District of Columbia
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Two Maryland Men Charged with Killing Maryland Pro BoxerRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jayvon Thomas, 20, and Lavar Hunter, 19, were arraigned today, in Superior Court for the District of Columbia, on one count of first degree felony murder while armed, for the November 2023 murder 24-year-old Anwar “The Silent Assassin” Wingate, a professional boxer from Maryland, during an armed robbery, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves.
The murder, on November 19, 2023, happened inside a parking garage located at 2112 8th Street NW. Wingate was shot in the neck after he tried to fight off the two men who were able to get the jump on him by catching him off guard. The defendants were arrested yesterday morning in Maryland. Both defendants entered not guilty pleas today. The Honorable Magistrate Judge Eric Glover found probable cause that the defendants committed the murder and held them without bond pending a preliminary hearing on February 2, 2024, at 10:00 a.m., before Judge Raffinan in Courtroom 203.
An arrest on a complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.
In announcing the charges, U.S. Attorney Graves commended the work of those investigating the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and Assistant United States Attorneys Kathleen Gibbons and Alec Levy for their continued efforts in prosecuting this case.
North Carolina Man Arrested for Trying to Extort Millions of Dollars from D.C.-Based CompanyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — A North Carolina man was arrested yesterday for allegedly stealing sensitive data from his prior employer, a D.C.-based company, and threatening to publish this data unless the company paid him $2.5 million. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division.
Cameron Curry, 25, of Charlotte, North Carolina, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with felony extortion for making an interstate threat to injure the property or reputation of another in order to extort money. Curry was arrested yesterday by the FBI in the Charlotte, North Carolina area. He made his initial appearance in the Western District of North Carolina earlier today.
According to court documents, Curry had been working as a contract employee with the victim company but was told on December 5, 2023, that his last day of employment would be December 15, 2023. On December 11, 2023, posing under the pseudonym of “Loot,” Curry allegedly began sending a series of emails to the victim company and its employees threatening to publish certain sensitive financial records and personally identifiable information of the victim company’s employees. In one email, Curry allegedly wrote, “If you wish to reclaim your data, we recommend doing so promptly at 2.5 million USD in order to save your company and stocks, as each subsequent month will incur a $100,000 USD increase.” Between December 11 and January 23, Curry allegedly sent over 60 similarly threatening emails to the company.
As alleged in the complaint, law enforcement identified Curry as the individual posing as “Loot” by metadata in the communications he sent to the company, user information for the email address he used to send these communications, and account details for the cryptocurrency wallet to which he directed the victim to send him the ransom he demanded, among other evidence.
On January 24, 2024, when the FBI sought to execute a search warrant at Curry’s residence, Curry allegedly refused to leave the residence and then sent a series of messages to the victim company threatening to publish its data if he were to be arrested.
In court earlier today in the Western District of North Carolina, Curry made his initial appearance on the charges against him and waived his right to a preliminary hearing. The Honorable David C. Keesler scheduled a detention hearing for next Monday, January 29, on the government’s request to detain Curry. Curry remains in custody pending that hearing.
This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Valuable assistance was provided by the FBI’s Field Office in Charlotte, North Carolina.
A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Maryland Man Found Guilty of Assault with Intent to Kill While Armed and Other Charges for Road Rage ShootingRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Kenneth Miles Davis, Jr., 45, of Maryland, was found guilty by a jury late yesterday of multiple charges arising from the May 19, 2021 road rage shooting directed at a woman and her two children, ages 11 and 5, as well as a bystander, in Northeast Washington, D.C., announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela A. Smith. The Honorable Rainey Brandt scheduled sentencing for March 29, 2024.
The jury returned its verdict after a three-week trial in the Superior Court, finding Davis guilty of one count of assault with intent to kill while armed, three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, and four counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
According to the government’s evidence, at approximately 5:00 pm on May 19, 2021, the defendant was driving his Maserati GranTurismo in heavy rush-hour traffic at the intersection of Kenilworth Avenue NE and Eastern Avenue NE when he suddenly got out of his car with a handgun. Davis fired seven times into the car in front of him, which was occupied by a woman and her two children, then turned and fired six more shots at bystanders. The woman suffered a gunshot wound to her upper arm and the 5-year-old child was cut by broken automobile glass. Fortunately, the 11-year-old child and the bystanders were not injured. Metropolitan Police Department investigators uncovered video evidence that was disseminated to local news outlets, the broadcast of which generated a tip that led to the identification of Davis as the owner of the Maserati, and ultimately, as the shooter.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department. Invaluable assistance was provided by the United States Marshals Service from the inception of the case and through trial. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kathryn Bartz and Gregory Evans of the Major Crimes Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Five More Fentanyl Trafficking Defendants Arrested in Washington Highlands-Focused OperationRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Five alleged fentanyl traffickers have been charged as additional members of two related narcotics conspiracies charged in U.S. District Court, the result of a yearlong multiagency investigation into narcotics distribution points in the Washington Highlands neighborhood of Southeast Washington, D.C. Three of the individuals are coconspirators newly charged in a superseding indictment alleging a conspiracy to distribute or possess with intent to distribute more than 400 grams of fentanyl, using, carrying, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, and money laundering, among other counts. Two other men are charged by complaint as additional coconspirators of four previously-indicted defendants in a related fentanyl trafficking conspiracy case. All five newly-arrested defendants are being held pending detention hearings.
The charges and arrests were announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Special Agent in Charge Derek W. Gordon, of Homeland Security Investigations Washington Field Office, Inspector in Charge Damon E. Wood, of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Washington Division, Acting United States Marshal Ronald Carter of the United States Marshalls Service and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department.
The alleged fentanyl operations were based in the Washington Highlands neighborhood in Southeast Washington, centering on Oxon Run Park and the 100 block of Yuma Street, respectively.
Kahlil Felder, 39, of Washington D.C., was indicted Dec. 14, 2023, on fentanyl distribution charges, using, carrying, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Felder allegedly sold fentanyl in packaging branded with a female figure and the words “Heavy D.”
In executing a search warrant on Felder’s residence on December 13, 2023, agents discovered over five kilograms of fentanyl powder, various tools for distribution including cutting agents, nitrile gloves, masks, and thousands of single serve baggies, and 3,300 pre-packaged baggies or “zips” of fentanyl in various sizes, indicating that the defendant used his residence as a stash house. The search of Felder’s residence also uncovered two loaded semiautomatic pistols – a Glock 36, 45mm, and a Springfield Hellcat 9mm – one of which had been reported stolen in Maryland.
Today, three of Felder’s alleged lieutenants were arraigned on their charges in the superseding indictment against Felder. They include Cyrus Wheeler, 52, of Oxon Hill, Md; Carrol Edelen, 56, of Washington, D.C.; and Calvin Wright, 47, of Washington, D.C. The superseding indictment also adds 33 counts of money laundering and 19 counts of spending money laundering to the charges against Felder, reflecting a high volume of financial transactions that Felder allegedly made with illegal drug trafficking proceeds.
Two additional defendants, Leonard Darnell Short, 40, and James Martin, 58, all of Washington D.C., were also charged by complaint in a related fentanyl trafficking conspiracy. Each had initial appearances today in U.S. District Court. According to charging documents, law enforcement identified Short and Martin as additional members of the narcotics conspiracy previously charged in November 2023 when a grand jury returned a 10-count indictment against defendants Alphonso Lorenzo Murray, 50, Kevin Antaun Penn, 51, Marquette Alonzo Murray, 31, and Christian Raul Simms, 27, of Washington D.C. The coconspirators allegedly openly sold fentanyl on a cul-de-sac by the 100 block of Yuma Street, SE, within 1,000 feet from the Paramount Child Development Prep School.
“Fentanyl trafficking destroys lives and fuels violence, especially when it involves firearms and obscene profit,” said U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves. “The Metropolitan Police Department has identified the Washington Highlands neighborhood where this network allegedly operated as a neighborhood that will be a focus of its homicide reduction plan. We will continue to leverage our resources to take aim at those who are brazenly peddling deadly poison and engaging in crimes that attract violence.”
“Kahlil Felder and his alleged co conspirators are facing some very serious charges; They will get their day in court, but they stand accused of attempting to distribute a significant amount of poison throughout the Washington, D.C. area,” said Special Agent in Charge Derek W. Gordon, of HSI Washington, D.C. “Fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine. One kilogram of fentanyl can produce 1 million to 1.5 million pill dosage units and has the potential to kill 500,000 people. The fact that they were allegedly in unlawful possession of firearms amplifies the gravity of the alleged crimes. HSI Washington, D.C. will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to keep our residents safe from the tragic repercussions of fentanyl and illegal firearms.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service remains steadfast in its collaboration with law enforcement partners, standing side by side to relentlessly pursue individuals infiltrating our communities with this deadly drug,” said Damon E. Wood, Inspector in Charge of the USPIS Washington Division. “We remain committed in eradicating these illicit substances from the U.S. mail and consequently safeguarding our community.”
“We are focused on removing violent offenders, illegal firearms, and deadly drugs from our District streets. MPD along with our local and federal partners are narrowing in on these offenders through our initiative, homicide reduction plan / Operation THRIVE,” said Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department. “Collectively, we are leveraging our resources and focusing in on areas that are experiencing elevated levels of violent crime. These arrests today show how this focused operation has successfully removed Fentanyl, illegal guns, and violent offenders from the Washington Highlands neighborhood.”
These matters follow the charging and conviction of Ahmad Robertson, 33, of Washington, D.C., who was indicted in June 2023 and, in November 2023, pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. According to the government’s pleadings, Robertson was an established fentanyl trafficker in the 100 block of Yuma Street, SE, in the Washington Highlands area. Robertson is scheduled for sentencing on his guilty plea on March 22.
The above efforts are part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
The charges of possession with intent to distribute over 400 grams or more of fentanyl and possession of firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking carry a statutory maximum of life in prison. The charges also carry potential financial penalties. The maximum statutory sentence for federal offenses is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes.
This case is being investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations Washington Field Office, U.S. Postal Inspection Service Washington Division, the U.S. Marshals Service, and MPD’s Violent Crime Suppression Division.
It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Will Hart and Andrea Duvall and former Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Javier Urbina and Jordan Leiter from the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.
Ex-White House Trade Advisor Peter Navarro Sentenced to Four Months in Prison on Two Counts of Contempt of CongressRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Former White House advisor Peter K. Navarro, 74, was sentenced today to four months in prison for refusing to appear before the U.S. Congress to give testimony and produce documents as required by a subpoena he received from the United States House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol.
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves of the District of Columbia and FBI Assistant Director in Charge David Sundberg, of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
Navarro, of Washington D.C., was found guilty by a jury on September 7, 2023, of one contempt count related to his refusal to appear for a deposition and another count related to his refusal to produce documents in response to the Congressional subpoena. The verdict followed a trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
In addition to the prison sentence, the Honorable Amit P. Mehta, who presided over the trial and sentencing, ordered Navarro to pay a fine of $9,500.
According to evidence presented at trial, the Select Committee issued a subpoena to Navarro on Feb. 9, 2022. The subpoena required him to appear and produce documents to the Select Committee on Feb. 23, 2022, and to appear for a deposition before the Select Committee on March 2, 2022. Navarro refused to either produce documents or appear for his deposition. The Select Committee issued the subpoena to Navarro because, inpart based on his own public statements, the Committee understood he had information relevant to its investigation into the attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Navarro, formerly an advisor to the former President on various trade and manufacturing policies, has been a private citizen since departing the White House in 2021. He was indicted on June 2, 2022.
The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth Aloi and John Crabb Jr., supported by Paralegal Specialist Sonalika Chaturvedi, from the Fraud, Public Corruption, and Civil Rights Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
District Man Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison for Firearms Possession and Drug Trafficking OffensesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Michael Stewart, 29, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year (felony) and one count of possession with intent to distribute N, N-Dimethylpentylone (felony), announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and Special Agent in Charge Craig Kailimai of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
Stewart was sentenced to 46 months of incarceration followed by three years of supervised release, by U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan. Stewart pled guilty to the offense on October 25, 2023. He has been detained since January 8, 2023.
According to the government’s evidence, on November 6, 2022 at approximately 4:30 p.m. officers responded to the Beacon Hotel located at 1615 Rhode Island Avenue, Northwest, Washington, D.C. After placing Stewart under arrest, officers searched his hotel room and found a privately manufactured firearm (also known as a ghost gun) that did not have a serial number, underneath the bed. The firearm had one 9-millimeter round in the chamber and an additional 24 rounds in an extended magazine capable of holding 31 rounds. DNA testing on this firearm tied Stewart to the firearm. Officers also recovered Stewart’s book bag, which contained a scale, $2,232 in small denomination bills, and 105.13 grams of N-Ethylpentylone. (N- Ethylpentylone is a Schedule 1 controlled substance and is a synthetic cathinone.) N-Ethylpentylone is often referred to as “boot” or “molly.” During a search of Stewart at the courthouse by the U.S. Marshals, law enforcement recovered a yellow package from his person that contained 66.52 grams of N, N- Dimethylpentylone. (N, N-Dimethylpentylone is an isomer of N-Ethylpentylone. It is also a synthetic cathinone. It is also often referred to as “boot” or “molly.”).
On December 7, 2022, officers were on routine patrol in the area of 5th Street and I Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C. Officers arrested Stewart for publicly consuming marijuana. Officers recovered the following items from Stewart: a sandwich-sized bag containing 70.15 grams of N, N-Dimethylpentylone, a black digital scale, $191 in U.S. currency, a folded dollar bill with a white powdery substance inside, approximately.5 grams of fentanyl (including two light blue round tablets with an M-30 imprint on it and a small zip lock baggie of a light blue powder substance), and another clear plastic bag that contained 87.99 grams of N, N- Dimethylpentylone.
On January 8, 2023, at approximately 2:35 a.m. officers observed Stewart in the area of 7th Street and T Street, Northwest. After officers approached him, Stewart ran diagonally through an intersection with oncoming traffic from at least one direction. Stewart was subsequently apprehended and officers recovered a black in color Ruger SR9C firearm from his person. The firearm was loaded with one round in the chamber and fifteen rounds in the magazine. The extended magazine in the firearm had a total capacity of 17 rounds. A records check revealed that the firearm was stolen from Atlanta, Georgia. Officers also recovered two folded $1 bills with white power inside, a scale, $435 in small denomination bills, and 61.8 grams of N, N-Dimethylpentylone.
In announcing today’s sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves, Special Agent in Charge Kailimai, and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from Project Safe Neighborhoods from both the Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including paralegal Specialist Karla Nunez.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shehzad Akhtar and former Special Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Renaud. Chief of Federal Major Crimes Melissa Jackson provided valuable assistance.
Concert Venue Operator and Bar Owner Each Sentenced to Prison for Bribery of D.C. Tax Official and FraudRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Andre De Moya, 51, of Temple Hills, Maryland, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison, and Davoud Jafari, 72, of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today to 24 months in prison, for their respective roles in separate but concurrent multiyear conspiracies focused on evading their business tax obligations through bribes to a former employee of the D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR).
The sentences were announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, D.C. Inspector General Daniel W. Lucas, and the D.C. Chief Financial Officer Glen Lee.
In both schemes, the bribe payments and communications were facilitated by middleman Anthony Merritt. Merritt, a former employee of the D.C. Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs who held himself out as a permit and licensing expediter, was also primarily responsible for introducing the business owners to the scheme.
In June 2023, a federal jury found De Moya and Merritt guilty of bribery, conspiracy, and wire-fraud offenses arising from the multiyear schemes. According to the government’s evidence, the businesses that benefited from De Moya’s participation in the scheme included concert venue Echostage as well as downtown bars and nightclubs such as Eyebar (later renamed Eden), Ultrabar, L8 Lounge, and Barcode. Evidence at trial showed that De Moya also introduced additional business owners to Merritt, leading to parallel schemes by Merritt and Slater involving restaurants Café Asia and Umaya and nightclub Muse Lounge.
In September 2023, Merritt pleaded guilty to bribery, conspiracy, and wire-fraud for his role in passing bribes to OTR's Vincent Slater on behalf of Jafari, who owned and operated Zeba Bar in Columbia Heights through a company called Gevani, Inc. Jafari was found guilty at trial of bribery, conspiracy, and wire-fraud offenses.
Prior to both trials, Slater pleaded guilty to erasing or helping a number of D.C. business owners, including but not limited to De Moya and Jafari, evade over $3 million of dollars of tax obligations, in exchange for the bribe payments he split with Merritt. Slater is currently scheduled for sentencing on February 22, 2024.
According to court documents, De Moya and Jafari were responsible for combined losses to the District of over $925,000. The majority of the taxes they evaded through the schemes comprised a 10% sales and use tax on food and beverages that was charged to customers and held in trust by the business owners pending transfer to the District.
In addition to prison terms, U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton ordered De Moya to serve three years of supervised release and provide 200 hours of community service. Judge Walton ordered Jafari to serve 3 years of supervised release and pay fines of $1,000.
In announcing the sentencing, U.S. Attorney Graves commended the work of the agencies who investigated the case, including the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the District of Columbia Office of the Inspector General, with substantial assistance by the District of Columbia Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Office of Integrity and Oversight. U.S. Attorney Graves also expressed appreciation for the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Liliana Villamizar, Amanda Rhode, and Mariela Andrade, and former paralegal specialists Aisha Keys and Michon Tart.
Finally, Graves acknowledged the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine Macey, Emily Miller, and Timothy Visser, who prosecuted these cases through trial, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Molly Gaston and former AUSA Amanda Vaughn, who participated in the underlying investigations and earlier court proceedings.
District Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Distributing Fentanyl That Killed Two PeopleRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Sheldon Marbley, 44, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 20 years in prison on five felony counts for running a drug trafficking operation in the Southwest section of the District that caused the deaths of two people and caused serious bodily injury to another two people.
In his plea agreement, Marbley acknowledged to the Court that he caused at least 13 opioid overdoses, two of which resulted in deaths, in January 2022, near the area of First and O Streets near Nationals Park in Southwest Washington D.C.
The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Special Agent in Charge Jarod A. Forget of the Washington Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
“Fentanyl trafficking kills,” said U.S. Attorney Graves. “This defendant sold a dangerous poison that caused the deaths of two victims and the near-fatal overdoses of more than 10 others. He then knowingly continued to sell this poison to others. This 20-year sentence not only sends a message to other drug peddlers, it puts a full stop to this trafficker’s career.”
“The DEA and the Metropolitan Police Department will continue to work side by side with the United States Attorney’s Office to hold criminals like Mr. Marbley accountable for pushing dangerous poisons like fentanyl throughout our area,” said SAC Forget of the DEA. “Today’s sentence sends a clear message to criminals who have no regard for human lives in our communities.”
According to evidence presented in court, Marbley sold narcotics to L.L., 69, and G.H., 72, both of whom subsequently died from consuming the fentanyl and cocaine that Marbley provided. Marbley also admitted that he distributed narcotics to another male and female, and that they suffered serious bodily injury as a result of consuming the fentanyl and cocaine that Marbley provided.
Marbley pleaded guilty in the District of Columbia on May 23, 2023, to one count of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and cocaine, two counts of unlawful distribution of fentanyl and cocaine resulting in serious bodily injury, and two counts of unlawful distribution of fentanyl and cocaine resulting in death.
As part of his plea agreement, Marbley acknowledged that on the morning of January 28, 2022, and in the days thereafter, Emergency Medical Service (EMS) and MPD officers responded to at least 13 fatal and non-fatal opioid overdoses located near the area of First and O Streets, SW. Marbley admitted that, on that morning, he had distributed fentanyl and cocaine from the driver’s seat of a Mazda sedan in Southwest. Closed-circuit video footage captured that morning depicts numerous individuals approaching the front driver’s side of the Mazda and appearing to engage in narcotics purchases.
Despite being aware of the mass overdose event on January 28, 2022, Marbley then went to stay at the residence of another drug user and customer, where he continued to sell narcotics until he was arrested on March 23, 2022.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Christopher R. Cooper ordered Marbley to serve three years of supervised release.
This case was investigated by the DEA Washington Division and the MPD. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah J. Rasalam and Assistant U.S. Attorney David T. Henek of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Wang.
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District Man Sentenced to 12 Years in Prison for Sexually Abusing Four Middle-School Aged ChildrenRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Luis Quevedo, 20, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 12 years in prison term for sexually abusing four middle school aged girls over an eight month period, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves announced.
On August 21, 2023, the defendant pleaded guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to one count of first degree child sexual abuse and three counts of second degree child sexual abuse – one count related to each of the defendant’s four victims. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon prison term of seven and half to 15 years in prison. The Honorable Maribeth Raffinan accepted the plea and sentenced the defendant to a 12-year prison term. The court also ordered the defendant to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life and to complete five years of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, between August 2022 and April 2023, the defendant engaged in a pattern of behavior wherein he contacted middle school aged girls—strangers to him—via social media with the intention of luring them to his house to engage in sexual intercourse. During that period of time, the defendant, who was 18 to 19 years old, had sexual intercourse with at least four such girls, each between 12 and 13 years of age.
The defendant was arrested on April 6, 2023, and has been in custody ever since.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth and Family Services Division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocates Maria Garcia-Sanchez, Forensic Interviewer Tracy Owusu, Paralegal Specialist Brenda Williams, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert Platt and Sarah Roessler, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
U.S. Attorney’s Office Concludes Investigation into Fatal Police Pursuit of James HerndonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced today that there is insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights or District of Columbia charges against four U.S. Park Police (USPP) officers, in connection with the June 2022 fatal police pursuit of James Herndon.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office, the USPP, and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) conducted a comprehensive review of the incident. This included a review of witness accounts; physical evidence; body-worn camera, surveillance footage, traffic camera footage, and aerial video footage; police radio recordings; and MPD and USPP reports.
According to the evidence, on June 27, 2022, MPD attempted to conduct a traffic stop on Herndon, who was riding a three-wheeled vehicle, based upon inaccurate information that he was a wanted homicide suspect. When Herndon fled from the officers, MPD initiated a police pursuit of him. During the pursuit, MPD requested assistance from USPP. After USPP officers joined the pursuit, MPD learned that Herndon was wanted for questioning only, and MPD terminated its pursuit. USPP was not notified of this corrected information and continued to pursue Herndon, who lost control of his vehicle and crashed in a single-vehicle accident a short time later. Herndon was pronounced deceased at the scene.
After a careful, thorough, and independent review of the evidence, federal prosecutors have found insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the USPP officers who were pursuing Herndon at the time of the crash are criminally liable for his death.
Use-of-force investigations generally
The U.S. Attorney’s Office reviews all police-involved fatalities to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to charge officers with violations of either federal criminal civil rights laws or District of Columbia law. To prove civil rights violations, prosecutors must be able to prove that the involved officers willfully used more force than was reasonably necessary under the circumstances. This requires evidence that the force used was excessive under the circumstances, and that the officer acted with the specific intent to do something the law forbids. Similarly, for District of Columbia offenses such as second-degree murder or voluntary manslaughter, where a person reasonably believes that he is or others are in danger of serious bodily injury, force may be used to defend against that danger.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office remains committed to investigating allegations of excessive force by law enforcement officers and will continue to devote the resources necessary to ensure that all allegations of serious civil rights violations are investigated fully and completely.
Ohio Man Found Guilty of Felony and Misdemeanor Charges Related to the Breach of the U.S. CapitolRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – An Ohio man was found guilty in the District of Columbia today of felony and misdemeanor charges for his actions in inciting the mob with a bullhorn during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.
William Dunfee, 58, of Frazeysburg, Ohio, was found guilty of two felony charges of obstruction of an official proceeding or aiding and abetting and civil disorder. Dunfee was also convicted of a misdemeanor charge of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds. Dunfee was convicted following a bench trial before U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton. He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 24, 2024.
According to court documents, Dunfee, a pastor of the New Beginnings Ministry Warsaw, in Warsaw, Ohio, posted a video to social media on Dec. 27, 2020, via the Ministry’s Facebook page, telling his congregation that “The Government, the tyrants, the socialists, the Marxists, the progressives, the RINOs, they fear you. And they should. Our problem is we haven’t given them reason to fear us.” Later he stated, “As I said earlier in another previous sermon is this, they used to tell us, you know what, you settle your differences at the ballot. How did that work out for us? It’s not over.” He added, “January 4th through 6th … Are you ready?”
On Jan. 6, 2021, Dunfee illegally entered the Capitol grounds and, using a bull horn, he repeatedly exhorted the crowd. In a video filmed at the Capitol, Dunfee tells the mob: “This election has been stolen right out from underneath of our noses and it is time for the American people to rise up. Rise up. Rise up. Today is the day in which it is that these elected officials realize that we are no longer playing games. That we are not sheeple that are just going to be corralled according to their whims and their wills.” Later in the video, Dunfee stated, “We will stand up for our country. We are standing up for our freedoms. We are standing up for our president. And today is the day these elected officials, these senators and these congressmen, understand that we are not going to allow this to continue any longer.”
At 1:35 p.m., Dunfee announced: “Mister police officers, we want you to understand something. We want you to understand something. We want Donald Trump and if Donald Trump is not coming, we are taking our house. We are taking our house.”
Minutes later, at 1:44 p.m., Dunfee pushed a metal barricade against officers with the U.S. Capitol Police, who were attempting to hold the line. He pushed against the barricade a second time at approximately 1:58 p.m. He moved to the front of a crowd of rioters at the East Front entrance to the Capitol. Dunfee walked away from the East Front doors as others moved into the building, but he remained in the area. As rioters exited the building, one stated, “We did it. We shut ‘em all down. We did our job.” Dunfee responded, “Hallelujah,” and later told the crowd, “Mission accomplished.”
Surveillance cameras captured Dunfee’s actions that day. Three images showed Dunfee physically resisting U.S. Capitol Police by pushing against a metal barricade and entering the restricted areas of the U.S. Capitol grounds.
This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Cincinnati Field Office. Valuable assistance was provided by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the U.S. Capitol Police, and the Metropolitan Police Department.
In the 36 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,265 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 440 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.
Imprisoned Sex Offender Sentenced to 19 Years and 7 Months for Distributing Child Pornography from Behind BarsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Quincy J. LaBauve, 37, an inmate serving 40 years in the Mississippi Department of Corrections for child sex crimes, was sentenced today to an additional 235 months in federal prison for using a contraband cell phone to send and to seek out images of child sexual abuse material from behind bars.
The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division.
On September 5, 2023, while serving a Mississippi state sentence related to the sexual abuse and exploitation of a child, LaBuave, formerly of Biloxi, entered a guilty plea in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia. to one count of distribution of child pornography.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered LaBauve to serve a lifetime term of supervised release. The federal prison sentence will run concurrently with his state prison sentence.
The federal charges stemmed from a roughly week-long online chat in early February 2020, during which LaBauve asked a Washington, D.C.-based undercover law enforcement officer to help him find someone who would be willing to share child pornography with him.
During the chat exchange, LaBauve sent approximately 10 images to the undercover officer depicting the sexual exploitation of children. In addition, he encouraged the undercover officer to rape his own daughter, described specific sexual acts that he wanted to see inflicted on the child, and set up a specific time where he was supposed watch the live-streamed rape of that child.
On February 18, 2020, Department of Corrections officers in Mississippi conducted a search of LaBauve’s cell and recovered two phones. The forensic analysis of one of those phones revealed the chats exchanged between LaBauve and the undercover officer, as well as at least 78 additional images depicting the sexual abuse of very young of children. These images included multiple still images and at least one video.
This case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. The task force is composed of FBI agents, detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department, along with other federal agents and detectives from northern Virginia and the District of Columbia. The task force is charged with investigating and bringing federal charges against individuals engaged in the exploitation of children and those engaged in human trafficking.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jocelyn Bond and Amy Larson, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Hutson.
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‘La Dank DMV’ Crew Member Sentenced to 74 Months for Role in Sophisticated Marijuana Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Christopher Akinduro, 30, of Washington D.C, was sentenced today to 74 months in prison for his role in a sophisticated and broad conspiracy that was responsible for bringing hundreds of pounds of marijuana from California to the metropolitan area.
The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott of the Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division.
Akinduro, a member of the “LA Dank DMV Crew”, pleaded guilty on October 3, 2023, to conspiracy to distribute, and possess with intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana. In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ordered Akinduro to serve 4 years of supervised release.
Seven LA Dank co-defendants have all pleaded guilty to various drug trafficking and/or firearms counts. The co-defendants include Abubakr Banire, Kavon Duncan, Joe Blyther, Isaac Akinduro, Avery Bost, Omar Butler, and Randall Lance, entered their pleas in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Lance was sentenced Oct. 10, 2023, to a 63 month prison term for conspiracy to distribute over 100 kilos of marijuana. The others are awaiting sentencing on similar counts.
According to the government’s evidence, between May of 2021 and December of 2021, crew members operated a sophisticated conspiracy to traffic large amounts of high-grade marijuana from California to the DMV area for distribution to customers. As part of their distribution scheme, members of the crew relied heavily on mass marketing through three dedicated LA Dank websites, as well as social media platforms like Instagram where individual crew members advertised LA Dank branded clothing and LA Dank branded marijuana that could be bought directly online. Although the websites themselves appeared professional, LA Dank was not a licensed company to operate in the District of Columbia.
Akindkuro and his fellow crew members also used short-term rental properties to set up stash houses or points of sale that were used to conduct drug distribution operations before moving on to different locations.
Law enforcement executed its first residential search warrant on June 15, 2021, at the 1900 block of Whistling Duck Drive, Upper Marlboro, MD, after law enforcement observed multiple LA Dank crew members and purchasers traveling to and from the premises. Akinduro arrived at the location as while the search was in process. An FBI search of Akinduro’s vehicle revealed a loaded pistol in the center console, a suitcase in the trunk that was consistent with those found within the Whistling Duck house, and seven pounds of marijuana.
Even after the seizure of his vehicle, Akinduro continued to participate in the conspiracy and to possess additional firearms.
Akinduro and his LA Dank co-conspirators operated numerous stash houses in the D.C. area. Two of these locations, used by Akinduro himself, were separate long-term rentals in a hotel on the 300 block of N Street, Northeast. On December 21, 2021, the FBI executed search warrants on both units. In the first, the FBI recovered a Glock 19 9mm caliber pistol with a machine gun conversion device installed, an AR-style pistol, an AR firearm magazine loaded with 25 5.56 caliber rounds, 68 grams of marijuana, a digital scale, and a laptop labeled “LA Dank Exotics.” In the second, the FBI recovered a Glock 26 9mm caliber pistol with a machine gun conversion device installed, a second Glock 26 9 mm caliber pistol, a 9 mm caliber ammunition box, 40 pounds of marijuana, a scale, a money counter, and approximately $18,000.00 in cash. Akinduro and defendant Duncan occupied the second unit at the time of the execution of the search warrant. Akinduro discussed a “switch on the glizzy” in an Instagram post, suggesting that he was aware of the fully automatic capabilities of firearms with machine gun conversion devices installed.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, in partnership with the Metropolitan Police Department, Prince George’s County Police Department, and Anne Arundel County Police Department.
The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Justin F. Song and Meredith E. Mayer-Dempsey of the Federal Major Crimes Section and Thomas Strong of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Maryland Man Sentenced to 12 Months in Prison for Felony Bail Reform Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Ranjith Keerikkattil, 35, formerly of Catonsville, Md., was sentenced by the Honorable Heidi Pasichow to 12 months of incarceration, three years of supervised release and ordered to stay away from the stalking victim and her family following his jury verdict for felony violations of the Bail Reform Act, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves announced today.
Keerikkattil was found guilty of stalking a former co-worker on July 9, 2018, following a jury trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Robert A. Salerno released Keerikkattil following the verdict, pending sentencing. The judge ordered him to appear the next morning to have a GPS monitoring device installed. However, he failed to appear, and fled the United States, instead, traveling through Iceland and ending up in Australia where he remained a fugitive for over four years. A grand jury subsequently indicted him on July 11, 2018, for a felony charge of violating the Bail Reform Act. The grand jury returned a superseding indictment on March 1, 2023, charging an additional violation of the Bail Reform Act for failing to return as ordered for his sentencing on September 14, 2018.
On November 13, 2023, Keerikkattil was found guilty by a second jury for his failures to appear as ordered in 2018, resulting in felony convictions for violating the Bail Reform Act on July 10, 2018 and September 14, 2018.
In announcing this sentencing result and convictions, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Lynda Randolph and Stephanie Siegerist, Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Allen, and Victim/Witness Services Coordinator La June Thames.
Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ethan Carroll, Kristina Wolf, and John Parron who assisted in investigating and preparing the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys John G. Giovannelli and Rashmika Nedungadi who prosecuted and tried the case through the jury’s verdict and the sentencing today.
D.C. Rapper, a Fox 5 Gang Affiliate, Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison on Multiple Firearms ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Russell Campbell, 21, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 30 months in prison in connection with his possession of a Glock firearm and possession of an AK-style pistol recovered during a traffic stop by the U.S. Secret Service.
The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, Special Agent in Charge Craig Kailimai of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Special Agent in Charge Michael Buck of the U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division, and Chief Pamela A. Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Campbell is an influential rapper who performs as “Gizwop.” He is affiliated with a violent group originating in 37th Place SE that refers to themselves as the Fox 5 Gang.
In addition to the prison term, Campbell was ordered by U.S. District Court Judge Christopher R. Cooper to serve three years of supervised release.
Campbell pleaded guilty September 21, 2023, to a two-count indictment, charging him with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm while under indictment and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a felony.
According to the government’s evidence, on November 8, 2020, Campbell was charged in D.C. Superior Court for carrying a pistol without a license. While on release in that case, on June 20, 2021, Campbell was armed with a loaded firearm while in the vicinity of a gas station on the 2200 block Bladensburg Road NE. Specifically, from Campbell’s waistband, officers recovered a Glock 45 with 23 rounds of ammunition loaded in an extended magazine.
Four months later, on October 20, 2021, while still under court-ordered supervision, Campbell was involved in a shootout in the 200 block of 37th Place SE. Campbell was charged in D.C. Superior Court and ultimately plead guilty to carrying a pistol without a license in connection with this shootout on May 25, 2022. On June 7, 2022, Campbell was sentenced to six months in prison, with all that time suspended under the Youth Rehabilitation Act (YRA), and with 18 months’ supervised probation.
Despite being a felon, and after having been ordered by the Court to not possess any firearms, on November 11, 2022, Campbell occupied a vehicle containing five firearms, one of which was forensically linked to him. On the evening of November 10, 2022, surveillance from the 200 block of 37th Place SE recorded Campbell entering a vehicle at about 5:30 p.m. carrying a green and black backpack, later found to contain an AK-style pistol.
About 3 a.m. on November 11, 2022, Campbell, four others left the club in the vehicle. U.S. Secret Service performed a traffic stop on the vehicle Campbell occupied in the 800 block of 7th Street, NW. Therein, law enforcement found five different firearms and the green and black backpack. Inside the backpack was a Zastava AK-Style with an extended magazine holding thirty .556 caliber live rounds and one live round in the chamber. Campbell was included in the DNA profile from the AK-Style pistol and the attached magazine.
This case was investigated by the MPD. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sitara Witanachchi of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia with valuable assistance provided by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Wang.
D.C. Rapper, a Fox 5 Gang Affiliate, Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison on Multiple Firearms ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Russell Campbell, 21, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 30 months in prison in connection with his possession of a Glock firearm and possession of an AK-style pistol recovered during a traffic stop by the U.S. Secret Service.
The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Scott of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, Special Agent in Charge Craig Kailimai of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Special Agent in Charge Michael Buck of the U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division, and Chief Pamela A. Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Campbell is an influential rapper who performs as “Gizwop.” He is affiliated with a violent group originating in 37th Place SE that refers to themselves as the Fox 5 Gang.
In addition to the prison term, Campbell was ordered by U.S. District Court Judge Christopher R. Cooper to serve three years of supervised release.
Campbell pleaded guilty September 21, 2023, to a two-count indictment, charging him with one count of unlawful possession of a firearm while under indictment and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a felony.
According to the government’s evidence, on November 8, 2020, Campbell was charged in D.C. Superior Court for carrying a pistol without a license. While on release in that case, on June 20, 2021, Campbell was armed with a loaded firearm while in the vicinity of a gas station on the 2200 block Bladensburg Road NE. Specifically, from Campbell’s waistband, officers recovered a Glock 45 with 23 rounds of ammunition loaded in an extended magazine.
Four months later, on October 20, 2021, while still under court-ordered supervision, Campbell was involved in a shootout in the 200 block of 37th Place SE. Campbell was charged in D.C. Superior Court and ultimately plead guilty to carrying a pistol without a license in connection with this shootout on May 25, 2022. On June 7, 2022, Campbell was sentenced to six months in prison, with all that time suspended under the Youth Rehabilitation Act (YRA), and with 18 months’ supervised probation.
Despite being a felon, and after having been ordered by the Court to not possess any firearms, on November 11, 2022, Campbell occupied a vehicle containing five firearms, one of which was forensically linked to him. On the evening of November 10, 2022, surveillance from the 200 block of 37th Place SE recorded Campbell entering a vehicle at about 5:30 p.m. carrying a green and black backpack, later found to contain an AK-style pistol.
About 3 a.m. on November 11, 2022, Campbell, four others left the club in the vehicle. U.S. Secret Service performed a traffic stop on the vehicle Campbell occupied in the 800 block of 7th Street, NW. Therein, law enforcement found five different firearms and the green and black backpack. Inside the backpack was a Zastava AK-Style with an extended magazine holding thirty .556 caliber live rounds and one live round in the chamber. Campbell was included in the DNA profile from the AK-Style pistol and the attached magazine.
This case was led by the FBI, with valuable support from the MPD. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sitara Witanachchi of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia with valuable assistance provided by former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Wang.
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KDY Crew Member Sentenced for Violent Crime Spree Spanning Three MonthsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Tyrell Jordan Stewart, 25, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to 15 years in prison today for a string of armed carjackings and sprees of violent armed robberies that he committed with two co-defendants in the District and Suburban Maryland during in 2022.
The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist, of the Washington Field Office; Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police (MPD); ATF Special Agent in Charge Craig Kailimai of the Washington Division, DEA Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget, of the Washington Division, Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County, Md., Police Department, and Chief Marcus G. Jones, of the Montgomery County, Md., Police Department.
Stewart pleaded guilty on September 15, 2023, to conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce, also known as a Hobbs Act robbery; conspiracy to commit carjacking; and armed robbery.
According to the plea paperwork, Stewart admitted to personally participating in the armed robberies of six individuals, five businesses and/or their employees, and two armed carjackings. Stewart admitted to personally discharging his weapon during one of the commercial robberies.
In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Beryl A. Howell ordered Stewart to serve five years of supervised release and to pay $2,746.00 in restitution.
“This defendant was a member of the Kennedy Street Crew, also known as KDY—a crew that has had numerous members who have been charged with crimes of violence and drug trafficking,” said U.S. Attorney Graves. “The people engaging in these carjacking and armed robbery sprees are among the most dangerous people in our community. Anyone thinking this kind of conduct is not a big deal is wrong: violent sprees, end with sentences like this.”
Had the case gone to trial, the U.S. Attorney’s Office would have proved beyond a reasonable doubt that Stewart and his two charged co-defendants conspired to a string of robberies and carjackings of individuals and businesses in the Washington D.C. metro area. Specifically, Stewart and his two charged co-defendants committed five commercial robberies, two armed carjackings, and at least 12 armed robberies over the course of their conspiracy.
“It is our hope that the results of today’s announcement sends a clear message to others that are committing similar acts of violence such as robberies and armed car jackings in the District; that they too may face similar consequences for their actions,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Kailimai. “I am proud that our agents and partnering agencies worked tirelessly to bring justice to those responsible.”
According to the government’s evidence, Stewart and his co-defendants are members of the Kennedy Street Crew or KDY, a violent street gang that operates in the Kennedy Street neighborhood in Northwest Washington, D.C. KDY is among the largest crews in Washington, D.C. based on both territory and its vast membership.
The defendant and his co-conspirators’ violent spree occurred over the first three months of 2022. The conspirators typically planned their robberies the night before and executed early in the morning. In order to avoid detection from law enforcement, the defendants typically began a day’s robberies by stealing a vehicle to then utilize in their subsequent robberies. If the vehicle was occupied or if the owner was close by, the men would use firearms, force, and intimidation to carjack it. After the sprees, the men sold the vehicles for added profit. A hallmark of the defendants’ robberies were the use of force and/or violence against their victims.
On February 20, 2022, for instance, Stewart and his co-conspirators stole a Honda Ridgeline truck in Silver Spring, Md., shortly before 6 a.m. Less than an hour later, police received multiple reports of suspects in a black Ridgeline truck in attempting to break into other vehicles. That same morning, Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) officers responded to a convenience store on the 3500 block of University Boulevard West, in Kensington, Md. Victims reported that three armed men had entered the store and robbed the cashier of currency and a cell phone. One of the gunmen held a handgun to a customer’s right temple. As the robbery progressed, one of the gunmen fired a round into the store. One of the armed men grabbed the customer’s car keys from his left pants pocket, and all three suspects fled in the customer’s Lexus SUV.
That same morning, MCPD officers separately responded to an armed robbery of a mini market on the 4800 block of Boiling Brook Parkway, in Rockville, Md. This time, Stewart discharged his firearm to intimidate the cashier into complying with his demands. All three armed men fled the store in what appeared to be the same stolen Ridgeline used earlier. At 7:25 a.m., an MCPD officer spotted the stolen Ridgeline and stolen Lexus SUV and pursued the vehicles southbound on 16th Street towards the District at speeds topping 100 m.p.h. The MCPD officer ultimately lost sight of both vehicles. That same morning, Stewart and his co-conspirators committed an armed robbery of someone waiting at a bus stop in the 7700 block of Georgia Avenue NW, one block from the D.C./Maryland line. The defendant and his co-conspirator placed the victim in a chokehold while the other pistol-whipped the victim in the face. The two then stole the victim’s wallet.
The prosecution of Stewart, along with his two codefendants, are part of an ongoing coordinated law enforcement investigation into the Kennedy Street Crew, also known as “KDY.” The multi-year investigation reflects the efforts of nearly every federal law enforcement agency in the District of Columbia, along with the Metropolitan Police Department’s Violent Crime Suppression Division.
The investigation of this case had the sponsorship and support of the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). OCDETF specializes in the investigation and prosecution of drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and related criminal enterprises.
The case is being investigated by the ATF’s Washington Field Division, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Montgomery County, Maryland Police Department and the Prince George’s County, Maryland Police Department.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. Kinskey and Sitara Witanachchi of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Valuable assistance was also provided by former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Lynch.
Jury Finds District Man Guilty of First-Degree Murder in Killing of 17-Year-Old in the Brightwood Area of Northwest WashingtonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Mussay Rezene, 31, of Washington, D.C., has been found guilty by a jury of first-degree murder while armed in a shooting that took place in an alley in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Pamela Smith, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
The verdict was returned on January 11, 2024, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Robert D. Okun scheduled sentencing for March 22, 2024. Rezene faces a maximum sentence of sixty years in prison for the crimes.
According to the government’s evidence, on September 18, 2021, at approximately 9 p.m., the victim, Brayan Villatoro, was riding in a vehicle with a group of friends, heading to a family party. On the way, Mr. Villatoro, asked the driver of the minivan he was riding in, to make a stop so he could meet with someone at the 1300 block of Nicholson Street Northwest. Once they arrived at the location, Mr. Villatoro got out of the van and waited in front of an apartment building. The defendant arrived a short time later in a vehicle, which later proved to be stolen, and directed Mr. Villatoro to a nearby alley. Moments later shots rang out and Mr. Villatoro was hit with eight bullets. Rezene fled the area as did Mr. Villatoro’s friends in the minivan as Mr. Villatoro laid in the alley suffering from his gunshot wounds. Officers arrived and discovered him in the alley a short time after the shooting where he was declared dead.
Rezene was identified in surveillance video as wearing distinct shoes and clothing. These same shoes were later seen in a photograph of Rezene along with two other individuals, which was posted on social media after Mr. Villatoro’s murder. Cell site data also showed Rezene was present both at the scene of the murder and along the path of the vehicle that Rezene owned.
This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, along with agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives who assisted with evidence recovery and cell site data analysis and testimony.
The case is being prosecuted by the Assistant U.S. Attorney’s Dennis Clark and Colleen Kukowski.
Jury Finds District Man Guilty of First-Degree Child CrueltyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Anthony Johnson, 42, of Washington, D.C., has been found guilty by a jury of first-degree cruelty to children and assault of significant bodily injury of a minor for charges that took place in northwest Washington, D.C., on April 5, 2022, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves.
The verdict was returned on January 12, 2024, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Erik Christian scheduled sentencing for March 14, 2024.
According to the government’s evidence, on the night of April 5, 2022, Johnson entered the home of the 12-year-old victim, who was at home with several of his minor siblings, his grandmom, and his uncle. Johnson knew the victim’s mother, and after entering the house, Johnson approached the minor victim and began physically fighting with him on the first floor of the home. When the minor victim tried to run away up a flight of stairs Johnson grabbed the victim’s leg, pulled him down the stairs, and punched him in the face, knocking three of the victim’s teeth out.
Two of the victim’s minor sisters were also at home at that time, and bore witness to Johnson’s attack on their older brother. One sister called 911, alerting the authorities who took the victim to the hospital.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Graves commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case form the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Paralegal Specialist Garcia Clarke, Victim/Witness Specialist Lezlie Richardson, Appellate Assistant United States Attorney Bryan Han, Investigative Analyst Lucas Jetson, Forensic Interviewers Tracy Owusu and Tamara Carey, Interns Brittany Madrid, Natalie Norton, and Michael Santos, and Victim/Witness Coordinator Maenylie Watson.
Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys, LaVater Massie-Banks and Sarah Roessler, from the Domestic Violence Felonies Unit, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
District Man Sentenced to 150 Months in Prison for a Series of Armed Robberies of Businesses in the Adams Morgan NeighborhoodRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Tarik Laghrib, 44, of Washington D.C., was sentenced today to 150 months in prison for multiple violent crime offenses he committed in the Adams Morgan neighborhood in January and February of 2023, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Laghrib pleaded guilty on October 26, 2023, to armed robbery, two counts of unarmed robbery, assault, and theft, arising from a series of armed and unarmed robberies of small businesses in the Adams Morgan neighborhood. In addition to the prison term, Superior Court Judge Jason Park ordered Laghrib to serve 11 years of supervised release, and stay away from the Adams Morgan neighborhood.
According to court documents, MPD officers arrested Laghrib in the early hours of Feb. 19, 2023, hours after he assaulted and robbed a clerk at Metro Wine & Spirits in the 1700 block of Columbia Rd. Police tracked Laghrib to a nearby apartment building. Officers apprehended Laghrib when he later emerged with a bottle of stolen liquor. Police had been investigating several other burglaries and robberies in the community that had begun in January 2023. As a result of the investigation, police and prosecutors linked Laghrib to that crime spree. That crime spree ended when Laghrib was arrested and detained in this case.
As part of his plea agreement, Laghrib admitted in D.C. Superior Court to the armed robbery of the liquor store and also admitted to an assault and second-degree theft at the Chocolate House on 18th Street on Feb. 2, 2023. In addition, he admitted that he returned to the Chocolate House the next day and robbed its owner. Minutes later, Laghrib proceeded to the Cosmo Nail Bar where he committed another robbery.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended those who investigated the case including the MPD’s Third District Detectives Unit. They also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Wes Faulkner, Jr. and Joshua Hall, who investigated and prosecuted the case.
District Man Sentenced to 11 Years in July 2020 ShootingRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Vincent James, 39, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 132 months of incarceration for shooting a man multiple times in the chest, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He was sentenced by the Honorable Michael O’Keefe of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
James was found guilty of all charges by a jury following a three-day trial in Superior Court in October 2023. Specifically, the jury found James guilty of aggravated assault while armed and related firearms offenses. In addition to the prison term, the Honorable Michael O’Keefe ordered James to serve five years of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, in the early morning of July 30, 2020, James encountered the victim in the parking lot of Spar Liquors, located at 3916 South Capitol Street, SE. Without provocation or warning, James shot the victim multiple times in the torso. The victim was able to flee but collapsed at a nearby bus stop before being transported to Washington Hospital Center, where he was treated for multiple gunshot wounds. James was identified from surveillance footage at a nearby AutoZone where he made a purchase using his loyalty account earlier in the day.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Smith commended the work of MPD’s Seventh District Detectives Unit who investigated the case. They also thanked Crystal Waddy, Debra McPherson (retired), Charlie Bruce, Tina Lukens, Hayley Kornbleuth, Carolyn Carter-Mckinley, Katina Adams-Washington, Maenylie Reed Watson, and Assistant United States Attorneys Ella Gladman, LaVater Massie-Banks, Carlos Valdivia of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, as well as the U.S. Marshals Service for their valuable assistance throughout the case. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant United States Attorneys Anna Forgie and Ron Chester, who prosecuted and tried the case.
Annapolis Woman Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison for Role in Manufacturing Fentanyl PillsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Laura Garvin, 30, of Annapolis, Md., was sentenced today to 24 months in prison in connection with her role in a drug trafficking group running a fentanyl pill pressing operation in and around Washington, D.C. and Maryland.
The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, and FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist of the Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division.
Garvin pleaded guilty to a one count information on May 17, 2023, charging her with conspiracy with intent to distribute fentanyl. In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta ordered Garvin to serve 24 months of supervised release.
According to the government’s evidence, Garvin helped sell real and fake oxycodone pills. She also sold powder cocaine. In addition to this, she allowed members of the drug trafficking conspiracy to store one of the group’s industrial pill presses at her home along with a tub filled with fentanyl pill making mix after the group’s drug lab was discovered in Laurel, Maryland. The conspiracy started in May 2020 and lasted until September 2022. Garvin admitted that she was accountable for between 40 grams and 160 grams of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl.
In August 2021, the FBI began investigating a drug trafficking group running a fentanyl pill pressing operation in and around Washington, D.C. and Maryland. Law enforcement learned that the group possessed at least three pill presses – including one industrial rotary pill machine – used to press fentanyl into counterfeit prescription pills. The pills were made to appear as legitimate prescription oxycodone and other prescription drugs which the group then distributed throughout the District and Maryland.
On March 29, 2022, the FBI executed a search warrant at an apartment stash house on the 1300 block of 4th Street in Southeast Washington, D.C. During the search, agents seized Zip-loc baggies of pills and loose powder, totaling more than 516 pills and more than 76 grams of a mixture and substance containing fentanyl. Garvin had spent the evening at this location on multiple occasions.
FBI agents arrested Garvin on September 20, 2022. After her arrest, she had been on home confinement while awaiting sentencing. However, she tested positive for cocaine and allegedly continued to sell oxycodone pills. Garvin was removed from pre-trial supervision and taken into custody on November 9, 2023.
Garvin’s boyfriend, Co-defendant Collin Edwards, aka “Chills,” pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine and a charge of identity theft. Edwards, 29, of Largo, Md., is scheduled for sentencing on March 5, 2024.
The FBI Washington Field Office is investigating this case.
The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin L. Rosenberg of the Fraud, Public Corruption, and Civil Rights Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Assistant United States Attorney Steven Wasserman and former Special Assistant United States Attorneys Marnee Rand and Sarah Rasalam assisted in the investigation.
Violent Member of ‘No Rats Allowed’ Crew Sentenced to 60 MonthsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Adrian Wade, 28, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced yesterday to 60 months in prison for being a convicted felon in possession a semi- automatic pistol and ammunition inside a known stash house on the 200 block of K Street, Southwest, when the townhome was raided in November 2021.
The announcement was made January 10 by U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves, FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
In addition to the prison sentence, U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich ordered Wade to serve five years of supervised release.
Wade pleaded guilty on September 29, 2023, to a charge of using, carrying, and possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking offense. The sentencing followed a lengthy investigation lead by the Metropolitan Police Department’s Narcotics Enforcement Unit (NEU), FBI’s Washington Field Office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
The law enforcement partnership identified a crew of young men operating within on the 200 block of K Street, Southwest, with firearms, large amounts of U.S. currency, and illegal narcotics. The members of the group wore matching insignia on clothing printed with “NO RATS ALLOWED” or “N.R.A.” Wade, aka “AD”, and other members of the N.R.A. crew used several townhouses on the block as stash locations or “trap houses” for narcotics and firearms.
Between May 1, 2021, and continuing until November 3, 2021, members of N.R.A. operated out of a townhome they took over at 215 K Street, Southwest, where they would sell counterfeit prescription pills laced with fentanyl. Members of N.R.A. would refer to the townhome through text messages as the “Dope Hole.”
On November 3, 2021, members of NEU and agents from FBI executed a search warrant at 215 K Street Southwest. Inside the townhome, officers located Wade and multiple other N.R.A. members.
Law enforcement recovered 37 grams of cocaine base, 457 counterfeit prescription pills laced with fentanyl, marijuana, multiple bottles of promethazine, and four pistols. One of those pistols was modified with a “giggle switch,” a device that converted the firearm to function as a fully automatic machinegun. Law enforcement then recovered multiple cell phones belonging to each defendant, and search warrants into those phones revealed and ongoing distribution scheme starting around May of 2021. Subsequent DNA testing performed by FBI’s Laboratory in Quantico confirmed Wade’s DNA on one of the firearms, a Glock 23 pistol.
In announcing the sentencing, U.S. Attorney Graves, SAC Geist, and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the FBI, and MPD.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Gold, Justin F. Song, and Samuel Frey. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration also provided valuable assistance.
Former MPD Officer Found Guilty of Bribery in Scheme to Sell Personal Identifying Information of Traffic Crash VictimsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Vincent Forrest, 35, a former patrol officer with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), was found guilty today for his role in a bribery scheme in which he unlawfully provided information contained in non-public police documents in exchange for cash payments, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division.
Forrest, of Washington, D.C., and Raquel DePaula, 43, of Beltsville, Maryland, were indicted by a grand jury in June 2021.
A federal jury in U.S. District Court today found Forrest guilty of conspiracy, bribery, and making false statements. The Honorable Randolph D. Moss set sentencing for June 7, 2024.
According to the government’s evidence, beginning in April 2019, Forrest accessed confidential information from MPD Traffic Accident Reports, or “PD Form 10s.” Forrest, in violation of his official duties, used his official access to MPD’s law enforcement sensitive database to review and record victim contact information from Traffic Accident Reports. The reports contained the names and contact information of individuals involved in traffic accidents.
Forrest sent the victim contact information to DePaula using WhatsApp Messenger, an encrypted communications application. DePaula, who owned RD Legal Solutions, LLC, acted as a “runner,” using victim contact information to solicit for local attorneys in exchange for referral fees. DePaula reached out to the accident victims within days of their traffic accidents in violation of 22 D.C. Code Section 3225.14.
Forrest met up with DePaula at various locations in the District and Maryland to receive cash bribes from her. Forrest and DePaula concealed their bribery scheme by, among other methods, communicating by encrypted application, meeting in person, and exchanging bribes in cash.
DePaula pleaded guilty on October 6, 2021, in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to one count of bribery of a public official. She is scheduled to be sentenced on March 15, 2024. DePaula has admitted paying Forrest between approximately $600 and $1,300 per week in exchange for the victim contact information. The evidence at trial showed that over the course of the scheme, she paid Forrest over $15,000 and receiving contact information for 2,316 traffic crash victims.
DePaula and Forrest are the sixth and seventh defendants to be convicted in connection with the illegal sale of traffic crash reports by MPD officers. Previously, MPD Officer Walter Lee, MPD employees Kendra Coles and Aaron Willis, runners Marvin Parker and Michelle Cage pleaded guilty to related charges.
This investigation was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and MPD’s Internal Affairs Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua S. Rothstein and Madhu Chugh of the Fraud, Public Corruption, and Civil Rights Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
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District Woman Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Sexual Abuse of a Minor and Distribution of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Tanisha Sadulski, 41, was sentenced in federal court on January 9 to 20 years in prison for the sexual exploitation of children and sentenced to five years for the sexual abuse of children. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves, Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division.
U.S. District Court Judge John D. Bates also sentenced Sadulski to a lifetime of supervised release plus an additional ten years, to run concurrently, for the child sexual abuse charges.
According to the government’s evidence, between October 25, 2021, and April 28, 2022, Sadulski repeatedly uploaded graphic images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of infants and toddlers to her Google account. Sadulski also took pictures of a child when the victim was undressed. Additionally, she filmed herself sexually assaulting a toddler. Sadulski communicated with other sex offenders via the internet with the intent to send and receive child pornography.
She uploaded child sexual abuse material, including videos which documented the sexual abuse and exploitation of young children.
Sadulski pleaded guilty on September 13, 2023, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Graves and Acting Special Agent in Charge Geist commended the work of those who investigated the case from FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Bond of the Federal Major Crimes Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Arson Charge by Pouring Gasoline on Several Supreme Court VehiclesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Cody Tarner, 26, of Hagerstown, Maryland, pleaded guilty on January 9, 2024, in federal court to Arson. U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth scheduled a sentencing hearing for May 14, 2024.
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael O’Callaghan of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Counterterrorism Division, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
According to the government’s evidence, on July 15, 2020, Tarner drove onto the United States Supreme Court’s property located on First Street Northeast, Washington D.C., and parked his vehicle in an employee only parking spot. The defendant got out of his car and walked around the Supreme Court property. Tarner then returned to his car and pulled out a red gas can. At approximately 1:48 p.m., Tarner was observed on security camera footage pouring gasoline onto three Supreme Court Police unmarked vehicles parked in Supreme Court employee only parking spaces. While pouring the gasoline on the vehicles, it was observed that some of the gasoline was splashing onto his person and clothing. The unmarked vehicles had emergency police lights visible from the outside of the vehicles, and one of the vehicles had emergency police lights on the roof of the vehicle. Tarner was then seen lighting one of the vehicles on fire resulting in a violent ignition of the gasoline. This action resulted in Tarner also being engulfed in the fire causing severe burns and injuries to himself. Tarner admitted to starting the fire with 87 octane unleaded gasoline he had purchased in Pennsylvania for that purpose. The investigation revealed that Tarner had several prior encounters with law enforcement in which he expressed anti-government and militia extremist ideologies. Tarner also claimed to be the leader of an identified militia group.
This case was investigated by FBI, Supreme Court of the United States Police – Protective Intelligence Unit, and Metropolitan Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emory V. Cole and DOJ Attorney James Peterson.
Jury Finds Virginia Man Guilty of First-Degree Burglary in Northwest WashingtonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – James Miller, 41, of Virginia, has been found guilty by a jury of first-degree burglary, simple assault, and destruction of property in a break-in that took place in Northwest Washington in the middle of the night, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
The verdict was returned on January 10, 2024, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Judge Robert A. Salerno scheduled sentencing for March 8, 2024.
According to the government’s evidence, on September 19, 2023, at approximately 1:42 a.m., Miller broke into his pregnant ex-wife’s home by breaking through the front door. Immediately upon breaking into her home, the defendant charged at his ex-wife and assaulted her by grabbing her by the throat and throwing her to the ground. After she got back up, the defendant grabbed her by her bathrobe and threw her onto the couch. The victim and her 22-year-old-daughter (who witnessed Mr. Miller standing over her mother) called 911. Police arrived quickly at 1:49 a.m. and arrested Miller on scene.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Callie Hyde and Matthew Covert.
District Man Sentenced to 42 Years in Prison for 2019 Shooting of Four People in Northeast Washington D.C.Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Travis Littlejohn, 38, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 42 years in prison for the July 5, 2019, shooting of three men and a woman in Northeast Washington, D.C., announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He was sentenced by the Honorable Maribeth Raffinan of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
Littlejohn was found guilty by a jury on March 10, 2023, of all charges in the 28-count indictment, following a two-week trial in the Superior Court. Specifically, the jury found Littlejohn guilty of four counts of assault with intent to kill while armed, one count of aggravated assault while armed, and three counts of assault with significant bodily injury, along with related firearms offenses.
According to the government’s evidence, on the night of July 5, 2019, after getting into a verbal and physical altercation with a group of people gathered in the 3800 block of Minnesota Avenue NE, Washington, D.C., Littlejohn drove to a nearby apartment and returned to the block minutes later armed with a handgun. After exchanging words with the group again, Littlejohn fired at least seven rounds at them from a semiautomatic firearm from a short distance away. Four people in that group were struck before two members of the group returned gunfire. Three of the victims suffered significant injuries, but one victim was more seriously injured.
This case was investigated by Metropolitan Police Department the Sixth District Detectives with valuable assistance from Sixth District Patrol Officers who initially responded to the scene. The case was prosecuted and tried by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Toogun and Samuel White, and indicted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael McCarthy of the Major Crimes Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Valuable assistance was provided by Paralegal Specialists Renee Prather, Debra McPherson & Crystal Waddy, SA Nelson Rhone of the Case Investigation Unit, and Litigation Technology Specialist Lief Hickling.
DC Rapper Pleads Guilty to Possessing a Firearm in Connection with Drug TraffickingRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Earl Isaac III, a previously convicted felon, pleaded guilty yesterday in connection with possessing a Glock “ghost gun” with a machine gun conversion device, narcotics trafficking, and related counts.
The plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves, Special Agent in Charge Craig Kailimai of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Washington Field Division, and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Isaac, 20, aka “Frontline,” of Washington D.C., pleaded guilty on January 9, 2024, to a four-count information in U.S. District Court for possessing a firearm in connection with drug trafficking; unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year; unlawful possession with intent to distribute fentanyl; and unlawful possession with intent to distribute marijuana.
U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly set a sentencing date for May 8, 2024.
Isaac styled himself as a rapper and was known to the YouTube community as “Frontline.” On the video sharing website, he posted veiled threats, to a specific group, with automatic firearms pointed directly at the viewer. Under the Frontline alias he uploaded several rap tracks glorifying violence with guns. Isaac posted “Frontline – PTSD” while he was on probation in 2021 and pointed firearms directly at the camera.
According to the government’s evidence, police executed a search warrant at a residence on Stanton Road on June 1, 2023. Under a bathroom sink, police found a .40 caliber Glock firearm, outfitted with a machinegun conversion device, and loaded with a high-capacity magazine that contained 21 rounds of ammunition. Police also found 100 small, round, blue pills inscribed with “M30” littered throughout the premises that were determined to contain fentanyl; 2.68 kilos of marijuana; and $2,020 in cash in the front left pocket of Isaac’s jeans.
Isaac previously was convicted and sentenced to a 14-month suspended prison term under the Youth Rehabilitation Act with a one-year probationary term in D.C. Superior Court for carrying a pistol without a license on October 28, 2022.
Isaac’s social media account showed that Isaac advertised marijuana for sale, sold marijuana and fentanyl, and posed with marijuana and the money he had earned from drug sales.
The case is being handled by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jordan Leiter and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sitara Witanachchi of Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The investigation was handled by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) with valuable assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
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District Man Sentenced to 92 Months in Prison for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a FelonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Shawn Wooden, 41, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 92 months in prison in connection with a drug trafficking conspiracy called the “MLK Crew” based in Southeast Washington, announced United States Attorney Matthew M. Graves, FBI Special Agent in Charge Geist, of the Washington Field Office Criminal and Cyber Division, and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Wooden, aka “Black,” pleaded guilty on September 12, 2023, to unlawful possession of a firearm by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Dabney L. Friedrich ordered Wooden to serve three years of supervised release.
Wooden was indicted with 16 co-defendants (listed below) associated with the “MLK Crew.” All 17 defendants have pleaded guilty and only one defendant remains to be sentenced. All 16 defendants who have been sentenced received prison terms ranging from 24 months to 114 months based on their criminal conduct and criminal histories.
The case stems from an investigation by the MPD Narcotics and Special Investigations Division and the FBI into the group that operated an open-air drug market around the 2900 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, SE, Washington D.C.
The investigation began in response to numerous citizen complaints about rampant drug trafficking and accompanying incidents of violence in the area. In addition to numerous citizen complaints, MPD targeted this area as one of the most notorious in the city in terms of recent shootings and shots fired, as well as for the area’s high numbers of arrests—particularly offenses involving drugs and firearms.
As part of its investigation, MPD and FBI began conducting surveillance, obtaining search warrants, and making controlled buys of narcotics from suspected members of the conspiracy.
The investigation revealed that MLK Crew members openly engaged in the sale of various drugs (including PCP, crack, fentanyl, and marijuana) and took over the area and, effectively, some of the neighborhood’s businesses. MLK Crew members would often go into the neighborhood businesses to complete sales and constantly loitered outside of these businesses to engage in sales.
As part of its investigation, MPD and FBI obtained video of defendants openly conducting narcotics transactions in these businesses and even displaying firearms. Throughout the case, law enforcement seized at least 10 firearms (many of which were privately manufactured firearms or “ghost guns”) from MLK crew members and/or stash houses and a sizeable quantity of various narcotics.
As discussed at sentencing, Wooden maintained a stash house at an apartment within MLK Crew territory, leased under the name of a different individual, where Wooden stored both firearms and distribution quantities of narcotics. Photographic and video evidence showed Wooden in the apartment, along with several of his co-conspirators, both cooking crack cocaine and separately packaging narcotics for redistribution. Wooden’s stash house was searched on July 19, 2021, where two firearms were recovered, along with 19 grams of fentanyl and 6 grams of crack cocaine. A DNA analysis revealed “very strong support” for the conclusion that Wooden’s DNA was on one of the firearms seized from the crew’s stash-house apartment, specifically, a privately manufactured firearm (a ghost gun) containing a Glock 27 .40 caliber slide, and .40 caliber ammunition in an extended 22- round capacity magazine. Wooden, who has prior felony convictions and was on supervised release at the time of his arrest, is prohibited from legally possessing firearms.
The MLK Crew’s trafficking contributed to numerous incidents of drug-related violence in and around the 2900 Block of MLK Avenue, including multiple assaults, shootings, robberies, and murders—most notably, the murder of a six-year-old girl who was the daughter of one of the co-defendants in this case.
In July of 2021, a few months after opening the investigation, MPD and FBI arrested 11 initial defendants and seized 10 firearms, along with PCP, crack cocaine, powder cocaine, heroin, pills, and more than $2,500 in cash. The additional six defendants, including Wooden, were charged in September 2021, and were arrested shortly thereafter.
This investigation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
The prosecutions followed a joint investigation by the FBI Washington Field Office’s Cross Border Safe Streets Task Force in partnership with MPD’s Narcotics and Special Investigations (NSID) Violence Reduction Unit (VRU). This partnership targets the most egregious and violent street crews operating in the District of Columbia.
Assistance was provided by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Park Police, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. Kinskey and David T. Henek of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses (VRTO) Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy T. Wang also provided valuable assistance.
DEFENDANT
STATUS
Ricky Lyles, Accokeek, MD
Sentenced to 114 months for conspiracy to distribute cocaine and possessing a firearm
Nico Griffin, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 37 months for conspiracy to distribute cocaine
Dandre Shorter, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 37 months for conspiracy to distribute cocaine
Wesley Leake, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 40 months for conspiracy to distribute cocaine
Leon Lindsay, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 57 months for conspiracy to distribute cocaine
Dezmond Cunningham,
Washington, DCSentenced to 48 months conspiracy to distribute cocaine
Divine Chappell, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 76 months for possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and conspiracy to distribute cocaine
Shawn Wooden, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 92 months for illegal possession of a firearm by a felon
Barry Tyson, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 73 months for possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking and conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine
Delonta Chappell,
Washington, DCSentenced to 48 months for conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine
Anthony GravesWashington, DC
Sentenced to 27 months for conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine
Deshawn Loggins,
Temple Hills, MDSentenced to 42 months for conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine
Kevonte Randall, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 46 months for conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine and possessing a firearm
Corenzo Mobery, Washington, DC
Scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 26, 2024, for possession with intent to deliver cocaine, carrying a firearm in furtherance of a drug offense, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon
Rico Griffin, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 66 months for conspiracy to distribute cocaine
Shahborne Scales, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 66 months for conspiracy to distribute cocaine
Luther McDuffie, 35, Washington, DC
Sentenced to 24 months for conspiracy to distribute cocaine
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District Man Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Illegal Possession of Ammunition by a FelonRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jordan Johnson, 26, a previously convicted felon, was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for unlawfully possessing several hundred rounds of ammunition, announced U.S. Attorney Graves, U.S. Marshal Ronald Carter of the U.S. Marshals Service, and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Chief Judge James E. Boasberg ordered Johnson to serve two years of supervised release and pay a $100 special assessment.
Johnson pleaded guilty October 10, 2023, to unlawful possession of ammunition by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year.
According to the government’s evidence, on June 20, 2023, U.S. Marshals attempted to serve an eviction notice at a Johnson’s I Street apartment in Southeast Washington D.C, where Johnson was the sole tenant. During an initial security sweep of the dwelling, Marshals observed a pistol, multiple “Polymer80” branded boxes, firearm ammunition boxes, loose ammunition, and a firearm slide scattered throughout Johnson’s home.
Law enforcement obtained a search warrant. They found evidence of a small arsenal that included a privately made firearm (a “ghost gun”) with one round in the chamber and 14 rounds the magazine; four Polymer80 rifle lower receivers with jigs (the principal components for making multiple illegal ghost guns); one handgun slide; an empty handgun “jig;” a firearm flashlight attachment; six firearm magazines; two empty Glock boxes; two empty Polymer80 boxes; spent shell casings; one firearm sight; a speed loader; and 214 rounds of ammunition of various calibers. Johnson was previously sentenced to a period of home confinement and probation for a prior firearm conviction only weeks before these items were recovered. He had been previously convicted of possessing a loaded Glock 27 pistol while attempting to pick up a UPS package containing suspected marijuana.
Johnson was indicted on July 6, 2023, and arrested on July 18, 2023, in Washington D.C.
In announcing the sentencing, U.S. Attorney Graves, U.S. Marshal Carter, and Chief Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the U.S. Marshals, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, and MPD.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin F. Song and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Pattison.
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District Man Found Guilty of First-Degree Murder and Assault with Intent to Kill in Shooting of Two at Northeast Labor AgencyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Matthew Walker, 25, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty of first-degree murder while armed and assault with intent to kill while armed, as well as several other related assault and gun possession charges, by Superior Court Judge Marisa Demeo on January 8, 2024, following trial for a February 2019 shooting of two men, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department.
According to the evidence presented at trial, on February 14, 2019, at approximately 5:45 am, a masked gunman walked into Trojan Labor, a temporary labor agency in Northeast Washington D.C. Once inside, the gunman ran directly to the agency’s dispatch office, where he repeatedly shot Mike Hardy, the manager of the agency, and David Remen, one of the agency’s workers. The gunman then ran out of the building. Remen died on scene. Hardy died in 2022. The government presented DNA, ballistic, video, and other evidence that linked the Defendant to the shooting. A sentencing is scheduled for April 5, 2024.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dan Seidel and Alec Levy.
District Sex Offender Pleads to Sexual Exploitation of a ChildRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Michael Humphrey, 41, a registered sex offender from Southeast Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today to uploading to the internet graphic videos of himself sexually abusing a five-year-old girl.
The plea agreement was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves, Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division, and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
Humphrey pleaded guilty to a charge of sexual exploitation of a child. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 15 years of imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, and supervised release of at least five years. Humphrey previously was convicted on a charge relating to the sexual abuse of a child. On March 10, 2020, he was convicted of third-degree sex offense in the Circuit Court of Montgomery County, Maryland. Since May 2022, Humphrey has been registered as a sex offender in the District of Columbia as required by law.
According to the government’s evidence, in July 2023, Google LLC reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) that two Google accounts, later identified as Humphrey’s, had uploaded material depicting child sexual abuse to Google servers. NCMEC turned that information over to the investigators from the FBI Washington Field Office and the MPD.
Investigators obtained a warrant authorizing the search of Humphrey’s Google accounts and discovered three videos that show Humphrey sexually abusing a five-year-old girl in Washington, D.C. during June 2023.
Humphrey was arrested on August 11, 2023, and has been held since. After he was taken into custody, investigators obtained Humphrey’s electronic devices and discovered thousands of images and hundreds of videos depicting the sexual abuse of children.
This case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force. The task force is composed of FBI agents, detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department, along with other federal agents and detectives from northern Virginia and the District of Columbia. The task force is charged with investigating and bringing federal charges against individuals engaged in the exploitation of children and those engaged in human trafficking. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rachel Forman and Amy Larson, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
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District Man Sentenced to 8 Months in Prison for Illegally Recording and Publishing Grand Jury ProceedingsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Alexander Hamilton, 29, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to eight months in prison for illegally recording and publishing secret grand jury proceedings while he served on the Grand Jury in the District of Columbia, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Christopher Cooper ordered Hamilton to serve 12 months of probation following his release.
Hamilton pleaded guilty on August 29, 2023, to contempt and obstruction of justice under federal and District of Columbia law.
Hamilton, a former special police officer who worked as an armed guard at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, was sworn in as a grand juror in D.C. Superior Court on September 9, 2022. His grand jury service ended on October 13, 2022, after an MPD officer monitoring public Instagram accounts saw an account called “moefromthezzz,” posting video from the Grand Jury room.
Hamilton, whose account had nearly 10,400 followers, posted videos of at least 14 different grand jury investigations and at least 18 different witnesses within the Superior Court of the District of Columbia Grand Jury room. He indicated he knew what he was doing was illegal, boasting that his actions could land him in prison for three years.
When he was sworn in, Hamilton had been instructed to keep the proceedings secret from family, friends, or any other members of the public. Hamilton took an oath stating that he would keep the proceedings secret. However, as Hamilton raised one hand to take the oath, he filmed himself—using his cell phone in the other hand —and stated, “I’m about to lie.” Hamilton then sent that video to various people via text message. While the swearing in took place at Superior Court, the grand jury sits in a suite at the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Hamilton was both verbally instructed and given written materials explaining that cell phones were not permitted in the grand jury room.
Despite these warnings, Hamilton posted portions of grand jury testimony on Instagram Stories and broadcasted significant periods of testimony on Instagram Live. Hamilton often overlaid his Instagram stories with rat emojis and terms such as “hot” or “snitches.” He continuously showed contempt and disdain for any individual who would testify before a grand jury.
On multiple occasions, Hamilton filmed portions of testimony where the witness stated their name—revealing the identity of the witness to his followers.
At different times in the videos, he zoomed in on evidence that was presented on the screen. During the broadcast, Hamilton had a conversation with followers where he said the witness was the one who should be considered “guilty.”
On October 11, 2022, Hamilton sent messages stating, “They can lock you up for this . . . Having your phone back here.” On at least three occasions, Hamilton referenced receiving three years in prison for bringing his phone into the grand jury room and recording testimony.
The MPD discovered the Instagram videos. Personnel from the U.S. Attorney’s office recognized the individual as Hamilton. During a consensual interview with law enforcement, Hamilton admitted to recording grand jury proceedings and posting them to his Instagram account. Hamilton indicated that he filmed the proceedings using one of two phones that he owns. Hamilton also sent dozens of messages via text message and Instagram discussing his grand jury service.
Hamilton was arrested on November 17, 2022.
In announcing the sentencing, U.S. Attorney Graves commended the work of those who investigated the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Criminal Intelligence and Investigation Unit (CIIU).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Gold. Valuable assistance was provided by former U.S. Attorney CIIU Special Agent Geoff Guska, U.S. Attorney CIIU Special Agent Sean Ricardi and CIIU Supervisory Special Agent Tina Lukens. Notable assistance was provided by Investigative Analyst Chris Fagioli and Special Agent Durand Odom of the CIIU.
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D.C. Man Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Corporations by Using Their UPS Accounts to Create and Sell Shipping LabelsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Raekwon Malik Harrod, 24, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty today to fraudulently using the UPS accounts of two American companies to create shipping labels, which he and another conspirator sold online. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division.
Harrod pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, which has a statutory maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment. As part of his plea agreement, Harrod must pay restitution to the two companies. He also will be liable for a forfeiture money judgment for proceeds he received as a result of the scheme. U.S. District Court Judge Ana C. Reyes, who accepted Harrod’s guilty plea in the District of Columbia, scheduled sentencing for June 18, 2024.
In his plea agreement, Harrod admitted that no later than 2020, a California co-conspirator gained access to one company’s UPS account and provided Harrod with the account’s log-in credentials. Harrod provided the credentials to a Maryland co-conspirator. Initially, Harrod and the Maryland co-conspirator, who both re-sold shoes online, used the account to create UPS shipping labels to mail the shoes that they sold, which reduced their shipping costs to zero. The California co-conspirator intended that they use the account in this manner. However, in late 2020, Harrod and the Maryland co-conspirator decided to use the account to sell UPS shipping labels to third parties. They advertised the service online and each created thousands of UPS labels using the compromised account. Harrod acknowledged that the fraudulent use of the company’s account caused the company to lose more than $900,000.
In late July 2021, Harrod and the Maryland co-conspirator lost access to the account, prompting them to tell the California co-conspirator that they had been selling labels using the account. The California co-conspirator requested that they pay him $120,000, which Harrod and the Maryland co-conspirator understood would be used to compensate the person who gave the California man access to the account. Thus, in August 2021, Harrod and the Maryland co-conspirator withdrew nearly $70,000 in cash and flew with the money to Los Angeles, where they gave the proceeds to the California co-conspirator. When they were in California, they withdrew another $50,000 in cash and provided it to the California co-conspirator as well.
Eventually, the California co-conspirator secured access to a second American company’s UPS account, which he provided to Harrod and the Maryland co-conspirator. The two men then resumed selling UPS shipping labels online, this time with direct involvement and knowledge of the California co-conspirator.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kondi Kleinman with the assistance of paralegal specialist Sonalika Chaturvedi. Former paralegal specialist Michon Tart and former Financial Analyst Bryan Snitselaar also assisted with the investigation.
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Prominent Lobbyist and Political Consultant Agree to Deferred Prosecution for FARA Violations for Undisclosed Work for Foreign GovernmentRead the Press Release
A Virginia lobbyist and a New Jersey political consultant have entered into Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs) to resolve the government’s investigation into violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and related offenses.
Barry P. Bennett, 60, of Alexandria, Virginia, owned and operated Avenue Strategies Global LLC, a lobbying and consulting firm in Washington, D.C. Douglas Watts, 73, of Jersey City, New Jersey, is a former presidential campaign consultant who founded and ran a public relations company.
The charges arise from a scheme to wage a lobbying and public relations campaign designed to benefit one of Avenue Strategies’ clients—the government of a foreign country (Country A)—while concealing the foreign government’s connection to the effort. In 2017, Bennett signed a contract for Avenue Strategies to perform lobbying services for the embassy of Country A. As part of his lobbying strategy on behalf of Country A and for and in the interest of Country A, Bennett covertly operated Company A, a limited liability company founded by Watts at Bennett’s direction. As directed by Bennett and managed by Watts, Company A ran a lobbying and public relations campaign designed to cast one of Country A’s rivals in a negative light for its conduct, and thereby to improve Country A’s standing with the U.S. government and public relative to this rival.
Through the DPA, Bennett consented to the filing of a two-count criminal information charging him with a scheme to falsify, conceal, and cover up material facts from the Justice Department’s FARA Unit and with making false statements and material omissions in FARA filings. The information will be dismissed with prejudice after Bennett complies with the DPA’s terms, which include payment of a $100,000 fine, for 18 months.
Through the DPA Watts signed, he consented to the filing of a three-count criminal information charging him with acting as an agent of a foreign principal without registering under FARA and with making false statements to the FBI. The information will be dismissed with prejudice after Watts complies with the DPA’s terms, which include payment of a $25,000 fine, for 12 months.
Country A paid Bennett’s Avenue Strategies $2.1 million between September 2017 and December 2017 for lobbying services, and approximately 27% of those funds (i.e., approximately $773,000) financed the operations of Company A. In return, Company A conducted a social media campaign, published opinion articles in major newspapers, produced a documentary that was distributed through a national television network, sent direct mailings to American citizens, and lobbied Congress and the former president.
Company A took credit for directing 3,000 phone calls to members of the U.S. House of Representatives encouraging them to discontinue U.S. involvement in a coalition of Country A’s rivals. The House of Representatives eventually voted overwhelmingly to “deauthorize” U.S. involvement with the coalition.
Neither Watts nor Company A was registered under FARA.
FARA was enacted in 1938 to counter propaganda and promote transparency and disclosure. The Department of Justice recently described the purpose of the law to Congress as means of ensuring “that the American public and our lawmakers know the source of information that is provided at the behest of a foreign principal, where that information may be intended to influence U.S. public opinion, policy, and laws.”
Bennett’s consulting company, Avenue Strategies, failed to disclose in its FARA filings its creation of Company A. In addition, Avenue Strategies failed to disclose Bennett’s and Avenue Strategies’ affiliation with Company A, Avenue Strategies’ disbursements to Company A, and Watts’ work on behalf of Company A and Country A. These omissions thwarted FARA’s disclosure requirements.
During two separate interviews in February 2020, Watts made false and materially misleading statements to the FBI about his knowledge of Company A’s formation, its purpose and activities, and its connection to Country A.
If the case had gone to trial, the government would have sought to prove that Bennett engaged in a scheme to falsify, conceal, and cover up material facts from the Department of Justice’s FARA Unit. The government also would have sought to prove that Bennett made false statements and material omissions in filings under FARA.
In addition, the government would have sought to prove that Watts acted as an unregistered agent of a foreign principal and made false statements or representations to a department or agency of the United States.
The FBI’s Washington Field Office investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jolie F. Zimmerman for the District of Columbia and Deputy Chief Evan N. Turgeon of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are handling the case, with valuable assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason McCullough for the District of Columbia.
Bennett DPA Watts DPAProminent Lobbyist and Political Consultant Agree to Deferred Prosecution for FARA Violations for Undisclosed Work for Foreign GovernmentRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Virginia lobbyist and a New Jersey political consultant have entered into Deferred Prosecution Agreements (DPAs) to resolve the government’s investigation into violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and related offenses.
Barry P. Bennett, 60, of Alexandria, Virginia, owned and operated Avenue Strategies Global LLC, a lobbying and consulting firm in Washington, D.C. Douglas Watts, 73, of Jersey City, New Jersey, is a former presidential campaign consultant who founded and ran a public relations company.
The charges arise from a scheme to wage a lobbying and public relations campaign designed to benefit one of Avenue Strategies’ clients—the government of a foreign country (Country A)—while concealing the foreign government’s connection to the effort. In 2017, Bennett signed a contract for Avenue Strategies to perform lobbying services for the embassy of Country A. As part of his lobbying strategy on behalf of Country A and for and in the interest of Country A, Bennett covertly operated Company A, a limited liability company founded by Watts at Bennett’s direction. As directed by Bennett and managed by Watts, Company A ran a lobbying and public relations campaign designed to cast one of Country A’s rivals in a negative light for its conduct, and thereby to improve Country A’s standing with the U.S. government and public relative to this rival.
Through the DPA, Bennett consented to the filing of a two-count criminal information charging him with a scheme to falsify, conceal, and cover up material facts from the Justice Department’s FARA Unit and with making false statements and material omissions in FARA filings. The information will be dismissed with prejudice after Bennett complies with the DPA’s terms, which include payment of a $100,000 fine, for 18 months.
Through the DPA Watts signed, he consented to the filing of a three-count criminal information charging him with acting as an agent of a foreign principal without registering under FARA and with making false statements to the FBI. The information will be dismissed with prejudice after Watts complies with the DPA’s terms, which include payment of a $25,000 fine, for 12 months.
Country A paid Bennett’s Avenue Strategies $2.1 million between September 2017 and December 2017 for lobbying services, and approximately 27% of those funds (i.e., approximately $773,000) financed the operations of Company A. In return, Company A conducted a social media campaign, published opinion articles in major newspapers, produced a documentary that was distributed through a national television network, sent direct mailings to American citizens, and lobbied Congress and the former president.
Company A took credit for directing 3,000 phone calls to members of the U.S. House of Representatives encouraging them to discontinue U.S. involvement in a coalition of Country A’s rivals. The House of Representatives eventually voted overwhelmingly to “deauthorize” U.S. involvement with the coalition.
Neither Watts nor Company A was registered under FARA.
FARA was enacted in 1938 to counter propaganda and promote transparency and disclosure. The Department of Justice recently described the purpose of the law to Congress as means of ensuring “that the American public and our lawmakers know the source of information that is provided at the behest of a foreign principal, where that information may be intended to influence U.S. public opinion, policy, and laws.”
Bennett’s consulting company, Avenue Strategies, failed to disclose in its FARA filings its creation of Company A. In addition, Avenue Strategies failed to disclose Bennett’s and Avenue Strategies’ affiliation with Company A, Avenue Strategies’ disbursements to Company A, and Watts’ work on behalf of Company A and Country A. These omissions thwarted FARA’s disclosure requirements.
During two separate interviews in February 2020, Watts made false and materially misleading statements to the FBI about his knowledge of Company A’s formation, its purpose and activities, and its connection to Country A.
If the case had gone to trial, the government would have sought to prove that Bennett engaged in a scheme to falsify, conceal, and cover up material facts from the Department of Justice’s FARA Unit. The government also would have sought to prove that Bennett made false statements and material omissions in filings under FARA.
In addition, the government would have sought to prove that Watts acted as an unregistered agent of a foreign principal and made false statements or representations to a department or agency of the United States.
The FBI’s Washington Field Office investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jolie F. Zimmerman for the District of Columbia and Deputy Chief Evan N. Turgeon of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are handling the case, with valuable assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason McCullough for the District of Columbia.
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District Man Found Guilty of Assault and Other Firearms Related Charges for Threatening Several People Inside a Wawa in NorthwestRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Charles Edwards, 48, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty on Jan. 2, 2024, after a trial by a Superior Court jury of two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and other firearm-related charges arising from threatening another man and a cashier with a loaded gun inside the Wawa at Thomas Circle NW in the early morning hours of January 22, 2022, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela A. Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
The Honorable Errol Arthur scheduled sentencing for February 23, 2024.
According to the trial evidence, Edwards got into an argument with another man near the Wawa. That man ran into the store to escape Edwards, but Edwards followed him and again confronted him. A Special Police Officer (SPO) working at Wawa escorted Edwards out of the store. Minutes later, Edwards went back to the store and again chased the man around the store, and then pulled out a loaded handgun and pointed it at both that man and the Wawa’s cashier who was standing in front of him. Edwards eventually left the store, and threatened the SPO, who was on the phone with 911.
Police arrived within minutes, and subsequently apprehended Edwards nearby, and recovered the loaded weapon in his tent.
Edwards was later arrested on August 17, 2022.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Visiting Brazilian Attorney Sentenced to Prison in Insider TradingRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Romero Cabral Da Costa Neto (Costa), 33, of Rio de Janeiro, was sentenced today to two months in prison for unlawfully trading on material, nonpublic information, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist, of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal and Cyber Division.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Carl J. Nichols ordered Costa to forfeit $42,649.13 and a $100 fine. Costa pleaded guilty November 1 in U.S. District Court to a charge of insider trading.
Costa had been residing and working as a visiting attorney in Washington D.C., on a one-year J-1 Visa, at a global U.S. law firm (the Law Firm).
According to court documents, Costa began working at the Law Firm in September 2022. Until the FBI arrested him in August 2023, Costa used his position at the firm to access privileged and confidential client files on the Law Firm’s internal file management system and systematically perform keyword searches on this Law Firm database to explore client files in search of valuable material non-public information that he could exploit for financial gain.
Costa traded on material non-public information from law firm clients in advance of an $1.7 billion international BioPharma merger, a $5.7 billion oilfield merger, and a major drug trial announcement. In one of his trades, Costa pocketed a quick financial gain of $8,500; in another he reaped $42,649.13.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Rosenberg, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. In particular, valuable assistance was provided by the Philadelphia Regional Enforcement office of the SEC, which promptly identified the offense conduct, enabling swift enforcement action.
Serial Sexual Abuser, with Multiple Prior Convictions, Sentenced to Prison Term for Another Attack on a Female StrangerRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Michael Hilliard, 64, pleaded guilty on December 19, 2023, to two misdemeanor charges for sexually abusing a woman and physically assaulting another, both of whom were strangers to him. He was sentenced by the Honorable Hiram E. Puig-Lugo, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to 180 days on the misdemeanor sexual abuse charge—the maximum sentence available by statute—and 30 days on the misdemeanor assault charge, with the sentences to run consecutively to each other.
According to the government’s evidence, in the first offense, on June 28, 2023, Mr. Hilliard was observed by the victim walking in and out of traffic at 326 Rhode Island Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20001. Mr. Hilliard approached the victim asking for water and, after she obliged, he proceeded to rummage through her vehicle. After the victim told Mr. Hillard to stop, he struck her left arm then fled the area. He was apprehended shortly thereafter.
In the second offense, on August 16, 2023, Mr. Hilliard approached the driver’s side of the victim’s vehicle at 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005, demanding money. After the victim stated she did not have any cash, Mr. Hilliard reached into the open window and grabbed her breast. The terrified victim inquired what he was doing, and Mr. Hilliard responded that he was grabbing her “titty.” Mr. Hilliard was apprehended shortly thereafter.
Following these guilty pleas, Mr. Hilliard now has 26 misdemeanor sexual abuse convictions since 1999. His most recent sentencing for misdemeanor sexual abuse took place on January 4, 2023, where he also received the statutory maximum of 180 days. Additionally, he was convicted of a 4th degree sexual offense in Montgomery County, Maryland, on October 3, 2022, for which he is on supervision until 2025.
Mr. Hilliard has remained detained since his August 2023 arrest.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexis Dunlap and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Betty Jean McNeil, who prosecuted the case through the guilty plea and sentencing.
Jury Finds District Man Guilty of Second-Degree Murder in 2018 Stabbing in SoutheastRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Marquette Jordan, 32, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by a jury on December 19, 2023 of second-degree murder while armed and other charges in the April 2018 fatal stabbing of 48-year-old Ivan Lynch in Southeast D.C., announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Rainey Brandt will sentence Jordan on Friday March 1, 2024.
According to the government’s evidence, on April 30, 2018, the victim, Ivan Lynch, who had just attended a birthday celebration for himself, left the party and was going to meet up with a friend at his apartment. On the way to the friend’s apartment, Mr. Lynch picked up the defendant Marquette Jordan, the defendant’s girlfriend, the girlfriend’s two young children, and a childhood friend of the defendant.
Once inside the apartment, a verbal altercation occurred between Jordan and his girlfriend in front of her two young children. Mr. Lynch intervened and reportedly told the defendant that that is not how we treat women. Jordan and Mr. Lynch then engaged in a verbal dispute resulting in a physical fight between the two men inside the apartment. During the fight, Jordan grabbed a butcher knife from the kitchen and stabbed Mr. Lynch once in the shoulder, twice in the heart, and three times in the back. After stabbing Mr. Lynch, Jordan then continued to beat on his girlfriend, threatened to kill her, too, and charged at her with a knife. The girlfriend grabbed a pillow and fled the apartment without her shoes, and leaving behind her minor children until she returned later that day.
The defendant went through the victim’s pockets before leaving the apartment. School surveillance captured Jordan on walking with the two children after the homicide. He was stopped outside by MPD officers shortly after leaving the apartment and law enforcement officers found Mr. Lynch’s keys and his blood on Jordan’s pants and shirt. The murder weapon, the butcher knife, was never recovered. Officers also found Mr. Lynch’s cell phone discarded in an area where the defendant was observed walking, according to surveillance footage in the area. Mr. Lynch’s wallet was mailed from a nearby school to the address on his driver’s license.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department. This case was prosecuted and tried by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Natalie M. Hynum and Omeed A. Assefi of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Indictment Charges District Man with First-Degree Murder and Conspiracy in December 2022 Shooting in Northeast D.C.Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jajuan Gripper, 21, of Washington, D.C., was charged by indictment on December 20, 2023, for the December 20, 2022 murder of 34-year-old Rynell Bradford, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).
The indictment charges Gripper with conspiracy, first-degree premeditated murder while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and carrying a pistol without a license.
According to the government’s evidence, in the evening on Tuesday, December 20, 2022, Gripper and two unindicted co-conspirators followed Bradford out of an apartment building in Northeast Washington, D.C. The three suspects then opened fire on Bradford as he ran away from them down a public street in a residential neighborhood. Gripper and his co-conspirators fired a total of at least 19 shots, striking Bradford once in the back of the head. Bradford was pronounced dead at the scene.
Gripper was arrested in March 2023 and has been detained pending trial since his arrest.
This case is being investigated by members of MPD’s Homicide Branch. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles R. Jones.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Indictment Charges District Man in the Murder of 31-Year-Old Tourist Inside Her Ivy City Hotel RoomRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – George L. Sydnor, Jr., 44 of Washington, D.C., was indicted earlier today by a D.C. Superior Court Grand Jury on several felony charges stemming from the stabbing murder of 31-year-old Christy Bautista on March 31, 2023, inside her room in the Ivy City Hotel, in Northeast D.C., announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves.
A five-count indictment charges Sydnor with premeditated first degree murder while armed; burglary while armed; first degree felony murder while armed burglary); kidnapping while armed; first degree felony murder while armed (kidnapping). The indictment also charges an aggravating circumstance enhancement as to all five counts, finding that the offenses committed were “especially heinous, atrocious or cruel.” Sydnor is also charged with committing these crimes while he was on release in another criminal case.
An arraignment on the indictment is scheduled for January 4, 2024, at 9:30 am, in Courtroom 301 before the Honorable Judge Robert Okun.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sarah Santiago.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.
Final Defendant Pleads Guilty in Armed Robbery of Pharmacy VanRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON D.C. – Juwuan Edward Francis Champion, 24, of Bowie, Md., pleaded guilty yesterday to his role in the felony armed robbery of a pharmaceutical van driver and a firearms charge, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Special Agent in Charge Craig Kailimai of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Washington Field Division.
Champion, aka “Big Money,” pleaded guilty on December 19, 2023, to conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by robbery (known as conspiracy to commit a Hobbs Act robbery) and unlawful possession of a machine gun. U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta scheduled sentencing for March 15, 2024.
Champion was part of a four-member crew participating in a drug trafficking operation in the Potomac Gardens neighborhood of Southeast Washington. The three other members included Fitzgerald Hunt, 24, of Washington, D.C., also known as “GMoney;” Joshua Johnson, 18, of Capitol Heights, Md., also known as “Lil Josh,” and Keyshawn Lavender, 20, of Washington, D.C., also known as “Key.” From January to October 2021, the crew members allegedly trafficked in Oxycodone, Alprazolam, and other illegal narcotics.
In pleading guilty, Champion, Hunt, and Johnson admitted that on March 30, 2021, they conspired to rob a pharmaceutical delivery van driver outside a pharmacy in Waldorf, Md. The driver was placed in handcuffs, hit on the head with a firearm, and then the defendants drove the van back to Washington, D.C., with its pharmaceutical contents.
Law enforcement arrested the four men on October 7, 2021.
Hunt, Johnson, and Lavender previously pleaded guilty. Hunt was sentenced on September 29, 2023, to 108 months in prison and 36 months of supervised release. Johnson, who was 17 years old at the time of the robbery, pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and separately pled guilty to related local charges in Charles County, Maryland in a global resolution.
Lavender was not charged with the robbery and pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and received a sentence of 30 months in prison.
This case was investigated by the ATF Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Critical support was provided by the Charles County Md. Sheriff’s Office and Charles County State’s Attorney’s Office, and additional assistance was provided by the U.S. Marshals Service, the Prince George’s County, Md. Police Department, and Anne Arundel County, Md. Police Department.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Candice Wong and Solomon Eppel of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Assistance was provided by former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison McGuire.
District Man Pleads Guilty to the December 2022 Hobbs Act Armed Robberies of D.C. BusinessesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A District man pleaded guilty today to federal felony charges in a pair of armed robberies that targeted commercial establishments during one night in December 2022, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves; FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge David Geist, of the Washington Field Office's Criminal and Cyber Division; and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department.
Damion Byrd, 21, of Washington D.C., pleaded guilty to two counts of interference with interstate commerce by robbery (also known as a Hobbs Act robbery) in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia.
On December 13, 2022, at 11:41 p.m. Byrd entered a convenience store on the 2300 block of Rhode Island Ave., NW, and asked an employee for juice. The employee told Byrd that the juice was in the refrigerator. Byrd retrieved a bottle of water and walked towards the counter where he tossed a $1 bill. Byrd then pointed a firearm at the employee and stated, “I need the money all the money you have.” The employee emptied the register and handed over the cash.
On December 14, 2022, at 12:43 a.m., Byrd drove a silver-colored sedan to the drive-thru window of a fast-food restaurant on the 3900 block of Minnesota Ave., NE. Byrd exited the vehicle, pointed a firearm at a cashier, and said, “Open the register and I won’t shoot.” The cashier ran away. Byrd reached in the window, grabbed the cash register, and fled in the vehicle.
Byrd was arrested on January 11, 2023, in Washington, D.C. and has been detained ever since.
U.S. District Court Judge Tanya S. Chutkan set a sentencing date for March 26, 2024. Byrd faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Graves, SAC Geist, and Chief Smith commended the MPD officers and FBI agents who collaborated on the investigation as members of MPD's Violent Crime Suppression Unit and FBI's Washington Field Office's Violent Crimes Task Force.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shehzad Akhtar of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Paralegal Karla Nunez provided valuable assistance.
Woman Pleads Guilty to Vehicular Assault of Five-Year-OldRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Thaniyyah Veney, 33, pleaded guilty today to driving a car into a five-year-old girl who was standing on the sidewalk waiting for a bus with her father in July 2023, U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves announced.
Veney pleaded guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to one count of aggravated assault while armed with a vehicle. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 23, 2024, before the Honorable Jason Park. Veney is being held pending sentencing.
According to the government’s evidence, on the afternoon of Saturday, July 8, 2023, the five-year-old was with her father waiting for a bus in the 3200 block of Fourth Street, SE. At around 1 p.m., a car driven by Veney, drove into the child and her father as they stood on the sidewalk. Veney’s car drove over the child and continued traveling until it struck the front steps of a home. When the vehicle stopped, Veney got out and walked to a nearby alley. She left the child trapped beneath her car.
Using a makeshift lever fashioned from a ladder, firefighters were able to raise the car enough to extract the child, who was then airlifted to the hospital where she was diagnosed with life-threatening injuries. Hours after the incident, the defendant’s breath was tested and found to contain an alcohol concentration above the per se threshold for intoxication.
This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department.
This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
Iranian National Charged with Unlawfully Procuring Microelectronics Used in Unmanned Aerial Vehicles on Behalf of the Iranian GovernmentRead the Press Release
Today, the Justice Department unsealed an indictment charging Iranian national Hossein Hatefi Ardakani and co-defendant Gary Lam, who worked for a Chinese company, with crimes related to the procurement of U.S.-manufactured dual-use microelectronics for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force Self Sufficiency Jihad Organization’s (ASF SSJO) one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) program.
Concurrent with this unsealing, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Ardakani, as well as multiple other individuals and entities involved in the procurement network used by Ardakani in support of Iran’s production of UAVs. Ardakani’s codefendant, Lam, whom OFAC identified as Lin Jinghe, was designated by OFAC in October.
“Today’s coordinated action with the Treasury Department demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to keeping military-grade equipment out of the hands of the Iranian regime,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “We will aggressively investigate, disrupt, and hold accountable criminal networks that supply sensitive technology to hostile and repressive governments in contravention of U.S. sanctions.”
“Today’s announcements show that we remain focused on disrupting the efforts of Iran and its agents to circumvent U.S. sanctions in support of Iran’s weapons programs, including its drone program, which have been used to support and supply terrorist organizations and other foreign adversaries – such as Russia – around the globe,” said U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves for the District of Columbia. “This whole-of-government approach is one more step in stopping the acquisition of drones for nefarious purposes such as attacks on innocent civilians and civilian infrastructure.”
“U.S. technology has zero place in Iranian UAVs,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod of the Department of Commerce. “As these allegations demonstrate, those who procure dual-use microelectronics for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps will be held accountable.”
“Ardakani and his co-conspirators crafted a sophisticated web of front companies to obscure the illicit acquisition of U.S. and foreign technology to procure components for deadly UAVs,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New England. “These very components have been found in use by Iran’s allies in current conflicts, including in Ukraine. The disruption of these criminal networks by Homeland Security Investigations means that hundreds of thousands of critical UAV components will never again be used for malign purposes.”
According to the indictment, between at least in or around September 2014 and September 2015, Ardakani and Lam, who was based in China and Hong Kong, as well as other associates, conspired to illegally purchase and export from the United States to Iran dual-use microelectronics that are commonly used in UAV production, including high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs), monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) power amplifiers, and analog-to-digital converters. Each of these components are subject to U.S. export controls for anti-terrorism, national security and regional stability reasons.
The indictment further alleges that on four separate occasions Ardakani and his co-conspirators used a web of foreign companies to accomplish their obfuscation and evasion efforts. For example, between June and September 2015, Ardakani and Lam caused an unwitting French company to purchase from a U.S. company several pieces of analog-to-digital converters with applications in wireless and broadband communications, radar and satellite subsystems, multicarrier, multimodal cellular receivers, antenna array positioning and infrared imaging. Lam then caused a division of the French company to ship the analog-to-digital converters to Hong Kong, where they were reexported to Iran. A variation of this tactic – involving witting and unwitting companies in Canada, Hong Kong, and China – was used on the other three occasions.
In addition to the indictment, separate, related seizure actions targeting Nava Hobbies SDN BHD (Nava Hobbies) and Arta Wave (Arta Wave) SBN BHD and their property were unsealed today. Nava Hobbies and Arta Wave are two of the entities designated by OFAC in its action announced today. The funds are subject to seizure based on violations of U.S. law, including U.S. economic sanctions targeting Iran and money laundering violations. The seizures, totaling more than $800,000, aim to further degrade this network’s ability to procure UAV components. Proceedings involving this property remain ongoing.
Ardakani and Lam are charged with conspiracy to export U.S. goods to Iran and to defraud the United States, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison; unlawfully exporting and attempting to export goods to Iran, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison; and conspiracy to engage in international money laundering, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Ardakani and Lam remain at large and are believed to reside abroad.
HSI, the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security, and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service are investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jolie Zimmerman for the District of Columbia is prosecuting the case, with valuable assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Heiden for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorneys Heather Schmidt and Brendan Geary of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Indictment Charges District Man with Fentanyl Trafficking and Firearms CountsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON –Kahlil Felder, 39, of Southeast Washington D.C., was arraigned on a four-count indictment yesterday in U.S. District Court charging him with possession with intent to distribute more than 400 grams of fentanyl, and using, carrying, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, among other charges. Felder was ordered detained pending trial.
The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Special Agent in Charge Derek W. Gordon, of Homeland Security Investigations Washington Field Office, Inspector Damon Wood, with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service "Washington Division", and Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department.
According to the indictment, Felder, aka, Kahlil Gibron Hewitt, unlawfully, knowingly, and intentionally, distributed a mixture containing a detectable amount of fentanyl on October 22, 2022, and possessed with intent to distribute over 400 grams of fentanyl on December 13, 2023. The indictment further charges that, on December 13, 2023, Felder possessed two firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and possessed two firearms as a prohibited person—that is, a person convicted of a crime punishable by a term of imprisonment for a term exceeding one year.
During a search of Felder’s residence on December 13, law enforcement officers discovered two loaded semiautomatic pistols – a Glock 36, 45mm, and a Springfield Hellcat 9 mm– and more than five kilograms of suspected fentanyl. The fentanyl included thousands of pre-packaged baggies or “zips” filled with suspected fentanyl. Investigators also found tools and materials for packaging fentanyl, including a scale, test kits, gloves, a respirator, a sifter, and a money counter.
This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
The charges of possession with intent to distribute over 400 grams or more of fentanyl and possession of firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking carry a statutory maximum of life in prison. The possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year carries a statutory maximum of 15 years in prison. The charges also carry potential financial penalties. The maximum statutory sentence for federal offenses is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes.
This case is being investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations Washington Field Office, U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Washington Office, and MPD’s Violent Crime Suppression Division.
It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Will Hart and Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jordan Leiter and Javier Urbina of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.
District Man Found Guilty on 10 Counts Related to Drug Trafficking and Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Antonio Christian Payne, 30, of Northeast Washington D.C. was found guilty by a federal jury today on 10 felony charges related to drug trafficking and firearms offenses in the District of Columbia.
The jury verdict, which followed a five-day trial in U.S. District Court, was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Special Agent-in-Charge Craig Kailimai of the Washington Field Office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Chief Pamela Smith of the Metropolitan Police Department.
Payne remains held pending his sentencing before the Honorable Tanya S. Chutkan scheduled for Apr. 17, 2024.
According to the government’s evidence, MPD launched an investigation into Payne’s activities on Apr. 18, 2022, following a daylight drive-by shooting near Payne’s stash house at 2430 Baldwin Cres, NE.
The shooter apparently had targeted Payne’s cousin, who had escaped without injury. Officers responded to the scene within minutes and were let into the home where Payne and his cousin were staying, where they attempted to investigate the shooting and determine if Payne’s cousin needed medical aid. At the same time, officers and detectives canvassed the area for witnesses and ultimately reviewed surveillance footage which revealed that minutes prior to the drive-by, Payne had brandished a firearm at the suspect who later did the shooting after that suspect had attempted to access Payne’s car and garage, both of which were later found to have narcotics and ammunition in them.
On discovering this information, officers seized the residence and applied for an emergency search warrant, which they obtained that evening. During their search, officers recovered six firearms (one ghost rifle, one .22 caliber rifle, and four semi-automatic 9mm pistols), sundry rounds of ammunition of various calibers, magazines, firearms-accessories (including a ballistic vest designed to withstand rifle-rounds), almost 750 grams of fentanyl, 240 grams of cocaine powder, 175 grams of cocaine base, 130 grams of methamphetamine, 12 kilograms of marijuana, and dozens upon dozens of oxycodone pills, along with nearly $30,000 in U.S. currency.
The jury today found Payne guilty of unlawful possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl; unlawful possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine; unlawful possession with intent to distribute marijuana; unlawful possession with intent to distribute cocaine hydrochloride; unlawful possession with intent to distribute cocaine base; unlawful possession with intent to distribute Oxycodone; unlawful opening and maintenance of a premises to manufacture and distribute a controlled substance; using, carrying, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense; using carrying, and possession of a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking offense; and carrying a pistol without a license.
In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Graves, SAC Kailimai, and Chief Smith, applauded the work of MPD officers and detectives and commended the ATF Special Agents who subsequently investigated the case.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Will Hart and Solomon Eppel of the Violence Reduction and Trafficking Offenses Section. Valuable assistance was provided by paralegal Peter Gaboton, Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Gold, and former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Engallena who assisted in the investigation and charging of this case. Graves, Kailimai, and Smith also praised Leif Hickling and Charlie Bruce of LitTech, and VRTO supervisory paralegal Mary Downing for their assistance on this case.
DOJ Unseals Charges Against Iranian and Chinese Nationals for Procurement Fraud Involving the Acquisition of Components for Drones on Behalf of the Iranian GovernmentRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Today, the Department of Justice unsealed an indictment charging two men - Iranian National Hossein Hatefi Ardakani (“Ardakani”) and Chinese National Gary Lam - with crimes related to the procurement of U.S.-manufactured dual-use microelectronics for Iran. Concurrent with this unsealing, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) designated Ardakani and Lam, also identified by OFAC as Lin Jinghe, as well as two other individuals and 10 entities involved in the procurement network used by Ardakani in support of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force Self Sufficiency Jihad Organization’s one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicle (“UAV” or drone) program.
The indictment alleges that between at least September 2014 and September 2015, Ardakani and Lam, who was based in China and Hong Kong, as well as other associates, conspired to illegally purchase and export from the United States to Iran dual-use microelectronics that are commonly used in UAV production, including high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs), monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) power amplifiers, and analog-to-digital converters. Each of these components is subject to U.S. export controls for anti-terrorism, national security, and regional stability reasons.
“Today’s announcements show that we remain focused on disrupting the efforts of Iran and its agents to circumvent U.S. sanctions in support of Iran’s weapons programs, including its drone program, which have been used to support and supply terrorist organizations and other foreign adversaries – such as Russia – around the globe,” said U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves. “This whole-of-government approach is one more step in stopping the acquisition of drones for nefarious purposes such as attacks on innocent civilians and civilian infrastructure.”
“Today’s coordinated action with the Treasury Department demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to keeping military-grade equipment out of the hands of the Iranian regime,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “We will aggressively investigate, disrupt, and hold accountable criminal networks that supply sensitive technology to hostile and repressive governments in contravention of U.S. sanctions.”
“U.S. technology has zero place in Iranian UAVs,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod for the Department of Commerce. “As these allegations demonstrate, those who procure dual-use microelectronics for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps will be held accountable.”
“Ardakani and his co-conspirators crafted a sophisticated web of front companies to obscure the illicit acquisition of U.S. and foreign technology to procure components for deadly UAVs,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol, of Homeland Security Investigations’ New England Office. “These very components have been found in use by Iran’s allies in current conflicts, including in Ukraine. The disruption of these criminal networks by Homeland Security Investigations means that hundreds of thousands of critical UAV components will never again be used for malign purposes.”
The indictment further alleges that on four separate occasions Ardakani and his co-conspirators used a web of foreign companies to accomplish their obfuscation and evasion efforts. For example, between June and September 2015, Ardakani and Lam caused an unwitting French company to purchase from a U.S. company several pieces of analog-to-digital converters with applications in wireless and broadband communications, radar and satellite subsystems, multicarrier, multimodal cellular receivers, antenna array positioning, and infrared imaging. Lam then caused a division of the French company to ship the analog-to-digital converters to Hong Kong, where they were reexported to Iran. A variation of this tactic – involving witting and unwitting companies in Canada, Hong Kong, and China – was used on the other three occasions.
In addition to the indictment, a separate seizure action targeting Nava Hobbies SDN BHD (“Nava Hobbies”) and its property was unsealed today. Nava Hobbies is one of the 10 entities designated by OFAC in its action announced today. The funds are subject to seizure based on violations of U.S. law, including U.S. economic sanctions targeting Iran and money laundering violations. The seizures, totaling nearly $600,000, aim to further degrade this network’s ability to procure UAV components. Proceedings involving this property remain ongoing.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Detroit Field Division, led by Special Agent in Charge Cheyvoryea Gibson, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS).Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS).
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jolie Zimmerman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, with valuable assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Heiden of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorneys Heather Schmidt and Brendan Geary of the Counterespionage and Export Control Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.