District of Connecticut
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Fci Danbury Employee Indicted for Role in Inmate Early Release Bribery SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Ronald G. Gardella, Special Agent-in-Charge, Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, New York Field Office, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment today charging KISHA PERKINS, a case manager at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury (FCI Danbury), for her role in a scheme to solicit and collect cash bribes from FCI Danbury inmates in exchange for a recommendation that inmates be released early to “halfway houses.”
The indictment charges PERKINS, 42, of Waterbury, with one count of paying a bribe to a public official, and one count of acceptance of a bribe by a public official. PERKINS was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on March 14, 2014.
As alleged in the criminal complaint, in June 2013, PERKINS approached another FCI Danbury employee about an opportunity to participate in a scheme to solicit a cash bribe from an inmate at FCI Danbury in exchange for the inmate’s early release to a halfway house. At that time, PERKINS held the job title of “Unit Counselor” at FCI Danbury and did not have administrative authority to recommend inmates for early release. PERKINS explained that the inmate and the inmate’s husband were willing to pay $20,000, and that PERKINS’ co-worker, who would receive half of the money, was needed to complete the scheme because the co-worker had the administrative ability to recommend inmates for early release.
PERKINS’ co-worker declined to participate in the scheme, reported the incident to law enforcement and agreed to cooperate in the investigation, which included the use of numerous consensually recorded conversations.
In July 2013, PERKINS’ co-worker told PERKINS that he/she had changed his/her mind and wanted to participate in the scheme. It is alleged that PERKINS informed her co-worker that a scheme involving the inmate who had been previously identified was no longer feasible.
As the investigation continued, in February 2014, PERKINS’ co-worker identified a second inmate as a possible candidate for the bribe scheme. Is it alleged that PERKINS agreed to participate and, after extensive planning, on March 8, 2014, PERKINS and her co-worker traveled to a commuter lot off of Exit 28 on Interstate 84 to pick up a partial bribe payment of $5,000 in cash in a fast food bag that, as PERKINS believed, was to be dropped off by an acquaintance of the inmate.
If convicted, PERKINS faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years on each count.
After her arrest on March 14, PERKINS was released on a $100,000 bond. Her bond was revoked on March 28 and she is currently detained. An arraignment and detention hearing is scheduled for April 7 in New Haven.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan Wines.
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[email protected]New London Heroin Dealer Sentenced to 70 Months in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that XAVIER CLUFF, 41, of New London, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 70 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.
In early 2012, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), the U.S. Secret Service and the New London Police Department initiated an investigation to combat the large-scale trafficking of heroin and cocaine from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico into and around southeastern Connecticut. According to court documents and statements made in court, CLUFF was intercepted over court-authorized wiretaps ordering 100-gram quantities of heroin from his drug supplier, Luis Ariel Capellan Maldonado, for distribution purposes. CLUFF was identified as one of Capellan Maldonado’s largest and most frequent customers.
CLUFF has been detained since his arrest on April 3, 2013. On December 13, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.
More than 100 individuals have been charged with federal and state offenses as a result of this investigation. Capellan Maldonado has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Air and Marine; Connecticut State Police; New London Police Department, Norwich Police Department, Waterford Police Department, Groton Town Police Department, East Lyme Police Department and Putnam Police Department. The United States Marshals Service; ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations; Drug Enforcement Administration; HSI Assistant Attaché, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; HSI Arecibo, Puerto Rico Resident Office; Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation; Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services; and the Groton City, Willimantic, New Haven and Bristol Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
The federal case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Alina P. Reynolds, Sarah P. Karwan and Henry K. Kopel. The state cases are being prosecuted by the State’s Attorney for the New London Judicial District and Senior Assistant State’s Attorneys Paul Narducci and Stephen Carney.
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[email protected]Long Island Man Sentenced to 37 Months in Federal Prison for Trafficking MarijuanaRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that OVES ST. ORBIN WRIGHT, 56, of Massapequa, N.Y., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 37 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for trafficking marijuana.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on May 19, 2013, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CPB) agents in western Texas conducted a search of a tractor trailer and discovered approximately 315 pounds of marijuana secreted in a shipping crate. CBP agents contacted DEA agents in El Paso who determined that the crate was destined for a shipping facility in Enfield, Conn. On May 29, 2013, Connecticut DEA agents established surveillance at the Enfield shipping facility and observed WRIGHT and Kevin J. Dunbar unpack the crate, load the contents into a van and travel to a storage facility in East Hartford where they were arrested.
On October 22, 2013, WRIGHT pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute marijuana. Dunbar, of Manchester, Conn., pleaded guilty to the same charge on October 23, 2013, and awaits sentencing.
This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with the assistance of U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey M. Stone and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Ahearn.
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[email protected]Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation to Pay $3.5 Million to Settle Allegations Under the False Claims ActRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that SIKORSKY AIRCRAFT CORPORATION of Stratford, Conn., which manufactures Black Hawk helicopters and spare parts for the helicopters for the U.S. Military and for friendly nations has entered into a civil settlement in which it will pay $3.5 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act arising from the submission of inflated costs in the pricing of spare parts.
The government alleges that from February 7, 2008 through September 8, 2011, Sikorsky failed to disclose accurate, complete and current cost and pricing data to the Army Aviation and Missile Life Cycle Management Command (“AMCOM”). AMCOM is one of the purchasing commands of the Army that is charged with purchasing spare parts for the Black Hawk.
The Truth In Negotiations Act requires that contractors disclose accurate, complete and current cost and pricing data to the government during the negotiation process. When determining the prices to be charged to the government, Sikorsky failed to disclose that it had lower prices for certain parts. As a result, the government paid artificially excessive prices for those parts.
The Black Hawk repair work was principally performed at the Corpus Christi Army Depot in Corpus Christi, Texas.
“In this era of shrinking defense budgets, it is particularly important to guard the public coffers and safeguard against the unnecessary expenditures of funds from American taxpayers,” said U.S. Attorney Daly. “Failure to disclose accurate, complete and current cost and pricing data created an uneven playing field in the negotiation process which tilted unfairly in Sikorsky’s favor.”
“Unethical decisions and instances of fraud occurring within the Defense contractor community continue to burden the U.S. Defense budget and puts U.S. military readiness at a disadvantage,” stated Craig W. Rupert, Special Agent in Charge, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) Northeast Field Office. “With the current state of the economy, taxpayers can ill-afford to overpay for warfighter necessities required to carry out our Defense mission. This investigative effort and resulting settlement reflects DCIS’ commitment to safeguarding our military members and protecting the taxpayer’s interests by ensuring transparency and accountability in the Department of Defense procurement system.”
This investigation was conducted by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Defense Contract Audit Agency, Department of Defense Office of Inspector General-Audit Division, and the Defense Contract Management Agency. The investigation was led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alan M. Soloway.
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[email protected]Congressional Candidate, Husband, Admit Violating Federal Campaign Finance LawsRead the Press Release
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The United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut and the United States Postal Inspection Service announced that LISA WILSON-FOLEY, a former candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, and her husband, BRIAN FOLEY, of Simsbury, pleaded guilty today before U.S Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford to conspiring to make illegal campaign contributions.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2011 and 2012, WILSON-FOLEY, 54, was a candidate for election to the U.S. House of Representatives from Connecticut’s Fifth Congressional District, and competing in a primary campaign for the nomination of the Republican Party. As a candidate for federal office, WILSON-FOLEY and her associates formed and registered with the Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) the “Lisa Wilson-Foley for Congress” committee in order to receive contributions and make expenditures on behalf of her campaign.
WILSON-FOLEY knew that federal law imposed restrictions on contributions to federal campaigns, and that her campaign committee was required by law to file periodic reports with the FEC detailing, among other things, contributions made to her campaign and expenditures made on the campaign’s behalf. Under the federal campaign finance laws, convention, primary and general election campaign contributions were limited to $2,500 each, for a total of $7,500, from any individual to any one candidate. WILSON-FOLEY knew that one of the purposes of the FEC reporting requirements was to make available to the voting public information concerning the source of contributions to the campaign and the nature of the campaign’s expenditures.
In September 2011, WILSON-FOLEY, FOLEY and a co-conspirator, who is a former elected official in the State of Connecticut, entered into an unlawful conspiracy to make and cause to be made illegal contributions to WILSON-FOLEY’s campaign. As part of the scheme, the co-conspirator proposed to WILSON-FOLEY and FOLEY that he, the co-conspirator, be hired to work on the campaign. The co-conspirator advised that he could replace the private political consultant that the campaign had retained. WILSON-FOLEY wanted the co-conspirator to work on the campaign, but believed that if the co-conspirator was hired in a significant role by her campaign and paid through her campaign committee for that work, the media and the voting public would become aware of the co-conspirator’s official association with her campaign. WILSON-FOLEY believed that, because the co-conspirator had previously been convicted of a felony offense, disclosure of his paid role in the campaign would result in substantial negative publicity for WILSON-FOLEY’s candidacy. In order to retain the co-conspirator’s services for the campaign while reducing the risk that his paid campaign role would be disclosed to the public, WILSON-FOLEY, FOLEY and the co-conspirator agreed that the co-conspirator would be paid by FOLEY to work on the Campaign.
FOLEY, 62, owns a Connecticut nursing home company and a number of other related companies, including a real estate company. As part of the scheme, the co-conspirator, FOLEY and others created and executed a fictitious contract outlining an agreement purportedly for consulting services between the co-conspirator and the law offices of an attorney who worked for FOLEY’s nursing home company. FOLEY made regular payments to the co-conspirator for his work on behalf of WILSON-FOLEY’s campaign and routed those payments from his real estate company through the law offices of the attorney and on to the co-conspirator.
The co-conspirator provided nominal services to FOLEY’s nursing home company in order to create a “cover” that he was being paid for those nominal services when, in fact, he was being paid in exchange for his work on behalf of WILSON-FOLEY’s campaign.
Between September 2011 and April 2012, the co-conspirator was paid approximately $35,000 for services rendered to WILSON-FOLEY’s campaign. The payments originated with FOLEY and constituted campaign contributions, but were not reported to the FEC in violation of federal campaign finance laws.
WILSON-FOLEY and FOLEY are scheduled to be sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport on June 23, 2014, at which time they face a maximum term of imprisonment of one year and a fine of up to $100,000.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Postal Investigation Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Liam Brennan and Christopher Mattei.
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[email protected]Wallingford Woman Admits Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANGELA D. MARTIN, also known as Angela Haussmann, 29, of Wallingford, pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Holly B. Fitzsimmons in Bridgeport to one count of production of child pornography.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in August 2013, MARTIN sexually abused a female child, filmed the abuse with her cell phone, and then emailed the video to another individual in California. The victim was approximately three years old at the time of the abuse.
In addition to filming and distributing the video of the sexual abuse that she inflicted on the female child, MARTIN possessed and distributed other child pornography that she received from individuals with whom she was communicating via email, text messaging, and chat applications.
MARTIN is a registered sex offender as the result of a prior felony conviction in the state of Connecticut for second degree sexual assault of a minor.
MARTIN is scheduled to be sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven on June 20, 2014, at which time she faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 50 years. The penalties in this matter are enhanced based on MARTIN’s criminal history.
MARTIN has been detained since her arrest on September 19, 2013.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Wallingford Police Department, and the Connecticut Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj N. Patel.
This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com.
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[email protected]Indictment Charges Two Men with the Arson Death of Branford Woman in 2006Read the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Chief State’s Attorney Kevin T. Kane, Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Branford Police Chief Kevin Halloran today announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven hasreturned an indictment charging JOHN VAILETTE, also known as “John John” and “Snagglepuss,” 42, and STEVEN MARTONE, also known as “Crash,” 45, with committing an arson in Branford in 2006 that caused the death Kathy Hardy.
The indictment was returned on March 26. MARTONE was arrested this morning at his home in North Branford. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford and is detained pending a hearing that is scheduled for April 2. VAILETTE is currently incarcerated in federal prison.
As alleged in the indictment, at approximately 8:45 a.m. on the morning of March 7, 2006, the Branford Emergency Communications Center received 911 calls reporting a fire at 27 Little Bay Lane in Branford, a single-family home rented by Kathy Hardy. After members of the Branford Fire Department arrived at the scene and extinguished the fire, firefighters located the body of Kathy Hardy, 39, on the second floor of the residence. Fire Department investigators ultimately determined that the fire was initiated by accelerants located in the first floor living room area and on the staircase leading to the second floor of the dwelling. An autopsy performed on Kathy Hardy concluded that the cause of death was smoke inhalation, and her death was classified as a homicide.
The indictment alleges that approximately two days after the fire, investigators located a truck regularly used by VAILETTE, which had been hidden in New Haven for a period of time in the aftermath of the fire. The truck, which was found at the home of another close associate of VAILETTE’s, contained a silver serving platter and jewelry that belonged to Kathy Hardy. The indictment also alleges that, after the fire, both VAILETTE and MARTONE made incriminating statements to other individuals.
“These two defendants are charged with setting the fire that killed Kathy Hardy, a mother of three, in 2006,” stated U.S. Attorney Daly. “This lengthy, complex and ongoing investigation is being conducted with great care and professionalism by dedicated members of the FBI and Branford Police Department, with the assistance of state and local fire investigators. I want to thank them and our state partners from the Chief State’s Attorney’s Office for their diligence and excellent work in this ongoing investigation. Together, we seek justice for Ms. Hardy, her family and loved ones.”
“The action today is the result of extensive collaboration and cooperation by law enforcement agencies at the municipal, state and federal levels, and all of these agencies are to be commended for their commitment and dedication to resolving this tragic case,” stated Chief State’s Attorney Kane.
“This was a callous and horrific crime,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Ferrick. “That the dedicated investigators never relented in their pursuit of justice is a tribute to them and their respective agencies. I’d like to thank the Branford Police and Fire Departments as well as the Connecticut State Police - Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit for their perseverance in securing an indictment and for their steadfast commitment to the rest of the judicial process.”
“The horrific death of Kathy Hardy and subsequent arduous investigation has been at the forefront of Branford Police Department for the past eight years,” stated Branford Police Chief Halloran. “The scope of this investigation would have been impossible without the support of the New Haven office of the FBI, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Connecticut Chief State’s Attorney’s Office, Branford Fire Department, and other local, state and federal agencies involved in the investigation.”
If convicted of the charge of committing an arson resulting in death, VAILETTE and MARTONE face up to a lifetime term of imprisonment, or death, should the government pursue the death penalty in this matter.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Branford Police Department and the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney, with the assistance of the Connecticut State Police, Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit and the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John H. Durham and Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael A. Gailor and Kevin M. Shay.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
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Tom Carson
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[email protected]Bridgeport Man Pleads Guilty to Role in Fraudulent Federal Tax Refund SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that CARLOS MATEO, 45, of Bridgeport, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford to one count of theft of government property stemming from his role in a fraudulent federal tax refund scheme.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between November 2011 and February 2012, MATEO obtained fraudulent U.S. Treasury tax refund checks, ranging in amounts of approximately $4,000 to $8,150, which were addressed to different individuals with mailing addresses in Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and Florida. All of the Social Security Numbers used for the tax returns involved in the scheme belong to Puerto Rican citizens. MATEO provided the checks to Jeovany Rios, who cashed the checks at GE Credit Union branches in Bridgeport, Milford and Danbury with the assistance of Angel Castellano, a teller at the credit union. Rios then returned some of the cash to MATEO after taking a portion for himself and Castellano.
In total, MATEO provided Rios with 21 fraudulent tax refund checks totaling $137,860.70.
MATEO is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny on June 20, 2014, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000.
Rios, 39, and Castellano, 26, both of Bridgeport, previously pleaded guilty and await sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarala V. Nagala.
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U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
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[email protected]Indictment Charges Five Hartford Area Men with Heroin Trafficking OffensesRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, John J. Arvanitis, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration in New England, and Hartford Police Chief James C. Rovella, today announced that a federal grand jury sitting in New Haven has returned an indictment charging five men with narcotics offenses in connection with their alleged involvement in a Hartford area heroin trafficking conspiracy. The indictment was returned on March 25.
The 12-count indictment alleges that from approximately November 2013 through March 2014, the following individuals conspired to distribute various quantities of heroin:
FRANCISCO BIGIO, also known as “Flaco,” 34, of East Hartford
CHARLES JACKSON, also known as “Doo Doo,” 44, of Manchester
CARLOS CARDONA, also known as “Los,” 29, of Hartford
CHRISTOPHER CARDONA, also known as “Tito,” 27, of Hartford
ANTONIO BAEZ, also known as “Pete,” 39, of HartfordThe five defendants were arrested earlier this month on criminal complaints and are currently detained.
According to court documents filed as part of this case, this joint investigation focused on the distribution of heroin that is believed to have been laced with Fentanyl and may have contributed to several recent heroin overdoses in the Hartford area.
Fentanyl is a powerful opioid analgesic used to treat moderate to severe chronic pain that cannot be controlled with other medicines. It is approximately 100 times more potent than morphine.
U.S. Attorney Daly noted that the investigation is ongoing and investigators are in the process of determining if the heroin involved in this conspiracy contained Fentanyl, and if a connection to the reported overdoses exists.
In addition to being charged with conspiracy, BIGIO is charged with multiple counts of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, cocaine. It is alleged that BIGIO was found in possession of two kilograms of cocaine at the time of his arrest.
CARLOS CARDONA, CHRISTOPHER CARDONA and BAEZ are also charged with multiple counts of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, heroin.
If convicted of the charge of conspiring to distribute heroin, BIGIO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of life, JACKSON, CARLOS CARDONA and CHRISTOPHER CARDONA face a maximum term of imprisonment of 40 years, and BAEZ faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.
BIGIO and JACKSON are both serving terms of federal supervised release and face additional penalties if convicted of the charges contained in the indictment.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Hartford Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Leaming and Patrick Caruso.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Hamden Man Sentenced to 57 Months in Federal Prison for Distributing CrackRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that WILLIAM HINES, also known as “Gunz,” 30, of Hamden, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to 57 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing crack cocaine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven. Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants, and seizures of narcotics and firearms. More than 100 individuals were charged as a result of the investigation.
HINES was arrested on May 30, 2012. He has been detained since December 12, 2013, when he was arrested in Maine on state charges while released on bond. On September 4, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, cocaine base (“crack cocaine”).
HINES’s criminal history includes five prior convictions, including convictions for larceny, possession of narcotics, carrying a pistol without a permit and criminal possession of a firearm.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments. The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
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[email protected]East Windsor Gun Store Owner Who Violated Federal Laws Is SentencedRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Boston Field Division, announced that DAVID LAGUERCIA, 57, of Broad Brook, was sentenced today by U.S. Magistrate Judge Holly B. Fitzsimmons in Bridgeport to three years of probation for violating federal firearms laws. LAGUERCIA, the owner of Riverview Gun Sales in East Windsor, was also ordered to pay a personal fine of $1500, an additional fine of $5000 on behalf of his business, and to perform 100 hours of community service.
According to court documents and statements made in court, LAGUERCIA, doing business as RIVERVIEW SALES, INC. (“Riverview”), was a federal firearms licensed dealer in Connecticut (“FFL”) from 2005 to December 2012. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) conducted an investigation of LAGUERCIA and Riverview and discovered approximately 300 examples of false or missing information in Riverview’s acquisition and disposition (“A&D”) records. The investigation also revealed at least two instances in which individuals received firearms prior to receiving approval from the national instant criminal background check system (“NICS”). Riverview also failed to report the theft of a firearm within 48 hours, and failed to report multiple sales of handguns to the same individuals.
“This investigation revealed that one of Connecticut’s largest gun dealers conducted their business in a lax and irresponsible way,” stated U.S. Attorney Daly. “Riverview had hundreds of record-keeping violations, improper sales, lax security, and poor inventory management. Federally-licensed firearms dealers have a critically important responsibility in helping to ensure that legal firearms don’t become illegal firearms on the street, and dealers who chronically fail to follow the rules will be prosecuted.”
“Today’s sentence is a reminder having a Federal Firearms License is not license to break the law,” stated ATF Special Agent in Charge Kumor. “FFL’s must comply with federal regulations to ensure the safety of the general public. When an FFL fails to do so and puts communities in danger, the consequence is federal prosecution.”
On December 20, 2012, ATF issued a revocation of Riverview’s FFL, effective on that date. LAGUERCIA has not appealed this administrative decision.
On August 22, 2013, LAGUERCIA pleaded guilty to one count of transfer of a firearm before completion of background check, and one count of failure to maintain proper firearm records. LAGUERCIA also pleaded guilty on behalf of RIVERVIEW SALES, INC. to one count of making false entries in dealer’s records.
In addition to a fine of $5000, RIVERVIEW SALES, INC. was sentenced to a five-year term of probation.
While on probation, LAGUERCIA is prohibited from being an FFL or a responsible party for an FFL for a period of five years.On September 30, 2013, Krystopher DiBella, a former employee of Riverview received a federal sentence of three years of probation for assisting in the transfer of firearms to individuals who failed to complete a required ATF form when purchasing firearms at the store.
In 2011, Jordan Marsh of South Windsor stole approximately 12 firearms of Riverview and, in December 2012, he stole a Windham Weaponry 5.56 mm caliber semi-automatic rifle from the store. Marsh was arrested on December 15, 2012, after he attempted to steal a Bushmaster .50 caliber rifle from Riverview. Marsh is currently serving a state sentence of eight years of incarceration, to be followed by a federal sentence of five years of probation.
This matter was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert M. Spector.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]New Haven Crack Dealer Sentenced to Five Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROBERT LEE, also known as “B.O.,” 36, of New Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for distributing crack cocaine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven. Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants, and seizures of narcotics and firearms. More than 100 individuals were charged as a result of the investigation.
LEE has been detained since his arrest on May 22, 2012. On January 2, 2014, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 28 grams or more of cocaine base (“crack cocaine”).
LEE’s criminal history includes three prior felony drug convictions.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments. The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Three New London Men Charged with Federal Offenses Stemming from 2012 HomicideRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, New London Police Chief Margaret Ackley and Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a federal grand jury in New Havenreturned an indictment yesterday charging three New London men with various offenses stemming from the September 2012 homicide of Javier Reyes, 36, of New London.
As alleged in the indictment, OSCAR VALENTIN, also known as “Tato,” 40, operated and managed a narcotics distribution enterprise at the “Green Garages,” a series of garage bays located as 12/14 Walker Street in New London. In the summer of 2011, VALENTIN was the intended victim of a murder-for-hire plot orchestrated by former members of his enterprise in an attempt to take over narcotics distribution at the Green Garages. In September 2012, VALENTIN hired NESTOR PAGAN, also known as “Ernie” and “Naeem Medina,” 31, ANDREW AVILES, also known as “P.A.” and “Papo,” 26, and others, to assault Javier Reyes in an attempt to maintain his position as head of the Green Garages conspiracy. On the evening of September 12, 2012, Reyes was stabbed multiple times outside of his apartment at 187 Huntington Street in New London, and died a short time later.
“This indictment alleges that Oscar Valentin orchestrated the brutal attack of Javier Reyes as part of his criminal drug dealing enterprise, while Nestor Pagan, Andrew Aviles and others executed Valentine’s order,” stated U.S. Attorney Daly. “The investigation and prosecution of violent offenders is a top priority of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners. I commend our partners, the New London State’s Attorney’s Office, the New London Police Department, the FBI, the State Police, the Department of Correction, HSI and Secret Service, for their thorough investigation that has led to these serious charges.”
“The New London Police Department is thankful to the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s office for their close working relationship on this case, and the combined effort of the Connecticut State Police Major Crime Squad, Homeland Security and Secret Service for their efforts leading to this indictment,” stated New London Police Chief Ackley. “New London Detective Curcuro has been quietly working on this case with the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s office since September 2012 and we look forward to a continued working relationship.”
“Narcotics trafficking and the inescapable violent crimes associated with it plague our cities,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Ferrick. “Holding those accountable for crimes which impact quality of life for city residents is important to the FBI and to all our law enforcement partners. We stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the New London Police Department in working to bring some sense of relief to the victim’s family and the residents of New London. I’d like to thank the Connecticut State Police’s Eastern District Major Crime Squad, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Secret Service, and the hard-working officers and agents assigned to this investigation, for they remain resolute in their pursuit of justice.”
The four-count indictment charges VALENTIN, PAGAN and AVILES with one count of conspiracy to commit a violent crime in aid of racketeering, specifically an assault that resulted in serious bodily injury, and one count of committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering. The three defendants are also charged with using a facility in interstate commerce, namely a cellular telephone, with the intent to commit a crime of violence.
The indictment also charges VALENTIN and PAGAN with one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
If convicted of the charges, each defendant faces a maximum term of imprisonment of life.
VALENTIN has been in federal custody since his arrest on narcotics charges on April 3, 2013. PAGAN has been in federal custody since his arrest on unrelated firearms charges on December 13, 2012. AVILES is in state custody on unrelated charges.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the New London Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Connecticut State Police’s Eastern District Major Crime Squad, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Secret Service and the New London State’s Attorney’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Kaplan and Sarah Karwan, and Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Paul Narducci.
A principle of the Justice Department’s Smart on Crime initiative is the prioritization of prosecutions to focus on the most serious cases. To learn more about the Smart on Crime initiative, click here: http://www.justice.gov/ag/smart-on-crime.pdf.
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[email protected]Former Police Officer Pleads Guilty to Federal Child Pornography ChargeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANDREW W. NIELSEN, 49, of South Windsor, pleaded guilty today before Senior U.S. District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford to one count of possession of child pornography.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between November 2010 and April 2011, NIELSEN purchased several DVDs containing child pornography, including depictions of prepubescent minors, from a foreign company and had them shipped to his residence. NIELSEN was arrested on November 1, 2012. On that date, law enforcement executed a court-authorized search warrant at NIELSEN’s residence and seized several of the DVDs that he had ordered.
NIELSEN was a police officer with the East Hartford Police Department at the time of the offense. He resigned from the police department after his arrest.
Judge Covello scheduled sentencing for June 18, 2014, at which time NIELSEN faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000.
NIELSEN has been released on bond under electronic monitoring by the United States Probation Office since November 2012.
This matter is being investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Neeraj N. Patel.
This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Childhood Initiative, which is aimed at protecting children from sexual abuse and exploitation. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
To report cases of child exploitation, please visit www.cybertipline.com.
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[email protected]Lisbon Man Sentenced to Nine Years in Prison for Possesing Firearms Stolen in Burglary SpreeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that BERNARD McALLISTER, 43, of Lisbon, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 108 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release for stealing and possessing numerous firearms.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in November 2010, McALLISTER and Mark Missino possessed 19 firearms that they had stolen during a string of residential burglaries that took place between 2008 and 2010. The firearms were discovered in an East Lyme storage locker with more than 8,000 other items believed to have been taken during the burglaries.
Prior to November 2010, McALLISTER had been convicted of multiple felony offenses in several states, including burglary, robbery, breaking and entering, and making terroristic threats with intent to terrorize another. It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.
McALLISTER and Missino have been detained since November 18, 2010, when they were arrested in Massachusetts. On June 6, 2013, McALLISTER pleaded guilty to one count of possession of firearms by a previously convicted felon. Missino, 46, of Waterford, pleaded guilty to the same charge on January 30, 2014, and awaits sentencing.
McALLISTER and Missino also pleaded guilty in state court to several charges related to the series of residential burglaries.
Judge Underhill ordered McALLISTER’s 108-month federal sentence to run concurrently with his state sentence. McALLISTER is scheduled to be sentenced in state court on April 2, at which time he is expected to receive a sentence of 25 years, execution suspended after 16 years.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Connecticut State Police, the Massachusetts State Police, and the East Lyme, Greenwich, Madison, Guilford, Glastonbury, North Branford and Wallingford Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert M. Spector and Jonathan S. Freimann.
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[email protected]Stamford Man Sentenced to 50 Months in Prison for Stealing and Selling FirearmsRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MICHAEL LOTZ, 45, of Stamford, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 50 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for stealing and selling firearms.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 28, 2012, LOTZ and other individuals stole six firearms from a residence in Stamford. LOTZ was arrested the following day after he sold three of the stolen firearms to an individual working with law enforcement, and a fourth stolen firearm to an undercover officer.
LOTZ has been detained since his federal arrest on April 1, 2013. On October 3, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession of stolen firearms.
LOTZ’s criminal history includes multiple felony convictions for burglary and other offenses.
This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Stamford Police Department, with the assistance of the Darien Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Kale and Vanessa Richards.
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[email protected]East Hampton Woman Admits Role in Real Estate Appraisal Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that BRANDY GOMEZ, 35, of East Hampton, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and bank fraud related to a real estate appraisal scheme.
According to court documents and statements made in court, GOMEZ was a provisional licensed appraiser in Connecticut. Under Connecticut’s real estate appraisal regulations, GOMEZ was required to be supervised by a certified appraiser. Between 2006 and 2008, GOMEZ conspired with another individual to obtain real estate appraisal fees to which they were not entitled. As part of the scheme, GOMEZ’s co-conspirator obtained the names, certified appraiser numbers, appraiser certificates, business names and addresses, and electronic signatures of certified appraisers and, without the certified appraisers’ knowledge, used this information when submitting real estate appraisals that GOMEZ had purportedly completed to mortgage brokers and lenders. GOMEZ deposited fraudulently obtained appraisal fees into her personal bank account and shared them with her co-conspirator.
GOMEZ and her co-conspirator also submitted falsified work logs to the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection purporting to show that GOMEZ completed dozens of real estate appraisals under the supervision of a certified appraiser when, in fact, she had not performed such work and was not entitled to the appraisal fees.
GOMEZ and her co-conspirator received approximately $47,908 as a result of submitting the unauthorized and fraudulent appraisals.
Judge Thompson scheduled sentencing for June 20, 2014, at which time GOMEZ faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of Inspector General, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David T. Huang and Paul H. McConnell.
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[email protected]Branford Resident Sentenced to More Than Eight Years in Prison for Operating Ponzi SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that FEISAL SHARIF, 43, of Branford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 100 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for operating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of more than $3.6 million.
According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately 2003 to September 2012, SHARIF ran an investment fraud scheme through First Financial, LLC, a firm he operated out of his Branford residence. As part of the scheme, SHARIF convinced numerous individuals to give him money to invest in what they believed was a commodity pool to profit from trading in commodity futures. In an effort to make investors believe that their money was safely invested and earning a sizeable return, SHARIF regularly made monthly payments to investors, falsely claiming the payments represented returns on their investments. He also supplied investors with monthly statements from First Financial that falsely reported the purported balances of their investments and their rate of return on the investments.
In fact, SHARIF was mostly paying existing investors with new money he raised from other investors. Very little of the investment money he raised was used to trade in commodity futures, and what he did invest in commodity futures did not generate returns anywhere near those he reported to investors. In addition, a review of First Financial’s bank records revealed that from 2006 to 2012, SHARIF took more than $500,000 by way of ATM withdrawals, ATM transfers or checks made payable to himself. SHARIF also made hundreds of other bank transfers unrelated to any investments for various personal expenses.
Through this scheme, SHARIF defrauded more than 70 investors of more than $3.6 million. SHARIF’s victims included relatives, friends and people he knew through their common connection with a religious institution. Many of these individuals lost substantial portions of their life savings as a result of the scheme.
SHARIF was ordered to pay restitution of $3,682,930.84.
On August 27, 2013, SHARIF pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by a commodity pool operator and and one count of wire fraud.
SHARIF was ordered to report to prison on May 1, 2014.
In a related proceeding, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission today barred SHARIF from associating with any broker, dealer, or investment advisor as a result of his conduct giving rise to his conviction in the criminal matter.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. U.S. Attorney Daly also acknowledged the assistance of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the State of Connecticut Department of Banking. The case was prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Richard J. Schechter and Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Murphy.
tizens are encouraged to report any financial fraud schemes by calling, toll free, 855-236-9740, or by sending an email to [email protected].
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[email protected]Tax Preparer Pleads Guilty to Income Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in New England, announced that KENNETH ZITO, 51, of Wethersfield, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas P. Smith in Hartford to one count of tax evasion.
According to court documents and statements made in court, ZITO worked at Daniel Zito Financial Services, a South Windsor commercial financial services firm owned by ZITO’s father, where ZITO prepared tax returns for individuals and businesses. Although ZITO and his father worked together, they submitted client tax returns separately. Between 2007 and 2009, ZITO cashed checks he received from clients as payment for his services, but did not deposit the checks or declare them on his federal income tax return. In pleading guilty, ZITO admitted that he failed to report $219,759.32 in income during that three-year period, and that he owes the Internal Revenue Service $59,621 in back taxes, as well as interest and penalties.
ZITO’s sentencing is scheduled for June 10, 2014 before Senior U.S. District Judge Alfred V. Covello in Hartford, at which time ZITO faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $100,000.
This investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Sheldon.
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[email protected]Stamford Man Sentenced to Four Years in Federal Prison for Distributing CrackRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that TERRELL WILLS, 40, of Stamford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 48 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for his role in a southwestern Connecticut narcotics trafficking ring.
This matter stems from a six-month investigation spearheaded by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Stamford Police Department’s Narcotics and Organized Crime Squad. As a result of the investigation, 20 individuals have been charged in federal court with various offenses related to the distribution of cocaine and crack cocaine in Bridgeport, Norwalk and Stamford.
During the investigation, law enforcement officers seized more than $100,000 in cash, 500 grams of cocaine, 350 grams of crack cocaine, several vehicles and jewelry.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the investigation revealed that Marvin Wooten, also known as “Smash,” of Norwalk, was operating a significant crack cocaine distribution ring in Fairfield County. Between September 2012 and January 2013, Wooten regularly purchased multi-hundred gram quantities of cocaine from various sources of supply, including individuals who were selling cocaine out of a Bridgeport barbershop. He then converted the cocaine to crack cocaine and distributed it to other dealers and customers. WILLS regularly purchased crack cocaine from Wooten’s associate, Gary England, and then sold the drug to his own customers.
On September 12, 2013, WILLS pleaded guilty to one count of possession with the intent to distribute cocaine base (“crack cocaine”).
Wooten and England also pleaded guilty. On May 22, 2013, Wooten was sentenced to 120 months of imprisonment. England awaits sentencing.
This matter has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force – including the Bridgeport, Stamford, Norwalk, Milford, Westport, and Stratford Police Departments, and the Connecticut State Police – and the Stamford Police Department’s Narcotics and Organized Crime Squad. The U.S. Marshals Service also assisted in the arrests of several of the defendants.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Karwan and Robert Spector.
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[email protected]Osteopathic Physician Arrested on Health Care Fraud ChargesRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DAVID LESTER JOHNSTON, 45, of Ridgefield, was arrested today on federal health care fraud charges. On March 12, 2014, a federal grand jury sitting in Hartford returned an indictment charging JOHNSTON with 14 counts of health care fraud and 14 counts of making false statements relating to health care matters.
JOHNSTON, an osteopathic physician, owns and operates Osteopathic Wellness Center, LLC, located at 158 Danbury Road in Ridgefield. The indictment alleges that JOHNSTON engaged in a scheme to defraud Medicare and several private health insurance companies by billing for osteopathic and physical therapy services that he did not perform, and by misrepresenting the nature of the services that were performed.
JOHNSTON appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford and entered a plea of not guilty. He was released on a $100,000 bond.
If convicted, JOHNSTON faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a fine of up to $250,000 on each of the health care fraud counts, and a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of $250,000 on the false statements counts.
The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael W. Ahearn and Auditor Kevin A. Saunders.
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[email protected]Bridgeport Man Sentenced to 40 Months in Prison for Selling CocaineRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that CORNEL CAMERON, 36, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 40 months of imprisonment for his role in a southwestern Connecticut narcotics trafficking ring.
This matter stems from a six-month investigation spearheaded by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Stamford Police Department’s Narcotics and Organized Crime Squad. As a result of the investigation, 20 individuals have been charged in federal court with various offenses related to the distribution of cocaine and crack cocaine in Bridgeport, Norwalk and Stamford.
During the investigation, law enforcement officers seized more than $100,000 in cash, 500 grams of cocaine, 350 grams of crack cocaine, several vehicles and jewelry.
According to court documents and statements made in court, the investigation revealed that CORNEL CAMERON’s brother, Chester Cameron, regularly purchased half-kilogram quantities of cocaine from suppliers in New York and Jamaica. Chester Cameron and CORNEL CAMERON then distributed the drug from the Fresh Cuts barbershop in Bridgeport. One of the Cameron’s main drug customers was Marvin Wooten, also known as “Smash,” of Norwalk, who converted large amounts of cocaine into crack, which he distributed throughout Fairfield County.
On October 15, 2013, CORNEL CAMERON pleaded guilty to two counts of using a telephone to facilitate a drug trafficking felony. Chester Cameron and Wooten also pleaded guilty and are serving prison terms of 70 months and 120 months, respectively.
The Camerons are citizens of Jamaica and face deportation proceedings when they complete their federal sentences.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force – which is composed of members of the Bridgeport, Stamford, Norwalk, Milford, Westport, and Stratford Police Departments, and the Connecticut State Police – and the Stamford Police Department’s Narcotics and Organized Crime Squad. The U.S. Marshals Service also assisted in the arrests of several of the defendants.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Karwan and Robert Spector.
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[email protected]Bridgeport Woman Sentenced to Prison for Embezzling from Shelton Travel AgencyRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that CHRISTINA TARTAGLIO, 34, of Bridgeport, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to nine months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for embezzling from her employer. TARTAGLIO also must spend the first six months of her supervised release in home confinement under electronic monitoring.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between 2008 and 2011, TARTAGLIO was employed as a corporate travel consultant, office manager, and accounting assistant for a travel agency located in Shelton. During that time TARTAGLIO embezzled from the travel agency by drafting refund checks from the agency to clients who were not due any refunds, forged the clients’ signatures, endorsed the checks, and then deposited them into her personal bank account. Also, where a commission was due to the travel agency, TARTAGLIO entered all or part of the commission as a credit payable to a random client or a fictitious name and then wrote a check for the credit amount to that name. She then endorsed each check and deposited it into her bank account. She also created checks payable to vendors or suppliers for operating expenses, changed the payee on a check to a fictitious name created by her, endorsed and then deposited the checks in her account.
Through this scheme, TARTAGLIO embezzled $94,237.05. She was ordered to pay full restitution.
On June 10, 2013, TARTAGLIO pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud.
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, the Shelton Police Department and the Connecticut Financial Crimes Task Force, which includes federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Felice M. Duffy.
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[email protected]Three New Haven Men Plead Guilty to Crack Cocaine Distribution OffensesRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that three New Haven men involved in a crack cocaine distribution ring have pleaded guilty in Bridgeport federal court. DONALD OGMAN, also known as “Main” and “Mainy-O,” 32, KENNETH STURDIVANT, also known as “Slay,” 28, and ROMELL BROWN, 35, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, cocaine base (“crack cocaine”). OGMAN pleaded guilty today, and STURDIVANT and BROWN pleaded guilty on March 10 and March 11, respectively.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from an investigation conducted by the FBI New Haven Safe Streets Task Force and the New Haven Police Department into drug distribution and related violence allegedly being committed by members and associates of the Grape Street Crips in New Haven.
When they are sentenced, OGMAN, STURDIVANT and BROWN face a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life. They been detained since they were arrested in March 2012.
On April 9, 2012, a grand jury returned an indictment charging 18 individuals with narcotics distribution offenses stemming from this investigation. Two more individuals were later charged in the case with the same offense. To date, 16 of the defendants have pleaded guilty. Four defendants are awaiting trial, which is currently scheduled to begin on March 24 before Senior U.S. District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport.
With respect to the defendants awaiting trial, U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the FBI’s New Haven Safe Streets Task Force, which includes the New Haven, Hamden and Milford Police Departments, the Connecticut State Police and the State of Connecticut Department of Correction. The investigation has been assisted by the U.S. Marshals Service and the Westerly (R.I.) Police Department.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony E. Kaplan and H. Gordon Hall.
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[email protected]Fci Danbury Employee Charged with Participating in Inmate Early Release Bribery SchemeRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Ronald G. Gardella, Special Agent-in-Charge, Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, New York Field Office, announced that KISHA PERKINS, a case manager at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury (FCI Danbury), was arrested today on a federal criminal complaint charging her with aiding and abetting a scheme to solicit and collect cash bribes from FCI Danbury inmates in exchange for a recommendation that inmates be released early to “halfway houses.”
PERKINS, 42, of Waterbury, was arrested this morning by FBI special agents at her home. She appeared this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis in New Haven and was released on a $100,000 bond.
“There is no tolerance for corrupt employees within the ranks of the Justice Department,” stated U.S. Attorney Daly. “The allegations contained in this criminal complaint are serious and disturbing. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and our federal investigative partners are committed to rooting out corruption at all levels of Government.”
“Plainly and simply, the FBI has zero tolerance for corruption of any kind, at any level of government,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Ferrick. “The allegations in the complaint are clearly very serious crimes. And the resulting law enforcement response to committing those crimes should be equally clear. If you put your position of trust with the government up for sale, you will be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
As alleged in the criminal complaint, in June 2013, PERKINS approached another FCI Danbury employee about an opportunity to participate in a scheme to solicit a cash bribe from an inmate at FCI Danbury in exchange for the inmate’s early release to a halfway house. At that time, PERKINS held the job title of “Unit Counselor” at FCI Danbury and did not have administrative authority to recommend inmates for early release. PERKINS explained that the inmate and the inmate’s husband were willing to pay $20,000, and that PERKINS’ co-worker, who would receive half of the money, was needed to complete the scheme because the co-worker had the administrative ability to recommend inmates for early release.
PERKINS’ co-worker declined to participate in the scheme, reported the incident to law enforcement and agreed to cooperate in the investigation, which included the use of numerous consensually recorded conversations.
In July 2013, PERKINS’ co-worker told PERKINS that he/she had changed his/her mind and wanted to participate in the scheme. It is alleged that PERKINS informed her co-worker that a scheme involving the inmate who had been previously identified was no longer feasible.
As the investigation continued, in February 2014, PERKINS’ co-worker identified a second inmate as a possible candidate for the bribe scheme. Is it alleged that PERKINS agreed to participate and, after extensive planning, on March 8, 2014, PERKINS and her co-worker traveled to a commuter lot off of Exit 28 on Interstate 84 to pick up a partial bribe payment of $5,000 in cash in a fast food bag that, as PERKINS believed, was to be dropped off by an acquaintance of the inmate.
The complaint charges PERKINS with aiding and abetting in a bribery scheme of a public official, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 15 years.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that a complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan Wines.
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[email protected]Waterbury Man Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Role in Oxycodone Trafficking RingRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DAVID GAUDIOSI, also known as “Wade,” 29, of Waterbury, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for trafficking oxycodone.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from “Operation Blue Coast,” an investigation headed by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force into the large-scale trafficking of oxycodone pills from Florida to Connecticut. The investigation revealed that an individual regularly purchased oxycodone from suppliers in Florida, transported the oxycodone to Connecticut by commercial airline or automobile, and sold the pills for profit to various Connecticut-based narcotics dealers. He then transported the proceeds of his oxycodone sales from Connecticut to Florida, either by having a courier drive the money or by using commercial airline flights.
In early 2010, the Florida narcotics trafficker was introduced to GAUDIOSI, who already had been illegally distributing narcotic pills in the Waterbury area. After the meeting, the trafficker began to supply GAUDIOSI with thousands of oxycodone pills on a weekly basis. GAUDIOSI also visited the narcotics trafficker in Florida on multiple occasions to obtain prescriptions for oxycodone from unscrupulous pain clinics, commonly referred to as “pill mills.”
GAUDIOSI was arrested on September 13, 2011. On June 5, 2012, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone.
Seventeen individuals, including two law enforcement officers and three Transportation Security Agency officers, have been convicted as a result of this investigation and prosecution.
This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, which included personnel from the Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport, Milford, Norwalk, Stamford and Westport Police Departments; the DEA in Florida and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General. In addition, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Greenwich, Monroe, Danbury and Waterbury Police Departments have assisted the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Kale.
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[email protected]Property Manager, Accountant, Indicted for Rental Income Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
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The United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut todayannounced that a federal grand jury in Bridgeport has returned an indictment charging a Monroe property management company, its owner and the company’s accountant with conspiring to defraud a Bridgeport-based residential property owner.
As alleged in the indictment, which was returned yesterday and unsealed today, ANTHONY TESTO, 66, of Monroe, was the owner and president of ACT Builders, Inc., which was contracted to serve as a property manager for an entity in Bridgeport that owned an apartment complex and several single and multi-family residences. TESTO’s role as property manager included filling vacant rental units, setting rental amounts, collecting security deposits, collecting rent from tenants and depositing rental payments in the property owner’s bank account. TESTO also was required to submit to the property owner a monthly “rent roll,” which was a spreadsheet showing the occupancy of the rental units, the rental amounts due and the rental payments collected from tenants. THOMAS RAGONESE, 54, of Trumbull, provided accounting services to TESTO and ACT Builders. At TESTO’s instruction, RAGONESE prepared the rent rolls.
From approximately January 2007 to August 2010, it is alleged that TESTO, ACT Builders and RAGONESE schemed to defraud the property owner by submitting fraudulent rent rolls that misrepresented that certain rental units were vacant with no rent due when, in fact, the apartments were occupied and rent had been collected. The rent rolls also misrepresented that the rent due and collected for certain rental units was lower than the amount that was actually collected. It is alleged that TESTO deposited rental income that was due to the property owner into both his personal bank account and the ACT Builders bank account.
The indictment also alleges that RAGONESE maintained a second set of records in which he kept track of the rental income actually due and collected, which was more than the rental income reported on the rent rolls.
The indictment charges TESTO, RAGONESE and ACT Builders with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. If convicted of the charge, TESTO and RAGONESE face a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years, and ACT Builders faces a maximum term of probation of five years.
TESTO was arrested this morning. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William I. Garfinkel and was released into home confinement, under electronic monitoring, on a $500,000 bond.
RAGONESE was arrested on a criminal complaint on February 25, 2014. He also appeared today before Judge Garfinkel and was released on a $250,000 bond.
This case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Felice Duffy.
An indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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[email protected]New York Men Charged with Extorting Connecticut ResidentRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that ERNEST SYKU, 43, of the Bronx, N.Y., and ROBERT FRANCELLA, also known as “Bobby Fingers,” 54, of Yonkers, N.Y., were arrested today on a federal criminal complaint charging them with collection of an extension of credit by extortionate means.
According to statements made in court, SYKU and FRANCELLA are alleged to have threatened a Connecticut resident with violence in order to induce this individual to pay an alleged $240,000 debt.
Following their arrests, SYKU and FRANCELLA appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge William I. Garfinkel in Bridgeport and were detained pending detention hearings that are scheduled for next week.
If convicted of the charge of collection of an extension of credit by extortionate means, both SYKU and FRANCELLA face a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years and a fine up to $250,000.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that a complaint is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the FBI Fairfield County Organized Crime Task Force, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, the Bridgeport Police Department, and the Connecticut State Police. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Chen.
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[email protected]Trumbull Man Admits Role in Mortgage Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
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The United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut announced that MOHAMMED N. ISLAM, also known as “Tanveer,” 38, of Trumbull, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Leslie G. Foschio in Bridgeport to conspiring to defraud financial institutions through an extensive mortgage fraud scheme that involved dozens of properties in Fairfield County.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between 2006 and 2013, ISLAM participated in a mortgage fraud conspiracy that involved the purchase of numerous single and multi-family properties, primarily in Bridgeport and Stamford. During the scheme, materially false information was provided to mortgage lenders by ISLAM and his co-conspirators. The fraudulent information included false verifications of mortgage applicants’ income, false verifications of down payments for real estate transactions and false HUD-1 Forms.
In pleading guilty, ISLAM admitted that he recruited and directed the actions of several “straw buyers,” or individuals who fraudulently applied for and obtained mortgage loans but did not have an actual financial investment or stake in the mortgage loan transactions. In fact, ISLAM was the intended owner of the property, managed the property and collected all of the rents from the property.
Through this scheme, lenders suffered losses of more than $7 million. Many of the properties involved in this mortgage fraud scheme ended up in foreclosure, or in short sale transactions.
ISLAM pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced by Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall on June 4, 2014, and faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 30 years.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ann M. Nevins and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney John McReynolds.
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[email protected]Jefferies Llc Agrees to Pay $25 Million Related to Fraudulent Rmbs Trading ActivityRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), and Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that New York-based investment bank and broker-dealer Jefferies LLC (Jefferies) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office have entered into a non-prosecution agreement relating to Jefferies’ trading in residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), including with funds created and funded through the Troubled Asset Relief Program by the federal government. As part of this agreement, Jefferies will pay a monetary penalty of $25 million.
“Employees in Jefferies’ fixed income division repeatedly misled their own customers, said U.S. Attorney Daly. “The sole purpose of this deception was to increase profit to Jefferies and its employees. Not only did management tolerate these illegal practices, but the culture within the division encouraged the fraudulent conduct. By entering into this agreement, Jefferies recognized the seriousness of the problem and committed to change. While our investigation of individuals continues, we agreed to this corporate resolution in order to reflect the company’s cooperation and to avoid further damage to its many blameless employees and shareholders. Broker-dealers are on notice that lying to customers to increase profits is a crime, and are strongly encouraged to root out and report such misconduct to avoid significant consequences. We thank SIGTARP, Connecticut FBI and the Boston Regional Office of the SEC for their excellent work on this important case.”
“The government absolutely expects that businesses dealing with federal TARP programs, funded by taxpayers and designed to address the financial crisis, will ensure that they and their employees conduct themselves using strict adherence to the laws of this country and the highest standards of ethics, integrity, and cooperation,” said Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for TARP (SIGTARP). “When Jefferies learned of a suspected fraud scheme by one of its senior traders, Jesse Litvak, to cheat and overcharge TARP-funded entities and that Jefferies supervisors were aware of the lies but turned a blind eye, Jefferies chose to do the right thing. Jefferies cooperated with the government, conducted an internal investigation, acknowledged the harm done, agreed to pay for that harm, and took responsibility to make necessary changes to its staffing as well as to its compliance policies, procedures, and internal controls.”
“Perhaps most troublesome in this fraud scheme was that Jefferies management in the fixed income division learned of the fraud and did nothing to stop it, let alone report it,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Ferrick. “Such egregious conduct supports the $25 million dollar penalty and underscores the need to investigate and prosecute all responsible parties. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, SIGTARP and the FBI make a formidable team in the pursuit of justice and will continue to thoroughly investigate this matter.”
In response to the 2008 financial collapse, the U.S. Department of Treasury introduced the Legacy Securities Public-Private Investment Program (PPIP), and used more than $22 billion of bailout money from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to restart the trading markets for many troubled securities, including certain kinds of RMBS. The program created nine PPIP funds, and more than 100 firms applied to manage the funds. TARP infused between $1.4 billion and $3.7 billion of bailout money into each of the PPIP funds that was to be invested alongside private capital.
Jefferies’ Mortgage and Asset-Backed Securities Trading group traded RMBS on the secondary market by buying and selling RMBS to customers, including Legacy Securities Public-Private Investment Funds. In approximately 2009, certain Jefferies’ employees in that group fraudulently increased the profitability of certain RMBS trades for Jefferies in various ways, including by misrepresenting the RMBS seller’s asking price to the buyer and by misrepresenting the buyer’s asking price to the seller. Jefferies’ employees also concealed that RMBS were being sold from Jefferies’ inventory in order to charge buyers an extra commission to which Jefferies was not entitled.
At times, members of Jefferies’ management in the fixed income division became aware that Jefferies employees were making misrepresentations to customers and did nothing to stop it.
Under the terms of the non-prosecution agreement, which was entered into on January 29, 2014, Jefferies agreed to pay a total penalty of $25 million. The penalty includes up to $11 million in restitution to victims and up to a $4,200,402 penalty to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Jefferies also agreed to address deficiencies in the compliance and ethics practices and policies of its Mortgage and Asset-Backed Securities Trading group. These measures include Jefferies’ agreement to retain an Independent Compliance Consultant to conduct a review of Jefferies’ policies and procedures for detecting and preventing fraud in connection with the purchase or sale of RMBS.
The agreement announced today addresses only the corporate criminal liability of Jefferies LLC, not potential criminal charges for any individual. The criminal investigation of individuals associated with Jefferies’ RMBS trading activities remains active and ongoing. Jefferies has cooperated with the federal criminal investigation, and already implemented certain compliance improvements.
On March 7, 2014, a federal jury in New Haven found Jesse C. Litvak, a registered broker-dealer and former managing director at Jefferies, guilty of multiple offenses involving a scheme to defraud customers trading in RMBS.
This matter is being investigated by the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Francis and Eric Glover.
This matter was investigated in coordination with the RMBS Working Group, a joint federal and state initiative created to investigate those responsible for misconduct contributing to the 2008 financial crisis. RMBS were pools of mortgages deposited into trusts and then sold as securities to investors who were to receive a stream of income from the mortgages packaged in the RMBS. The RMBS Working Group, which is chaired by Attorney General Eric Holder, brings together more than 200 attorneys, investigators, analysts and staff from dozens of state and federal agencies including the Department of Justice, ten U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the FBI, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), HUD’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Office of Inspector General, SIGTARP, the Federal Reserve Board’s Office of Inspector General, the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and more than ten state Attorneys General offices around the country.
For more information about the RMBS Working Group and the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, please visit: www.stopfraud.gov.
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[email protected]Former Fci Danbury Employee Sentenced to Prison for Sexually Abusing InmateRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Ronald G. Gardella, Special Agent-in-Charge, Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, New York Field Office, announced that STEVEN WOLFF, 46, of the Bronx, N.Y., was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport to five months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised released, for sexually abusing an inmate at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury. WOLFF was also ordered to serve the first five months of his supervised release in home confinement under electronic monitoring.
According to court documents and statements made in court, WOLFF, while employed as a Utilities Systems Repair Operator Foreman by the Federal Bureau of Prisons at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, engaged in sexual acts with a female inmate at the prison. On multiple occasions between July 2011 and November 2011, WOLFF and the victim met privately in the boiler area of the prison facility and engaged in sexual intercourse. In addition, WOLFF provided contraband including hair dye, candy, greeting cards and over-the-counter medication to the inmate. Contraband was also provided to another inmate who acted as a lookout during the illicit sexual activity.
On August 6, 2013, WOLFF pleaded guilty to one count of sexual abuse of a ward.
This case was investigated by the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anastasia E. King.
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[email protected]Former Connecticut Resident Admits Structuring Money She Embezzled from EmployerRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that LYNN A. SCHEUFLER, 35, formerly of Woodstock, Conn. and currently residing in Vermont, pleaded guilty on Friday, March 7, before U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to structuring hundreds of thousands of dollars, including funds that she embezzled from her employer.
According to court documents and statements made in court, SCHEUFLER was the Controller and Chief Financial Officer of a company that owns and operates dining and nightlife venues in the northeastern United States. In that role, she was responsible for filling ATM machines located in the company’s venues out of the cash that managers collected from daily business operations and deposited into nightly deposit bags. Over the course of approximately two years, SCHEUFLER embezzled funds by taking cash out of the company’s nightly deposit bags and by making unauthorized withdrawals from the company’s cash accounts using the company’s ATM cards.
SCHEUFLER, with the assistance of then boyfriend and now husband, Craig L. Galligan, deposited at least $400,000 in stolen cash into their personal bank accounts. Most of these deposits were illegally structured so that no individual deposit exceeded the $10,000 threshold that would have triggered bank reporting requirements.
Federal law requires all financial institutions to file a Currency Transaction Report (CTR) for currency transactions that exceed $10,000. To evade the filing of a CTR, individuals will often structure their currency transactions so that no single transaction exceeds $10,000. Structuring involves the repeated depositing or withdrawal of amounts of cash less than the $10,000 limit, or the splitting of a cash transaction that exceeds $10,000 into smaller cash transactions in an effort to avoid the reporting requirements. Even if the deposited funds are derived from a legitimate means, financial transactions conducted in this manner are still in violation of federal criminal law.
SCHEUFLER pleaded guilty to one count of illegally structuring financial transactions as part of a pattern of illegal activity, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years. Judge Thompson scheduled sentencing for May 30, 2014.
On August 1, 2013, Galligan, 42, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to structure financial transactions. He awaits sentencing.
SCHEUFLER and Galligan were arrested on October 10, 2012, and are currently released on bond.
This matter is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. McGarry.
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[email protected]Employee of Deep River Gun Frame Manufacturer Pleads Guilty to Federal Firearms ViolationsRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Boston Field Division, announced that ROBERT BRINKERHOFF, 54, of Old Lyme, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to violating federal firearms laws. BRINKERHOFF works as the general manager of Tri-Town Plastics, a federally-licensed firearms manufacturer located in Deep River.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Tri-Town Plastics (“Tri-Town”) has a contract with Smith and Wesson to manufacturer firearm frames at its Deep River facility. In February 2012, after the Plainfield Police Department seized a Smith and Wesson 9 millimeter handgun from a residence, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) learned that Smith and Wesson had no record of the handgun ever having been manufactured. A review of Tri-Town’s records revealed that the handgun had been scrapped in March 2011.
The investigation revealed that, in 2009, ATF had directed Tri-Town to address some record-keeping issues that were uncovered during a routine inspection. In March 2011, while ATF was preparing to conduct another routine inspection of Tri-Town, two Tri-Town employees discovered that there were approximately 23 firearms missing from their inventory. Rather than report the firearms as missing, the employees falsely listed them as “scrapped” in Tri-Town’s acquisition and disposition records so that ATF would not learn that they were missing and would renew Tri-Town’s license. Soon after ATF contacted Tri-Town in February 2012 to inquire about the Smith and Wesson handgun that was seized in Plainfield, one of the Tri-Town employees responsible for the fraudulent scrapping advised BRINKERHOFF of the phony record entries that were recorded in March 2011. BRINKERHOFF waited until June 2012 to cause a theft/loss report that listed the 23 missing firearms to be filed with ATF. However, the report failed to advise ATF that all of the firearms had been falsely listed as scrapped in March 2011.
BRINKERHOFF pleaded guilty to one count of failing to file a theft/loss report and one count of making false statements in a theft/loss report. Judge Underhill scheduled sentencing for June 2, 2014, at which time BRINKERHOFF faces a maximum term of imprisonment of one year and a fine of up to $100,000 on each count.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert M. Spector and Vanessa Richards.
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[email protected]Former Rmbs Trader Convicted of Securities Fraud, Defrauding Tarp ProgramRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), and Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a federal jury in New Haven has convicted JESSE C. LITVAK, a registered broker-dealer and former managing director at New York investment bank Jefferies & Co., Inc., of multiple offenses involving a scheme to defraud customers trading in residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). The jury convicted Litvak on all counts, including 10 counts of securities fraud, one count of Troubled Asset Relief Program fraud and four counts of making false statements within the jurisdiction of the United States Government.
The trial before Chief U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall began on February 18 and the jury returned its verdict today after deliberating for approximately two days.
“Today’s verdict shows plainly and powerfully that Wall Street professionals are not above the law,” said U.S. Attorney Daly. “A lie is a lie, and fraud is fraud. The jury rightly rejected Mr. Litvak’s shameful claim that he did nothing wrong because many on Wall Street engage in the same conduct. The defendant manipulated facts and made self-serving misrepresentations about the bonds he was buying and selling in a scheme that netted him and his employer more than $2 million in ill-gotten gain. His crime caught the attention of the Attorney General’s RMBS Working Group because much of that $2 million was from the defendant’s scheme to defraud a federal program created with taxpayer money to aid our nation in recovering from the 2008 financial meltdown. I want to acknowledge SIGTARP and the FBI for their incredible work on this ongoing investigation. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and our RMBS Working Group partners remain highly committed to investigating the fraud and abuse that helped lead to the 2008 financial crisis, particularly where that fraud is related to the government’s response to the crisis.”
“This afternoon at 2:30pm, Jesse Litvak, a former senior trader at New York investment bank Jefferies & Co., was convicted of lying through his teeth to defraud American taxpayers out of their hard-earned TARP investments,” said Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for TARP (SIGTARP). “The defendant was the first person SIGTARP arrested for a crime related to the TARP bailout program known as PPIP, and he is now the first person convicted of a crime related to that program. Trading in mortgage securities can be a complicated business, but what the defendant did was simple – he lied to, defrauded, and illegally overcharged customers out of pure greed to benefit Jefferies and himself. Some of those customers were taxpayers who funded the TARP bailout. I would like to thank Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Francis and Eric Glover for their hard work and the deftness with which they prosecuted the case. SIGTARP and our law enforcement partners stand united in protecting taxpayers’ TARP investments, and we will track down perpetrators of TARP fraud and ensure they receive swift justice.”
“Today’s verdict was swift and just, and serves as a stern warning to those who defraud the Government for their own greed and avarice,” stated FBI Special Agent in Charge Ferrick. “TARP was designed to aid in the recovery from one of the worst recessions in U.S. history. Mr. Litvak orchestrated a scheme of deceit and prevarication to manipulate the program to the detriment of investors and the markets. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and all the other members of the RMBS Working Group form a highly effective partnership that will continue to identify and prosecute those who steal TARP funds.”
According to the evidence introduced during the three-week trial, in response to the 2008 financial collapse, the U.S. Department of Treasury introduced the Legacy Securities Public-Private Investment Program (PPIP), and used more than $22 billion of bailout money from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) to restart the trading markets for many troubled securities, including certain kinds of RMBS. The program created nine PPIP funds, and more than 100 firms applied to manage the funds. TARP infused between $1.4 billion and $3.7 billion of bailout money into each of the PPIP funds that was to be invested alongside private capital.
LITVAK, 39, of New York, N.Y., was a senior trader and managing director at Jefferies & Co, Inc. (“Jefferies”), a global securities and investment banking firm headquartered in New York. Jefferies also had a trading floor in Stamford, Conn., where LITVAK and other members of its Mortgage and Asset-Backed Securities trading group worked.
The jury found that LITVAK engaged in a scheme to defraud based on two types of misrepresentations. First, as a broker-dealer, only LITVAK – not the bond seller or buyer – knew the selling and asking prices of the parties. LITVAK exploited this information by misrepresenting the RMBS seller’s asking price to the buyer and by misrepresenting the buyer’s asking price to the seller. Having fraudulently manufactured a gap, LITVAK, on behalf of Jefferies, pocketed the difference in the price paid by the buyer and the price paid to the seller. Second, LITVAK took bonds held in Jefferies’ inventory and sold them to RMBS buyers only after inventing a fictitious third-party seller. This ruse allowed LITVAK to charge the buyer an extra commission that Jefferies was not entitled to because it was selling bonds it held in its own inventory.
Through these schemes, LITVAK defrauded numerous PPIP funds and multiple private investment funds of a total of more than $2 million.LITVAK was found guilty of ten counts of securities fraud, a charge that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years on each count, one count of TARP fraud, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years, and four counts of making false statements to the federal government, a charge that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years on each count.
Judge Hall scheduled sentencing for May 30, 2014. LITVAK has been released on bond since his arrest on January 28, 2013.
This matter is being investigated by SIGTARP and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Francis and Eric Glover.
This prosecution was brought in coordination with the RMBS Working Group, a joint federal and state initiative created to investigate those responsible for misconduct contributing to the 2008 financial crisis. RMBS were pools of mortgages deposited into trusts and then sold as securities to investors who were to receive a stream of income from the mortgages packaged in the RMBS. The RMBS Working Group, which is chaired by Attorney General Eric Holder, brings together more than 200 attorneys, investigators, analysts and staff from dozens of state and federal agencies including the Department of Justice, ten U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the FBI, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), HUD’s Office of Inspector General, the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Office of Inspector General, the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), the Federal Reserve Board’s Office of Inspector General, the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and more than ten state Attorneys General offices around the country.
For more information about the RMBS Working Group and the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, please visit: www.stopfraud.gov.
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Tom Carson
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[email protected]Hartford Crack Dealer Sentenced to More Than Six Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that RAKENT BUNKLEY, also known as “Kent” and “Kent Street,” 25, of Hartford, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 80 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing crack cocaine.
This matter stems from “Operation Vinefield,” a joint law enforcement investigation headed by the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in Hartford’s North End. As a result of the nine-month investigation, 38 individuals were charged with various offenses related to the distribution of crack cocaine and the unlawful possession and dealing of firearms in and around Hartford.
According to court documents and statements made in court, one of the main targets of the investigation was Dementrius Nave, a member of the AVE street gang with a lengthy criminal history. Court-authorized wiretaps of Nave’s phones, coordinated motor vehicle stops and seizures, and physical surveillance, confirmed that Nave and his associates, including BUNKLEY, conspired to distribute crack cocaine and other narcotics in Hartford’s Northeast neighborhood. BUNKLEY is a member of the “Forty Deuce” set of the AVE.
BUNKLEY’s criminal history includes a state felony conviction stemming from a carjacking robbery. In September 2009, he was sentenced to three years of imprisonment for that offense. Approximately four months after he was released in October 2011, he was intercepted on Nave’s phone conspiring to sell crack cocaine.
BUNKLEY has been detained since his arrest on February 13, 2012. On November 5, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine base (“crack cocaine”).
Nave has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.This matter has been investigated by the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force, the Connecticut State Police, the Hartford Police Department, and the Connecticut Department of Correction. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian P. Leaming.
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[email protected]Former Waterbury Detective Sentenced to Prison for Obstructing Tax InvestigationRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ROBERT LIQUINDOLI, 42, of Waterbury, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to five months of imprisonment, followed by one year of supervised release, the first five months of which LIQUINDOLI must serve in home confinement. On November 20, 2013, LIQUINDOLI pleaded guilty to one count of obstruction of the administration of the Internal Revenue laws.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in December 2011, the Internal Revenue Service was conducting an investigation of Thomas Thorndike, a Waterbury tax preparer. In connection with that investigation, the IRS requested to interview LIQUINDOLI, whose 2007 and 2008 tax returns had been prepared by Thorndike. After being contacted by the IRS, LIQUINDOLI sought to obstruct the IRS’s investigation by obtaining false documents that he intended to present to the IRS in support of deductions he claimed on his tax returns in 2007 and 2008. Between December 2011 and February 2012, LIQUINDOLI engaged in an effort to obtain false documents in support of false items on these tax returns, and lied to the IRS concerning the extent to which he possessed original and legitimate documents to support the deductions on his tax returns. LIQUINDOLI also falsely denied that he had attempted to obtain false documents to support those deductions.
LIQUINDOLI, who was formerly employed as a detective with the Waterbury Police Department, was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $4,489.56.
Thorndike pleaded guilty to tax offenses in October 2012 and, on March 12, 2013, was sentenced to 72 months of imprisonment.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Mattei and Eric Glover.
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[email protected]Waterbury Woman Pleads Guilty to Failing to Register as A Sex Offender, Violating Supervised ReleaseRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that GUITANA JONES, 42, formerly of Waterbury, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to one count of failing to register as a sex offender. JONES also admitted to violating the conditions of her supervised release from a previous federal conviction.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in October 2003, JONES was sentenced in federal court to 120 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for conspiracy and use of an interstate facility to transmit information about a minor. Also, in June 2007, she was given a concurrent sentence in state court of risk of injury to a minor and conspiracy to commit risk of injury to a minor. JONES was released from federal prison in May 2010.
As a convicted sex offender, JONES was told that she was required to register and update her registration under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (“SORNA”). Convicted sex offenders must update their address within five days of any move, re-registering in any state to which they move, and verifying their current address with local law enforcement every 90 days. Prior to her release on federal supervision, JONES was told that crossing state lines without registering in the new state or notifying Connecticut of her change of address could result in federal prosecution for failure to register.
In September 2011, JONES requested the Court’s permission to move from Connecticut to Florida. In March 2012, her request was denied and JONES was told that she was not permitted to move to Florida while on federal supervised release.
In May 2013, the U.S. Probation Office learned that JONES had moved to Florida and, at times, had traveled back to Connecticut to avoid detection of her supervised release violation. JONES also tested positive for cocaine use. On June 10, 2013, U.S. Marshals arrested JONES for violating her supervised release. She has been detained since her arrest.
The investigation revealed that, in September 2012, JONES obtained a Florida identification card after providing an address in Miramar, Fla. She also possessed and used a cellular telephone with a Florida area code while residing in Florida between February and April 2013. The Florida Sex Registry has no record of JONES ever applying to register as a sex offender.
When she is sentenced, JONES faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years for failing to register and update a registration as required by SORNA, and a maximum term of imprisonment of two years for violating her supervised release.
This matter was investigated by the United States Marshals Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter S. Jongbloed.
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[email protected]New Haven Heroin Dealer Sentenced to Six Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that DANIEL EVANS, also known as “D-Nice,” 41, of New Haven, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to 72 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven. Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants, and seizures of narcotics and firearms. More than 100 individuals were charged as a result of the investigation.
EVANS has been detained since his arrest on May 17, 2012. On September 20, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, heroin.
EVANS’s criminal history includes at least four prior felony convictions, including three prior felony drug convictions and one conviction for assault in the second degree with a firearm.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments. The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.
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[email protected]Gun Dealers Plead Guilty to Federal Firearms ViolationsRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Boston Field Division, announced that BRIAN VANACORE, 48, of North Branford, GREG BODYTKO, 54, of Northford, and their business, BMG LLC, pleaded guilty today in Bridgeport federal court to violating federal firearms laws.
According to court documents and statements made in court, VANACORE and BODYTKO were the owners of BMG LLC (BMC), which operated a gun store at 2585 Berlin Turnpike in Newington. VANACORE and BMG had three separate federal firearms licenses to deal firearms in Connecticut, and BODYTKO was a 50 percent partner in the business with VANACORE.
In the summer of 2013, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) conducted a routine inspection of BMG’s Newington store. During the inspection, ATF inspectors found several firearms, including machine guns and silencers, which are required to be registered under the National Firearms Act. BMG records revealed that BMG had purchased these firearms, but had not changed the registration information in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. As a result, each of the firearms remained registered to the individual who sold them to BMG. In total, BMG possessed 15 firearms that it should have registered under the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.
BMG, VANACORE and BODYTKO also failed, on numerous occasions, to report the sale of multiple handguns to the same individual, and failed to record in their Acquisition and Disposition records the acquisition and/or disposition of hundreds of firearms. On numerous occasions, the defendants failed to fill out properly, or failed to fill out at all, ATF Form 4473, a form that must be completed by individuals who purchase firearms from federally-licensed firearms dealers. They also failed to conduct necessary background checks on at least 10 separate occasions.
VANACORE and BODYTKO each pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge William I. Garfinkel to one count of failing to keep a complete and accurate written record in its acquisition and disposition records for firearms, and one count of failing to report the multiple sale of handguns. VANACORE also entered a guilty plea on behalf of BMG to one count of making false entries in dealer’s records.
VANACORE and BMG are scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford on May 28, 2014, and BODYTKO is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Shea on June 6, 2014.
ANACORE and BODYTKO face a maximum term of imprisonment of one year and a fine of up to $100,000.
This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert M. Spector and Michael Runowicz.
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[email protected]Fairfield Resident Pleads Guilty to Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in New England, announced that ROBERT JOSEPH PARKER, 51, of Fairfield, waived his right to indictment and pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to one count of tax evasion.
According to court documents and statements made in court, PARKER earned income by providing information technology services to various businesses. Between 1996 and 2012, PARKER did not pay any federal income tax on approximately $2 million of income he received in his own name, and in the name of his alter ego entity known as Success Zone, LLC.
Judge Arterton scheduled sentencing for June 17, 2014, at which time PARKER faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $100,000. In addition, the government believes that PARKER owes approximately $2 million in taxes, interest and penalties for himself personally for tax years 1996 through 2012, and for Success Zone, LLC, for tax years 2003 through 2012.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Richard J. Schechter.
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[email protected]Singapore Shipping Company, Crew Member, Plead Guilty to Illegally Discharging Oily WasteRead the Press Release
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Singapore-based ODFJELL ASIA II PTE LTD. and one of its senior crew members pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Hartford, Conn., for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), announced Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division Robert G. Dreher, United States Attorney Deirdre M. Daly, and Rear Admiral Daniel B. Abel, Commander of the First Coast Guard District in Boston.
“The defendants violated environmental laws that protect our oceans, the world’s fisheries and marine life, from harmful pollution,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Dreher. “Today's conviction ensures they will be held accountable with a stiff criminal fine, contribute to conservation efforts in coastal areas of Long Island, and submit to strict monitoring. We hope this sends a strong message to the shipping industry that committing environmental crimes at sea will not be tolerated.”
“Pollution of our waters will not be tolerated,” said U.S. Attorney Daly. “Shipping companies are on notice that violating American environment laws will result in federal prosecution and puts at risk their business interests in this country. Crew members who ignore these laws may also face incarceration. Although these illegal discharges of oily waste occurred in international waters, we are gratified that a quarter of the $1.2M monetary penalty will fund improvements and protection of the Long Island Sound, a vital economic and recreational resource that contains many unique wildlife habitats.”
“The Coast Guard is committed to working with the maritime industry and federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, to protect the U.S. maritime environment from individuals who pollute our waters,” said Rear Admiral Abel. “When these violations occur, the Coast Guard will work with our partners to ensure that the violators are held accountable under the law.”
According to court documents and statements made in court, ODFJELL ASIA II PTE LTD. (ODFJELL) operated the M/T Bow Lind, a 577-foot, 26,327 gross ton petroleum/chemical tanker ship. On November 6, 2012, the U.S. Coast Guard boarded the vessel in New Haven to conduct an inspection. The inspection and subsequent criminal investigation revealed that three times between October 2011 and October 2012, while in international waters, the vessel discharged machinery space bilge water directly into the sea. At the direction of senior engineer Ramil Leuterio, crew members bypassed pollution prevention equipment that was in place to ensure that any discharged bilge water contain less than 15 parts per million of oil. The crew then concealed the illegal discharges by making misleading entries and omissions in the vessel’s oil record book.
According to several engine room crew members, Leuterio directed them to use a complex system to transfer the bilge water from the bilge holding tank to the sewage tank. From the sewage tank, the bilge water was dumped directly into the sea without passing through pollution prevention equipment. Once the bilge holding tank was emptied, Leuterio directed the lower ranking crew members to put clean fresh water and salt water into the tank. As the pollution prevention equipment automatically records the time it is being operated, Leuterio then processed the clean water through the prevention equipment, thereby creating an electronic record to account for the bilge water that had bypassed the equipment and been discharged directly overboard.
Under the terms of a binding plea agreement, if accepted by the court, ODFJELL will be placed on probation for a period of three years and pay a criminal penalty totaling $1.2 million, including $300,000 that will be directed to The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to fund projects aimed at the preservation and restoration of the marine environment of Long Island Sound.
As a condition of probation, ODFJELL will implement an environmental management plan which will ensure that any ship operated by ODFJELL calling on a port of the United States complies with all maritime environmental requirements established under applicable international, flag state, and port state laws. The plan ensures that ODFJELL’s employees and the crew of any vessel operated by ODFJELL that calls on a United States port are properly trained in preventing maritime pollution. An independent monitor will report to the court regarding ODFJELL’s compliance with these obligations during the period of probation.
Leuterio, 42, a citizen of the Philippines, pleaded guilty yesterday to one count of violating APPS for his role in directing lower ranking crewmembers to make the illegal discharges and for failing to accurately maintain the vessel’s oil record book. He faces a maximum term of imprisonment of six years and a fine of up to $250,000.
U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant has scheduled sentencing for May 14, 2014.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound, Coast Guard Investigative Service, and Coast Guard office of Investigations and Analysis (CG-INV). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul H. McConnell from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut and Trial Attorney Stephen Da Ponte in the Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice.
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[email protected]New Haven Man Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison for Distributing HeroinRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that GILBERT GALAN, JR., also known as “G” and “Skittles,” 32, of New Haven, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to 46 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for trafficking heroin.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven. Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants, and seizures of narcotics and firearms. More than 100 individuals were charged as a result of the investigation.
On December 6, 2013, GALAN pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, heroin.
GALAN’s criminal history includes one prior felony narcotics conviction.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments. The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.
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[email protected]Woman Who Threatened Violent Attack at Gateway Community College Is SentencedRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced that AMANDA C. BOWDEN, 21, formerly of East Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to approximately 10 months of imprisonment, time already served, followed by three years of supervised release, for threatening to carry out a violent attack at Gateway Community College in New Haven.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between approximately February 4 and February 16, 2013, BOWDEN made numerous telephonic threats, initially through text messaging with a cooperating witness and subsequently through text messaging and verbal conversations with an undercover law enforcement agent, discussing her plans to commit a suicidal mass shooting and bombing at Gateway Community College in New Haven. In these communications, BOWDEN claimed to possess firearms and to have constructed at least two napalm-based bombs at her residence.
BOWDEN was arrested on February 19, 2013. On that date, investigating agents conducted a court-authorized search of BOWDEN’s East Haven residence. No firearms or explosive devices were found during the search.
On April 25, 2013, BOWDEN pleaded guilty to one count of false information and hoaxes.
BOWDEN was detained after her arrest until May 14, 2013, when she was released on bond into a Salvation Army program in Hartford that included mental health treatment. She was returned to federal custody on July 11, 2013, for violating the conditions of her release.
Upon her release from federal custody today, BOWDEN was transferred to a State of Connecticut inpatient mental health facility for further treatment. BOWDEN’s internet usage will be monitored by the U.S. Probation Office during her term of supervised release.
This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, the New Haven Police Department and the East Haven Police Department. The FBI’s JTTF includes participants from the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Connecticut State Police, Bridgeport Police Department, Norwich Police Department and the New York Police Department.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry K. Kopel.PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
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[email protected]New York Residents Charged with Sex Trafficking of MinorsRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Patricia M. Ferrick, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that a federal grand jury sitting in New Haven has returned an indictment charging EDWARD THOMAS, also known as “Fire,” 39, and KAYLA WALTERS, 22, both of New York, with offenses related to the sex trafficking of minors.
The indictment alleges that, between September 2012 and August 2013, THOMAS and WALTERS conspired to recruit, harbor and transport a minor to engage in commercial acts. The indictment further alleges that THOMAS also recruited, harbored and transported a second minor to engage in commercial sex acts.
The indictment was returned under seal on February 24, 2014, and THOMAS and WALTERS were arrested on February 28 at a hotel in Milford, Conn. They appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford and were ordered detained.
THOMAS and WALTERS are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor, and THOMAS is charged with two counts and WALTERS with one count of sex trafficking of a minor. If convicted of the charges, both defendants face a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Connecticut Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The Stratford and Milford Police Departments have assisted the investigation.
The Connecticut Child Exploitation Task Force, which is housed at the main FBI office in New Haven, investigates crimes against children occurring over the Internet, and provides computer forensic review services for participating agencies. For more information about the Task Force, or to report child exploitation crimes, please contact the FBI at 203-777-6311.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David E. Novick.
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[email protected]Hamden Man Sentenced to 37 Months in Federal Prison for Cocaine TraffickingRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that TYRELL GARY, also known as “T-Buggy,” 29, of Hamden, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to 37 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing cocaine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven. Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants, and seizures of narcotics and firearms.
More than 100 individuals were charged as a result of the investigation.
The investigation revealed that GARY was purchasing distribution quantities of cocaine from Michael Smith, also known as “Smitty” and “Fingers.” On January 18, 2012, law enforcement officers attempted to stop GARY’s car after one such purchase. A motor vehicle chase ensued during which GARY attempted to discard the cocaine. GARY was eventually apprehended and officers were able to recover a quantity of cocaine.
GARY has been detained since his federal arrest on May 22, 2012. On December 3, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine.
GARY’s criminal history includes at least four felony convictions, including three drug-related offenses and a 2008 conviction for robbery in the State of Maine.
On January 13, 2014, a jury found Michael Smith guilty of one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, cocaine and cocaine base (“crack cocaine”), and one count of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, cocaine base. He awaits sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments. The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.
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[email protected]Groton Cocaine Dealer Pleads Guilty; Two Others Involved in Drug Trafficking Ring Are SentencedRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that JUAN G. CHEVEREZ, also known as “Guinchi,” 32, of Groton, pleaded guilty yesterday in Hartford federal court to conspiring to import and distribute large amounts of cocaine in southeastern Connecticut. In addition, two defendants charged with narcotics distribution offenses as a result of the same investigation were sentenced yesterday.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in early 2012, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), the U.S. Secret Service and the New London Police Department initiated an investigation to combat the large-scale trafficking of heroin and cocaine from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico into and around southeastern Connecticut. The investigation revealed that certain members of the conspiracy coordinated the shipment of heroin, and sometimes cocaine, via human couriers from the Dominican Republic to the United States. Other members of the conspiracy obtained kilogram-quantities of cocaine in Puerto Rico and then mailed the drug to locations in and around New London where it was sold to distributors and customers. Narcotics were also obtained from sources in New York City and Rhode Island.
More than 100 individuals were charged with federal and state offenses as a result of this investigation.
CHEVEREZ, who pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, received kilogram-quantities of cocaine in the mail from Axel Matta Figueroa, also known as “Joelito,” in Puerto Rico, and distributed the drug in southeastern Connecticut. He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant on June 16, 2014, at which time he faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 40 years. CHEVEREZ also has agreed to forfeit several vehicles. He has been detained since his arrest on April 3, 2013.
ISIDRO SUAREZ, also known as “El Diamante Negro,” 47, a citizen of the Dominican Republic last residing in the Bronx, N.Y., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 18 months of imprisonment. During the investigation, SUAREZ helped to broker a 200-gram heroin transaction with Luis Ariel Capellan Maldonado. SUAREZ, who has been detained since his arrest on April 3, 2013, will be deported after he completes his sentence.
ORLANDO GONZALEZ-ROMAN, also known as “Bebo,” 24, of Groton, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to eight months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for assisting Frankie Rivera in the distribution of cocaine out of Rivera’s auto-repair service, PR Speed Shop, in New London.
Frankie Rivera, Luis Ariel Capellan Maldonado and Axel Matta Figueroa have pleaded guilty to narcotics conspiracy offenses. On February 18, 2014, Rivera was sentenced to 36 months of imprisonment. Capellan Maldonado and Matta Figueroa await sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Air and Marine; Connecticut State Police; New London Police Department, Norwich Police Department, Waterford Police Department, Groton Town Police Department, East Lyme Police Department and Putnam Police Department. The United States Marshals Service; ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations; Drug Enforcement Administration; HSI Assistant Attaché, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; HSI Arecibo, Puerto Rico Resident Office; Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation; Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services; and the Groton City, Willimantic, New Haven and Bristol Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
The federal case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alina P. Reynolds, Sarah P. Karwan and Henry K. Kopel. The state cases are being prosecuted by the State’s Attorney for the New London Judicial District and Senior Assistant State’s Attorneys Paul Narducci and Stephen Carney.
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[email protected]West Haven Man Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Distributing HeroinRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that CHOLOE BRIGHT, also known as “Chi-Chi” and “Chello,” 29, of West Haven, was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to 72 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven. Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants, and seizures of narcotics and firearms. The investigation revealed that BRIGHT was involved in the packaging and street-level distribution of heroin.
More than 100 individuals were charged as a result of the investigation.
BRIGHT has been detained since his arrest on May 17, 2012. On December 6, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, heroin.
BRIGHT’s criminal history includes at least eight felony convictions, including four drug-related offenses and a 2004 conviction for first degree robbery.
This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments. The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.
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[email protected]Salem Man Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Trafficking HeroinRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that LUIS MARTINEZ, 34, of Salem, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 60 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.
According to court documents and statements made in court, in early 2012, Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), the U.S. Secret Service and the New London Police Department initiated an investigation to combat the large-scale trafficking of heroin and cocaine from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico into and around southeastern Connecticut. MARTINEZ was intercepted several times over a court-authorized wiretap ordering quantities of heroin from his drug supplier, Luis Ariel Capellan Maldonado, for distribution purposes.
In addition, when he arrested on April 3, 2013, MARTINEZ was found in possession of approximately one ounce of cocaine, a digital scale and drug packaging materials.
On November 19, 2013, MARTINEZ pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.
More than 100 individuals have been charged with federal and state offenses as a result of this investigation.
Capellan Maldonado has pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.
This matter is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Air and Marine; Connecticut State Police; New London Police Department, Norwich Police Department, Waterford Police Department, Groton Town Police Department, East Lyme Police Department and Putnam Police Department. The United States Marshals Service; ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations; Drug Enforcement Administration; HSI Assistant Attaché, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; HSI Arecibo, Puerto Rico Resident Office; Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation; Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services; and the Groton City, Willimantic, New Haven and Bristol Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.
The federal case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alina P. Reynolds, Sarah P. Karwan and Henry K. Kopel. The state cases are being prosecuted by the State’s Attorney for the New London Judicial District and Senior Assistant State’s Attorneys Paul Narducci and Stephen Carney.
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[email protected]Bridgeport Man Charged with Illegally Possessing FirearmRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that federal grand jury sitting in Bridgeport has returned an indictment charging GIOVANNI CANDELARIO, 21, of Bridgeport, with one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
As alleged in court documents and statements made in court, at approximately 10 p.m. on February 1, 2014, a vehicle in which CANDELARIO was a passenger engaged in a chase with Bridgeport Police. The vehicle eventually stopped on Ogden Street in Bridgeport and CANDELARIO fled on foot. CANDELARIO was apprehended after he was found hiding in a trash can behind an apartment building on Hallet Street. Officers subsequently traced the route of CANDELARIO’s flight and located a Smith and Wesson MP .40 caliber pistol on the driveway of an Ogden Street residence. The firearm had been previously reported stolen.
The indictment alleges that, in March 2012, CANDELARIO was convicted in state court of possession with intent to distribute narcotics. It is a violation of federal law for a person previously convicted of a felony offense to possess a firearm or ammunition that has moved in interstate or foreign commerce.
This prosecution stems from Project Longevity, a comprehensive initiative to reduce gun violence in Connecticut’s major cities. Through Project Longevity, community members and law enforcement directly engage with members of groups that are prone to commit violence. A critical component of the Project Longevity strategy is the “call-in,” a face-to-face meeting where Project Longevity partners engage group members and deliver a community message against violence, a law enforcement message about the consequences of further violence and an offer of help for those who want it. CANDELARIO attended a call-in on October 30, 2013, in Bridgeport.
The indictment was returned on February 19 and was unsealed today during CANDELARIO’s arraignment before U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford. CANDELARIO entered a plea of not guilty to the charge, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.
CANDELARIO has been detained since his arrest on February 1.
This matter is being investigated by the FBI’s Bridgeport Safe Streets Task Force and the Bridgeport Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Kale.
U.S. Attorney Daly stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]Stamford Man Sentenced to 15 Months in Prison for Role in Organized Crime-backed Gambling BusinessesRead the Press Release
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Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that SILVERIO CALIFANO, 53, of Stamford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to 15 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his involvement in organized crime-controlled illegal gambling businesses. CALIFANO was also ordered to pay a $4,000 fine and to forfeit $40,000.
According to court documents and statements made in court, after a long-term investigation led by the FBI Fairfield County Organized Crime Task Force, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and the Stamford Police Department, CALIFANO, Dean DePreta, Richard Uva and 17 other individuals were charged with various offenses related to their involvement in an illegal Internet sports bookmaking operation and illegal card gambling clubs. As part of the conspiracy, DePreta and Uva were involved in the collection and payment of “tribute” payments to Gambino organized crime family associates in New York.
The investigation, which included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, revealed that CALIFANO was a long-time associate of DePreta and Uva, and was involved in a large-scale sports bookmaking operation in which gamblers placed bets with offshore Internet sports-gambling websites, particularly www.44wager.com based in Costa Rica.
FBI analysis of the sports-betting web site utilized by the defendants determined that the total gross revenues of the Stamford-based gambling operation were nearly $1.7 million from October 2010 to June 2011.
In addition, CALIFANO managed a card gambling club at 859 East Main Street in Stamford, where a house percentage, commonly referred to as a “rake,” was collected from every hand played.
On May 6, 2013, CALIFANO pleaded guilty to two counts of operating an illegal gambling business.
DePreta and Uva each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to violate the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). On October 9, 2013, DePreta was sentenced to 71 months of imprisonment and ordered to forfeit $300,000. On October 24, 2013, Uva was sentenced to 46 months of imprisonment and ordered to forfeit $250,000.
This matter is being investigated by the FBI Fairfield County Organized Crime Task Force, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Stamford Police Department, the Bridgeport Police Department and the Connecticut State Police. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Hal Chen and Peter Jongbloed.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:
U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
[email protected]