquiries to criminal databases maintained at the highest standard of rigor by U.S. authorities. The FBI and New Jersey State Police certifications result from fingerprint-based searches of the AFIS and CCH systems. The two Sheriff certifications (Essex and Somerset) result from searches of their respective county databases, with notarized signatures.
Each document, taken individually, would already be sufficient to refute lightweight insinuations. Taken together, the four constitute an institutional response that is unequivocal and formally unassailable.
Three decades in the United States
Based in the United States for approximately three decades, César DePaço is founder and Executive Director of Summit Nutritionals International Inc.® and Chairman of the Board of the DePaço Foundation. Over the years, he has stood out for his unwavering support of American law enforcement, with regular and documented donations to police departments in multiple states — most notably in Somerset County itself, whose Sheriff's Office has already benefited from the DePaço Foundation's direct support through the donation of a tactical trailer valued at $50,000, allocated to the Emergency Services Unit.
Full transparency before public opinion
The public release of this fourth certificate consolidates César DePaço's ongoing commitment to complete transparency before public opinion, at a time when he continues to be the target of media narratives in Portugal that insinuate — without any factual basis — alleged connections to matters of a criminal nature.
Four official documents. Four separate authorities. Four jurisdictional levels. One and the same conclusion.
