Middle District of Alabama
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Phenix City Chiropractor Receives 37-Month Sentence for Conspiring to Commit Wire Fraud Related to Truck Driver PhysicalsRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Thursday, January 10, 2019, Dr. Kenneth G. Edwards, 65, a resident of Columbus, Georgia and previously a practicing chiropractor in Phenix City, Alabama, received a 37-month for conspiring to commit wire fraud, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Dr. Edwards orchestrated a scheme to conduct fraudulent physical examinations on prospective long-haul truck drivers and then submitted false documents to the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT).
According to court documents, Dr. Edwards was registered with the USDOT to conduct physical examinations on those seeking commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs). Federal regulations require that anyone who holds a CDL undergo a thorough physical examination at least once every two years. These regulations ensure that CDL-holders are physically capable of operating 18-wheel tractor-trailers without putting other motorists at risk.
Contrary to his agreement with the USDOT, Dr. Edwards did not thoroughly examine the applicants who came to him for their USDOT-required physicals. Instead, he collected cash payments from the applicants and then signed forms indicating that the applicants were physically capable of driving commercial vehicles. In many instances, Dr. Edwards certified an applicant’s physical fitness without conducting even a partial physical examination. Sometimes, Dr. Edwards permitted his staff to conduct physical examinations and then stamp his signature on the USDOT forms. On occasion, Dr. Edwards knowingly failed to report to the USDOT conditions that would have disqualified an applicant from obtaining a CDL. For example, as discussed in court on Thursday, on one occasion, Dr. Edwards reported that an applicant had 20/20 vision in both eyes. In fact, one of the applicant’s eyes was prosthetic.
At the sentencing hearing, Chief United States District Judge W. Keith Watkins described Dr. Edwards’s crime as a “serious” one. Chief Judge Watkins also found that Dr. Edwards had abused the trust placed in him by the USDOT to conduct physicals and that, as a result of his offense, Dr. Edwards had fraudulently obtained approximately $224,000.
“To make a few easy bucks, Dr. Edwards was willing to risk putting physically unqualified individuals behind the wheels of large commercial vehicles,” announced United States Attorney Franklin. “Our region’s roadways became more dangerous as a result of Dr. Edwards’s greed. It is my hope that Dr. Edwards’s case will send a message to other health care providers who might take shortcuts like the ones that led Dr. Edwards to spending 37 months in federal prison. My office will not tolerate the placing of profit over the well-being of society.”
This case was investigated by the United States Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General with assistance from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and Thomas R. Govan, Jr. prosecuted the case.
Owner of California Company Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Bribe an Alabama LegislatorRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – On Friday, January 4, 2019, G. Ford Gilbert, 71, of Carmichael, California, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit bribery of a state official, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., Postal Inspector in Charge of the Houston Division Adrian Gonzalez, and Special Agent in Charge James Jewell of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Mobile Division.
According to court documents, when he committed his offense, Gilbert was the owner of a California-based company, Trina Health, LLC (Trina Health). At outpatient clinics, Trina Health provided a form of diabetes treatment known as the “Artificial Pancreas Treatment.” In 2014 and 2015, Trina Health and associated business entities opened three clinics in Alabama—one in Foley, one in Fairhope, and one in Hoover. Micky Ray Hammon, who, at the time, was the majority leader of the Alabama House of Representatives, was a part-owner of the Hoover clinic.
Shortly after the Foley and Fairhope clinics opened and just before the Hoover clinic began operations, the state’s largest health insurer informed Trina Health that it would not cover the treatments provided at these clinics. Throughout 2015 Gilbert tried unsuccessfully to persuade the health insurance company to reconsider. In early 2016, Gilbert developed a scheme to force the insurer to change its position.
Specifically, he came up with a plan to push a bill through the Alabama Legislature’s 2016 session, which, had it passed, would have required the health insurer to cover Trina Health’s Artificial Pancreas Treatments. Gilbert looked to Hammon to assist in the passage of the bill. Hammon, who by this point had sold his ownership interest in the Hoover clinic, informed Gilbert that it would create an appearance of impropriety for him to publicly support the legislation. However, Hammon was willing to use his influence in the House of Representatives to quietly generate support for Gilbert’s bill. To persuade Hammon to do this, in April 2016, Gilbert paid Hammon $2,000. Thereafter, Hammon arranged for various other legislators to speak in support of the Trina Health-supported legislation at a public hearing. Despite Hammon’s efforts, the bill did not advance out of committee.
Gilbert’s sentencing will be scheduled at some point in the coming months before United States District Judge Myron H. Thompson. At sentencing, he faces a statutory maximum penalty of five years in prison, a fine of not more than $250,000, and up to three years of supervised release.
“Mr. Gilbert thought that it would take only a small payment to turn the Alabama House of Representatives into a tool for solving his own business problems,” stated United States Attorney Franklin. “Fortunately, Gilbert was not successful in persuading the legislature to pass this tainted bill. Nevertheless, it is my hope that this case sends a strong message to business owners and special interest groups who might seek to obtain legislative assistance through improper means. My office will do whatever it takes to ensure that the citizens of this state are served by the state legislature they deserve—one committed to doing only the people’s work.”
Mr. Franklin added, “I wish to express my tremendous gratitude to the United States Postal Inspection Service for the superior work the postal inspectors put into this prosecution. This case would not have been possible without the Postal Inspection Service’s dogged investigation and steadfast commitment to ensuring that this conduct did not go unpunished. Thanks is also owed to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The FBI’s special agents provided crucial assistance in the investigation of this case.”
“Public trust in government is essential to our democracy,” stated Postal Inspector in Charge of the Houston Division Adrian Gonzalez. “The U.S. Postal Inspection Service has an extensive history of protecting the integrity of government and will vigorously investigate those attempting to undermine that trust and hold them accountable. This investigation was complex and multifaceted, and it underscores the reason we are committed to working to dismantle any and all public corruption schemes.”
“The FBI will continue to aggressively assist our state, local, and federal partners in the public corruption arena,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge James Jewell. “This type of behavior will not be tolerated.”
As noted, the United States Postal Inspection Service investigated the case with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross, Joshua Wendell, and Stephanie C. Billingslea are prosecuting the case.
Birmingham-Area Businessman Sentenced to Four Years for Trying to Pay His $3.6 Million Tax Debt with Fictitious InstrumentRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – Yesterday, Richard Lee Graham, 55, of Gardendale, Alabama, was sentenced to serve 48 months in federal prison for passing a fictitious instrument and obstructing the administration of the Internal Revenue laws, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman, of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, and Special Agent in Charge Thomas J. Holloman, with IRS-Criminal Investigation. In addition to four years in prison, Graham was sentenced to five years of supervised release and a $10,000 fine.
Graham was found guilty of the charges on September 11, 2018 by a federal jury. Evidence presented at his trial established that in 2014 he owed approximately $3.6 million in taxes, penalties, and interest for tax years 2006 to 2009. To collect that tax debt, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) began seizing Graham’s properties. On July 11, 2014, Graham went to the Montgomery IRS Office with a fictitious “International Bill of Exchange” in the amount of $3.6 million, along with false supporting documents, in an attempt to pay his taxes. A short time later, Graham showed up at the Birmingham IRS Office with another fake instrument of the same type and amount and attempted to use it to settle his tax debt. He also had false documents mailed to an IRS employee in an attempt to prove the legitimacy of the phony check-like instrument. Graham had previously been convicted of willfully failing to file a tax return.
“Rather than pay his taxes like most Americans, Mr. Graham chose to try and defraud the IRS, as well as his fellow citizens, by tendering a fictitious, worthless instrument to satisfy his tax liability,” stated U.S. Attorney Franklin. “This sentence should show those who choose to defraud and/or attempt to defraud the IRS that this office stands ready, willing and able to prosecute you to the fullest extent the law allows.”
“Graham thought he could be creative and try and cheat the tax system, and now he will spend time in prison,” said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation. “This sentencing should deter those taxpayers thinking about engaging in tax defier conduct. Those taxpayers should think twice about submitting fictitious information to the IRS because you will face the criminal consequences.”
U.S. Attorney Franklin commended agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation who investigated this case, and the Alabama Department of Revenue who provided assistance. Trial Attorney Michael C. Boteler of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan A. Kirkpatrick of the Middle District of Alabama prosecuted the case.
Millbrook Man Sentenced to 50 Years in Prison for Production of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
MONTGOMERY, AL – Today, Germaine Moore, 45, of Millbrook, Alabama, was sentenced to 50 years in prison for three counts of production of child pornography, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., Secretary of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Hal Taylor, District Attorney Randall Houston, and FBI Special Agent in Charge James Jewell. Moore had previously pled guilty to the charges in August 2018. There is no parole in the federal prison system. Upon completion of 600 months in prison, Moore will be subject to supervision for the rest of his life.
The case began on or about January 31, 2018, when law enforcement officials received complaints regarding a Facebook video posting depicting a child performing oral sex on an adult male. Law enforcement traced the video to Moore. Three minor victims were interviewed and disclosed that Moore had sexually abused them and produced videos of the sexual abuse. On February 5, 2018, the Alabama State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) executed search warrants on Moore’s Millbrook, Alabama home. SBI located additional child pornography images on various devices found in Moore’s home and later in an apartment that he had access to in Prattville, Alabama. Investigators found that Moore possessed around 190 child pornography videos on an SD card, and 231 child pornography images on an IBM hard drive.
“Moore’s crimes are revolting and despicable,” said U.S. Attorney Franklin. “When predators exploit children, they rob them of their innocence and their wellbeing. No child should have to endure what Moore’s victims went through. We hope this sentence sends a warning to anyone that sexually assaults or exploits a child that we will not sit by and allow it to happen. People in our community want to protect children, and they will help law enforcement find predators and put them away for a long time.”
“Collaboration on all levels of law enforcement is effective as evidenced by the investigation and prosecution of Germaine Moore, but we also depend on the public’s assistance,” stated Secretary of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Hal Taylor. “Without a tip, we may never have discovered Moore’s predatory crimes or taken him into custody within a matter of days.”
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office and ALEA are the real heroes in this case,” said Randall Houston, District Attorney for the 19th Judicial Circuit. “Their relentless pursuit of justice is truly inspiring. I am extremely proud of the joint effort by everyone to go above and beyond to make sure this predator won’t ever have access to another child.”
This case was investigated by the Alabama State Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, United States Marshal’s Service, Michigan State Police, Detroit Police Department, Millbrook Police Department, Prattville Police Department, Tallapoosa County Sheriff’s Office, Alexander City Police Department, and Montgomery Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hollie Worley Reed of the Middle District of Alabama.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Birmingham Businessman Sentenced to Prison for Obstruction and Submitting Fictitious Instruments to the IRSRead the Press Release
A Birmingham business executive was sentenced to serve 48 months in prison for passing a fictitious financial instrument and obstructing the administration of the Internal Revenue laws, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, and United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin Sr., of the Middle District of Alabama.
On September 11, 2018, a federal jury convicted Richard Lee Graham, 55, of Gardendale, Alabama, of passing a fictitious financial instrument and obstructing the administration of the internal revenue laws. Evidence presented at trial in September established for the tax years 2006 to 2009, as of 2014, Graham owed approximately $3.6 million in taxes, penalties, and interest. To collect that tax debt, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) began seizing Graham’s properties. On July 11, 2014, Graham went to the Montgomery IRS Office with a fictitious “International Bill of Exchange” in the amount of $3.6 million, along with false supporting documents, in an attempt to pay his taxes. A short time later, Graham showed up at the Birmingham IRS Office with another fake instrument of the same type and amount and attempted to use it to settle his tax debt. He also had false documents mailed to an IRS employee in an attempt to prove the legitimacy of the phony check-like instrument.
This was Graham’s second conviction for a tax related offense. In 2006, Graham pled guilty to willfully failing to file a tax return.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence S. Coogler ordered Graham to serve five years of supervised release and to pay a $10,000 fine.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Franklin commended agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, who investigated this case, and the Alabama Department of Revenue, who provided assistance, and Trial Attorney Michael C. Boteler of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan A. Kirkpatrick of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
St. Louis Resident Indicted for Role in a Stolen Identity Fraud Scheme That Claimed $12 Million in Tax RefundsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A federal grand jury sitting in St. Louis, Missouri, returned an indictment, which was unsealed yesterday, against a St. Louis resident for his role in a sophisticated stolen identity refund fraud scheme, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Jeffrey B. Jensen for the Eastern District of Missouri.
The indictment charges Babatunde Olusegun Taiwo with conspiracy to file false claims, mail fraud, wire fraud, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft. To carry out the scheme, Taiwo and others allegedly obtained the payroll information of employees of various public school systems by accessing without authorization a payroll company database. Taiwo and others also allegedly obtained IRS Forms W-2 of various companies through the use of business email schemes. To conceal their involvement, Taiwo and his co-conspirators allegedly obtained and used without authorization several Electronic Filing Identification Numbers issued in the names of tax preparation businesses. As charged in the indictment, Taiwo then arranged for mail forwarding services to be set up in the names of those tax preparers in various cities across the United States, including Reno, Nevada, and Salt Lake City, Utah, and directed mail to be sent to an accomplice’s residence in St. Louis, Missouri.
Taiwo and his co-conspirators allegedly used the school employee payroll information they illegally obtained to file fraudulent tax returns, and computer software to mask the location of where the returns were filed. As charged in the indictment, over 2,000 fraudulent tax returns claiming more than $12 million in tax refunds from the IRS were filed through the scheme.
If convicted, Taiwo faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for the conspiracy to file false claims count, 20 years in prison for each count of wire and mail fraud, 15 years for each count of access device fraud, and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison for the aggravated identity theft. The defendant also faces substantial monetary penalties, supervised release, restitution, and forfeiture.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Jensen commended special agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service as well as the Dothan Alabama Police Department and Alexander City Alabama Police Department, who investigated this case, and Trial Attorneys Michael C. Boteler and Grace Albinson of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting this case with assistance from the United States Attorney’s Offices in the Eastern District of Missouri and Middle District of Alabama.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Former Montgomery Lawyer Receives 37-Month Sentence for Defrauding HUD of over $1 MillionRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – On Tuesday, November 6, 2018, Christopher B. Pitts, 48 years old and a Georgia resident who was previously a practicing attorney in Montgomery, Alabama, received a 37-month sentence for devising a scheme to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution. United States District Judge L. Scott Coogler sentenced Pitts after he pleaded guilty to defrauding the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
According to court documents, between 2005 and 2008, Pitts served as a closing attorney for the sales of all homes owned by HUD in northern and central Alabama. As the closing attorney, it was Pitts’ job to receive purchase money, pay closing costs, and transmit to HUD the remaining purchase money. As Pitts admitted when he pleaded guilty, on numerous occasions, he did not actually remit payments to HUD. As a result of Pitts’ fraud, HUD never received the money it was owed for the sale of HUD-owned houses.
At the sentencing hearing, Judge Coogler found that Pitts was responsible for causing a total loss to HUD of $1,090,888.53. The judge ordered that Pitts make full restitution to HUD upon his release from prison.
This case was investigated by HUD’s Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Ross prosecuted the case.
Montgomery Nurse Practitioner Convicted of Unlawfully Distributing Controlled Substances, Health Care Fraud, and ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Monday, October 29, 2018, a federal jury convicted nurse practitioner Lilian Ifeoma Akwuba, 39, of Montgomery, Alabama, on 17 counts of unlawfully distributing controlled substances, 4 counts of health care fraud, 1 count of conspiring to distribute controlled substances, and 1 count of conspiring to commit health care fraud, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
The trial evidence showed that, from 2013 through 2016, Akwuba worked at Family Practice, a Montgomery medical practice located at 4143 Atlanta Highway. Her supervisor there was the practice’s owner, Dr. Gilberto Sanchez. Working under Sanchez, Akwuba issued and caused to be issued unnecessary and illegitimate prescriptions for a variety of controlled substances, including fentanyl, hydrocodone (commonly known as “Norco”), oxycodone (commonly known as “Percocet”), alprazolam (commonly known as “Xanax”), and methadone. Akwuba and Sanchez also required these patients to return approximately every month to obtain their prescriptions. These unnecessary office visits and unlawful prescriptions were ultimately billed to the insurance companies, which paid the claims.
In 2016, Akwuba left Family Practice and opened her own practice, Mercy Family Health Care, located at 128 Mytilene Park Drive in east Montgomery. Many of Family Practice’s former patients followed her there. After they did so, Akwuba continued to prescribe the patients the drugs the patients had received at Family Practice. In several instances, she increased the patients’ dosages or switched the patients to more potent narcotics than Sanchez had prescribed. Because Akwuba was a nurse practitioner and not a physician, she was not able to issue prescription refills on Schedule II controlled substances without a physician’s approval. Akwuba skirted this rule by, in many instances, forging physicians’ signatures on prescriptions for controlled substances. Additionally, Akwuba instructed her staff members to falsify medical records, so as to justify billing for office visits at increased rates. For example, trial evidence showed that Akwuba falsely reported performing 10 rectal exams on the same patient during the course of a single year. She also erroneously claimed to have performed a colonoscopy in her family practice office.
Following these convictions, Akwuba is facing up to 20 years in prison, substantial fines, and up to 3 years of supervised release.
“We will never be able to fully appreciate the harm that Ms. Akwuba caused to the patients who put their trust in her,” stated United States Attorney Franklin. “Patients hoped that Ms. Akwuba would appropriately treat their illnesses. Instead, she inflicted upon them a new disease—addiction. I hope that this verdict will send a strong message to the medical community. Society will no longer tolerate health care providers who are willing to betray their patients’ trust to make an easy buck.”
“The arrests and subsequent indictments of the individuals in this ongoing case are part of DEA's continuing effort to target the distribution of dangerous drugs at all levels,” said DEA Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge Bret Hamilton. “Illicit drug abuse and related criminal activity takes a tremendous toll communities throughout Alabama. We will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners in order to enhance the quality of life for the citizens of this state by pursuing ALL criminals involved in the illicit drug trade, even if they're committing their crimes in a doctor's office.”
“Health care fraud is the ultimate betrayal of the trust that patients place with their providers. In this case, Akwuba, a nurse practitioner, took advantage of people suffering from addiction to opioids, to line her own pockets,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect patients and the health care programs intended to serve them.”
“Akwuba violated her professional and ethical oath by knowingly participating in this pill mill operation,” said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation. “IRS-CI will continue working with our law enforcement partners in the fight to significantly impact the opioid epidemic.”
The case was investigated Drug Enforcement Agency, Health and Human Services-Office of the Inspector General, and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the Opelika, Alabama Police Department, the Montgomery, Alabama Police Department, and the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners all assisted in the investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross, Megan A. Kirkpatrick, and Rand Neeley are prosecuting the case.
Drug Source Sentenced to 12.5 Years for Interstate Narcotics ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – Jessie Acosta, 41, of San Pedro, California, was sentenced to 150 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to distribute kilogram quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana throughout the Middle District of Alabama and Georgia, announced U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin. Acosta’s sentencing is the last of a string of convictions that dismantled a sophisticated drug trafficking conspiracy that stretched from San Pedro, California to Alabama and Georgia.
According to the evidence, the drug conspiracy consisted of 13 co-conspirators (including Jessie Acosta) who agreed to distribute kilogram quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana. The 13 co-conspirators include:
- Dywane Lamont Turner, 37, of Smiths Station, Alabama. Turner was previously sentenced to 235 months in prison.
- Shauntell Martrece Walker, 28, of Columbus, Georgia. Walker was previously sentenced to 78 months in prison.
- RT Ray, 41, of Columbus, Georgia. Ray was previously sentenced to 63 months in prison.
- James Wesley Meadows, 48, of Smiths Station, Alabama. Meadows was previously sentenced to 77 months in prison.
- Ivan Dewayne Green, 38, of Columbus, Georgia. Green was previously sentenced to 70 months in prison.
- Ryan Kendrick Riggs, 35, of Auburn, Alabama. Riggs was previously sentenced to 92 months in prison.
- Christopher Bernard Adams, 39, of Columbus, Georgia. Adams was previously sentenced to 37 months in prison.
- Robert Williams, Jr., 35, of Smiths, Alabama. Williams was previously sentenced to 120 months in prisn.
- Danny Shane Lavender, 31, of Phenix City, Alabama. Lavender was previously sentenced to 15 months in prison.
- Calvin Ashford, 42, of Columbus, Georgia. Ashford was previously sentenced to 78 months in prison.
- Yasmin Jenean Walker, 50, of Columbus, Georgia. Walker was previously sentenced to 3 months in prison.
- Melvin John Williams, Jr., 28, of Columbus, Georgia. Melvin Williams was previously sentenced to 15 months in prison.
Also sentenced were Jessie Acosta’s brother, Joseph Acosta 30, of San Pedro, California and Vivian Ruvalcaba, 41, of San Pedro, California. Both Joseph Acosta and Vivian Ruvalcaba were prosecuted for their role in moving drug money between Alabama and California.
According to U.S. Attorney Franklin, “Friday’s sentencing is a victory for the citizens of Alabama and Georgia. From California, Mr. Jessie Acosta supplied large quantities of dangerous narcotics to communities in Phenix City, Alabama and Columbus, Georgia. Mr. Jessie Acosta’s long prison sentence reflects the seriousness of his crimes. I applaud the efforts of federal, state and local law enforcement in dismantling a sophisticated drug trafficking organization that stretched across the Country. I have no doubt that Mr. Jessie Acosta never expected to be prosecuted in Alabama. Drug traffickers everywhere should understand that aggressive drug enforcement may land them in prison far from home – just like Mr. Jessie Acosta.”
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the following agencies: The Elmore County Sheriff’s Office, the Central Alabama Drug Task Force, the Millbrook Police Department, the Eufaula Police Department, the Auburn Police Department, the Lee County Sheriff’s Department, the Russell County Sheriff’s Department, the Columbus, Georgia Police Department, the Alabama Law Enforcement Administration, the Prattville Police Department, the Montgomery Police Department, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, the Autauga County Sheriff’s Office, the Metro Drug Task Force, the Columbus Georgia Regional Office of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Troupe County Sheriff’s Office and the Alabama National Guard Counter Drug Unit.
Assistant United States Attorney Verne H. Speirs prosecuted the case.
Three U.S. Attorneys Announce Progress in Making Alabama Safer Through Project Safe NeighborhoodsRead the Press Release
Montgomery AL--One year ago, the Department of Justice announced the revitalization and enhancement of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which Attorney General Sessions has made the centerpiece of the Department’s violent crime reduction strategy. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
Throughout the past year, we have partnered with all levels of law enforcement, local organizations, and members of the community to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.
“Project Safe Neighborhoods is a proven program with demonstrated results,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said. “We know that the most effective strategy to reduce violent crime is based on sound policing policies that have proven effective over many years, which includes being targeted and responsive to community needs. I have empowered our United States Attorneys to focus enforcement efforts against the most violent criminals in their districts, and directed that they work together with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and community partners to develop tailored solutions to the unique violent crime problems they face. Each United States Attorney has prioritized the PSN program, and I am confident that it will continue to reduce crime, save lives, and restore safety to our communities.”
“In late 2017, Montgomery needed help. Too many people were illegally carrying guns, too many people were being shot, too many people were living in fear,” stated Louis V. Franklin, Sr., U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama. “PSN was the perfect program to help Montgomery. So, we joined with our federal, state and local partners and focused on the worst of the worst violent criminals in Montgomery. We had a goal to reduce violent crime in Montgomery, and we saw results. By May of 2018, we saw an almost 16% decline in violent crime in Montgomery. This PSN partnership will continue to see Montgomery through this violent crime crisis. We have an obligation to our community and we will fulfill that obligation.”
“Because of PSN and the leadership of our Attorney General, never before have our law enforcement partnerships been so robust,” stated Jay E. Town, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama. “Never before have we prosecuted so many defendants, especially violent criminals, in federal court, where sentences do not suffer the sanctuary of parole. Never before has there been the commitment to resources by the Department of Justice at every level of law enforcement to aggressively address violent crime. Federal prison beds are being filled by our worst offenders, and our neighborhoods are safer than ever before.”
“Most Alabamians are benefiting from a much safer Alabama as a direct result of the leadership of Attorney General Jeff Sessions,” stated Richard W. Moore, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama. “Law enforcement officers have been empowered to do what they do best and the violent crime rate in many of our communities is going down. Aggressive efforts to take the “trigger pullers” who terrorize neighborhoods off the street makes sense and makes Alabama a safer place to live. Violent crime rates, however, are still too high and we are not resting on the good results that we have seen over the past two years. The American people have been clear about their desire to have a safer country. We are starting to deliver on the promise that President Trump made to make that a reality.”
As we celebrate the one-year anniversary of the revitalized PSN program, here are some of the highlights of our PSN actions over the past year:
Enforcement Actions
- Federal, state, and local agencies tackled the violent crime problem in Montgomery by vigorously pursuing illegal firearm prosecutions. From January to April of 2018, the USAO concentrated on indicting Montgomery firearm cases. Additionally, Operation Triple Beam[1] kicked off and saturated law enforcement in those areas in Montgomery with the largest number of shootings. As a result of these partnerships and the re-invigorated PSN program, in May of this year the violent crime rate dropped in Montgomery by almost 16%.
- The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District has formed an array of task forces and partnerships that have seen impressive results. The Northern District office has formed Public Safety Task Forces in Huntsville and Birmingham, both designed to target the worst offenders and repeat offenders who have besieged those great cities too long. The office also formed the Prosecutor-to-Prosecutor Program, or “P3”, where District Attorneys from around the Northern District are given training and direct lines of communication to federal prosecutors so that state charges can be removed to federal court where the sentence does not suffer the sanction of parole. We have dramatically increased our federal presence in every community, every county, and every corner of the Northern District.
- This summer, a three-month operation focused on reducing violent crime in Selma and the Gulf Coast region resulted in federal charges against 24 defendants, with about 50 guns seized. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Alabama joined with federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to interrupt the pattern of federal firearms violations.
- Focused enforcement efforts throughout the Southern District are bringing armed criminals to justice in federal court, where the U.S. Attorney’s Office has charged 192 cases with 205 defendants with federal gun crimes in the past 12 months.
Community Partnerships
- In order to increase illegal firearm prosecutions in Montgomery, the U.S. Attorney’s Office joined with the Montgomery Police Department to organize training for each Montgomery Police officer, starting with patrol. The PSN coordinator and the Law Enforcement Coordinator met officers at rollcall at 5:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. until all officers were trained. The USAO has now expanded that project to other Middle District counties.
- Attorney General Jeff Sessions designated Birmingham as one of the nations’ few Public Safety Partnership communities where the Department of Justice infuses resources to the city and creates a platform for all levels of law enforcement to join forces to reduce violent criminal activity in the metropolitan area. Never before has there been the level of inter-agency cooperation that now exists in Birmingham. The Northern District office has taken that formula and expanded it around the Northern District, especially to include Anniston and Tuscaloosa. Not only are traditional members of law enforcement at the table, but also community leaders, City Hall, non-profits, and other groups with the sole interest of making neighborhoods safe again.
- In the Southern District, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has continued its Bridging the Gap program, a successful partnership with the FBI, the Mobile Police Department, community leaders, and school systems to reach out to ninth-grade students about demonstrating the proper conduct youth and law enforcement should expect from one another during a law enforcement encounter. This program, developed in Mobile, was implemented nationwide by all 56 FBI field offices.
- U.S. Attorney Richard Moore and his staff have been actively involved in the Selma area, coordinating with community organizations, community leaders, law enforcement, faith-based organizations, and the public to develop prevention and enforcement priorities, and to establish a long-term presence in the community.
Improvements to Community Safety
- The FBI’s official crime data for 2017 reflects that, after two consecutive, historic increases in violent crime, in the first year of the Trump Administration the nationwide violent crime rate began to decline. The nationwide violent crime rate decreased by approximately one percent in 2017, while the nationwide homicide rate decreased by nearly one and a half percent.
- The preliminary information we have for 2018 gives us reason for optimism that our efforts are continuing to pay off. Public data from 60 major cities show that violent crime was down by nearly five percent in those cities in the first six months of 2018 compared to the same period a year ago.
- As stated above, due to the enhanced partnerships created by the re-invigorated PSN program, the violent crime rate in Montgomery decreased in May by almost 16%.
- The Northern District of Alabama has prosecuted more defendants in the past two years than in any two-year period in over a decade. Now, more than ever, local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies are working together to target our worst offenders in the highest crime areas so that those neighborhoods can be returned to their rightful owners...the law-abiding citizens who live there. Recognizing that incarceration alone will not solve all problems with crime, the U.S. Attorney’s Office continues to work with community leaders from around the Northern District to provide opportunities and prevention programs that will not only prevent future criminal behavior, but make such behavior unnecessary in the first place.
- Statistics from the Mobile Police Department show that focused enforcement efforts are paying off. From January 1 through the end of September, violent crime decreased by 1.7%, and includes a 34.4% reduction in criminal homicides and a 9.4% reduction in robberies.
These enforcement actions and partnerships are part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. Learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods.
[1] Operation Triple Beam was led by the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Fugitive Task Force and focused on street level crime, gang-related crime, undercover narcotics operations, traffic stop enforcement, and a warrant service in identified high-crime districts.
Former Tallassee Police Officer Indicted for Civil Rights Violations and Obstruction of JusticeRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – A federal grand jury unsealed an indictment today charging Michael Brandon Smirnoff, 25, a former officer at the Tallassee Police Department in Tallassee, Alabama, with federal civil rights and obstruction offenses, announced U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Smirnoff is charged with two counts of deprivation of rights under color of law, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 242, and one count of obstruction of justice, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1519.
The indictment alleges that Smirnoff twice used unlawful force on arrestees and submitted a false report to cover up one of the incidents. In the first incident, on March 29, 2016, Smirnoff slammed a handcuffed man to the ground, then used unreasonable force while placing him into a police vehicle. In a second incident on July 5, 2015, Smirnoff tased a man who had already been placed in handcuffs and was not physically resisting. As a result of these unjustified uses of force, both victims sustained bodily injuries. The indictment further charges that Smirnoff obstructed justice by submitting a false report about the second incident.
If convicted, Smirnoff faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for the deprivation of rights charges and 20 years in prison for the obstruction charge, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.
An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the FBI, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Denise Simpson of the Middle District of Alabama and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Michael J. Songer.
Birmingham-Area Businessman Convicted of Trying to Pay His $3.6 Million Tax Debt with Fictitious InstrumentRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – Richard Lee Graham, 55, of Gardendale, Alabama, was found guilty on Tuesday, September 11, 2018 for passing a fictitious instrument and obstructing the administration of the Internal Revenue laws, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., of the Middle District of Alabama, and Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge with IRS-Criminal Investigation.
Evidence presented at trial established that in 2014, Graham owed approximately $3.6 million in taxes, penalties, and interest for tax years 2006 to 2009. To collect that tax debt, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) began seizing Graham’s properties. On July 11, 2014, Graham went to the Montgomery IRS Office with a fictitious “International Bill of Exchange” in the amount of $3.6 million, along with false supporting documents, in an attempt to pay his taxes. A short time later, Graham showed up at the Birmingham IRS Office with another fake instrument of the same type and amount and attempted to use it to settle his tax debt. He also had false documents mailed to an IRS employee in an attempt to prove the legitimacy of the phony check-like instrument.
Following these convictions, Graham is facing up to 25 years in prison, substantial fines, and up to 5 years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
“Mr. Graham tried to dupe this country out of $3.6 million for his own gain. That is money that could be used to help children or the sick or could be used to build and repair roads and bridges,” stated U.S. Attorney Franklin. “Our office will continue to vigorously prosecute those who attempt to illegally avoid their tax obligations in order to benefit themselves.”
“Graham was a significant tax evader and thought he could outsmart the government in making his tax debts go away,” said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation. “IRS-CI will continue to investigate and bring these significant tax cheats to justice and will hold them both financially and criminally responsible for their actions.”
U.S. Attorney Franklin commended agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation who investigated this case, and the Alabama Department of Revenue who provided assistance. Trial Attorney Michael C. Boteler of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan A. Kirkpatrick of the Middle District of Alabama prosecuted the case.
Former Tuskegee Police Lieutenant Sentenced to Prison for Assaulting ArresteeRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – Former Tuskegee Police Department Lieutenant Alex Huntley, 54, was sentenced to 36 months in prison and three years’ supervised release for beating a handcuffed and compliant arrestee, announced U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., of the Middle District of Alabama, FBI Special Agent in Charge James Jewell, and Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
On June 8, a federal jury convicted Huntley of one count of violating an individual’s civil rights resulting in bodily injury. Huntley was sentenced today by Chief United States District Court Judge W. Keith Watkins of the Middle District of Alabama.
According to evidence presented at trial, on Dec. 24, 2014, Huntley arrested a man who scuffled with police near the Tuskegee town square and directed a fellow police officer to transport the arrestee back to the Tuskegee Police Department for booking. Once there, Huntley sprayed pepper spray in the arrestee’s face, even though the arrestee was handcuffed and following police instructions. Huntley then took the arrestee inside the police station, where Huntley knocked the still-handcuffed arrestee to the ground, stomped on him, and repeatedly kicked and punched him. In between blows, Huntley stood over the arrestee and yelled threats at him as the arrestee screamed in pain. A police officer recruit who witnessed the beating was so horrified that he secretly audio-recorded the assault on his cell phone and subsequently provided the recording to federal authorities.
“The vast majority of our police officers are dedicated to protecting and serving the public with strength, courage, and valor. Unfortunately, Mr. Huntley was not so dedicated,” said U.S. Attorney Franklin. “Police officers have an increasingly difficult job. This office will strive to support our law enforcement brothers and sisters, but will also prosecute those law enforcement officers who abandon their oath to protect and serve and chose to engage in criminal conduct that they are sworn to oppose.”
“Lady Justice wears a blindfold for a reason, and a violation of someone’s civil rights by a sworn law enforcement officer cannot be tolerated. The FBI will continue to pursue these types of cases with all available resources,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge James Jewell.
“This defendant abused his police powers by beating a restrained man in his custody,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore. “The Department will not tolerate such abuses, and will continue to vigorously enforce our nation’s laws and hold officers who break the law accountable.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated this case with assistance from the Alabama State Bureau of Investigation. Trial Attorney Samantha Trepel of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and Assistant United States Attorney Denise O. Simpson of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Alabama prosecuted the case.
Montgomery Doctor Charged with Drug Distribution OffensesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Monday, September 10, 2018, Dr. Richard Stehl, 54, of Montgomery, Alabama, appeared in court after being indicted on drug distribution charges, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
The indictment charges Dr. Stehl, who owned and operated a medical practice on Winton Blount Loop in eastern Montgomery, with drug distribution offenses. Those charges stem from Dr. Stehl’s prescribing controlled substances inappropriately, unlawfully, and for non-medical reasons
If convicted, Dr. Stehl faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment on each count. He also faces substantial monetary penalties and restitution.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations Division. The Montgomery Police Department, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, and the Opelika Police Department all assisted in the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross is prosecuting the case.
Alabama Woman Pleads Guilty to Stealing over $700,000 from Her Employer and Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
An Alabama woman pleaded guilty today to six counts of wire fraud and three counts of filing false tax returns, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin Sr. for the Middle District of Alabama.
According to court documents, from February 2007, through May 2014, Alita Baker Edeker, a resident of Valley, Alabama, embezzled $700,000 of her employer’s funds for her own personal benefit, by directing her company’s clients’ payments to debit and credit cards she controlled. Edeker made false statements and representations in the company’s books and records in order to conceal her embezzlement. After embezzling the funds, Edeker willfully filed false tax returns for tax years 2011, 2012, and 2013, that did not report the money.
Edeker faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each wire fraud count and three years in prison for each count of filing a false tax return. Edeker also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman and United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin Sr. commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation and the Auburn, Alabama Police Department, who investigated the case, and Assistant United States Attorney Ben Baxley and Trial Attorney Grace Albinson of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting this case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Postal Employee Indicted in a Stolen Identity Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury sitting in Montgomery, Alabama returned an indictment, which was unsealed today, against a resident of Phenix City, Alabama for his role in a stolen identity refund fraud scheme, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin Sr. for the Middle District of Alabama.
According to the indictment, Demetrius Jones worked as a mail carrier for the United States Postal Service and his postal route was located in Phenix City, Alabama. In 2013, Jones is alleged to have joined in a scheme to file false tax returns using stolen identities in order to obtain fraudulent tax refunds. Jones’ co-conspirators allegedly obtained stolen personal identification information from several sources, including from an Alabama state database, and then prepared and filed false federal income tax returns. The indictment further alleges that the co-conspirators directed the tax refund checks be mailed to addresses located on Jones’s postal route and would then pay Jones a fee for him to deliver the checks.
If convicted, Jones faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for the conspiracy count, 20 years in prison for each count of mail fraud, and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison for aggravated identity theft. The defendant also faces substantial monetary penalties, supervised release, restitution, and forfeiture.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Franklin commended special agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and the United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Michael C. Boteler and Gregory P. Bailey of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Prattville Man Receives Sentence of Almost Five Years for Shooting a CowRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Thursday, August 23, 2018, Byron Jamar Esco, 30, of Prattville, Alabama received a sentence of 57 months in prison for a illegally possessing a firearm and shooting a cow, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. The prosecution was the result of Esco senselessly using a firearm to shoot and kill a pregnant cow.
On November 29, 2017, Esco, who had been recently released from state prison, was driving his vehicle along country roads near Hope Hull, Alabama. As he drove, Esco, unprovoked, pointed his 9 millimeter handgun at a cow grazing in a field. Esco then fired the weapon and killed the cow, which was pregnant with a calf. Esco drove away. Before he could do so, though, the cow’s owner observed Esco’s vehicle and reported the shooting and the details of the getaway vehicle to law enforcement authorities. Early the following morning, a sheriff’s deputy found Esco driving the car. Inside the vehicle was the handgun used in the shooting.
Because Esco was previously convicted of felony offenses, he could not lawfully possess the firearm. Therefore, a grand jury charged Esco with being a felon in possession of a firearm and Esco later pleaded guilty to the crime.
At the sentencing hearing, Esco received an enhancement for possessing the firearm in furtherance of another felony offense—that felony offense being killing cattle livestock, in violation of Alabama law.
“We often assume that gun violence is a problem that exists only on city streets,” said United States Attorney Franklin. “Sadly, even a rural area can be the scene of needless violence, as this case demonstrates. This office, along with our law enforcement partners, is committed to make every part of this district—from city streets to country roads—safe.”
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, along with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office. The prosecution of this case was a part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhood. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross prosecuted the case.
Montgomery “Pill Mill” Doctor Receives a 145- Month Sentence for Drug Distribution, Health Care Fraud, and Money Laundering Offenses; “Pill Mill” Mental Health Counselor Pleads Guilty in Related CaseRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Thursday, August 23, 2018, Dr. Gilberto Sanchez, 56, of Montgomery, Alabama, was sentenced to serve 12 years and 1 month in prison for prescribing unnecessary controlled substances to his patients, committing health care fraud, and laundering money, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
For years, Dr. Sanchez operated a medical practice located at 4143 Atlanta Highway in Montgomery. At that practice, Dr. Sanchez gave patients prescriptions for controlled substances knowing that the patients did not need the medicine and would, in fact, abuse the drugs. Among the drugs Dr. Sanchez unnecessarily prescribed were dangerous opioids, including oxycodone, hydrocodone, and fentanyl. Dr. Sanchez also gave out illegitimate prescriptions for amphetamines, including Adderall, and benzodiazepines, including Xanax.
To ensure that his scheme was a profitable one, Dr. Sanchez required his patients to return to his office each month and undergo physical examinations before receiving prescription refills. These office visits were unnecessary, as their only purpose was to facilitate Dr. Sanchez giving the patients illegitimate prescriptions. Nevertheless, Dr. Sanchez performed these unnecessary examinations so that he could get money from the patients’ insurance companies. This scheme led to Dr. Sanchez’s health care fraud conviction.
The money laundering charges stem from Dr. Sanchez’s spending the proceeds of his operation of a pill mill. Court documents describe Dr. Sanchez using those proceeds to purchase at least one vehicle and one personal residence located in Montgomery.
When he imposed the sentence, United States District Judge Myron H. Thompson told Dr. Sanchez that he was imposing the strong sentence because of the significant toll Sanchez’s criminal conduct took in the lives of Dr. Sanchez’s patients and employees. The judge noted that many of the patients were unusually vulnerable due to drug addictions. Judge Thompson also stressed the amount of money Dr. Sanchez obtained from his scheme, which was at least $3.5 million dollars.
Also on Thursday, a licensed professional counselor, Johnnie Chaisson Sanders, 48, of Wetumpka, Alabama, pleaded guilty to health care fraud. Court documents state that Sanders worked for Dr. Sanchez and, with Dr. Sanchez, participated in a fraudulent moneymaking venture. Specifically, Dr. Sanchez falsely told patients that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) required any person who received a prescription for a controlled substance to undergo mental health counseling. The DEA had no such requirement. Dr. Sanchez then referred the patients to Sanders. After Sanders provided counseling to a patient, Dr. Sanchez billed the patient’s insurance company for the counseling service. Sanders knew that Dr. Sanchez would do this. Nevertheless, Sanders would collect cash payments directly from the patients. As a result, Dr. Sanchez and Sanders got paid twice for the same services.
“A license to practice medicine does not give a doctor permission to be a drug dealer,” said United States Attorney Franklin. “This white coat criminal poured poison into this community for years and will never know nor be able to undo the harm Dr. Sanchez inflicted upon his patients and their loved ones. We hope that this strong sentence will send a message deter other doctors who might follow Dr. Sanchez down the path of putting profit over care.”
“A doctor takes an oath to do no harm, but Sanchez actively harmed his patients and their families.” stated Bret Hamilton, DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge. No one knows the number of lives that Sanchez destroyed for his own gain. Just because you have a medical degree, you can still be nothing more than a common drug dealer.”
“Sanchez put his patients’ lives at risk and decided to abuse his medical privileges in order to line his pockets,” said Thomas J. Holloman, Special Agent in Charge, IRS- Criminal Investigation. “IRS-CI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively pursue doctors and their employees who illegally divert prescription medications.”
“It’s reprehensible that a doctor entrusted with caring for his community would push unnecessary drugs on patients, knowing full well the ramifications of opioid abuse,”said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta. “Dr. Sanchez continuously put his financial gain above the health and safety of our local residents. HHS-OIG continues to focus resources on those who divert prescription medication for profit and abuse.”
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)’s Tactical Diversion Squad, the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI). The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency; Montgomery County, Alabama Sheriff’s Office; the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners; the Montgomery, Alabama Police Department; and the Opelika, Alabama Police Department all assisted in the investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and R. Rand Neeley prosecuted the case.
Founder of Lee County-Based Company Pleads Guilty to Securities FraudRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Wednesday, August 22, 2018, Kyle Geoffrey Sandler, 42, of Auburn, Alabama, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of securities fraud, announced Louis V. Franklin, Sr., U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama, James E. Jewell, Special Agent in Charge for the FBI, and Joseph P. Borg, Director of the Alabama Securities Commission.
The charges stemmed from Sandler soliciting and accepting over $1.8 million dollars from more than 50 investors in a scheme to defraud them. According to court records, from 2015 through 2016, Sandler founded and managed The Roundhouse LLC (Roundhouse), based in Lee County, Alabama. Throughout the Auburn and Opelika communities, Sandler advertised that Roundhouse was a business incubator company that helped develop new and startup companies by providing services such as venture capital, office space, 1-gigabit internet and management training.
During the course of business, Sandler made numerous misrepresentations and failed to share important information about his past. For example, he held himself out as a successful entrepreneur and former employee of Google, which, according to Sandler, paid him millions of dollars for his work during the time he worked there. Investors, relying on Sandler’s represented experience and expertise, turned over approximately $1.8 million dollars in investment funds to be used to further the business of Roundhouse. However, Sandler never actually worked for Google and he was using the investor funds for personal expenses such as childcare services, rent payments, purchases of automobiles and other personal needs.
In exchange for the fraudulently obtained investments, Sandler issued stock in Roundhouse and oversold the equity by approximately one hundred percent. Further, Sandler had prior felony convictions based on fraudulent conduct. He was required by law to disclose these prior felonies to potential investors.
Sandler faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment on each count of wire fraud and securities fraud, and a fine of not more than $5,000,000 on securities fraud.
“Sandler led people to believe he was a legitimate business man,” stated U.S. Attorney Franklin. “He took advantage of a community that trusted him as a business leader. We hope that this prosecution sends a clear message that such conduct will not be tolerated.”
FBI Special Agent in Charge James Jewell stated, “The FBI will continue to partner with the Alabama Securities Commission to ensure the victims of fraudulent investment schemes receive their full measure of justice. This justice is made possible through our strong relationships with agencies like the 37th Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office and the Opelika Police Department.”
Joseph P. Borg, Director of the Alabama Securities Commission said, “The Commission is always proud to partner with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Alabama, and the FBI, to protect Alabama investors and prevent the corruption of our capital markets. Sandler abused the trust of the community and we will continue to devote our efforts and resources to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who abuse that confidence.”
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Alabama Securities Commission, with assistance from the District Attorney’s Office for the 37th Judicial Circuit and the Opelika Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Steven H. Lee and Denise O. Simpson, and Special Assistant United States Attorneys Amanda W. Senn and Stephen P. Feaga.
Four Members of a Drug Trafficking Organization Plead GuiltyRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – Yesterday, four members of a drug trafficking organization based in Lee County pled guilty to charges against them on the second day of their trial, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Their guilty pleas bring the total number of members of the organization who have pled guilty in federal court to eighteen[i]. A nineteenth federal defendant, Phillip Maddox, 41, from Auburn, Alabama, is set for trial in October.
The four individuals who pled guilty yesterday were, Worldly Dieago Holstick, 36 and Timothy Lamar Spinks, 43, both from Auburn, Alabama; James Earl McIntyre, 28, from Montgomery, Alabama; and James Lee Hamilton, 41, from Santa Rosa, California.
According to witnesses who testified during the trial Wednesday, Holstick was the leader of the drug trafficking organization which stretched from Georgia to California. Spinks obtained cocaine from Holstick and distributed it in Lee County. McIntyre provided addresses to Holstick so that he could have boxes containing five to ten pounds of marijuana shipped from California to Alabama. Finally, Hamilton helped launder the proceeds of the drug activity through numerous bank accounts in California.
Holstick and Spinks pled guilty to various crimes including conspiracy to sell cocaine and marijuana, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. They each face a maximum sentence of life in prison. McIntyre pled guilty to various crimes including conspiracy to sell marijuana and he faces up to five years in prison. Hamilton pled guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering which carries a maximum sentence of twenty years in prison.
These cases were investigated by the following agencies: DEA – Montgomery Resident Office, Auburn Police Division, Eufaula Police Department, Prattville Police Department, Alabama Attorney General’s Office, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), Alabama HIDTA Task Force, Alabama National Guard, Autauga County Sheriff’s Office, Central Alabama Drug Task Force (CADTF), Elmore County Sheriff’s Office, Millbrook Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Montgomery Police Department, Lee County Sheriff’s Office, Lee County District Attorney’s Office, Opelika Police Department, Troy Police Department, and the United States Marshals Service.
The federal case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Verne Speirs, Kevin Davidson, Josh Wendell, and Curtis Ivy.
[i] Thirteen federal defendants were originally arrested in August 2017. Additional members of the drug trafficking organization have been arrested since then.
Federal Inmate Receives 7 Year Sentence for Assaulting a Correctional OfficerRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama. – On Thursday, July 26, 2018, Elvis Mark Hartrick, 42, of Panama City, Florida, received a sentence of 84 months for assaulting a correctional officer with a deadly weapon, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Hartrick pled guilty to the charge in April.
The assault took place in September 2017 while Hartrick was an inmate at Federal Prison Camp (FPC) Montgomery, located on Maxwell Air Force Base. FPC Montgomery staff received information about the location of contraband near a secluded fence line. Upon inspection of the area, staff discovered three packages and they waited to observe the individuals who would retrieve them. Hartrick and another inmate, Marvin Nathaniel Mobley, Jr., 29, of Jacksonville, Florida, arrived at the scene in a work truck. After retrieving the packages and placing them on the back of the truck, Hartick and Mobley got back into the vehicle. The correctional officer, who was unarmed, ordered Hartrick and Mobley to stop. Hartrick, who was driving the vehicle, ignored the command and accelerated the truck directly at the officer who was standing in the middle of the narrow roadway. Realizing that Hartick was not stopping, the officer jumped quickly out of the truck’s path to avoid being struck by the vehicle. The truck was later stopped by additional correctional staff.
The packages contained various items including cell phones, cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, and alcohol. Inmate Mobley received a two month sentence for possession of contraband.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Prisons. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Doug Howard prosecuted the case.
Baldwin County Legislator Charged in Public Corruption Case Related to Diabetes Treatment ClinicsRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Wednesday, July 25, 2018, another Alabama legislator was arrested in a pending public corruption case involving the owner of a chain of diabetes treatment clinics, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
State Representative Randall M. “Randy” Davis, 66, of Daphne, Alabama is the new defendant in this case and was charged in a superseding indictment along with co-defendants G. Ford Gilbert, 70, of Carmichael, California, and Martin J. “Marty” Connors, 61, of Alabaster.
The case began in April of 2018 when a federal grand jury returned an indictment against G. Ford Gilbert, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Trina Health, LLC (Trina Health)—a California-based company that operates diabetes treatment clinics all over the United States and in some foreign countries.
The original indictment alleged that in 2014 and 2015, Trina Health opened three clinics in Alabama. Soon thereafter, the state’s largest health insurer informed Trina Health that it would not cover the treatments provided by Trina Health. Gilbert then schemed to force the insurer to change its position.
Gilbert came up with a plan to push a bill through the Alabama Legislature’s 2016 session that would require the insurer to cover the treatments. Gilbert then made payments and gave things of value to a legislator, former House of Representatives Majority Leader Micky Ray Hammon, in exchange for Hammon working behind the scenes to push the bill. Gilbert also hired co-defendant Martin Connors to act as a lobbyist on behalf of the bill. Connors knew of Gilbert’s payments to the legislator.
The new charges contained in the superseding indictment alleges that Davis also stood to gain from Trina Health’s successes. According to the indictment, during 2014 and 2015, Davis tried to recruit investors to Trina Health and, as a result of doing so, he received finder’s fees. After Trina Health encountered difficulties with the health insurance companies, Davis attempted to lobby the insurance company to change its position. When that failed, Davis took steps to advance the bill. For example, Davis helped to recruit a sponsor, arranged for the public hearing to be video recorded, and then spoke in favor of the bill at a public hearing.
Based on these events, the superseding indictment charges Davis, Gilbert, and Connors with conspiracy to commit bribery related to federal programs. Additionally, the superseding indictment alleges that Gilbert committed various acts of bribery related to federal programs. Gilbert and Davis are also charged with interstate travel and communications in aid of racketeering. The last count in the superseding indictment charges Connors with making a false statement to a federal agent.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. Each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted of the most serious offenses, each defendant in this case faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, significant monetary penalties, asset forfeiture, and restitution.
The United States Postal Inspection Service investigated the case with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross, Joshua J. Wendell, and Stephanie Billingslea are prosecuting the case.
Three Suspected Cocaine Traffickers ArrestedRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama– Three (3) suspected cocaine traffickers made their initial appearance in federal court yesterday and are facing charges of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Jose Ocampo-Gonzalez, 49, Kristopher Kashif Baker, 32, and Robert Reynolds, Jr., all from Tuskegee, were arrested this week and are currently in United States Marshals custody pending a detention hearing.
The arrests follow a federal investigation that has led to the seizure of 9 kilograms of cocaine, 23 kilograms of marijuana, 100 grams of crack cocaine, and 221 grams of hydrocodone. In addition, over $260,000 and at least 13 firearms were seized.
This investigation is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce the distribution of illegal drugs and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.
Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The investigating agencies include: the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), the Montgomery Police Department, the Prattville Police Department, the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office, the Central Alabama Drug Task Force, the Autauga County Sheriff’s Office, the Millbrook Police Department, the Eufaula Police Department and the Alabama Attorney General’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Curtis Ivy, Jr., and R. Randolph “Rand” Neeley.
Wiregrass Farmer Pleads Guilty to Fraudulently Obtaining Federal Crop Insurance FundsRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Wednesday, June 27, 2018, Dexter Day Gilbert, 40, of Campbellton, Florida pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government property, announced United States Attorney Louis Franklin and Special Agent in Charge Karen Citizen-Wilcox, with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General. The offense related to the fraudulent acquisition of crop assistance programs funded by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency.
According to court documents, during 2016 Gilbert leased farmland in Houston County, Alabama. There, Gilbert carried out a scheme through which he fraudulently obtained over $900,000 in crop insurance funds through the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP). That program exists to provide farmers of certain crops with financial protection in case of losses due to unforeseen natural disasters. Each farmer can obtain up to approximately $115,000 per year in NAP assistance, regardless of whether a farmer’s actual losses exceed that amount.
In order to bypass the program’s individual payment limit, Gilbert obtained numerous policies in the names of friends and family members. Gilbert falsely reported to the Farm Service Agency that those friends and family members would be farming land, even though Gilbert was the only one actually leasing the land. Gilbert attempted to grow tomatoes and summer squash on the land and, when a drought hit and the crops failed, he filed claims on behalf of the individuals he had obtained insurance policies. As a result, Gilbert was able to receive almost nine times the maximum amount allowed under the NAP program. He used the federal funds to repay a creditor.
“Farming has long been a vital part of life in this district,” stated United States Attorney Franklin. “Farmers across the country depend on federal programs like the one in this case to survive when disaster strikes. I want the entire farming community to know that my office will investigate and prosecute all who seek to cheat the government out of crop insurance money.”
At sentencing, Gilbert will face a maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, as well as substantial monetary penalties and restitution.
This case was investigated by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross is prosecuting the case.
Verbena Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Federal Drug Trafficking and Firearms CrimesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – - James Calvin Talley, Jr., 37, of Verbena, Alabama, was sentenced to life in prison for possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, using a phone to facilitate a drug crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Louis Franklin. Talley’s conviction for distribution of methamphetamine carried a mandatory life sentence because he had two prior felony drug convictions. There is no parole in the federal system.
Evidence presented at trial showed that on December 3, 2016, a drug courier delivered more than 100 pounds of marijuana to Talley’s home in Verbena. When the courier arrived at Talley's home, he got out of the car and Talley drove the car alone to another house in Marbury, Alabama. There, Talley backed the car up to the front door of the house and opened the trunk. Law enforcement, who had knowledge of the drug delivery, followed Talley from his home to the house in Marbury. Talley ran into the house when law enforcement arrived but was arrested as he was running out of the backdoor. Inside the house, which belonged to co-defendant Richie Dale Murphy, law enforcement officers found two pistols, more than 3 pounds of methamphetamine, over $20,000 in cash, marijuana, and drug paraphernalia used for packaging and selling narcotics.
Following the search at Murphy's house, law enforcement searched Talley's home and found two more pistols, along with more than $50,000 in cash, a currency counter, drug ledgers and receipts for wire transfers of large amounts of money.
Murphy, who previously pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, testified at trial that he and Talley were in business together, and that Talley used Murphy's home as his stash house for marijuana and methamphetamine. Murphy is facing at least 15 years in prison for his charges. A date for his sentencing has not yet been set.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Autauga County Sheriff’s Office, and the Chilton County Sheriff’s Office. The Alabama Attorney General’s Office, Millbrook Police Department, Montgomery Police Department, and Prattville Police Department all assisted with this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Geer and Kevin Davidson prosecuted the case.
Two Prattville Men Sentenced for Sex Trafficking of a MinorRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – Two Prattville men were sentenced today to more than 16 years in prison for the sex trafficking of minors, announced United States Attorney Louis Franklin, Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan, Prattville Police Chief Mark Thompson, Special Agent in Charge Jere T. Miles of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New Orleans, and Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall.
Michael Graham Lowe, 25, was sentenced to serve 220 months in prison for the sex trafficking of a minor and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor. Joshua David Rose, 30, was sentenced to serve 200 months for the sex trafficking of a minor. There is no parole in the federal system. Both Lowe and Rose were also ordered to serve 15 years of supervised release upon the completion of their prison sentences. In addition, they were both ordered to pay restitution to their victims.
Rose had previously pled guilty in August 2017 and Lowe was found guilty after a four-day trial in February 2018.
The investigation was initiated by the Prattville Police Department and showed that in May 2016, Lowe, along with Rose, trafficked a minor victim out of a motel in Montgomery. Evidence presented at trial showed that Rose, with the assistance of Lowe, advertised the victim on the classified advertising website Backpage.com, arranged meetings for the victim to engage in commercial sex acts, and stood watch outside of the motel room while the victim engaged in commercial sex acts. Testimony showed that Lowe also transported the minor victim to another location to engage in a commercial sex act and that Lowe and Rose used the profits to purchase illegal narcotics.
“There is no place in our community for those who prey on children,” stated U.S. Attorney Franklin. “I hope that these sentences send a clear message that exploiting and prostituting a child will not be tolerated. I am grateful for the hard work of everyone involved in this case, but I would like to extend a special thank you to the Prattville Police Department, who initiated this investigation. I pledge that my office will continue to work with all of our law enforcement partners to bring predators like these to justice.”
“Michael Lowe and Joshua Rose preyed on and trafficked a minor girl, using Backpage.com to arrange meetings for the victim to engage in sex for money that the defendants used to purchase illegal narcotics,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Cronan. “Thanks to the outstanding efforts of the prosecutors and agents who worked on this very important case, Rose and Lowe will be held accountable for their reprehensible crimes, and some measure of justice has been achieved for the victim they so cruelly exploited.”
“The Prattville Police Department is grateful for the relationship we have with the U.S Attorney’s Office and all the agencies involved in this case,” stated Prattville Police Chief Mark Thompson. “These sentences should send a strong message to anyone committing these types of crimes that we will work hard to find you and send you to prison. We are very proud of our Criminal Intelligent Unit for the effort they put into this case. It shows that Prattville PD is very proactive and we will continue to develop better ways to combat crime.”
“Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery, and the threats and abuse inflicted on these particular victims only adds to the heinous nature of the crime,” said Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security New Orleans Jere T. Miles. “HSI is committed to working with our federal, state and local partners to find and prosecute criminal traffickers while ensuring the victims of this terrible crime are rescued and get the care they need.”
“These men cruelly exploited the vulnerability of their young victim and the severity of their crimes more than warrants the long prison sentences they have received,” said Attorney General Steve Marshall. “Human trafficking is a horrific crime that traps its victims in a life of misery and abuse. This prosecution was the result of a long and painstaking investigation by many agents and officers. I applaud the diligence of the Prattville Police Department, which initiated these cases, working with agents of the Alabama Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and assisted by the Montgomery Police Department. I also want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its successful prosecution to bring these criminals to justice. As Alabama’s Attorney General, I am committed to continue this kind of cooperative and dedicated teamwork among agencies, which is the key to making our state a safer place.”
This case was jointly investigated by the Prattville Police Department, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, with assistance from the United States Marshal’s Service and Montgomery Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hollie Worley Reed of the Middle District of Alabama and Trial Attorney Leslie Williams Fisher of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Two Alabama Men Sentenced to Prison for Sex TraffickingRead the Press Release
Two Alabama men were sentenced today to more than 16 years in prison for the sex trafficking of minors, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin Sr. of the Middle District of Alabama, Prattville Police Chief Mark Thompson, Special Agent in Charge Jere T. Miles of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New Orleans and Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall.
Michael Graham Lowe, 25, of Prattville, Alabama, was sentenced to serve 220 months in prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release for the sex trafficking of a minor and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor. Joshua David Rose, 30, also of Prattville, Alabama, was sentenced to serve 200 months in prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release for the sex trafficking of a minor. The defendants were sentenced by U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler of the Northern District of Alabama, who ordered both Lowe and Rose to pay restitution in the amount of $560 to one victim and ordered Rose to pay an additional $7,140 in restitution to two victims.
Rose pleaded guilty in August 2017. Lowe was found guilty after a four-day trial in February 2018. According to evidence presented at trial, in May 2016, Lowe, along with Rose, trafficked a minor victim out of a motel in Montgomery, Alabama. Evidence presented at trial showed that Rose, with the assistance of Lowe, advertised the victim on Backpage.com, arranged meetings for the victim to engage in commercial sex acts, and stood watch outside of the motel room while the victim engaged in commercial sex acts. Testimony showed that Lowe also transported the minor victim to another location to engage in a commercial sex act. Testimony at trial showed that Lowe and Rose used the profits made from the victim’s commercial sex acts to purchase illegal narcotics.
“Michael Lowe and Joshua Rose preyed on and trafficked a minor girl, using Backpage.com to arrange meetings for the victim to engage in sex for money that the defendants used to purchase illegal narcotics,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Cronan. “Thanks to the outstanding efforts of the prosecutors and agents who worked on this very important case, Rose and Lowe will be held accountable for their reprehensible crimes, and some measure of justice has been achieved for the victim they so cruelly exploited.”
“There is no place in our community for those who prey on children,” said U.S. Attorney Franklin. “I hope that these lengthy sentences send a clear message that exploiting and prostituting a child will not be tolerated. I am grateful for the hard work of everyone involved in this case, but I would like to extend a special thank you to the Prattville Police Department, who initiated this investigation. I pledge that my office will continue to work with all of our law enforcement partners to bring predators like these to justice.”
“The Prattville Police Department is grateful for the relationship we have with the U.S Attorney’s Office and all the agencies involved in this case,” said Prattville Police Chief Thompson. “These sentences should send a strong message to anyone committing these types of crimes that we will work hard to find you and send you to prison. We are very proud of our Criminal Intelligent Unit for the effort they put into this case. It shows that Prattville PD is very proactive and we will continue to develop better ways to combat crime.”
“Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery, and the threats and abuse inflicted on these particular victims only adds to the heinous nature of the crime,” said HSI Special Agent in Charge Miles. “HSI is committed to working with our federal, state and local partners to find and prosecute criminal traffickers while ensuring the victims of this terrible crime are rescued and get the care they need.”
“These men cruelly exploited the vulnerability of their young victim and the severity of their crimes more than warrants the long prison sentences they have received,” said Alabama Attorney General Marshall. “Human trafficking is a horrific crime that traps its victims in a life of misery and abuse. This prosecution was the result of a long and painstaking investigation by many agents and officers. I applaud the diligence of the Prattville Police Department, which initiated these cases, working with agents of the Alabama Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and assisted by the Montgomery Police Department. I also want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its successful prosecution to bring these criminals to justice. As Alabama’s Attorney General, I am committed to continue this kind of cooperative and dedicated teamwork among agencies, which is the key to making our state a safer place.”
This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Prattville, Alabama Police Department, with assistance from the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, the Montgomery, Alabama Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Service. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Leslie Williams Fisher of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Hollie Worley Reed of the Middle District of Alabama.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Phenix City Chiropractor Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Commit Wire Fraud Related to Truck Driver PhysicalsRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Wednesday, June 13, 2018, Dr. Kenneth G. Edwards, 65, a resident of Columbus, Georgia and previously a practicing chiropractor in Phenix City, Alabama, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud, announced United States Attorney Louis Franklin. Dr. Edwards’s conviction resulted from his scheme to submit false documents to the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT).
According to court records, the false documents Dr. Edwards submitted to the USDOT related to physical examinations that he supposedly performed on licensed truck drivers, or prospective truck drivers who were seeking a commercial driver’s license (CDL). The USDOT requires that all truck drivers undergo an initial physical examination before receiving a CDL, and that they have subsequent examinations every two years to maintain the license.
During the plea hearing, Dr. Edwards admitted that, on occasions, he allowed his employees - none of whom were trained medical professionals - to conduct the USDOT - required physicals. Then, Dr. Edwards would submit documents to the USDOT falsely reporting that he had actually performed the physicals.
A sentencing hearing has not yet been set. Dr. Edwards faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, along with substantial monetary penalties and restitution.
This case was investigated by the United States Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General with assistance from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and Steven H. Lee are prosecuting the case.
Former Tuskegee Police Lieutenant Convicted of Civil Rights Offense for Assaulting ArresteeRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama –Former Tuskegee Police Department Lieutenant Alex Huntley, 54, was convicted Friday for beating a handcuffed and compliant arrestee, announced U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., of the Middle District of Alabama, FBI Special Agent in Charge James Jewell, and Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
Evidence presented at trial established that, on Dec. 24, 2014, Huntley arrested a man who scuffled with police near the Tuskegee town square and directed a fellow police officer to transport him back to the Tuskegee Police Department for booking. Once there, Huntley sprayed pepper spray in the arrestee’s face, even though the arrestee was handcuffed and following police instructions. Huntley then took the arrestee inside the police station, where Huntley knocked the still-handcuffed arrestee to the ground, stomped on him, and repeatedly kicked and punched him. In between blows, Huntley stood over the arrestee and yelled threats at him as the arrestee screamed in pain. A police officer recruit who witnessed the beating was so horrified that he secretly audio-recorded the assault on his cell phone.
Former Tuskegee Lieutenant Darian Locure, 45, was also charged with a civil rights offense and obstruction of justice. He was acquitted on all charges.
Following this conviction, Huntley is facing up to 10 years in prison, substantial fines, and 3 years of supervised release after his sentenced is served. There is no parole in the federal system.
“The majority of our police officers are dedicated to protecting and serving the public with strength, courage, and valor. Unfortunately, Mr. Huntley was not so dedicated,” said U.S. Attorney Franklin. “Police officers walk a tough, yet honorable line every day. This office is committed to prosecuting any law enforcement officer who abandons their oath to protect and serve and, instead, chooses to engage in criminal conduct that they are sworn to oppose.”
“Lady Justice wears a blindfold for a reason, and a violation of someone's civil rights by a sworn law enforcement officer cannot be tolerated,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge James Jewell.
“Illegal conduct by officers who abuse their power and violate the civil rights of those in their custody will not be tolerated,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore. “The Department will continue to vigorously enforce our nation’s laws and hold officers who break the law accountable.”
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Alabama State Bureau of Investigation also assisted in the investigation. It is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Samantha Trepel of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and Assistant United States Attorney Denise O. Simpson of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Alabama.
Another Physician Pleads Guilty in the Montgomery “Pill Mill” ProsecutionRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – On Monday, June 11, 2018, a physician, Dr. Willie J. Chester, 65, of Pike Road, Alabama, pleaded guilty in the ongoing “pill mill prosecution” arising out of a now-closed Montgomery medical office, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. That medical practice was known as “Family Practice” and was located at 4143 Atlanta Highway in Montgomery.
According to court documents, Dr. Chester pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and abetting the fraudulent acquisition of controlled substances. During the plea hearing, Dr. Chester admitting to writing a prescription for clonazepam (commonly known as the brand name drug, Klonopin) despite knowing that the patient receiving the prescription had no legitimate medical need for the drug.
A date for his sentencing hearing has not yet been set. At sentencing, Dr. Chester will face a maximum sentence of four years in prison, as well as substantial monetary penalties.
Dr. Chester is the ninth defendant to plead guilty in a case arising from the operation of this “pill mill.” In November of last year, the practice’s owner, Dr. Gilberto Sanchez, pleaded guilty to drug distribution, health care fraud, and money laundering charges. Since that time, three other physicians (including Dr. Chester) have pleaded guilty to drug distribution charges; two certified registered nurse practitioners have pleaded guilty to drug distribution charges; and three other employees have pleaded guilty to health care fraud and money laundering offenses.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division, and the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General. The Montgomery County, Alabama Sheriff’s Office, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners, the Montgomery, Alabama Police Department, the Opelika, Alabama Police Department, and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency all assisted in the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross is prosecuting the case.
Former Chief Executive Officer of Health Care Company Charged with Giving Kickbacks to Pill Mill Doctor, Health Care Fraud, and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – On Thursday, June 7, 2018, a William “Ed” Henry, 47, of Hartselle, Alabama, was arrested on charges stemming from his role in a medical kickback scheme, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
According to court documents, from 2015 through 2017, Henry was an owner of a health care company, MyPractice24, Inc. (MyPractice24). During some of that time, Henry also served as the company’s chief executive officer (CEO). MyPractice24 provided non-face-to-face chronic care management services to Medicare beneficiaries who had two or more chronic conditions. The company did so pursuant to contracts into which it entered with primary care physicians. Under those contracts, the doctors would pay Henry’s company to provide these chronic care management services to the doctors’ patients, the company would provide the services, the doctors would bill Medicare for the services, and then the doctors would pay Henry’s company a share of the reimbursements received from Medicare.
The indictment alleges that in 2016, Henry entered into an agreement with Dr. Gilberto Sanchez, a Montgomery physician who has subsequently pleaded guilty to drug distribution, health care fraud, and money laundering charges. Under that agreement, MyPractice24 would provide various kickbacks to Dr. Sanchez and his staff in return for the providers at Dr. Sanchez’s practice referring Medicare beneficiaries to MyPractice24 for chronic care management services. Among the kickbacks provided were direct payments to a member of the staff, free chronic care management services, free medical billing services, and free clinical services unrelated to the provision of chronic care management services. Additionally, Henry assisted Dr. Sanchez in paying kickbacks to patients who enrolled in the chronic care management program. Dr. Sanchez paid these kickbacks by systematically waiving copays—copays which Medicare required Dr. Sanchez to collect.
The indictment charges Henry with one count of conspiring to pay kickbacks and to defraud the United States. It then alleges six counts of paying unlawful kickbacks—each count is based on a different type of kickback Henry paid to Dr. Sanchez and those who worked at Dr. Sanchez’s practice. Next, the indictment charges Henry with one count of conspiring to commit health care fraud and five counts of health care fraud. Those counts are based on Henry’s assisting Dr. Sanchez in unlawfully waiving copay obligations and then failing to report the copay waivers to Medicare. Last, the indictment alleges that Henry conspired to commit money laundering. The money laundering charge results from Henry’s using the proceeds of health care fraud to make payments to Dr. Sanchez’s staff members.
If convicted of the most serious offense, Henry faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, significant monetary penalties, asset forfeiture, and restitution.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, and the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners, the Montgomery Police Department, and the Opelika Police Department assisted in the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross is prosecuting the case.
Mental Health Counselor Indicted for Health Care Fraud and Perjury Offenses Stemming from Montgomery “Pill Mill”Read the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Tuesday, May 29, 2018, a licensed professional counselor was arrested after being indicted by a federal grand jury for her role in working at a Montgomery “pill mill,” announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. The defendant arrested was Johnnie Chaisson Sanders, 48, of Wetumpka.
According to court documents, Sanders previously provided mental health counseling services at Family Practice, located at 4143 Atlanta Highway in Montgomery. The owner of Family Practice, Dr. Gilberto Sanchez, was a Montgomery physician who has pleaded guilty to drug distribution, health care fraud, and money laundering charges. Four of the other health care providers employed by Family Practice have also pleaded guilty to federal charges. While working at Family Practice, Sanders provided mental health counseling services to patients of Dr. Sanchez who were receiving controlled substances.
The indictment charges Sanders with health care fraud and perjury offenses. As for the health care fraud, the indictment charges Sanders with committing that offense in two different ways. First, Sanders is alleged to have provided bogus diagnoses of mental health conditions for the purpose of allowing Dr. Sanchez to support prescribing unnecessary medications. Second, the indictment states that Sanders collected cash payments from patients for counseling services even though she knew that Dr. Sanchez’s office would bill the patients’ insurance companies for the same services. As for the perjury charge, Sanders allegedly testified before a grand jury and falsely claimed that Dr. Sanchez did not require patients to undergo counseling sessions with her. In fact, as Sanders then knew, Dr. Sanchez required patients who received prescriptions for controlled substances to visit Sanders for mental health counseling.
If convicted, Sanders faces a maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment on the health care fraud counts and a maximum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment on the perjury count. She also faces substantial fines and monetary penalties.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, and the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners, the Montgomery Police Department, and the Opelika Police Department assisted in this investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross is prosecuting the case.
Physician, Nurse Practitioner, and Nurse Plead Guilty in Montgomery “Pill Mill” CaseRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – During the past few weeks, three more health care providers have pleaded guilty in the ongoing “pill mill” prosecution arising out of a now-closed Montgomery medical office, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. That medical practice was known as “Family Practice” and was located at 4143 Atlanta Highway in Montgomery. In November of last year, the practice’s owner, Dr. Gilberto Sanchez, pleaded guilty to drug distribution, health care fraud, and money laundering charges. The details of each new guilty plea are as follows.
On Friday May 11, 2018, Dr. Julio Delgado, 56, of Homewood, Alabama, pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the fraudulent acquisition of controlled substances. According to court documents, Dr. Delgado worked for Sanchez at Family Practice during 2015 and 2016. During that time, Dr. Delgado saw some of Dr. Sanchez’s patients when Dr. Sanchez was too busy. In open court on May 11, Dr. Delgado admitted to writing a prescription for someone who was never his patient and without ever examining the person.
On Monday, April 23, 2018, Elizabeth Cronier, 70, of Montgomery, Alabama, also pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting the fraudulent acquisition of controlled substances. Court documents show that Cronier was a certified registered nurse practitioner and that she worked for Sanchez at Family Practice from 2016 to 2017. When she pleaded guilty, Cronier admitted to aiding and abetting a patient in obtaining a fraudulent prescription for buprenorphine.
On Monday, April 30, 2018, Stephanie Michelle Ott, 42, of Fairhope, Alabama pleaded guilty to conspiring to make false statements related to health care matters. The charging document states that Ott, a registered nurse, worked for Sanchez during 2015 and 2016, serving as a practice management consultant. Through her work, Ott helped to implement a new medical billing system for the practice. Ott did so knowing that the system she was implementing would cause the practice to report medical services provided by nurse practitioners as though physicians had provided the services. By doing so, the practice collected 15 percent more for each service than it would have had it accurately reported the qualifications of the health care providers.
Each defendant will be scheduled for a sentencing hearing over the next several months. At sentencing, Delgado and Cronier will face maximum sentences of four years in prison, as well as substantial monetary penalties. Ott will face a maximum sentence of five years in prison, along with the monetary penalties.
These guilty pleas now make eight defendants who have pleaded guilty to offenses arising out of the operation of this pill mill. The five defendants who pleaded guilty previously are: (1) Dr. Sanchez, as noted above; (2) Dr. Sanchez’s former partner, Dr. Shepherd A. Odom, who pleaded guilty to drug distribution and money laundering charges; (3) nurse practitioner Steven Cox, who pleaded guilty to drug distribution and health care fraud charges; (4) Misty Fannin, the practice’s former office manager, who pleaded guilty to money laundering; and (5) Farley Pugh, another former office manager, who pleaded guilty to conspiring to make false statements related to health care matters.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division, and the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners, the Montgomery Police Department, and the Opelika Police Department all assisted in the investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and R. Rand Neeley are prosecuting the case.
Former Social Security Administration Employee and Husband Sentenced to Prison for Committing Public Benefit FraudRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Friday, May 11, 2018, a former employee of the Social Security Administration (SSA) and her husband were sentenced to prison for defrauding the federal government, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr.
The two defendants were former SSA employee Nakia Palmer, 35, and her husband, Nathaniel Palmer, 30. Both Nakia Palmer and Nathaniel Palmer presently reside in Gadsden, Alabama, but resided in Montgomery, Alabama during the period they committed their crimes. Nakia Palmer was sentenced to 24 months in prison, and Nathaniel Palmer received a 6 month prison sentence, to be followed by 6 months of home detention. There is no parole in the federal system.
The sentences follow Nakia Palmer’s and Nathaniel Palmer’s February 15, 2018 convictions after a four-day trial. At that trial, the jury found Nakia Palmer guilty of mail fraud, theft of government property, Social Security benefit fraud, and food stamp fraud. The jury convicted Nathaniel Palmer of mail fraud, theft of government property, and witness tampering. Each defendant was found guilty of all counts in which he or she was charged.
The trial evidence showed that the Palmers lied about their incomes and living arrangements for the purposes of fraudulently obtaining Social Security benefits on behalf of Nakia Palmer’s minor son. Specifically, Nakia Palmer falsely informed Social Security employees in Dothan, Alabama that she was an actress living in California and had left her minor son in her husband’s exclusive custody, so that Social Security would not consider her income in determining whether her son was eligible for benefits. All the while, Nakia Palmer worked for Social Security in the Montgomery office. Evidence also showed that the Palmers did not use the fraudulently obtained benefits to support her child. Rather, the couple spent the money on the financing of a new vehicle. According to the evidence, Nakia Palmer made similar false claims for the purpose of obtaining food stamps. In total, the Palmers received approximately $25,000 in benefits to which they were not entitled.
As for the witness tampering, the government proved that, after becoming aware that he was under investigation, Nathaniel Palmer asked his next-door neighbor to lie to investigators regarding the family’s living arrangements.
This case was investigated by the Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General, as well as the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General. The United States Department of Agriculture – Office of Inspector General assisted in the investigation, along with the Alabama Department of Human Resources. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and Joshua Wendell prosecuted the case.
Seven Suspected Cocaine and Marijuana Traffickers ArrestedRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama– Seven suspected cocaine and marijuana traffickers were arrested early Thursday morning, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. These arrests follow an indictment by a federal grand jury charging the seven defendants with conspiracy to distribute narcotics, primarily in the Montgomery area.
The following individuals are in custody: Cyrus Phyfier, 49, Edgar Lee Coleston, 40, Erwin Marvin Smith, 57, Gene Earl Easterling, Jr., 46, and George Edward Jones, III, 40, all from Montgomery. As well as Ernest Lee Rhodes, 35, from Greenville, and Jacques Bradley, Jr., 34, from Ohio.
The federal investigation has led to the seizure of approximately $1,000,000.00 in U.S. currency and jewelry, as well as the seizure of firearms and controlled substances.
Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. Each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The defendants made their initial appearance in federal court on Thursday and will remain in federal custody pending a detention hearing.
The investigating agencies include the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the Montgomery Police Department, the Prattville Police Department, the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office, the Central Alabama Drug Task Force, the Autauga County Sheriff’s Office, the Millbrook Police Department, the Butler County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Marshals Service, and the State of Alabama Attorney General’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Curtis Ivy, Jr., and R. Randolph “Rand” Neeley are prosecuting the case.
Valley, Alabama Woman Indicted for Filing False Tax Returns and Stealing from Her EmployerRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment, which was unsealed today, charging a woman with filing false tax returns and wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. for the Middle District of Alabama, and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
According to the indictment, from February 2007 through May 2014, Alita Baker Edeker (48) of Valley, Alabama stole over $500,000 of her employer’s funds for her own personal benefit and the benefit of others, by directing customer payments to debit and credit cards she controlled. The indictment further alleges that Edeker made false statements and representations in the company’s books and records in order to conceal her misappropriation. After misappropriating the funds, the indictment further alleges that Edeker willfully filed false U.S. individual income tax returns for tax years 2011, 2012, and 2013 that did not report the money.
If convicted Edeker faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each wire fraud count and three years in prison for each count of filing a false tax return. Edeker also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
U.S. Attorney Franklin and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman commended special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation and the Auburn Police Department, who investigated the case, and Tax Division Trial Attorney Grace Albinson and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ben Baxley, who are prosecuting this case.
Alabama Woman Indicted for Filing False Tax Returns and Stealing from Her EmployerRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - A federal grand jury in Montgomery, Alabama, has returned an indictment, which was unsealed today, charging a woman with filing false tax returns and wire fraud, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. for the Middle District of Alabama.
According to the indictment, from February 2007 through May 2014, Alita Baker Edeker of Valley, Alabama stole over $500,000 of her employer’s funds for her own personal benefit and the benefit of others, by directing customer payments to debit and credit cards she controlled. The indictment further alleges that Edeker made false statements and representations in the company’s books and records in order to conceal her misappropriation. After misappropriating the funds, the indictment further alleges that Edeker willfully filed false U.S. individual income tax returns for tax years 2011, 2012, and 2013 that did not report the money.
If convicted Edeker faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each wire fraud count and three years in prison for each count of filing a false tax return. Edeker also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Franklin commended special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation and the Auburn, Alabama Police Department, who investigated the case, and Tax Division Trial Attorney Grace Albinson and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ben Baxley, who are prosecuting this case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Alabama Legislator, Alabama Lobbyist, and Owner of California Company Charged with Public CorruptionRead the Press Release
On Monday, April 2, 2018, three individuals—two of whom reside in Alabama and one who resides in California—were arrested on charges stemming from their involvement in a public corruption scheme, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. The Alabama defendants are State Representative Jack D. Williams, 60, of Vestavia Hills, Alabama and lobbyist Martin J. “Marty” Connors, 61, of Alabaster, Alabama. The California defendant is G. Ford Gilbert, 70, of Carmichael, California.
According to the indictment, Defendant Gilbert is the owner of a California company that operates diabetes treatment centers throughout the world—Trina Health, LLC (Trina Health). In 2014 and 2015, Trina Health opened three clinics in Alabama. Soon thereafter, the state’s largest health insurer, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama (a.k.a. Blue Cross), informed Trina Health that it would not cover the treatments provided by them. Gilbert then schemed to force Blue Cross to change its position.
He came up with a plan to push a bill through the Alabama Legislature’s 2016 session that would require Blue Cross to cover the treatments. Gilbert then made payments to State of Alabama House Majority Leader Micky Hammon in exchange for his efforts on behalf of the bill. Gilbert also hired Defendant Connors to act as a lobbyist on behalf of the bill. Connors knew of Gilbert’s payments to Majority Leader Hammon. Hammon and Connors then recruited Defendant Williams, the chairman of the Commerce and Small Business Committee of the Alabama House of Representatives, to hold a public hearing on the bill. Williams also knew of the payments to Hammon and acted in part to help Hammon, who, as everyone in the scheme knew, was experiencing grave financial problems.
Based on these events, the indictment charges all three defendants with conspiracy to commit bribery related to federal programs, conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, and honest services wire fraud. Additionally, the indictment alleges that Gilbert and Connors committed the substantive offense of bribery related to federal programs. Gilbert alone is charged with wire fraud, health care fraud, and interstate travel in aid of racketeering. The indictment does not include charges against Hammon because Hammon has already been convicted in federal court of other offenses.
If convicted of the most serious offenses, each defendant in this case faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, significant monetary penalties, asset forfeiture, and restitution.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. Each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
The United States Postal Inspection Service investigated the case with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and Joshua Wendell are prosecuting the case.
15 People Arrested in Montgomery for Federal Gun CrimesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama— Fifteen people in Montgomery were indicted last week and arrested yesterday for illegally possessing guns, announced Louis V. Franklin, Sr., United States Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama. Nationwide, gun crimes, gangs and shootings are at an all-time high and law enforcement in the River Region is working to make our neighborhoods safer and our citizens more secure. To that end, the following people have been indicted and/or arrested:
- Harold Brandon Abrams, 37 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Frederick Bell, 30 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime, and possession with the intent to distribute drugs;
- Tommy Ray Clayton, 55 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Timmarcus Tywaun Cole, 31 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Tracy Leanard Coleman, Jr., 23 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Byron Jamar Esco, 29 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Little Joe Foster, 30 years old, possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime, and possession with the intent to distribute drugs;
- Chaunce Deva Lewis, 20 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime, and possession with the intent to distribute drugs;
- Donte Deandre McDaniel, 35 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Christopher Lionell Miles, 49 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Frank Pollard, Jr., 38 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Paul Joequez Rowe, 25 years old, possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime, and possession with the intent to distribute drugs;
- Cedrick Smith, 32 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime, and possession with the intent to distribute drugs;
- Antonio Oscar Tatum, 32 years old, theft of a firearm, possession/sale of stolen firearm, and a felon in possession of a firearm;
- Shaundre Eugene White, 37 years old, a felon in possession of a firearm;
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
If convicted, the defendants charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm face a maximum prison sentence of ten years, a fine of no more than $250,000 and a term of supervised release of no more than three years. If convicted of possession with the intent to distribute drugs, the defendants face a maximum prison term of 20 years, a fine of not more than $1,000,000, and a term of supervised release of at least three years. The defendants charged with possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime must be sentenced to at least five years, fined no more than $250,000 and serve a term of supervised release of no more than three years. The defendant charged with theft of a firearm and possession/sale of a stolen firearm faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 and a term of supervised release of no more than three years. There is no parole in the federal system.
This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Montgomery pursuant to the Project Safe Neighborhood program. Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is a nationwide commitment to reduce gun and gang crime in America by networking existing local programs that target gun and gun crime and providing these programs with additional tools necessary to be successful. These cases were investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Montgomery Police Department, the United States Marshals Service, the United States Marshal Service Gulf Coast Fugitive Task Force, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the State of Alabama Attorney General’s Office, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Assistant Tuskegee Football Coach Arrested on Federal Drug and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – Today, Ramone Jardon Nickerson, 33, of Phenix City, Alabama, was arrested on two charges of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance and one charge of possession of a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., from the Middle District of Alabama. Nickerson was an assistant football coach at Tuskegee University.
The charges stem from allegations that Nickerson was selling cocaine and marijuana in the Tuskegee area. Nickerson was indicted by a federal grand jury after being found with approximately 3 ounces of cocaine, a pound of marijuana, and a .40 caliber handgun on March 13, 2018 in Russell County.
If convicted, Nickerson faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for the drug trafficking charges, and at least 5 years for the firearms charge. There is no parole in the federal system.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Gulf Coast H.I.D.T.A., Montgomery Police Department, Autauga County Sheriff’s Office, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA), Alabama Attorney General’s Office, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Prattville Police Department, and Russell County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Ben Baxley is prosecuting the case.
Phenix City Resident and Ringleader of Multi-Million Dollar Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud Schemes Sentenced to PrisonRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – A Phenix City, Alabama, resident was sentenced today to 30 years in prison for his role in masterminding multiple stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) schemes, announced U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. of the Middle District of Alabama, and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.
William Anthony Gosha III, a/k/a Boo Boo, was convicted, following a jury trial in November 2017, of one count of conspiracy, 22 counts of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, and 25 counts of aggravated identity theft.
According to the evidence presented at trial and sentencing, between November 2010 and December 2013, Gosha ran a large-scale identity theft ring with his co-conspirators, Tracy Mitchell, Keshia Lanier, and Tamika Floyd, who were all previously convicted and sentenced to prison. Together they filed over 8,800 tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that sought more than $22 million in fraudulent refunds of which the IRS paid out approximately $9 million.
In November 2010, Gosha stole IDs of inmates from the Alabama Department of Corrections and provided the IDs to Lanier who used the information to seek fraudulent tax refunds. Gosha and Lanier agreed to split the proceeds. Gosha also stole employee records from a company previously located in Columbus, Georgia. In 2012, Lanier needed an additional source of stolen IDs and approached Floyd, who worked at two Alabama state agencies in Opelika, Alabama: the Department of Public Health and the Department of Human Resources. In both positions, Floyd had access to the personal identifying information of individuals, including teenagers. Lanier requested that Floyd primarily provide her with identities that belonged to sixteen and seventeen year-olds. Floyd agreed and provided thousands of names to Lanier and others at Lanier’s direction.
After receiving the additional stolen IDs, Gosha recruited Mitchell and her family to help file the fraudulent tax returns. Mitchell worked at a hospital located at Fort Benning, Georgia, where she had access to the personal identification information of military personnel, including soldiers who were deployed to Afghanistan. She stole soldiers’ IDs and used their information to file fraudulent returns.
In order to electronically file the fraudulent returns, Gosha, Lanier, and their co-conspirators applied for several Electronic Filing Identification Numbers (EFIN) with the IRS in the names of sham tax preparation businesses. Gosha, Lanier, and their co-conspirators then used these EFINs to file the returns and obtain tax refund related bank products from various financial institutions, which provided them with blank check stock. Gosha and his co-conspirators initially printed out the fraudulently obtained refund checks using the blank check stock.
However, the financial institutions halted Gosha’s and his co-conspirators’ ability to print checks. As a result, they recruited U.S. Postal employees who provided Gosha and others with addresses on their routes to which the fraudulent refund checks could be directly mailed. In exchange for cash, these postal employees intercepted the refund checks and provided them to Gosha, Lanier, Mitchell and others. Gosha also directed tax refunds to prepaid debit cards and had those cards sent to addresses he controlled.
In addition, between January 2010 and December 2013, Gosha participated in a separate SIRF scheme with Pamela Smith and others, in which Gosha sold the IDs that he had stolen from the Alabama Department of Corrections to Smith and others. Smith and others used the IDs to file returns that sought approximately $4.8 million in fraudulent refunds of which the IRS paid out approximately $1.85 million. Smith also has been convicted and sentenced to prison for this conduct.
At Gosha’s sentencing, the government offered victim impact statements from several individuals whose identities were stolen, and from companies and governmental agencies where the identity theft breaches occurred. An Alabama Department of Public Health representative noted, the identity theft was not only devastating financially, but it also had a chilling effect on the department’s ability to serve the residents of the State of Alabama. A mother of a young U.S. Army soldier who was an identity theft victim described the consequences of the fraud on her and her family, stating:
While [my son] was fighting for our country and all back home, I received a very disturbing phone call from [an] Agent from the IRS that my son, while at Ft. Benning training to defend our country, the land of the free, had his identity stolen and fraudulent tax returns were filed with his social security number. This news was devastating to think that my 19-year-old son, who was defending the very freedom this country stands [for], was wronged by one of those people [he] was willing to die for. My whole family could not believe what was happening. We now had to worry about this terrible act by one of our own. As I tried my best to keep composed and handle all of the gruesome mounds of paperwork to get this straightened out with the IRS, [my son] was then denied his tax refund [as result of this scheme]. This created a financial hardship on [him]. We were too afraid to tell [him] while he was deployed because we did not want to worry him and we wanted him to focus only on getting home alive and not have to worry about such an atrocious act by someone who did not even know [him].
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. Chief District Court Judge Keith Watkins ordered Gosha to serve three years of supervised release and to pay restitution in the amount of $9,052,049.
Prior to Gosha’s sentencing, thirty of his co-conspirators have been sentenced, including Keisha Lanier who received 15 years and Tracy Mitchell who received over 13 years.
U.S. Attorney Franklin and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman commended special agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General who investigated this case and Trial Attorneys Michael C. Boteler and Gregory P. Bailey of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted the case.
Alabama Resident and Ringleader of Multi-Million Dollar Stolen Identity Tax Refund Fraud Schemes Sentenced to 30 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
A Phenix City, Alabama, resident was sentenced today to 30 years in prison for his role in masterminding multiple stolen identity refund fraud (SIRF) schemes, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. of the Middle District of Alabama.
William Anthony Gosha III, a/k/a Boo Boo, was convicted, following a jury trial in November 2017, of one count of conspiracy, 22 counts of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, and 25 counts of aggravated identity theft.
According to the evidence presented at trial and sentencing, between November 2010 and December 2013, Gosha ran a large-scale identity theft ring with his co-conspirators, Tracy Mitchell, Keshia Lanier, and Tamika Floyd, who were all previously convicted and sentenced to prison. Together they filed over 8,800 tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that sought more than $22 million in fraudulent refunds of which the IRS paid out approximately $9 million.
In November 2010, Gosha stole IDs of inmates from the Alabama Department of Corrections and provided the IDs to Lanier who used the information to seek fraudulent tax refunds. Gosha and Lanier agreed to split the proceeds. Gosha also stole employee records from a company previously located in Columbus, Georgia. In 2012, Lanier needed an additional source of stolen IDs and approached Floyd, who worked at two Alabama state agencies in Opelika, Alabama: the Department of Public Health and the Department of Human Resources. In both positions, Floyd had access to the personal identifying information of individuals, including teenagers. Lanier requested that Floyd primarily provide her with identities that belonged to sixteen and seventeen year-olds. Floyd agreed and provided thousands of names to Lanier and others at Lanier’s direction.
After receiving the additional stolen IDs, Gosha recruited Mitchell and her family to help file the fraudulent tax returns. Mitchell worked at a hospital located at Fort Benning, Georgia, where she had access to the personal identification information of military personnel, including soldiers who were deployed to Afghanistan. She stole soldiers’ IDs and used their information to file fraudulent returns.
In order to electronically file the fraudulent returns, Gosha, Lanier, and their co-conspirators applied for several Electronic Filing Identification Numbers (EFIN) with the IRS in the names of sham tax preparation businesses. Gosha, Lanier, and their co-conspirators then used these EFINs to file the returns and obtain tax refund related bank products from various financial institutions, which provided them with blank check stock. Gosha and his co-conspirators initially printed out the fraudulently obtained refund checks using the blank check stock.
However, the financial institutions halted Gosha’s and his co-conspirators’ ability to print checks. As a result, they recruited U.S. Postal employees who provided Gosha and others with addresses on their routes to which the fraudulent refund checks could be directly mailed. In exchange for cash, these postal employees intercepted the refund checks and provided them to Gosha, Lanier, Mitchell and others. Gosha also directed tax refunds to prepaid debit cards and had those cards sent to addresses he controlled.
In addition, between January 2010 and December 2013, Gosha participated in a separate SIRF scheme with Pamela Smith and others, in which Gosha sold the IDs that he had stolen from the Alabama Department of Corrections to Smith and others. Smith and others used the IDs to file returns that sought approximately $4.8 million in fraudulent refunds of which the IRS paid out approximately $1.85 million. Smith also has been convicted and sentenced to prison for this conduct.
At Gosha’s sentencing, the government offered victim impact statements from several individuals whose identities were stolen, and from companies and governmental agencies where the identity theft breaches occurred. An Alabama Department of Public Health representative noted, the identity theft was not only devastating financially, but it also had a chilling effect on the department’s ability to serve the residents of the State of Alabama. A mother of a young U.S. Army soldier who was an identity theft victim described the consequences of the fraud on her and her family, stating:
While [my son] was fighting for our country and all back home[,] I received a very disturbing phone call from [an] Agent [] from the IRS that my son[,] while at Ft. Benning training to defend our country[,] the land of the free[,] had his identity stolen and fraudulent tax returns were filed with his social security number. This news was devastating to think that my [] 19-year-old son[,] who was defending the very freedom this country stands [for] [,] was wronged by one of those people [he] was willing to die for. My whole family could not believe what was happening. We now had to worry about this terrible act by one of our own. As I tried my best to keep composed and handle all of the gruesome mounds of paperwork to get this straightened out with the IRS, [my son] was then denied his tax refund [as result of this scheme]. This created a financial hardship on [him]. We were too afraid to tell [him] while he was deployed because we did not want to worry him and we wanted him to focus only on getting home alive and not have to worry about such an atrocious act by someone who did not even know [him].
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. Chief District Court Judge Keith Watkins ordered Gosha to serve three years of supervised release and to pay restitution in the amount of $9,052,049.
Prior to Gosha’s sentencing, thirty of his co-conspirators have been sentenced, including Keisha Lanier who received 15 years and Tracy Mitchell who received over 13 years.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Franklin commended special agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General who investigated this case and Trial Attorneys Michael C. Boteler and Gregory P. Bailey of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ross of the Middle District of Alabama, who prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Another Doctor and a Nurse Indicted for Participating in the Operation of a Montgomery “Pill Mill”Read the Press Release
Montgomery, AL – On Wednesday, February 28, 2018, a physician and nurse were arrested after being indicted in the ongoing investigation and prosecution of a “pill mill” being operated out of a Montgomery, Alabama medical office. The two new defendants in this case are physician Willie J. Chester, Jr., 64, of Pike Road, Alabama, and nurse Stephanie Michelle Ott, 42, of Fairhope, Alabama. Previously charged in this investigation were nurse practitioners Lillian Akwuba and Elizabeth Cronier, physician Julio Delgado, and clerical workers Misty Michelle Fannin, Jacqueline Suzanne Brownfield, and Akash Kumar.
All of the defendants are alleged to have assisted Dr. Gilberto Sanchez in operating a “pill mill” out of Family Practice, a medical clinic located at 4143 Atlanta Highway in Montgomery. Dr. Gilberto Sanchez, previously a Montgomery physician, owned Family Practice. In November of 2017, Dr. Sanchez pleaded guilty in federal court to drug distribution, health care fraud, and money laundering charges. In December, Dr. Sanchez’s former partner, Dr. Shepherd Odom pleaded guilty to drug distribution and money laundering charges. In January of 2018, Steven Cox, a nurse practitioner employed by the practice, pleaded guilty to drug distribution and health care fraud charges.
The most recent indictment in this case charges Chester with drug distribution, health care fraud, and conspiracy charges. The indictment alleges that Chester worked at Family Practice in 2016 and 2017, and, during that time, he prescribed controlled substances to patients knowing that the patients did not need the prescribed medicine. It further alleges that Chester had health insurance companies billed for unnecessary prescriptions and office evaluations.
As for Ott, the new indictment charges her with conspiracy and health care fraud. The factual allegations against Ott state that, in 2015, Family Practice employed Ott as a consultant. In that role, Ott implemented a billing system that caused the practice to overbill health insurance companies for services provided by nurse practitioners.
Finally, the latest indictment adds new drug distribution and health care fraud charges against Delgado and Cronier.
If convicted of the drug distribution charges, Chester faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ in prison. Chester and Ott face maximum term of 10 years on the health care fraud charges. All defendants also could be assessed substantial fines and other monetary penalties.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division, and the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners, the Montgomery Police Department, the Opelika Police Department, and the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office assisted in the investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and R. Rand Neeley are prosecuting the case.
Employee of United States Department of Agriculture Office in Houston County Arrested After Being Charged with Crop Insurance FraudRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – Today, Anna Marie Knowles, 36, of Headland, Alabama, was arrested on charges of wire fraud, theft of government property, and using a false document in a matter under the jurisdiction of the federal government, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr., from the Middle District of Alabama. Knowles was employed in the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency office located in Dothan, Alabama.
The charges stem from allegations that Knowles was carrying out a crop insurance fraud scheme. According to the indictment, in 2016, Knowles obtained crop insurance through a federal program, the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP). NAP is a USDA program that provides financial assistance to producers of non-insurable crops when low yields, loss of inventory, or prevented planning occur due to a natural disaster. Knowles insured a crop of summer squash that she was planning to grow on land in Houston County, Alabama. Thereafter, Knowles filed a claim through the federal crop insurance program. In that claim, she falsely reported that a drought had caused her to lose the majority of her squash crop. She also submitted forged receipts to establish that she had spent money to purchase squash seed and fertilizer. After filing the claim, Knowles fraudulently obtained $116,500.00 through NAP. The indictment also states that, in her job at the USDA office, Knowles was responsible for administering federal crop insurance programs in Houston County.
If convicted of the most serious charge, Knowles faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ in federal prison. She also faces substantial monetary penalties and restitution.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross is prosecuting the case.
Phenix City Chiropractor and Two of His Employees Arrested on Federal ChargesRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – Dr. Kenneth G. Edwards, 64, a resident of Columbus, Georgia, and two of his employees, Joann Bush, 58, and Andrea Daigle, 40, both from Smiths Station, Alabama, were arrested yesterday after being indicted by a federal grand jury, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Dr. Edwards owns and operates a chiropractic practice in Phenix City, Alabama.
All three defendants face conspiracy, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges. Additionally, Dr. Edwards and Joann Bush are charged with making false statements and falsification of federal records.
The indictment alleges that Dr. Edwards and his employees orchestrated a scheme to submit false documents to the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT). Those false documents related to the physical exams of truck drivers and prospective truck drivers that were conducted at his chiropractic office. The USDOT requires that all truck drivers undergo an initial physical examination before receiving a commercial driver’s license (CDL), and that they have subsequent examinations every two years thereafter to maintain the license. According to the indictment, Dr. Edwards and his staff did not perform physicals that were up to USDOT standards. They would then send forms to the USDOT that falsely certified the truck drivers had passed all of the USDOT physical exam requirements.
If convicted of the most serious charges, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. They also face substantial monetary penalties and restitution.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed. Each defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This case was investigated by the United States Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General, with assistance from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and Steven H. Lee are prosecuting the case.
Verbena Man Facing Life in Prison Following Federal Drug Trafficking and Firearms ConvictionsRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – James Calvin Talley, Jr., 37, of Verbena, Alabama, was convicted by a federal jury yesterday of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, using a phone to facilitate a drug crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Talley, who has two prior felony drug convictions, faces a mandatory life sentence in prison for the methamphetamine conviction.
On December 3, 2016, a drug courier delivered more than 100 pounds of marijuana to Talley’s home in Verbena. The drug courier had been arrested in Texas and agreed to work with law enforcement and deliver the marijuana to Talley. When the courier arrived at Talley's home, he got out of the car and Talley drove the car alone to another house in Marbury, Alabama. There, Talley backed the car up to the front door of the house and opened the trunk. The police, who had followed Talley from his home, turned on their emergency lights, and Talley ran into the home. He was caught by police as he was running out of the backdoor shortly thereafter. Inside the house, which belonged to Richie Dale Murphy, DEA agents and local law enforcement found two pistols, more than 3 pounds of methamphetamine, over $20,000 in cash, marijuana, and drug paraphernalia used for packaging and selling narcotics.
Following the search at Murphy's house, law enforcement officers searched Talley's home and found two pistols in a safe under a bed, along with more than $50,000 in cash, a currency counter, drug ledgers and receipts for wire transfers of large amounts of money. Murphy, who earlier pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, testified against Talley. Specifically, Murphy told the jury that he and Talley were in business together, and that Talley used Murphy's home as his stash house for marijuana and methamphetamine.
Murphy is scheduled to be sentenced on March 19, 2018. Talley’s sentencing date has not been set. As stated earlier, Talley is facing a life sentence for the methamphetamine conviction. The marijuana and felon in possession charges carry a possible 10-year sentence. The using a phone to facilitate a drug crime count comes with a potential 4-year prison sentence. Murphy is facing at least 15 years in prison for his charges.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Autauga County Sheriff’s Office, and the Chilton County Sheriff’s Office. The Alabama Attorney General’s Office, Millbrook Police Department, Montgomery Police Department, and Prattville Police Department all assisted with this case. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Geer and Kevin Davidson.
Social Security Administration Employee and Husband Convicted in Public Benefit Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – On Thursday, February 15, 2018, a federal jury found two Montgomery residents guilty of fraud and witness tampering, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. The two defendants were Nakia Palmer, 35, a former employee of the Social Security Administration, and her husband, Nathaniel Palmer, 30. Nakia Palmer was convicted of mail fraud, theft of government property, Social Security benefit fraud, and food stamp fraud. The jury convicted Nathaniel Palmer of mail fraud, theft of government property, and witness tampering. Each defendant was found guilty of all counts in which he or she was charged.
The trial evidence showed that the Palmers lied about their incomes and living arrangements for the purposes of fraudulently obtaining Social Security benefits on behalf of Nakia Palmer’s minor son. Specifically, Nakia Palmer falsely informed Social Security employees in Dothan, Alabama that she was an actress living in California. She further told Social Security that she left her minor son in her husband’s exclusive custody. She told these lies so that Social Security would not consider her income in determining whether her son was eligible for benefits and would only consider her husband’s income. All the while, Nakia Palmer worked for Social Security in the Montgomery office and was not an actress in California when applying for the benefits. The evidence also showed that the Palmers did not use the fraudulently obtained benefits to support Nakia Palmer’s child. Rather, the couple spent the money on the purchase of a vehicle. According to the evidence, Nakia Palmer made similar false claims for the purpose of obtaining food stamps. In total, the Palmers received approximately $25,000 in benefits to which they were not entitled.
As for the witness tampering, the government proved that, after becoming aware that he was under investigation, Nathaniel Palmer asked his next-door neighbor to lie to investigators regarding the family’s living arrangements.
“Government benefit programs exist to ensure that those in need do not go without the necessities of life,” said United States Attorney Franklin. “The Palmers abused the system not out of need, but to maintain their lifestyles. In carrying out their greedy scheme, the Palmers apparently thought that they were above the law. I hope that this verdict sends the message that the theft of taxpayers’ dollars will not go unpunished.”
“The Social Security Office of the Inspector General has no higher priority than the investigation and prosecution of employees who violate the public’s trust by using their knowledge of the SSA programs to defraud the very agency that employs them,” stated SSA-OIG Special Agent in Charge Margaret Moore-Jackson. “I’m grateful that the U.S. Attorney’s Office shares our determination to protect the integrity of the SSA’s programs for those who rely on them now and into the future.”
“We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect the vital programs that protect the welfare and health of our most vulnerable citizens,” said Derrick Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General.
A date for sentencing has not yet been set. Both defendants face maximum sentences of 20 years’ imprisonment, as well as substantial monetary penalties.
This case was investigated by the Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General, as well as the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General. The United States Department of Agriculture – Office of Inspector General assisted in the investigation, along with the Alabama Department of Human Resources. Assistant United States Attorneys Jonathan S. Ross and Joshua Wendell are prosecuting the case.
Former State Legislator Sentenced for Mail FraudRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Ala. – On Thursday, February 15, 2018, former State Representative Micky Ray Hammon, 60, of Decatur, Alabama, received a sentence of three months’ imprisonment for committing mail fraud, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin, Sr. Hammon served in the Alabama House of Representatives from 2003 until 2017, when he entered his guilty plea. During his service, Hammon represented the fourth district. From 2010 to 2017, Hammon served as the chamber’s majority leader. Hammon will be subject to three years of supervised release upon completion of his prison sentence.
According to court documents, Hammon used money donated to his 2014 reelection campaign to pay personal expenses. This is a violation of Alabama law, which strictly limits the ways that donated money can be used. Hammon used the United States Postal Service to commit his offense when he received campaign donation checks through the mail. All of the donors reasonably expected that the campaign would use money for legal purposes.
“The victims of Hammon’s offense were not only the donors to his campaign, but all Alabama voters,” stated United States Attorney Franklin. “All voters trust that elected officials will serve honorably, not line their own pockets. Hammon violated that trust. I would like to thank the United States Postal Inspection Service for the excellent work that led to this prosecution. My office will continue to hold our elected officials accountable.”
“This sentencing sends out the clear message that nobody is above the law when it comes to the sanctity of the U.S. Mail,” said U.S. Postal Inspector in Charge Adrian Gonzalez, Houston Division. “Postal Inspectors steadfastly work to defend the nation’s mail system from fraud in hopes of bringing anyone to justice that uses the U.S. Postal Service in violating the trust of the American public.”
The United States Postal Inspection Service investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Ross prosecuted the case.
Prattville Man Convicted of Sex Trafficking of a MinorRead the Press Release
Montgomery, Alabama – On Thursday, February 8, 2018, Michael Graham Lowe, 25, of Prattville, Alabama, was found guilty by a federal jury of sex trafficking of a minor and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, announced United States Attorney Louis V. Franklin Sr.
Previously, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Lowe and his co-defendant, Joshua David Rose, after hearing evidence that the two recruited, enticed, and transported a minor victim knowing that the victim was under the age of 18 years and would be engaging in a commercial sex act. Joshua Rose, 29, also from Prattville, pled guilty to sex trafficking of a minor in August 2017.
According to evidence presented at the four-day trial, Lowe was friends with the 17-year-old minor victim and in May 2016, he introduced the victim to co-defendant Rose at a motel in Montgomery. On May 24 and 25, 2016, Rose took photographs of the victim and placed an ad on the classified advertising website Backpage.com. Lowe and Rose transported the minor victim to perform commercial sex acts in Montgomery and the surrounding areas and stood guard outside during the acts. Rose and Lowe used the money earned by the minor victim to purchase illegal narcotics. On May 26, 2016, the victim became upset and refused to perform further commercial sex acts. Lowe then transported the victim from the motel leaving her at a local residence. After hearing the evidence presented at trial, the jury found Lowe guilty of both counts in the federal indictment.
For the sex trafficking of a minor charge, Lowe faces a minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison. For the conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, Lowe faces up to life in prison. Lowe is in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending a sentencing hearing, which has not yet been scheduled.
“These human traffickers prostituted a child in order to have the money to feed their drug habit,” stated U.S. Attorney Franklin. “We will not allow the children of this District to be preyed-upon, prostituted and used by predators. This office will continue to use all resources necessary to take these criminals off the streets and ensure the safety of our children.”
“The Prattville Police Department is very thankful for the working relationship we have with the U.S Attorney’s Office and all the agencies involved in this case,” stated Prattville Police Chief Mark Thompson. “This should send a strong message to the criminal element committing these types of crime that we will find them and put them away. We are very proud of our Criminal Intelligence Unit for the effort put into this case. It shows that the Prattville PD is proactive and we will continue to develop better ways to combat crime.”
“Human trafficking is a horrific crime that traps its victims in a life of misery and abuse,” said Attorney General Steve Marshall. “This conviction is the result of a long and painstaking investigation by agents and officers who cared deeply about the harm being caused to the young victim, and were determined to stop this from happening to her and to others. I am thankful for the diligence of the Prattville Police Department, which initiated this case, working with agents of the Alabama Attorney General’s Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and assisted by the Montgomery Police Department. I also want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its successful prosecution to bring this criminal to justice. As Alabama’s Attorney General, I am committed to continue this kind of cooperative and dedicated teamwork among agencies, which is the key to making our state a safer place.”
“HSI will tirelessly work to investigate and bring to justice anyone who thinks they can get away with preying upon our children for their sexual gratification,” said Homeland Security Investigations Acting Special Agent in Charge Thomas M. Annello. “This case highlights the exceptional commitment and devotion of the men and women who pursue the perpetrators of these depraved crimes every day.”
This case was jointly investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Prattville Police Department, and the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, with assistance from the United States Marshal’s Service and Montgomery Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hollie Worley Reed of the Middle District of Alabama and Trial Attorney Leslie Williams Fisher of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section.
Alabama Man Convicted of Sex Trafficking of a MinorRead the Press Release
A federal jury convicted an Alabama man of sex trafficking of a minor and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin Jr. of the Middle District of Alabama.
Michael Graham Lowe, 25, of Prattville, Alabama, was found guilty yesterday after a four-day trial before U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler of the Northern District of Alabama. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
“These defendants manipulated and sexually exploited a child in order to feed their own illegal drug habit,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Cronan. “Thanks to the hard work and dedication of our prosecutors and federal, state and local law enforcement partners, they will be held to account for their crimes. This case is representative of the Department’s commitment to ending the sex trafficking of children, which all too commonly is facilitated by online advertisements, and bringing their traffickers to justice.”
According to evidence presented at trial, in or about May 2016, Lowe and co-defendant Joshua Rose conspired to sex traffic a minor victim at the Stay Lodge motel in Montgomery, Alabama. Rose advertised the underage victim on Backpage, and with the assistance of Lowe, arranged meetings for the victim to engage in commercial sex acts, and stood outside of the motel room while the victim engaged in commercial sex acts. Lowe also transported the minor victim to another location to engage in commercial sex acts. Lowe and Rose used the money earned from the victim’s commercial sex acts to purchase illegal narcotics.
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and the Prattville, Alabama Police Department, with assistance from the Montgomery, Alabama Police Department, the U.S. Marshals Service and Alabama Attorney General’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Leslie Williams Fisher of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Hollie Reed of the Middle District of Alabama.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.