Yes, and, frankly, I have a hard time feeling sorry for the guy. He skirted the rules, and the resulting mess was hard to clear up. Dunno about MA, but here in CA, he could have transferred the title, paid the sales tax, and registered the car for nonoperational status. Registration renewal then would have been just a few $$ annually, until he removed the nonop. Simple.
We all know the rules. Follow them, and this sort of thing won't happen.