District of Columbia

WASHINGTON – A 32-year-old man, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a five-year prison term for sexually abusing his 12-year-old daughter, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

            The man, who is not identified here to protect the privacy of the victim, pled guilty in November 2018, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to a charge of second-degree child sexual abuse. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon five-year prison term. The Honorable Danya A. Dayson accepted the plea and sentenced the defendant accordingly. Following his prison term, the man will be required to register for 10 years as a sex offender and also complete five years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 15, 2018, the victim was staying with her father at her uncle’s house. The victim was asleep on the bed with her brother. The defendant lay down behind her and sexually assaulted her. The victim “froze” while this was happening and tried to think of words to make it stop. She told the defendant to move, and she got off the bed and grabbed her phone and walked to the bathroom to call her mother. The defendant told her not to call her mother, but she called her and reported the abuse. The victim then called 911.

            The defendant was arrested the same day and has been in custody ever since.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth and Family Services Division. She also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences, the Children’s Advocacy Center, and Children’s National Medical Center. She acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Supervisor Dr. Lorraine Chase, Victim/Witness Advocates Tracey Hawkins and Tracy Owusu, Paralegal Specialist Brenda Williams, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Elana Suttenberg, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – A former policy analyst for the District of Columbia Department of Human Services (DHS) pled guilty today to a federal charge stemming from a scheme in which he collected more than $400,000 in fraudulent benefits meant for needy District residents.

            Gary T. Holliday, 49, of Fort Washington, Md., pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a charge of wire fraud.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Assistant Director in Charge Nancy McNamara of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, District of Columbia Inspector General Daniel W. Lucas, and Special Agent in Charge Maureen R. Dixon of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), for the region that includes Washington, D.C.

            Holliday is to be sentenced on June 6, 2019 by the Honorable Rudolph Contreras. The charge carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Holliday faces an estimated range of 33 months to 41 months in prison. He also has agreed to pay $404,831 in restitution and a forfeiture money judgment of at least $400,000.

            According to plea documents, Holliday embezzled money intended to provide temporary support and assistance to low-income families and individuals. Specifically, he targeted the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the food stamps program, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), which consists of cash benefits. Benefits in both programs were provided to clients via electronic benefit cards.

            Holliday’s job responsibilities at DHS included representing the agency at “fair hearings” that involved disputes between DHS and its clients about eligibility and benefits. In cases where the agency lost the hearing, Holliday was responsible for creating a memorandum summarizing the conclusions of the hearing and directing another employee at DHS to calculate and pay whatever “underpayments” the client was owed. Holliday created and submitted a fraudulent memorandum, dated June 19, 2017, in which he falsely claimed that as a result of a purported fair hearing, a client of DHS needed to be processed for SNAP and TANF underpayments.

            In fact, the named client had not applied for benefits (the client’s alleged application had been forged by Holliday) and there had never been a fair hearing regarding the client’s eligibility for benefits. As a result of the Holliday’s actions, another employee created an active underpayment account for the client in the DHS computer system. Then, between June 2017 and November 2018, Holliday used his access to the DHS computer system to create over 400 fraudulent underpayments for the client, totaling in excess of $400,000. He accessed the fraudulent proceeds by using the client’s benefit card.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the District of Columbia Office of the Inspector General, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily A. Miller, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Aisha Keys

WASHINGTON – Kevin Hammond, 26, of Suitland, Md., was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for an armed carjacking in the Ivy City neighborhood of Northeast Washington in which he pistol-whipped the victim so violently that the gun broke into two pieces. He then fled from police before being captured a short time later at a construction site.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Special Agent in Charge Rob Cekada of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division, Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and Henry P. Stawinski III, Chief of the Prince George’s County, Md. Police Department.

            Hammond pled guilty on Sept. 24, 2018, in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia, to one count of federal carjacking, one count of the federal offense of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, and one count of the federal offense of interstate transportation of a stolen motor vehicle. He also pled guilty to assault with a dangerous weapon, and leaving the scene of an accident with personal injury, both District of Columbia offenses.

            He was sentenced today by the Honorable James E. Boasberg. Following completion of his prison term, he will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, at about 6 a.m. on Monday, Aug.  14, 2017, Hammond brandished a firearm and stole a van from a handyman who was getting ready for work in New Carrollton, in Prince George’s County, Md.  Hammond then drove the van into Washington, D.C. and to the Ivy City neighborhood of Northeast Washington.

            The van was equipped with a GPS system, and officers with the Prince George’s County Police Department and MPD were able to track and locate the vehicle.  At about 7 a.m., as officers tried to stop the stolen vehicle that Hammond was driving, he fled the van and ran, jumping over a fence and running down an alleyway.  Hammond then encountered another man in the 1900 block of Fairview Street NE who was parking his car to go to work. Hammond brandished a firearm to carjack this man’s vehicle. After grabbing the keys, Hammond pistol-whipped the man, striking him repeatedly in the face and head with the firearm, until the gun broke into two pieces.  He then drove the stolen car down New York Avenue NE in rush-hour traffic with the police in pursuit; finally, he crashed into another car and fled on foot.  Hammond was apprehended a short distance away, hiding in a construction site near Fourth Street and New York Avenue NE.  He has remained in custody since his arrest.

            Hammond still faces charges in Prince George’s County, and he is presumed innocent of those charges until, and unless, proven guilty.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, Special Agent in Charge Cekada, Chief Newsham, and Chief Stawinski commended the work of the detectives and patrol officers of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Fifth District, the officers of the Prince George’s County Police Department, the crime scene officers from the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences, and agents and DNA lab personnel from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  They also expressed appreciation to those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Monica Trigoso, Paralegal Specialists Jeannette Litz and Kate Abrey, Victim/Witness Advocate Yvonne Bryant, and Victim/Witness Services Coordinator Tonya Jones.  Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dineen A. Baker and Anthony Scarpelli, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Lafonzo Williams, 51, of Washington, D.C., has been indicted and remains detained pending trial on a federal charge stemming from an armed robbery last summer of a United States Postal Service (USPS) Letter Carrier in Southeast Washington.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Inspector in Charge Peter R. Rendina of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Washington Division, and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Williams was arrested on Feb. 12, 2019 following his earlier indictment on a charge of robbery of mail, money, or other property of the United States. He pled not guilty at his first court appearance that day in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. At a hearing today, Magistrate Judge G. Michael Harvey ordered that he remain detained pending trial.

           According to the government’s evidence, on July 5, 2018, at approximately 2:35 p.m., Williams walked up to a Postal Service truck parked in the rear of the Frederick Douglass Post Office, located in the 2800 block of Alabama Avenue SE. He allegedly pulled himself into the back of the truck, where the postal worker was sorting mail. He then allegedly pulled a knife from the pocket of the shorts he was wearing and took several mail bags from the driver. He allegedly fled the scene in a minivan he had parked nearby.

             If convicted, Williams faces a statutory maximum of 25 years in prison. The maximum statutory sentence for federal offenses is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. The sentencing will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

            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.

            This case is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Metropolitan Police Department, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Crane.

A former U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) official was sentenced today for demanding and receiving bribes from three for-profit schools in exchange for enrolling disabled military veterans in those schools and facilitating over $2 million in payments from the VA using the veterans’ federal benefits. 

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu for the District of Columbia, Special Agent in Charge Matthew J. DeSarno of the FBI’s Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Kim Lampkins of the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG), Mid-Atlantic Field Office made the announcement.

James King, 63, of Baltimore, Maryland, previously pleaded guilty to an Information alleging one count of honest services and money/property wire fraud, one count of bribery of a public official, and one count of falsifying records to obstruct an investigation.  King was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John D. Bates of the District of Columbia to serve 132 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and to pay $155,000 in restitution to the VA.  Earlier this week, Judge Bates sentenced three school owners and employees who admitted to bribing King.  Albert Poawui, the owner of Atius Technology Institute, was sentenced to serve 70 months in prison and ordered to pay $1.5 million in restitution.  Sombo Kanneh, Poawui’s employee, was sentenced to serve 20 months in prison and ordered to pay $113,000 in restitution.  Michelle Stevens, the owner of Eelon Training Academy, was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison and ordered to pay $83,000 in restitution.

“James King and his associates exploited an important VA program that provides valuable services to our disabled military veterans,” said Assistant Attorney General Benczkowski.  “This prosecution once again demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to hold accountable those who seek to defraud government programs for their own personal enrichment.”

“James King blatantly betrayed his responsibility with the VA to provide job and educational counseling to disabled military veterans who turned to him for help,” said U.S. Attorney Liu.  “Instead of helping our veterans, he lined his own pockets by taking bribes to send them to three sham schools that brought them only pain and frustration. Today’s sentencing holds him accountable for this breach of trust and this waste of taxpayer money.”

“King tried to use his position to enrich himself at the expense of veterans who have honorably served our country,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge DeSarno.  “Today's sentencing makes it clear that such activity by anyone affiliated with the U.S. government will not be tolerated.  The FBI will work closely with our partners to continue to aggressively investigate allegations of corruption.”

“We are pleased to see Mr. King, a person who abused his position of trust and the veterans he was supposed to serve, sentenced today,” said VA OIG Special Agent in Charge Lampkins.  “This sentence sends a clear message that VA OIG is dedicated to prosecuting those that take advantage of VA programs that are intended to help our veterans and their families.”

According to King’s admissions made in connection with his plea, the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) provides disabled U.S. military veterans with education and employment-related services.  VR&E program counselors advise veterans under their supervision which schools to attend and facilitate payments to those schools for veterans’ tuition and necessary supplies.

From 2015 through 2017, King, using his position as a VR&E program counselor, demanded and received cash bribes from the owners of Atius Technology Institute (Atius), Eelon Training Academy (Eelon), and School A, a school purporting to specialize in physical security classes.  King facilitated over $2 million in payments to Atius, over $83,000 to Eelon, and over $340,000 to School A, all in furtherance of King’s separate agreements with the respective school owners to commit bribery and defraud the VA.  King agreed with Poawui and Stevens that they would each pay him, in cash, seven percent of the money they received from the VA in exchange for King steering veterans to their schools and facilitating VA payments.  King similarly accepted cash payments from the owner of School A, who is identified as Person A in the Information, in exchange for the same official acts.

In order to maximize the profits from their fraud, all three school owners sent King and other VA officials false information about the education being provided to veterans, and King facilitated payments to all three schools knowing this information was false.  King also admitted to repeatedly lying to veterans under his supervision in order to convince them to attend Atius, Eelon, or School A.  For example, King falsely instructed one veteran that, unless he attended School A, his VR&E program benefits would “lapse.”  King insisted that this veteran enroll in School A despite the veteran’s protests that he could not engage in physical security work due to a physical disability, and despite the fact that the veteran had enrolled in the VR&E program to pursue his dream of becoming a baker.

In early 2017, the VA initiated a fact-finding inquiry into Atius based on complaints by students as to the quality of education at the school.  In August 2017, after King became aware of the inquiry, he created a falsified site visit report and instructed Poawui to send it to another VA official, all in an effort to obstruct the VA’s inquiry into Atius.  In January 2018, King attempted to convince Poawui to lie to the grand jury about the purpose of the bribe payments.

King’s plea is the result of an ongoing investigation by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the VA Office of Inspector General.  Trial Attorney Simon J. Cataldo of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, former Assistant U.S. Attorney and current Fraud Section Trial Attorney Sonali D. Patel and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Misler of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia are prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON – A former U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) official was sentenced today to a total of 11 years in prison for demanding and receiving bribes from three for-profit schools in exchange for enrolling disabled military veterans in those schools and facilitating over $2 million in payments from the VA using the veterans’ federal benefits. 

            Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jessie K. Liu, Special Agent in Charge Matthew J. DeSarno of the FBI’s Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Kim Lampkins of the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG), Mid-Atlantic Field Office made the announcement.

            James King, 63, of Baltimore, Maryland, previously pleaded guilty to an Information alleging one count of honest services and money/property wire fraud, one count of bribery of a public official, and one count of falsifying records to obstruct an investigation.  King was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John D. Bates of the District of Columbia to serve 132 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and to pay $155,000 in restitution to the VA.  Earlier this week, Judge Bates sentenced three school owners and employees who admitted to bribing King.  Albert Poawui, the owner of Atius Technology Institute, was sentenced to serve 70 months in prison and ordered to pay $1.5 million in restitution.  Sombo Kanneh, Poawui’s employee, was sentenced to serve 20 months in prison and ordered to pay $113,000 in restitution.  Michelle Stevens, the owner of Eelon Training Academy, was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison and ordered to pay $83,000 in restitution.

            “James King and his associates exploited an important VA program that provides valuable services to our disabled military veterans,” said Assistant Attorney General Benczkowski.  “This prosecution once again demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to hold accountable those who seek to defraud government programs for their own personal enrichment.”

            “James King blatantly betrayed his responsibility with the VA to provide job and educational counseling to disabled military veterans who turned to him for help,” said U.S. Attorney Liu.  “Instead of helping our veterans, he lined his own pockets by taking bribes to send them to three sham schools that brought them only pain and frustration. Today’s sentencing holds him accountable for this breach of trust and this waste of taxpayer money.”

            “King tried to use his position to enrich himself at the expense of veterans who have honorably served our country,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge DeSarno.  “Today's sentencing makes it clear that such activity by anyone affiliated with the U.S. government will not be tolerated.  The FBI will work closely with our partners to continue to aggressively investigate allegations of corruption.”

            “We are pleased to see Mr. King, a person who abused his position of trust and the veterans he was supposed to serve, sentenced today,” said VA OIG Special Agent in Charge Lampkins.  “This sentence sends a clear message that VA OIG is dedicated to prosecuting those that take advantage of VA programs that are intended to help our veterans and their families.”

            According to King’s admissions made in connection with his plea, the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) provides disabled U.S. military veterans with education and employment-related services.  VR&E program counselors advise veterans under their supervision which schools to attend and facilitate payments to those schools for veterans’ tuition and necessary supplies.

            From 2015 through 2017, King, using his position as a VR&E program counselor, demanded and received cash bribes from the owners of Atius Technology Institute (Atius), Eelon Training Academy (Eelon), and School A, a school purporting to specialize in physical security classes.  King facilitated over $2 million in payments to Atius, over $83,000 to Eelon, and over $340,000 to School A, all in furtherance of King’s separate agreements with the respective school owners to commit bribery and defraud the VA.  King agreed with Poawui and Stevens that they would each pay him, in cash, seven percent of the money they received from the VA in exchange for King steering veterans to their schools and facilitating VA payments.  King similarly accepted cash payments from the owner of School A, who is identified as Person A in the Information, in exchange for the same official acts.

            In order to maximize the profits from their fraud, all three school owners sent King and other VA officials false information about the education being provided to veterans, and King facilitated payments to all three schools knowing this information was false.  King also admitted to repeatedly lying to veterans under his supervision in order to convince them to attend Atius, Eelon, or School A.  For example, King falsely instructed one veteran that, unless he attended School A, his VR&E program benefits would “lapse.”  King insisted that this veteran enroll in School A despite the veteran’s protests that he could not engage in physical security work due to a physical disability, and despite the fact that the veteran had enrolled in the VR&E program to pursue his dream of becoming a baker.

            In early 2017, the VA initiated a fact-finding inquiry into Atius based on complaints by students as to the quality of education at the school.  In August 2017, after King became aware of the inquiry, he created a falsified site visit report and instructed Poawui to send it to another VA official, all in an effort to obstruct the VA’s inquiry into Atius.  In January 2018, King attempted to convince Poawui to lie to the grand jury about the purpose of the bribe payments.

            King’s plea is the result of an ongoing investigation by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the VA Office of Inspector General.  Trial Attorney Simon J. Cataldo of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, former Assistant U.S. Attorney and current Fraud Section Trial Attorney Sonali D. Patel and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Misler of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia are prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON – Manuel D. Reynoso, 36, of Glen Burnie, Md., was found guilty today following a jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia of possessing a firearm with an extended magazine loaded with ammunition; possession of marijuana; and possession of N-Ethypentylone, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu. 

            The verdict followed a trial before the Honorable Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell. Reynoso is to be sentenced on April 5, 2019.

            At the time of his arrest last spring by U.S. Secret Service (USSS) officers in Northwest Washington, Reynoso was on release pending sentencing for firearm and possession with intent to distribute marijuana offenses to which he had pled guilty in the Circuit Court for Prince George’s County, Md.

            According to the government’s evidence, on May 16, 2018, at approximately 1:19 a.m., Secret Service officers were on routine patrol in the 200 block of 17th Street NW, when they observed a BMW being driven without headlights.  The officers conducted a traffic stop of that BMW, which Reynoso was driving with two passengers.  An officer approached the driver’s side window and smelled the odor of marijuana.  The officer asked if anyone had been smoking in the vehicle, and Reynoso replied no.  Reynoso then voluntarily picked up and held in his hand marijuana that was wrapped in a dollar bill, showed it to the officer, and said, “This is all we have.”  As officers were asking the passengers to exit the BMW so that it could be searched, Reynoso, without being asked, got out of the BMW.  While fumbling with a cellular telephone in his hand, Reynoso began to walk toward the front of his car.  He then ran from the police.

            An officer conducted a plain view search of the BMW and observed in the front passenger door map pocket a magazine with ammunition for a subcompact pistol.  Following a search by Secret Service and U.S. Park Police officers, the defendant was found near the Tidal Basin, stopped, and arrested.  During an initial search of Reynoso at the Tidal Basin, a large amount of U.S. currency and other items were recovered from him.  While Reynoso was at the Park Police’s District One, additional U.S. currency and 0.069 grams of N-Ethylpentylone, a methamphetamine, were found on his person.

            Additionally, during a search of the BMW, an officer technician recovered a Glock 27 .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine loaded with 20 cartridges from under the driver’s front floor mat; the magazine and ammunition from the front passenger door map pocket; 2.646 grams of marijuana; and a small amount of U.S. currency.  A total of $2,890 in U.S. currency was recovered.

            In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Liu stated, “My Office’s top priority is the safety of the people who live and work in Washington, D.C., and that means protecting them from the danger posed by illegal firearms. This case shows our commitment to doing just that. This defendant previously had been convicted of a serious crime and had no business possessing a firearm.”

            U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of the U.S. Secret Service officers who were the primary investigative officers, as well as officers and special agents from assisting law enforcement agencies, including the U.S. Park Police, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Paralegal Specialists Rommel Pachoca, Catherine O’Neal, and Kim Hall; Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Mary Downing; Legal Assistant Latoya Wade, and Litigation Technology Unit Specialists Jeanie Lattimore-Brown, William Henderson, Leif Hickling, Kimberly Smith and Ron Royal.

WASHINGTON – Jeremiah Woodfork, 33, of District Heights, Md., has been sentenced to a total of 12 years in prison on a federal cocaine trafficking charge stemming from his apprehension after he fired multiple gunshots from his car at another motorist in Northeast Washington. At the time of his arrest, Woodfork was awaiting sentencing in the Circuit Court for Prince George’s County, Md., for an attempted robbery conviction, for which he failed to appear.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Woodfork pled guilty in September 2017, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to one count of unlawful possession with intent to distribute cocaine. He was sentenced on Feb. 13, 2019, by the Honorable Randolph D. Moss. Following completion of his prison term, Woodfork will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Jan. 18, 2017, at approximately 9:40 a.m., Woodfork was driving in a teal-colored Mercedes-Benz with his pregnant girlfriend when he cut off another vehicle.  The driver of the other vehicle began to follow Woodfork’s vehicle in an effort to obtain the license plate number to call in a report of a reckless driver.

            As the other motorist followed Woodfork, Woodfork abruptly stopped the Mercedes in the 1900 block of 3rd Street NE, rolled down the driver’s side window, and fired multiple gunshots at the other vehicle.  The driver of the other vehicle called 911 and provided a description of the Mercedes Woodfork was operating. 

            Officers with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) spotted Woodfork’s Mercedes a short time later and attempted to stop him. However, Woodfork fled at a high rate of speed through parts of Northeast and Northwest Washington.

            Officers eventually cut Woodfork off near Fifth and T Streets NW, at which time Woodfork crashed the Mercedes into a parked vehicle and fled on foot.  Woodfork was apprehended a short distance away. In a search of his pockets, police found cocaine and $1,290. Police also recovered additional quantities of cocaine and marijuana in a vest lying next to the driver’s seat of the Mercedes, as well as a Taurus .22-caliber semi-automatic pistol in an alleyway a short distance from where Woodfork crashed the Mercedes. 

            At the time of his arrest, Woodfork had failed to appear for sentencing in the Circuit Court for Prince George’s County, Md., after his conviction for attempted robbery, first-degree burglary, and second-degree assault in an unrelated case. 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham, commended the work of the MPD officers who investigated the case. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven B. Wasserman and Paralegal Specialist Rommel Pachoca.

WASHINGTON – Monica Elfriede Witt, 39, a former U.S. service member and counterintelligence agent, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia for conspiracy to deliver and delivering national defense information to representatives of the Iranian government.  Witt, who defected to Iran in 2013, is alleged to have assisted Iranian intelligence services in targeting her former fellow agents in the U.S. Intelligence Community (USIC).  Witt is also alleged to have disclosed the code name and classified mission of a U.S. Department of Defense Special Access Program. An arrest warrant has been issued for Witt, who remains at large.

            The same indictment charges four Iranian nationals, Mojtaba Masoumpour, Behzad Mesri, Hossein Parvar and Mohamad Paryar (the “Cyber Conspirators”), with conspiracy, attempts to commit computer intrusion and aggravated identity theft, for conduct in 2014 and 2015 targeting former co-workers and colleagues of Witt in the U.S. Intelligence Community.  The Cyber Conspirators, using fictional and imposter social media accounts and working on behalf of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), sought to deploy malware that would provide them covert access to the targets’ computers and networks.  Arrest warrants have been issued for the Cyber Conspirators, who also remain at large.

            The announcement was made by Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Demers, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu for the District of Columbia, Executive Assistant Director for National Security Jay Tabb of the FBI, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Special Agent Terry Phillips of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, and Assistant Director in Charge Nancy McNamara of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            “Monica Witt is charged with revealing to the Iranian regime a highly classified intelligence program and the identity of a U.S. Intelligence Officer, all in violation of the law, her solemn oath to protect and defend our country, and the bounds of human decency,” said Assistant Attorney General Demers.  “Four Iranian cyber hackers are also charged with various computer crimes targeting members of the U.S. intelligence community who were Ms. Witt’s former colleagues. This case underscores the dangers to our intelligence professionals and the lengths our adversaries will go to identify them, expose them, target them, and, in a few rare cases, ultimately turn them against the nation they swore to protect.  When our intelligence professionals are targeted or betrayed, the National Security Division will relentlessly pursue justice against the wrong-doers.” 

            “This case reflects our firm resolve to hold accountable any individual who betrays the public trust by compromising our national security,” said U.S. Attorney Liu.  “Today’s announcement also highlights our commitment to vigorously pursue those who threaten U.S. security through state-sponsored hacking campaigns.”

            “The charges unsealed today are the result of years of investigative work by the FBI to uncover Monica Witt’s betrayal of the oath she swore to safeguard America’s intelligence and defense secrets” said Executive Assistant Director for National Security Tabb.  “This case also highlights the FBI’s commitment to disrupting those who engage in malicious cyber activity to undermine our country’s national security. The FBI is grateful to the Department of Treasury and the United States Air Force for their continued partnership and assistance in this case.”

            “Treasury is taking action against malicious Iranian cyber actors and covert operations that have targeted Americans at home and overseas as part of our ongoing efforts to counter the Iranian regime’s cyber-attacks,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.  “Treasury is sanctioning New Horizon Organization for its support to the IRGC-QF.  New Horizon hosts international conferences that have provided Iranian intelligence officers a platform to recruit and collect damaging information from attendees, while propagating anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial.  We are also sanctioning an Iran-based company that has attempted to install malware to compromise the computers of U.S. personnel.”

            “The alleged actions of Monica Witt in assisting a hostile nation are a betrayal of our nation’s security, our military, and the American people,” said Special Agent Phillips. “While violations like this are extremely rare, her actions as alleged are an affront to all who have served our great nation.”  

            “This investigation exemplifies the tireless work the agents and analysts of the FBI do each and every day to bring a complex case like this to fruition,’ said Assistant Director in Charge McNamara.  “Witt's betrayal of her country and the actions of the cyber criminals - at the behest of the IRGC - could have brought serious damage to the United States, and we will not stand by and allow that to happen.  The efforts by the Iranian government to target and harm the U.S. will not be taken lightly, and the FBI will continue our work to hold those individuals or groups accountable for their actions.”

            According to the allegations contained in the indictment unsealed today:

Monica Witt’s Espionage

            Monica Witt, a U.S. citizen, was an active duty U.S. Air Force Intelligence Specialist and Special Agent of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, who entered on duty in 1997 and left the U.S. government in 2008.  Monica Witt separated from the Air Force in 2008 and ended work with DOD as a contractor in 2010.  During her tenure with the U.S. government, Witt was granted high-level security clearances and was deployed overseas to conduct classified counterintelligence missions.

            In Feb. 2012, Witt traveled to Iran to attend the Iranian New Horizon Organization’s “Hollywoodism” conference, an IRGC-sponsored event aimed at, among other things, condemning American moral standards and promoting anti-U.S. propaganda.  Through subsequent interactions and communications with a dual United States-Iranian citizen referred to in the indictment as Individual A, Witt successfully arranged to re-enter Iran in Aug. 2013.  Thereafter, Iranian government officials provided Witt with a housing and computer equipment.  She went on to disclose U.S. classified information to the Iranian government official.  As part of her work on behalf of the Iranian government, she conducted research about USIC personnel that she had known and worked with, and used that information to draft “target packages” against these U.S. agents.   

Iranian Hacking Efforts Targeting Witt’s Former Colleagues

            Beginning in late 2014, the Cyber Conspirators began a malicious campaign targeting Witt’s former co-workers and colleagues.  Specifically, Mesri registered and helped manage an Iranian company, the identity of which is known to the United States, which conducted computer intrusions against targets inside and outside the United States on behalf of the IRGC.  Using computer and online infrastructure, in some cases procured by Mesri, the conspiracy tested its malware and gathered information from target computers or networks, and sent spearphishing messages to its targets.  Specifically, between Jan. and May 2015, the Cyber Conspirators, using fictitious and imposter accounts, attempted to trick their targets into clicking links or opening files that would allow the conspirators to deploy malware on the target’s computer.  In one such instance, the Cyber Conspirators created a Facebook account that purported to belong to a USIC employee and former colleague of Witt, and which utilized legitimate information and photos from the USIC employee’s actual Facebook account. This particular fake account caused several of Witt’s former colleagues to accept “friend” requests.

*          *          *

            The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office with assistance from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.  The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Deborah Curtis, Jocelyn Ballantine and Luke Jones of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia with assistance from Trial Attorney Evan N. Turgeon of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

WASHINGTON – Two owners and an employee of for-profit, non-accredited schools were sentenced during the last two days for bribing a public official at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in exchange for the public official’s facilitation of over $2 million in payments that were supposed to be dedicated to providing vocational training for military veterans with service-connected disabilities. 

            Albert Poawui, 41, of Laurel, Md., was the owner of Atius Technology Institute (“Atius”), a school purporting to specialize in information technology courses.  Sombo Kanneh, 29, of McLean, Va., was Poawui’s employee at Atius.  Michelle Stevens, 57, of Waldorf, Md., was the owner of Eelon Training Academy, a school purporting to specialize in digital media courses.

            Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu for the District of Columbia, Assistant Director in Charge Nancy McNamara of FBI’s Washington Field Office and Special Agent in Charge Kim Lampkins of U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General (OIG) Mid-Atlantic Field Office made the announcement.

            All three defendants were sentenced by U.S. District Judge John D. Bates of the District of  Columbia.  Poawui was sentenced to serve 70 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $1.5 million in restitution to the VA.  Kanneh was sentenced to serve 20 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay $113,227.30 in restitution to the VA and to forfeit $1.5 million.  Stevens was sentenced to serve 30 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $83,000 in restitution to the VA and to forfeit $83,000.

            James King, the VA official who all three defendants bribed, has pleaded guilty to bribery, wire fraud, and falsification of documents, and will be sentenced on Friday, Feb. 15. 

            The Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) program is a VA program that provides disabled U.S. military veterans with education and employment-related services.  VR&E program counselors advise veterans under their supervision which schools to attend and facilitate payments to those schools for veterans’ tuition and necessary supplies.

            According to admissions made in connection with Poawui and Kanneh’s pleas, in or about August 2015, Poawui and King agreed that Poawui would pay King a seven percent cash kickback of all payments made by the VA to Atius.  In exchange, King steered VR&E program veterans to Atius regardless of the veterans’ educational needs or interests and notwithstanding their repeated complaints about the poor quality of education at Atius.

            Between August 2015 and December 2017, Poawui, King, and the scheme’s other participants caused the VA to pay Atius approximately $2,217,259.44.  Poawui paid King over $155,000 as part of the illicit bribery scheme.  These bribery payments were hand-delivered by Poawui or Kanneh to King or King’s assistant, who was a veteran enrolled in the VR&E program.  Kanneh admitted that she routinely moved money between Atius’s bank accounts to facilitate bribe payments to King.

            Poawui also admitted that he made numerous false representations to the VA to enhance the scheme’s profits.  For example, Poawui certified to the VA that veterans attending Atius were enrolled in up to 32 hours of class per week, when in fact he knew that Atius offered a maximum of six weekly class hours.  After the VA initiated an administrative audit of Atius, Poawui and King took steps to conceal the truth about earlier misrepresentations they had made to the VA.

            According to admissions made in connection with Stevens’ plea, she created Eelon Training Academy after learning about the VR&E program from King.  In or about September 2016, King facilitated the first tuition payment from the VA to Eelon.  Shortly after receiving this payment, King told Stevens that she should give him seven percent of the monies paid by the VA to Eelon.  King proceeded to steer veterans under his supervision to Eelon regardless of their resistance to attending Stevens’ school.

            Stevens admitted to later making two cash payments of $1,500 to King in furtherance of her scheme to bribe King in exchange for King sending veterans under his supervision to Eelon and facilitating the VA’s payments to Stevens.  In total, Stevens received approximately $83,000 from the VA for education that she purported to provide to veteran students.  Stevens submitted invoices to the VA amounting to no less than $300,000 for the tuition and equipment of seven students, but was not paid the balance of the invoice amount due to the VA’s ongoing investigation into Eelon following complaints by students about the poor quality of education. 

            In an effort to procure the outstanding payments from the VA, Stevens made numerous fraudulent misrepresentations to the VA, and maintained fraudulent student files in the event of an audit by the VA.             For example, Stevens emailed to the VA an “attendance” sheet for eight students.  The attendance sheet was created by Stevens and included handwritten check marks purporting to represent the dates that the students attended class.  In fact, as Stevens well knew, the students had not attended class on many of those dates nor was class even held on many of those dates. 

            Poawui, Kanneh, and Stevens’ sentences are the result of an ongoing investigation by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General.  Trial Attorney Simon J. Cataldo of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Misler of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia are prosecuting the case. 

WASHINGTON – Keniel Thomas, 29, a Jamaican national, was sentenced today to 71 months in prison for trying to extort money from a couple in Washington D.C., who he tried to trick into believing they won the Mega Millions lottery, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            Thomas, also known as “David Morgan,” pled guilty on Oct. 26, 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to interstate communication with the intent to extort. He was sentenced by the Honorable Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell. Following completion of his prison term, Thomas will face deportation proceedings.

            According to the government’s evidence, Thomas, posing as “David Morgan,” placed a call on June 9, 2014 to a man who lived and worked in the District of Columbia. Thomas told the man that he was the head of Mega Millions and that the man was the winner of $15.5 million and a 2014 Mercedes Benz. Thomas told the man that the man needed to pay $50,000 to cover the taxes before the award was provided to him. He also told the man that he had information about his employment history. Shortly after the call, the man contacted the FBI.

            The following day, the man placed a call to “David Morgan” that was recorded by the FBI. In it, Thomas again told the man that he worked for Mega Millions. This time, he said the man was the first-place winner of a prize valued at $72 million and that included a 2014 Mercedes Benz with a year of free insurance. Once again, Thomas said that the man needed to send $50,000 to him to cover the taxes on the prizes.

            Over the course of the next month, Thomas made numerous calls to the man in attempts to get the money. He also reached the man’s wife and threatened violence if the money was not paid. Among other things, he claimed that he had done surveillance on the couple’s home.

            An FBI investigation led to the identification of Thomas. A criminal complaint was filed against Thomas in July 2014. He was arrested on Dec. 18, 2017, after he traveled by plane from Montego Bay, Jamaica, to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. He has remained in custody ever since.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Assistant Director in Charge McNamara commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office. They also expressed appreciation for the work of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter C. Lallas and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Ephraim (Fry) Wernick. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys David J. Gorman and Kathryn L. Rakoczy, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

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WASHINGTON - Daryl G. Alexander, 47, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to six years in prison on a charge of voluntary manslaughter in a crash that killed Oren Dorell, a reporter for USA Today, in Northeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Prior to the crash, according to the evidence, Alexander had smoked a cigarette dipped in PCP.

            Alexander pled guilty on Sept. 14, 2018, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He pled guilty under what is known as the Alford doctrine. Under an Alford plea, the defendant does not admit the allegations but agrees that the government has enough evidence to secure a conviction.  The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of 60 to 72 months in prison. The Honorable Craig Iscoe accepted the plea and sentenced the defendant accordingly. Following his prison term, Alexander will be placed on five years of supervised release. He also faces revocation of his probation for an earlier offense.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Friday June 8, 2018, at approximately 8:25 p.m., Alexander was driving his Toyota Camry eastbound on H Street NE, at a high rate of speed, when he struck a motorcycle operated by Mr. Dorell. A witness reported seeing the vehicle strike and run over Mr. Dorell, and then continue east before stopping at 13th and H Streets NE. When the Metropolitan Police Department arrived on the scene, Alexander was still in the car, and several citizens were banging on the window to get his attention. About 20 people, including citizens and offices, joined together to lift the car, and Mr. Dorell was underneath it. Mr. Dorell was transported to the hospital but died early June 9, 2018, a few hours later.

            Alexander was removed from the vehicle at the scene and placed in handcuffs. Officers attempted to conduct an initial interview, but Alexander was not coherent or responsive to any verbal directions.  Officers noticed a strong chemical odor consistent with PCP emanating from the defendant as well as his vehicle. He was taken to a hospital for evaluation and treatment.

            After he was released from the hospital, Alexander told police that on the evening of June 8, 2018, he drove to a Chinese restaurant in Southeast Washington, placed an order for food, and then consumed alcohol and smoked a cigarette dipped in PCP in his car. According to his interview with police, the next thing he remembered was being handcuffed by police at the crime scene. He denied any recollection of driving to H Street or striking a motorcycle.

            Alexander was convicted in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia in 2016 for driving under the influence of alcohol. He now faces revocation of his probation for that offense.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham praised those who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department, including members of the Major Crash Investigations Unit and the First District.  They also expressed appreciation for those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Stephanie Siegerist, former Victim/Witness Advocate Diana Lim, and Victim/Witness Advocate Yvonne Bryant. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward A. O’Connell, who prosecuted the matter.

WASHINGTON – Keith Johnson, 49, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for an attack in which he hit his brother-in-law in the head with a lug wrench, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu.

            Johnson was found guilty by a jury in August 2018 of charges of assault with a dangerous weapon and assault with significant bodily injury while armed. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable José M. López. Following his prison term, he will be placed on five years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, in the early morning hours of Jan. 10, 2018, Johnson’s wife was visiting her sister and brother-in-law, in the 4300 block of Wheeler Road SE. Johnson went to the residence to take his wife home. When his wife refused to leave with him, Johnson became irate. The brother-in-law, 56, intervened and asked Johnson to leave.

            A fight ensued, which culminated in Johnson pulling his brother-in-law by his ankles down two flights of stairs. With his brother-in-law in and out of consciousness at the bottom of the stairs, Johnson went to his car, retrieved a steel lug wrench, and returned to strike him over the head with the lug wrench. He hit him with such force that the lug wrench broke into two pieces. Johnson fled and was arrested during a traffic stop a few minutes later. His brother-in-law suffered a 4 ½-inch gash across the top of his head, which required surgical staples to close.

            While he was on release and this case was pending, Johnson was arrested and charged with threats in a separate matter.  He allegedly used the charging document in this case to threaten a couple. Johnson has remained detained since his arrest in the threats matter.

          In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Louis Manzo and Kristina Wolf; Appellate Division Deputy Chief Nicholas Coleman; Victim/Witness Advocate Elsa Maltese; Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation;  Forensic Operation/Program Specialist Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; Litigation Technology Supervisor Jeanie Latimore-Brown; Paralegal Specialists Tiffany Jones and Brenda Williams; Criminal Investigator Tommy Miller, and Interns Megan Hughes, Alexa Perlmutter, and Jill Rogowski.

             Finally, she commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer B. Loeb and Amy Joy Thomas, who prosecuted the case at trial.

WASHINGTON – Ronnie Bryant, 54, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to eight years in prison for a series of incidents in which he stole or attempted to steal wallets at hotels and office buildings, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

            Bryant was found guilty by a jury in November 2018 of a total of 12 theft and credit card fraud charges. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable José M. López. Following his prison term, he will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, for years, Bryant has dressed professionally and entered hotels, office buildings and conference centers in the District of Columbia and Northern Virginia and stolen unattended wallets and purses. In this case, he was found guilty of three such incidents between January 25, 2016 and February 3, 2016: stealing a wallet from a private office at a downtown Washington hotel, stealing a wallet from an office at the Georgetown University Law Center, and attempting to steal a purse from beneath a conference table at another downtown hotel. A hotel security guard spotted him in that incident, leading to Bryant’s arrest.

            After the first two thefts, Bryant traveled quickly to an area where he could make as many charges as possible in a sort time. From purchasing gift cards to gas, he racked up hundreds of dollars in charges within an hour or two. All told, over an eight-day period, his crimes led to $2,000 in missing cash and fraudulent credit card charges.

            Not counting this case, Bryant has been convicted of crimes stemming from at least 21 separate incidents. He most recently was incarcerated for similar crimes in Virginia.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department officers and detectives who investigated the case. She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Elizabeth Trosman, Chief of the Appellate Division; Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cynthia Walicki-Chan, Lauren Bates, and Chrisellen Kolb; Liaison and Operations Manager Linda McDonald; Paralegal Specialist Tierra Nanches, Rochelle Mills, Donice Adams, Crystal Waddy, and Lynda Randolph; former Law Clerk Caroline Quill; Victim/Witness Advocate Diana Lim; Victim/Witness Service Coordinators La June Thames and Tonya Jones.

            Finally, she expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Floyd and Kaitlin Vaillancourt, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Tijuan Arrington, 42, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to nearly five years in prison after pleading guilty to a federal charge of possessing a loaded firearm with an extended magazine, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            At the time of his arrest by MPD officers in Southeast Washington, Arrington was on federal supervised release following his release from incarceration after being sentenced in 2016 for his role in a large-scale narcotics conspiracy.

            Arrington pled guilty in October 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, 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. In that matter, on Jan. 24, 2019, the Honorable Rudolph Contreras sentenced Arrington to 47 months of incarceration, to be followed by two years of supervised release. Earlier today, the Honorable Chief Judge Judge Beryl A. Howell revoked Arrington’s supervised release and resentenced him to an additional 12 months of incarceration.

            According to the government’s evidence, on June 15, 2018, at approximately 9 p.m., MPD officers were on routine patrol in the 1300 block of Barnaby Terrace SE when they observed Arrington and other men with open containers of alcohol. When officers went to make contact with the individuals, Arrington immediately ran from the police; in the process, he dropped a loaded firearm. Arrington was detained after he was pursued running into his residence that was located up the block. In the middle of the street and in Arrington’s flight path, officers recovered a semiautomatic Glock 23 .40 caliber handgun with an extended magazine. There were 20 bullets in the magazine and one in the chamber.

            At the time of his arrest, Arrington was on federal supervised release following his release from prison three months earlier for trafficking hundreds of grams of heroin. That case involved an FBI drug trafficking investigation that began in the Barnaby Terrace area and extended into Maryland. Arrington was one of 16 people to plead guilty in the investigation.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of the MPD officers who investigated the case. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Legal Assistant Emma Atlas and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gregory Rosen and Christopher Macchiaroli, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

WASHINGTON – Jarvell Kent, 21, and Olona Roba, 20, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to federal charges stemming from their involvement in a total of four armed robberies that were committed in three quadrants of the District of Columbia, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Kent and Roba pled guilty before the Honorable Randolph D. Moss in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to one count of using, carrying, possessing, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence and two counts of interference with interstate commerce by robbery, for four separate incidents.  Because a firearm was brandished during the commission of the offenses, both men face a mandatory seven years of incarceration, which must run consecutive to any sentence imposed for the additional two armed robberies.  They are scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Moss on April 23, 2019.

            The government’s evidence established that Kent and Roba robbed two 7-Eleven convenience stores at gunpoint, while wearing masks.  During both armed robberies, one of the weapons used was a large black sub‑machine gun style firearm with an extended magazine. The first robbery took place on May 5, 2017, at approximately 11:40 p.m., at a store in the 3200 block of Pennsylvania Avenue SE. The second was on May 11, 2017, at approximately 1 a.m., at a store in the 4400 block of Benning Road NE.

            In addition to the armed robberies that the defendants jointly committed, each defendant admitted involvement in additional armed robberies.  Kent pled guilty to a May 15, 2017, armed robbery of another 7-Eleven located in the 900 block of 17th Street NW, and Roba pled guilty to a March 4, 2017, armed robbery of a carryout driver in the 5800 block of Southern Avenue SE, a crime in which shots were fired at the carryout driver as he fled from the scene.

            Kent and Roba were arrested in May 2017 and have been in custody ever since.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu, Assistant Director in Charge McNamara, and Chief Newsham commended the work of the FBI Agents and MPD officers who linked together investigations that spanned three quadrants of the District of Columbia and arrested Kent and Roba.  They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brittany Keil, Laura Crane, and William Schurmann, with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Kerkhoff, Paralegal Specialists Rommel Pachoca and Antoinette Sakamsa, and Legal Assistant Peter Gaboton.

WASHINGTON - Darron Wint, 37, also known as Daron Wint, formerly of Lanham, Md., was sentenced today to four consecutive sentences of life in prison, with no possibility of release, for the May 2015 slayings of Savvas Savopoulos; his wife, Amy Savopoulos; their son, Philip Savopoulos; and a household employee, Veralicia Figueroa.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and Ashan M. Benedict, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Division of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

            Wint was found guilty by a jury on Oct. 25, 2018, of 20 felony charges, including multiple counts of first-degree murder while armed. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Juliet McKenna. At sentencing, Judge McKenna declared that the defendant’s conduct was “incomprehensible” and agreed with a jury finding that the crimes were heinous, atrocious and cruel.

            “Today’s sentence holds Darron Wint accountable for kidnapping, torturing and ultimately murdering four innocent people, including a 10-year-old child, in an unspeakable ordeal that extended over almost 24 hours,” said U.S. Attorney Liu. “Our hearts go out to the Savopoulos and Figueroa families, and we hope that they can take some comfort in knowing that this dangerous man has been brought to justice.”

            “Our hope is that today’s sentencing brings closure to the Savopoulos and Figueroa families, as well as the community who were all affected by this heinous crime,” said Chief Newsham. “MPD worked tirelessly with our local and federal law enforcement partners to bring justice and I believe that today we can all move forward. I commend the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their efforts that led to the conclusion of this case.”

            “The tragic and horrific events of May 2015 are a grim reminder of why investigating violent crime is a top priority for ATF,” said Special Agent in Charge Benedict. “Today we take another step closer to justice for the victims and their families and another step closer to helping this community try to heal. ATF is committed to working with our law enforcement partners every day in our ongoing priority to reducing violent crime and securing the safety of our communities.”

            During nearly six weeks of testimony, the government presented testimony from more than 60 witnesses, including some that linked Wint to the crime scene through DNA on a pizza crust and other items. The jury found Wint guilty of all charges that were filed against him in an indictment, including the murder counts and kidnapping, burglary, extortion and theft.

            The charges involved a series of crimes that took place on May 13 and May 14, 2015, during a home invasion of the Savopoulos family residence in Northwest Washington.

            According to the government’s evidence, on May 13, 2015, Wint entered the Savopoulos home and seized and kidnapped the four victims. The following day, he stole $40,000 through means of extortion, murdered the victims, and set fire to the house.

            After responding to reports of the fire, authorities discovered the bodies of Savvas Savopoulos, 46, Amy Savopoulos, 47, Philip Savopoulos, 10, and Veralicia Figueroa, 57.

            In the aftermath of the murders, Wint performed a series of Internet searches for subjects such as “how to beat a lie detector test,” “10 hideout cities for fugitives,” and “five countries with no U.S. extradition treaty.” According to the government’s evidence, he fled to New York after he was publicly identified as a person of interest in the case and hid in a hotel. He eventually returned to the area and was arrested on May 21, 2015. He has been in custody ever since.

            All told, Wint was found guilty of a total of 12 counts of first-degree murder while armed, all with aggravating circumstances. The charges include four counts of first-degree murder while armed (felony murder) in the course of a kidnapping; four counts of first-degree murder while armed (felony murder) in the course of a burglary, and four counts of first-degree premeditated murder while armed.  In addition, Wint was found guilty of four counts of kidnapping and one count each of first-degree burglary, extortion, arson, and first-degree theft.

            This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistance was provided by the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Secret Service, the District of Columbia Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services, the Prince George’s County, Md., Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services, and the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences.

            The case was investigated and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Laura R. Bach, Christopher Bruckmann, and Emily A. Miller, and tried by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bach and Bruckmann.

            Assistance was provided by a team at the U.S. Attorney’s Office that included Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker; Paralegal Specialist Stephanie Siegerist; Deputy Chiefs Chrisellen Kolb, John Mannarino, and Elizabeth Danello, of the Appellate Division; Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation; Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Sharon Newman; Paralegal Specialists Lornce Applewhite and Meridith McGarrity; former Paralegal Specialist Kendra Johnson; Supervisory Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling; Litigation Technology Specialist Anisha Bhatia; Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin; Criminal Investigator John Marsh;, Supervisory Victim/Witness Services Coordinator Katina Adams-Washington; Victim/Witness Services Coordinator La June Thames; former Forensic Operation/Program Specialist Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; Law Clerks Siri Palm and Julie Bessler, and former Law Clerk Jim McNally.

            WASHINGTON – Dominique N. Simms, 23, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 30 months in prison on a federal firearms charge stemming from his arrest during the execution of a search warrant at a house in Northeast Washington.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Jesse R. Fong, Special Agent in Charge for the Washington Division Office of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Simms pled guilty in October 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to a charge of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. He was sentenced by the Honorable Colleen Kollar-Kotelly. Following his prison term, Simms will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, on May 16, 2018, members of a joint MPD and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration task force executed a search warrant at a residence in the 5300 block of Clay Terrace NE. As officers entered the premises, they saw an unknown man run through the living room and out of the back door. Simms, who was sitting on the couch, attempted to run away from the entering officers. A search of the living room area revealed a loaded Glock 43 and a loaded Smith and Wesson 9mm semi-automatic handgun underneath the seat cushion of the chair next to where Simms was sitting. The guns were easily accessible from the couch area. Throughout the house, police also discovered more than seven ounces, or approximately 195 grams, of phencyclidine (PCP).

            Law enforcement tested the firearms for the presence of any fingerprints or identifiable DNA. On June 12, 2018, the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences identified one fingerprint – a left palm print – of Simms on the left side of the Smith and Wesson. On July 18, 2018, DNA analysts identified Simms’s DNA on both firearms.

            The Glock 43 firearm had previously been reported stolen from a firearms store located in Rockville, Md. in 2017.

            Simms was barred from possessing a firearm because of prior convictions in the District of Columbia. In the District of Columbia, he was sentenced in 2013 for robbery. At the time of his arrest last May, Simms was on supervised release following his prison term in that case. According to the factual proffer of that matter, Simms pepper-sprayed a 66-year-old woman in Southeast Washington, stole her vehicle, and fled.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, Special Agent in Charge Fong, and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration, specifically the Cross-Border Initiative Task Force. They expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked in the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Catherine O’Neal and Teesha Tobias and Legal Assistant Emma Atlas. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory P. Rosen, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Ashley Furst, 35, of Highlands Ranch, Colo., pled guilty today to a federal wire fraud charge stemming from an embezzlement scheme in which she stole more than $545,000 from a non-profit organization based in the District of Columbia.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            Furst pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The charge carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Furst faces a likely range of 27 to 33 months in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. She also has agreed to pay $545,594 in restitution and the same amount in a forfeiture money judgment. The Honorable Dabney L. Friedrich scheduled sentencing for May 10, 2019.

            According to the government’s evidence, Furst was hired in 2011 as the office administrator for the non-profit trade association. She was later promoted to the position of Director of Communications.  While employed by the non-profit, Furst’s responsibilities included public outreach, membership recruitment, and communications. She also handled duties typically performed by an office administrator, such as maintaining accounting records, reconciling the monthly bank account statements, transferring on-line donations from the PayPal account to their bank account, providing copies of the bank statements to the members of the Board of Directors, and serving as the sole point of contact for the outside auditors.

            Starting in 2012 and continuing through June 2018, Furst stole money from the non-profit in a variety of ways.  First, she paid her own personal credit card bills from her employer’s bank account, primarily through on-line debits from the bank account to satisfy her credit card balance, for approximately $415,202.52.  Second, she wrote herself unauthorized checks drawn on her employer’s bank account, typically listing on the memo line a bogus reason for the check, for approximately $83,656.40.  Third, she repaid her personal loan from her employer’s funds, for approximately $56,411.43. Fourth, although Furst was responsible for transferring donations from her employer’s PayPal account, she misdirected approximately $60,949.49 to her own account or to pay for personal items. Fifth, Furst increased her salary without authorization, by approximately $29,875.03. Through these five methods, Furst embezzled approximately $646,094. However, before the victim discovered the crime, Furst returned $100,500 to her employer, leaving a total embezzlement of $545,594.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu and Assistant Director in Charge McNamara commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Amanda Rohde and Assistant U.S. Attorney Virginia Cheatham, who is prosecuting the matter.

WASHINGTON – Paul Bernard Jones, 58, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to a federal bank robbery charge for a hold-up last summer in downtown Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Jones pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The plea, which is subject to the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon prison sentence of 70 to 87 months, to be followed by five years of supervised release. The Honorable Amy Berman Jackson scheduled sentencing for April 30, 2019,

            According to plea documents, on June 11, 2018, at approximately 9:10 a.m., Jones entered a TD Bank branch in the 1700 block of Connecticut Avenue NW. He walked up to a teller, took a wadded-up piece of paper, and tossed it at her. He then stated “give me everything, give me hundreds, fifties, and twenties only and don’t push anything. I have something on me.” The wadded-up piece of paper also demanded money and contained a threat. The teller provided Jones with $1,450 in cash and he fled the bank.

            Within minutes, the Metropolitan Police Department and FBI responded to the bank. An MPD officer observed Jones at the intersection of 14th and R Streets NW, a few blocks from the bank. He tried to run, but was immediately apprehended. Law enforcement located $1,433 in cash in a search of the defendant. Jones has been in custody since his arrest.

            The prosecution grew out of the efforts of the FBI Bank Robbery Task Force.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu, Assistant Director in Charge McNamara, and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the work of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Catherine O’Neal and Legal Assistant Emma Atlas of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Rosen of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section, who is prosecuting the matter.

WASHINGTON – The United States has filed a civil complaint seeking the forfeiture of an oil painting by Mikhail N. Panin that was recovered by the FBI decades after it was stolen during the Second World War. The United States intends to return the artwork to its rightful owner.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jessie K. Liu and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            The artwork, “Secret Departure of Ivan the Terrible Before the Oprichina,” is an oil painting on canvas, measuring approximately 7.5 feet by 8.5 feet, created by Panin in 1911. It depicts Ivan the Terrible and his loyal adherents leaving secretly from the Kremlin for Alexandrovskya Sloboda. 

            The complaint was filed on Dec. 20, 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and seeks forfeiture of the painting on the basis that it represents the proceeds of the interstate transportation of stolen property and possession of stolen goods.

            “The recovery of this art looted during World War II reflects the commitment of this office to pursue justice for victims of crime here and abroad,” said U.S. Attorney Liu.  “The looting of cultural heritage during World War II was tragic, and we are happy to be able to assist in the efforts to return such items to their rightful owners.”

            “As the FBI returns this painting to the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington, D.C., we do so with the purpose of preserving history,” said Assistant Director in Charge McNamara. “This piece of artwork is of significance not just for its monetary value, but for its place in the world of art and culture. The FBI continues to commit investigative resources to recover cultural property.”

            According to the complaint, the painting was transferred from the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts in 1913 to the collection of Ekaterinoslav City Art Museum (today the Dnepropetrovsk Art Museum); was one of the 64 exhibits that comprised the first museum exposition in 1914; was exhibited at the permanent exhibition of the museum until 1941, and disappeared during the occupation of the city during the Second World War. 

            The painting subsequently surfaced in the United States. In 1962, it conveyed with the sale of a house in Ridgefield, Connecticut, by a Swiss citizen who emigrated to the United States in 1946. After the sale, the prior owners of the home located a certificate in the attic of the house commemorating the original homeowner’s service in the Swiss Army during the Second World War.  The original homeowner passed away in 1986. 

            In November 2017, the current homeowners attempted to consign the painting to an art gallery, but the gallery was notified by a Ukrainian art museum that the item had been stolen during the Second World War.  The FBI obtained custody of the painting, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office commenced forfeiture proceedings.

            The current homeowners have agreed to waive any claims to the painting.  If no other claims are filed, the government plans to return the painting to the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington, D.C. 

            The lawsuit is captioned United States v. One Painting Entitled Secret Departure of Ivan the Terrible Before the Oprichina.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zia M. Faruqui, Arvind Lal, Brian P. Hudak, and Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Elizabeth Swienc, all from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, are representing the government.  Assistance was also provided by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Taylor of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

WASHINGTON – A consultant and independent contractor for a company that did business with the District of Columbia Department of Human Resources was indicted today on charges that he paid more than $140,000 in bribes to a former D.C. government employee and that he stole payments on city contracts that should have gone to his employer.

            John Woods, 56, of Sterling, Va., was indicted by a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on three counts of wire fraud, four counts of mail fraud, one count of bribery, and two counts of engaging in illegal monetary transactions. The indictment also includes a forfeiture allegation seeking all proceeds of the alleged crimes. Woods will be arraigned on the charges on a date to be determined by the Court.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and District of Columbia Inspector General Daniel W. Lucas.

            According to the indictment, Woods worked as a consultant and independent contractor for a firm identified in the court documents as “Company A.”  The firm had agreements with the District of Columbia Department of Human Resources (DCHR) to provide organizational skills training courses and human resources consulting to various D.C. government agencies. Woods was the company’s main point of contact with DCHR and handled the submission of invoices.

            The indictment alleges that, beginning in April 2013, and continuing through August 2017, Woods schemed to defraud “Company A” and the D.C. government.

            As part of the scheme, according to the indictment, between April 2013 and February 2015, Woods stole $214,910 in D.C. government checks that were issued to “Company A.” Beginning in March 2015, the indictment alleges, Woods began usurping “Company A’s” role under the contracts and keeping the profits for himself. The indictment alleges that Woods fraudulently deposited approximately 27 checks issued by the D.C. government to “Company A” into a bank account he controlled, totaling approximately $1,040,023, from March 2015 through August 2017.

            In order to keep his scheme in place, the indictment alleges that Woods paid more than $140,000 in bribes to Latasha Moore, then a DCHR employee. As a resource allocation analyst, Moore was the main point of contact for “Company A” and in a position to ensure that no complaints or suspicions about the contracts reached others in the government. For example, Moore failed to report problems that arose while Woods was managing the work, including complaints of contractors arriving late, leaving early or failing to show up at all for training.

            Moore, 38, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty on Oct. 11, 2018 to a federal bribery charge. She is awaiting sentencing.

            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.

            Mail fraud and wire fraud charges carry statutory maximum of 20 years in prison. The bribery charge carries a statutory maximum of 15 years in prison, and the charge involving illegal monetary transactions carries a statutory maximum of 10 years. 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. The sentencing will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

            This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and Office of the Inspector General of the District of Columbia. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Marando, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

WASHINGTON – Deonta King, 17, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a prison term of 10 ½ years on carjacking and armed robbery charges stemming from violent crimes committed this year in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

            King, who was 17 at the time of the offenses, was charged as an adult because of the nature of the crimes. He pled guilty in April 2018 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of 10 to 12 years in prison. The Honorable Todd E. Edelman accepted the plea and sentencing King accordingly. Following his prison term, King will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            Three co-defendants, all from Washington, D.C., also were charged as adults and pled guilty to charges for their roles in one or both of the crimes. Deandre Bullock, 17, and Darius McNeal, 18, were sentenced earlier this month by Judge Edelman to prison terms of 10 years and nine years, respectively. Javon Coe, 17, is awaiting sentencing.

            McNeal, Bullock, King, and Coe pled guilty to an incident that took place shortly after 9 p.m. on Feb. 4, 2018, at the Benco Shopping Center located at East Capitol Street SE and Benning Road SE.  According to the government’s evidence, the victim parked his Jeep Compass in front of a carry-out restaurant at the shopping center and went inside the store to pick up food.  As the victim returned to his vehicle and got back into the driver’s seat, McNeal, Bullock, King, Coe, and another individual approached his vehicle.  McNeal approached the passenger side.  Bullock, King, and Coe approached the driver side and worked together to pull the victim from the driver’s seat of his vehicle, drag him to the ground, and assault him.  King took the victim’s keys from his hand.  Coe, who had a handgun, tried to take the victim’s cellphone, but the victim refused to let go of it.  McNeal, Bullock, King, Coe, and another individual got into the victim’s vehicle and drove away. 

            McNeal, Bullock, and King also pled guilty to an incident that took place at about 6 p.m. on Feb. 18, 2018, near Johnson Middle School in the 3100 block of Bruce Place SE.  According to the government’s evidence, McNeal communicated with the victims about buying a pair of shoes through the application OfferUp and told the victims to come to the school.  When the victims arrived, McNeal and another member of the group approached them and asked to see the shoes for sale.  One of the victims showed the shoes and asked for the money.  King and Bullock then approached.  Bullock was wearing a mask and had a black and silver handgun with a laser sight on it.  Bullock ordered one of the victims out of the car and to the ground at gunpoint.  King ordered the other victim out of the driver’s seat of the car, demanded her car keys, and took her phone.  One of the victims struggled with Bullock over the gun, while the other defendants told Bullock to “shoot him.”  The gun went off, firing one round that hit McNeal in the leg.  The victims ran away, and McNeal, Bullock, King, and another individual got into the victims’ vehicle and followed them.

            In announcing the sentences, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).  She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Tiffany Fogle and Victim/Witness Advocate James Brennan.  Finally, U.S. Attorney Liu commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Natasha Smalky, who investigated and prosecuted the case with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Kerkhoff.

WASHINGTON – James A. Wolfe, 58, of Ellicott City, Maryland, the former Director of Security for the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI), was sentenced today to two months in prison for making a false statement to the FBI during the course of an investigation into the unlawful disclosure of classified national security information. 

            The announcement was made by Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu for the District of Columbia, and Special Agent in Charge Timothy M. Dunham of the Counterintelligence Division of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            Wolfe pled guilty on Oct. 15, 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to one count of making a false statement. Under the plea agreement, the government moved to dismiss two remaining false statements counts at sentencing. In his proffer, Wolfe admitted to the conduct underlying one of the two dismissed counts.

            In addition to the prison time, the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson ordered that Wolfe pay a $7,500 fine. She also ordered that he complete four months of supervised release following his incarceration. During that time, he is to perform 20 hours of community service a month.  

            At the time Wolfe made the false statement to the FBI, he was the Director of Security for the SSCI, a position he held for more than 28 years. As SSCI Director of Security, he was entrusted with receiving, maintaining, and managing classified national security information provided to the SSCI by the Executive Branch of the United States.

            According to a statement of offense filed at the time of the plea, the FBI opened an investigation in April 2017 into the unauthorized disclosure of classified national security information that had appeared in a specific article published by a national news organization.  In December 2017, during the course of the investigation, Wolfe was interviewed.  Wolfe was asked specifically about whether he had been in contact with any reporters and, if so, who those reporters were, and what were the nature and extent of those contacts and the means by which those contacts occurred.

            By his guilty plea, he admitted making false statements to the FBI concerning whether he had provided unclassified, but not otherwise publicly-available, information to reporters.  Specifically, on Oct. 16, 2017, and again on Oct. 24, 2017, Wolfe provided a particular reporter with non-public information concerning a witness who had been subpoenaed to testify before the SSCI. Wolfe also admitted making false statements to the FBI about his contacts with three additional reporters, including one of the authors of the aforementioned article.

            Wolfe was indicted in June 2018. The investigation into this matter was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jocelyn Ballantine and Tejpal S. Chawla and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Ingersoll of the District of Columbia, with assistance from the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, National Security Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

WASHINGTON - Nicholas Slatten, 35, a former security guard for Blackwater USA, was found guilty today of the federal offense of first-degree murder in the killing of Ahmed Haithem Ahmed Al Rubia’y, one of 14 unarmed civilians who were killed in a shooting by Blackwater guards that took place at Nisur Square in Bagdhad on Sept. 16, 2007. 

            The jury verdict, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, was announced by Jessie K. Liu, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and Matthew J. DeSarno, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’sWashington Field Office’s Criminal Division.

            Slatten remains held pending his sentencing by the Honorable Royce C. Lamberth. No sentencing date was set. The murder charge calls for a mandatory sentence of life in prison.

            Slatten, formerly of Sparta, Tenn., initially was found guilty of the murder charge in October 2014, following a trial in the same courtroom. Three other former guards for Blackwater USA also were found guilty in that trial, of voluntary manslaughter, attempted manslaughter, and other charges. Slatten subsequently was sentenced in April 2015 to a mandatory term of life in prison without parole; the co-defendants were each sentenced to 30 years and one day in prison.

            The defendants appealed the convictions. In August 2017, the District of Columbia Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals reversed Slatten’s conviction. The appeals court also ordered Slatten’s three co-defendants -- Paul Alvin Slough, Evan Shawn Liberty, and Dustin Laurent Heard -- to be re-sentenced for their roles in the crime. Slough, Liberty and Heard remain in custody and their re-sentencing proceedings remain pending before Judge Lamberth.

            Slatten initially was retried on the murder charge last summer but a mistrial was declared on Sept. 5, 2018, after that jury was unable to reach a verdict. The current trial began on Nov. 5, 2018, and the jury reached the guilty verdict on its fifth day of deliberations.

            During the trial, the government presented testimony from 34 witnesses, including four who came to the United States to testify from Iraq.

            According to the government’s evidence, at approximately noon on Sunday, Sept. 16, 2007, several Blackwater security contractors, including Slatten and his former co-defendants, opened fire in and around Nisur Square, a busy traffic circle in the heart of Baghdad.

            When they stopped shooting, 14 Iraqi civilians were dead. Those killed included 10 men, two women, and two boys, ages 9 and 11. Another 18 victims were injured. According to the evidence, Slatten was the first to fire, without provocation, killing Ahmed Haithem Ahmed Al Rubia’y, an aspiring doctor, who was driving his mother to an appointment.

            Slatten was among 19 Blackwater security contractors assigned to a convoy of four heavily-armed trucks known as a Tactical Support Team, using the call sign “Raven 23.” Shortly before noon, Raven 23 learned that a car bomb had detonated in central Baghdad near a location where a U.S official was being escorted by a Blackwater personal security detail team. Raven 23 team members promptly reported to their convoy vehicles, and the convoy drove to a secured checkpoint between the Green Zone and Red Zone.

            Once there, in disregard of an order from Blackwater’s command, the team’s shift leader directed Raven 23 to leave the Green Zone and establish a blockade in Nisur Square, a busy traffic circle that was immediately adjacent to the Green Zone. All told, seven of the 19 members of Raven 23 fired their weapons.

            This case was investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The Iraqi Ministry of Interior and the Iraqi National Police provided cooperation and assistance in the investigation.

            The retrial of the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys T. Patrick Martin, Fernando Campoamor-Sanchez, and Karen Seifert, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra Hughes, all of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia.

            WASHINGTON –Marco F. Williams, 25, and Barry J. Giles, 22, also known as “Juany,” both of Washington, D.C., were sentenced today to prison terms for the October 2016 shooting death of a man in the Fort Lincoln area of Northeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Williams pled guilty in October 2018 to voluntary manslaughter while armed.  Giles pled guilty at the same time to one count of voluntary manslaughter and one count of carrying a pistol without a license. Both pleas took place in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The pleas, which were contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for a prison sentence for Williams of 186 months, or 15 ½ years, and a prison sentence for Giles of 102 months, or 8 ½ years.  The Honorable Judith Bartnoff accepted the pleas and sentenced the men accordingly. Following their prison terms, the men will be placed on five years of supervised release.

            The evidence in support of the guilty pleas showed that on the night of Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2016, Williams and Giles were in the Fort Lincoln neighborhood, where each of them had ties.  Specifically, they were in the area of the 3100 block of Berry Road NE, where they spent time and drank alcohol with the victim, Timothy Lassiter, and others. 

            Both Williams and Giles had pistols. In the course of the evening, Williams and Giles resolved to shoot and kill Mr. Lassiter, 36. At 11:42 p.m., Williams, armed with a 9mm semi-automatic pistol, fired four shots at Mr. Lassiter, striking him twice.  Four 9mm cartridge cases fired from the same gun were recovered in the area where Mr. Lassiter’s body was found by responding medics and police officers.

            The evidence established that after Mr. Lassiter was shot by Williams, Giles went through Mr. Lassiter’s pockets and removed items of personal property.

            Mr. Lassiter was transported by ambulance to a hospital and was pronounced dead early on Oct. 6, 2016. Following Mr. Lassiter’s funeral on Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016, Giles went on social media and posted a video of himself talking about the shooting of Mr. Lassiter. In the video, which was soon thereafter deleted, Giles boasted and bragged about his role in the shooting.

            Warrants for the arrest of the two defendants were issued on March 1, 2018.  Giles was arrested on March 5, 2018, and Williams, who was otherwise serving a sentence, was arrested on March 29, 2018.   Both have been held without bond since their arrests.

            In accepting the plea agreements and the agreed-upon sentences, the Court stated it would sentence Williams – the admitted shooter of Mr. Lassiter – to 186 months, or 15 ½ years in prison, and would sentence Giles – who went through Lassiter’s pockets in the aftermath of the shooting and removed items of personal property – to 102 months, or 8 ½ years in prison.  The Court did not issue a Judgment and Commitment Order today, as it wants time to consider and to be briefed on the ramifications of the recently enacted Youth Rehabilitation Amendment Act of 2018.  Accordingly, the Court set a hearing for Jan. 15, 2019.  It is expected that on that date the Court will formally impose sentences in accord with the plea agreements that were reached.

            In announcing the sentences, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of detectives of the Criminal Investigations Division’s Homicide Branch, forensic scientists from the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences, who processed the crime scene, and officers of MPD’s Fifth Police District, who responded to the shooting. They also expressed appreciation for those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys David Misler and Michael D. Brittin; Criminal Investigators Durand Odom and Mark Crawford; Paralegal Specialist Debra Joyner, and Investigative Analysts Shannon Alexis and Zachary McMenamin. 

WASHINGTON – A Maryland woman who was employed as a personal care aide has been charged with scheming to submit false claims to the District of Columbia’s Medicaid program.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Assistant Director in Charge Nancy McNamara of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, District of Columbia Inspector General Daniel W. Lucas, and Special Agent in Charge Maureen R. Dixon of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), for the region that includes Washington, D.C.

          Mobolaji Tina Stewart, 57, of Laurel, Md., was arrested on Dec. 13, 2018 on a criminal complaint charging her with health care fraud and making health care false statements. She made her first appearance later that day in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and was ordered held pending a detention hearing today. At that hearing, she was ordered released on personal recognizance pending further court proceedings. 

            According to the complaint, Stewart was employed as a personal care aide from January 2014 through her arrest. Under the Medicaid program, personal care aides perform services intended to assist Medicaid beneficiaries in carrying out the activities of daily living. These can include helping beneficiaries get in and out of bed, bathe, dress, take medication, and engage in toileting. To receive personal care services under Medicaid, a beneficiary must obtain a prescription from a doctor.

            Stewart’s billing practices drew the attention of the District of Columbia Department of Health Care Finance after she was identified as the second-highest paid personal care aide in 2014 and 2015.

            According to the complaint, Stewart caused Medicaid to be billed for more than 24 hours in a given day, for services that she allegedly provided while she was out of the country, and for services that she allegedly provided to a beneficiary who was hospitalized at the time. Based on a review of Medicaid billing claims data, between January 2014 and January 2017, Stewart caused Medicaid to issue payments totaling approximately $434,000, including payments based on fraudulent timesheets.

            The charges in a criminal complaint are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

            The investigation into this matter is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the District of Columbia Office of the Inspector General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

            The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kondi Kleinman, with assistance from Trial Attorney Amy Markopoulos of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Paralegal Specialist Robert Fishman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

WASHINGTON – James Richardson, 38, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to seven years in prison for sexually assaulting a 22-year-old woman in September 2003, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Richardson pled guilty in October 2018, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to one count of attempted first-degree sexual abuse.  The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon seven-year prison term. Richardson also will be required to register as a sex offender for life and serve a 10-year term of supervised release. The Honorable Milton C. Lee accepted the plea and sentenced Richardson accordingly.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 21, 2003, at approximately 8:20 p.m., Richardson engaged the victim in conversation, offered to walk her home, and then walked her down the 4600 block of Blue Plains Drive SW. He then pulled her into a wooded area, brandished a knife, and raped her at knifepoint. The victim screamed for help and tried to run, but was unsuccessful. When the assault was over, Richardson threatened to kill the victim if she reported the assault. He again offered to walk the victim home, but she told him to leave her alone and ran back to her residence.

            The victim made an immediate report to police, and was transported to an area hospital, where she received a Sexual Assault Nurse Examination.

            Richardson was developed as a suspect in this offense by MPD’s Cold Case Sexual Assault Unit in September 2018. On Sept. 18, 2018, a D.C. Superior Court judge signed a complaint and warrant authorizing Richardson’s arrest. The warrant was executed on Sept. 19, 2018, two days before the statute of limitations would have run on this case. Richardson has been in custody ever since.

            When detectives discovered this case in September 2018, the investigation revealed that Richardson had been convicted of two prior sexual assaults, one that occurred in 2000 in Baltimore, and one that occurred in 2003 in the District of Columbia.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of the detectives of the Metropolitan Police Department’s Cold Case Sexual Assault Unit and officers from the Seventh District, as well as the Deputy Marshals from the U.S. Marshals Service. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Tracey Hawkins, and Paralegal Specialist Tameka Garcia.

            Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amy Zubrensky and Jennifer Loeb, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Everette Reel, 46, of Upper Marlboro, Md., was sentenced today to five years in prison on charges stemming from an investigation into a narcotics conspiracy involving eight individuals in Washington, D.C. and Maryland, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            Reel pled guilty in September 2018 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of cocaine base and a detectable amount of cocaine. The Honorable Richard J. Leon sentenced Reel to the prison term, to be followed by five years of supervised release.

            Reel was arrested with seven other individuals in March 2018 on charges stemming from a conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and 280 grams or more of crack. In May 2015, the FBI, with the assistance of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), began a long-term investigation into a drug trafficking organization that operated in the Montana Terrace neighborhood of Northeast Washington and extended into Maryland. Numerous defendants also were charged with possessing and distributing various narcotics, including crack, cocaine, PCP and fentanyl, during the period of the investigation.

            During the execution of a search warrant on Reel’s residence, FBI agents recovered approximately 15 grams of cocaine, a .40 caliber Springfield Armory pistol, 12 rounds of ammunition in two separate calibers, a gun box, and approximately $16,000 in cash.

            This case is part of an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF specializes in the investigation and prosecution of drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and related criminal enterprises.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Assistant Director in Charge McNamara, commended the work of those who investigated the case. They cited the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Paralegal Specialists Jeannette Litz and Teesha Tobias, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Macchiaroli and Kevin Rosenberg of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Section, who conducted the underlying investigation, indicted the case, and are prosecuting the remaining defendants.

WASHINGTON – Grady Jefferson, 46, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to five years on prison for conspiring to distribute heroin in the Washington, D.C. area.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Jefferson pled guilty in September 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to a charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. The plea, which was subject to the Court’s approval, called for a five-year prison term. The Honorable Trevor N. McFadden accepted the plea and sentenced Jefferson accordingly. Following his prison term, Johnson will be placed on four years of supervised release.

            Jefferson was among 12 people indicted in December 2017 following an investigation into a drug trafficking organization that distributed large amounts of heroin, methamphetamine, and crack cocaine in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Ten other defendants have pleaded guilty. One defendant was convicted at trial before Judge McFadden in October 2018. One defendant is scheduled to begin trial before Judge McFadden on Jan. 8, 2018.   

            According to plea documents, law enforcement began investigating drug trafficking activities in the 2600 block of Birney Place SE in late 2015. The investigation expanded to include heroin distribution activities in the Lincoln Heights area of Northeast Washington. The FBI identified Jefferson as a regular heroin distributor operating out of Lincoln Heights. According to the government’s evidence, Jefferson was selling heroin on behalf of another defendant, Thomas Jenkins, 44, of District Heights, Md.

            The prosecution grew out of the efforts of the FBI/MPD Safe Streets Task Force, a multi-agency team that conducts comprehensive, multi-level attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. The prosecution was sponsored and supported by the federal Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF).

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, Assistant Director in Charge McNamara, and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Safe Streets Task Force, including the FBI, MPD, U.S. Park Police, Prince George's County, Md. Police, and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF). They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.

            Finally they cited the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nihar Mohanty and Kevin L. Rosenberg of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Swanton, who assisted with the forfeiture aspects of the investigation.

WASHINGTON – Kelby Gordon, 32, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 37 years in prison for killing an innocent bystander and firing into an occupied bedroom during a broad-daylight shooting in Southeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            Gordon was found guilty by a jury in July 2018 of second-degree murder while armed, assault with intent to kill while armed, and related firearms offenses. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Milton C. Lee. Following his prison term, he will be placed on five years of supervised release. In sentencing the defendant, Judge Lee called the crime a senseless and foolish act.

            According to the government’s evidence, on March 24, 2016, at approximately 11:15 a.m., the victim, Gabriel Turner, was walking in a cut-through behind the 2600 block of Birney Place SE, headed to a nearby bus stop. Mr. Turner, 46, who had intellectual disabilities and who was working at the FBI as a janitor, had just finished having breakfast with his mother – as he had every morning. Gordon, meanwhile, was in the area and, after seeing another man pull out a large amount of money, decided to rob that man near the mouth of the cut-through.

            However, as Gordon attempted to rob the man, the man began to pull out his own firearm. Gordon, in his own words, gave the man no chance, and pulled his gun out first. The two men began running down the cut-through behind Mr. Turner.

            Unbeknownst to Mr. Turner, Gordon planted his feet and began firing towards the man, who fled in the same direction that Mr. Turner was walking. The man who Gordon was targeting weaved around Mr. Turner and escaped, but a single bullet struck Mr. Turner in the upper back as he ducked. The bullet lodged itself in Mr. Turner’s sinus – killing him almost instantly. Two other bullets flew into an occupied apartment across the street, just missing the head of a second victim as he returned to bed. 

            An investigation led to Gordon’s arrest on April 17, 2016, by the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force. In addition to this case, Gordon has been charged with drug trafficking offenses in a separate matter in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He pled not guilty to those charges and that case remains pending.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, Chief Newsham, and Assistant Director in Charge McNamara commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), as well as the FBI/MPD Safe Streets Task Force and the FBI’s Cellular Analysis Survey Team, which helped identify Mr. Turner’s assailant. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the United States Park Police, the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, the United States Marshals Service, and the District of Columbia Department of Corrections.

            They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Service Coordinators La June Thames and Katina Adams-Washington; Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark; Administrative Services Specialist Sallie Rynas; former Forensic Operation/Program Specialist Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin; Criminal Investigator John Marsh; Paralegal Specialists Lornce Applewhite and Jeffrey Bloom; Litigation Technology Specialist Thomas “Ron” Royal, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily A. Miller, who initially investigated the case.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lindsey Merikas and Monica Trigoso, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Kevin Grover, 26, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for killing a man in broad daylight near a food market in Southeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            A second defendant, Justin Robinson, 19, also of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to five years in prison on a related charge.

            Grover pled guilty in October 2018 to second-degree murder, and Robinson pled guilty to assault with intent to kill. Both pleas were in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The pleas, which were contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for Grover to be sentenced to 16 to 20 years in prison and for Robinson to be sentenced to three to seven years of incarceration. The Honorable Judith Bartnoff accepted the pleas and sentenced the men accordingly. Following their prison terms, each defendant will be placed on a period of supervised release: Grover, for five years, and Robinson, for three years.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Feb. 24, 2016, at about 2:30 p.m., Robinson and the victim, Demetrius Medlay, bumped shoulders and briefly argued at a market in the 3100 block of Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue SE. Robinson drove away, but returned to the area about 10 minutes later. He got out of the car holding a handgun with an extended magazine. While waving the gun, he argued with Mr. Medlay on the sidewalk and then drove off.

            Robinson stopped the car at the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue and Esther Place SE at about 2:45 p.m. Grover was standing at the corner. Referring to Mr. Medlay, Robinson said, “You can smoke him,” to which Grover replied, “All right.”

            Moments later, Grover pulled a semi-automatic firearm out of his pocket and pointed it at Mr. Medlay. He shot him twice in the chest. Grover fled the scene. Mr. Medlay ran back to the food market, where he collapsed. Mr. Medlay, 22, was pronounced dead a short time later.

            A law enforcement investigation led to Grover’s arrest in August 2016. Robinson was arrested in in July 2017.

            In announcing the sentences, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the U.S. Secret Service, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force, and the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Willoughby, Jr., former Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard DiZinno, Paralegal Specialist Sharon Newman, former Paralegal Specialist Zekiah Wright, and Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Nestler, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Onzay Gibbs, 28, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 20 years in prison on charges stemming from the stabbing of a man in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

            Gibbs was found guilty by a jury in May 2018 of assault with intent to kill while armed and aggravated assault while armed.  The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.  He was sentenced by the Honorable Ronna L. Beck. Following his prison term, Gibbs will be placed on five years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, Gibbs and the victim knew each other from the neighborhood.  At approximately 8:45 p.m. on Sept. 15, 2016, Gibbs and the victim were walking from a dice game in the 2000 block of Savannah Terrace SE towards the corner store.  Gibbs stopped to talk with someone inside a car on 22nd Street SE, where the victim was then forced inside the car.  The victim next recalled being around the corner in the 3300 block of 23rd Street SE, where Gibbs repeatedly slashed the victim with a sharp object while saying “shut the f*** up.”  The victim was left for dead in bushes in the area, where he was found by someone who called 911. 

            The victim was rushed to a hospital in critical condition, where he was treated for 16 stab wounds to his face, neck, and body. He was cut three-fourths of the way around his neck. Text messages recovered from Gibbs’s cell phone showed his awareness of the victim’s condition and his efforts to avoid being identified and arrested following the incident.      

            Gibbs was arrested by the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force on Oct. 26, 2016, and has been in custody ever since. 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).  She expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the FBI’s Cellular Analysis Survey Team (CAST). She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys C.B. Buente and Kevin L. Rosenberg, Criminal Investigator John Marsh, Paralegal Specialists Tiffany Fogle and Antoinette Sakamsa, and Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Allen.  Finally, she commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brittany Keil and Natasha Smalky, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Antonio Brown, 30, of Suitland, Md., and Amanda Turner, 41, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to their conduct in the fatal shooting of a man outside an apartment building in Northwest Washington in September 2015, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Brown pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to charges of second-degree murder and carrying a pistol without a license. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon 19 ½-year prison term. The Honorable Ronna L. Beck set a hearing for Jan. 2, 2019 to determine whether to accept the plea and agreed-upon sentence.

            Turner pled guilty to one count of felony threats and two counts of attempted obstruction of justice.  Her sentencing is set before Judge Beck on March 8, 2019.

            According to a proffer of facts submitted at the plea hearing, the shooting took place at approximately 7:44 p.m. on Sept. 18, 2015 in the rear of an apartment building in the 1800 block of Harvard Street NW. Brown was sitting in a Dodge Charger in the parking lot.  He left that vehicle and went over to the victim, Charles Welch, who was also present in the parking lot. 

            Brown shot Mr. Welch once in the chest before returning to his vehicle and driving away.  Mr. Welch managed to get in his vehicle and drive approximately one block before he lost consciousness, crashing into a wall on Irving Street NW.  Mr. Welch, 25, was taken to Washington Hospital Center, where all life-saving efforts failed.

            In the weeks after the murder, Turner sent a series of threatening text messages to one witness, and made a threatening telephone call to another witness, all for the purpose of preventing them from truthfully cooperating with the investigation.

            Brown was arrested on September 29, 2015 and has been in custody ever since. Turner was arrested on Dec. 16, 2015.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the District of Columbia Housing Authority Police and District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Silvia Gonzalez Roman, Information Technology Specialist Leif Hickling, Victim/Witness Security Specialist Lesley Slade, Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin, Paralegal Specialist Lashone Samuels, and Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Spence and Christine Macey, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Dontae Robey, 36, of Landover, Md., was sentenced today to eight years in prison for trafficking in heroin, crack, and powder cocaine in the Shaw area of Northwest Washington and Maryland, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Robey pled guilty in September 2018 before the Honorable Timothy J. Kelly in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of unlawful possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin. The plea agreement, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for a sentence of eight years in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release. Judge Kelly accepted the plea and sentenced Robey accordingly.

            As part of his plea agreement, Robey took responsibility for 110 grams of heroin, 67 grams of crack cocaine, and three grams of cocaine that were present in a silver Infiniti that Robey was operating on Nov. 19, 2017, following a traffic stop performed by members of MPD’s Narcotics and Special Investigations Division’s Criminal Interdiction Unit.

            Additionally, on May 2, 2018, members of the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force and MPD’s Third District Crime Suppression Team arrested Robey in the 700 block of S Street NW pursuant to an arrest warrant. Officers recovered a Lexus key on Robey’s person and a large amount of cash. A half-block away, law enforcement located a blue Lexus ES 350. Inside the vehicle, law enforcement recovered approximately 40 grams of heroin located in a small storage compartment to the left of the steering wheel. As part of his plea agreement, Robey admitted to possessing the narcotics inside the Lexus, and acknowledged that he maintained a residence in Landover, where he packaged quantities of narcotics for distribution and then distributed those narcotics in the District of Columbia. 

            Robey has three prior drug trafficking convictions related to offenses in the same location where he was arrested on May 2, 2018, all resulting from his possession of packaged narcotics in the neighborhood. In 2001, he was convicted of trafficking narcotics following his possession of 29 individually packaged ziplocs of crack cocaine. In 2002, he was convicted of trafficking narcotics after he was found in possession of 83 individually packaged ziplocs of crack cocaine. In 2008, he was convicted of attempting to distribute crack cocaine to an undercover officer.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, Assistant Director in Charge McNamara, and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and MPD.  They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Candace Battle and Jeannette Litz, Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Crane, who assisted with the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Macchiaroli and David Misler, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Nathaniel Taylor, 23, of Washington D.C., has pled guilty to a charge of second-degree murder while armed stemming from his involvement in a confrontation that ended with him shooting the victim in the back of the head, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Taylor pled guilty on Dec. 10, 2018, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The plea calls for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. He is to be sentenced on March 8, 2019, by the Honorable Juliet McKenna.

            According to a proffer of facts submitted at the plea hearing, the shooting took place at approximately 10:38 p.m. on April 23, 2016 in the 4900 block of Just Street NE. The victim, Nuru Frenche, had travelled with a friend to meet with Taylor and his co-defendant, Anthony Blackmone, for the purpose of purchasing firearms. Both of the victims were unarmed.

            After Mr. Frenche exited the car holding at least $500 in cash, Taylor initiated a confrontation with him. The confrontation ended with Taylor firing his weapon at Mr. Frenche and shooting him in the back of the head. Mr. Frenche’s friend escaped. Shortly thereafter, officers from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Seventh District responded to the scene and located Mr. Frenche, 23, who died from his wounds a few days later.

            Blackmone, 23, of Washington, D.C., was arrested in May of 2016 and pled guilty earlier this year to charges of voluntary manslaughter and attempted robbery for his role in the crimes. . Taylor was arrested in February of 2017 and has remained incarcerated ever since.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Investigative Analyst Zachary McMenamin; Forensic Examiner John Marsh; Paralegal Specialists Stephanie Gilbert, Meridith McGarrity, and Stephanie Siegerist; Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling; Victim/Witness Service Coordinators Katina Adams-Washington and LaJune Thames, Witness Security Specialist M. LaVerne Perry, and Victim/Witness Advocate James Brennan.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gilead Light and John Timmer, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – The former president of a Texas-based non-profit pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme to conceal the fact that a 2013 Congressional trip to Azerbaijan was funded by the Azerbaijan government.

            Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu for the District of Columbia, and Assistant Director in Charge Nancy McNamara of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.

            Kemal Oksuz, aka Kevin Oksuz, 49, and previously a resident of Arlington, Virginia, pleaded guilty to one count of devising a scheme to falsify, conceal and cover up material facts from the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ethics.  Oksuz will be sentenced on Feb. 11, 2019 before Judge Tanya S. Chutkan of U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

            According to admissions made in connection with his guilty plea, Oksuz lied on disclosure forms filed with the Ethics Committee prior to, and following, a privately sponsored Congressional trip to Azerbaijan.  Oksuz falsely represented and certified on required disclosure forms that the Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasions (TCAE), the Houston non-profit for which Oksuz was president, had not accepted funding for the Congressional trip from any outside sources.  Oksuz admitted to, in truth, orchestrating a scheme to funnel money to fund the trip from the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR), the wholly state-owned national oil and gas company of Azerbaijan, and then concealed the true source of funding, which violated House travel regulations.

            A five-count indictment was returned earlier this year in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and ordered unsealed in September.  Oksuz was recently extradited from Armenia where he was detained by authorities, pursuant to a warrant that was issued for his arrest.

            The investigation was conducted by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Marco Palmieri of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section, Assistant U.S. Attorney David Misler, and Will Mackie of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. Assistance in the Investigation was provided by Trial Attorney Amanda Vaughn of the Public Integrity Section, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Hooks, and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Bradford of the District of Columbia.  Trial Attorney Natalya T. Savransky of the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs handled the extradition request to Armenia.  The Office of International Affairs, along with the U.S. Department of State and cooperating Armenian authorities provided substantial assistance with the extradition.

WASHINGTON – Jose Macrino Emanuel Delatorre, 38, of Chico, Calif., pled guilty today to distributing 120 grams of fentanyl in Northeast Washington announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            Delatorre pled guilty before the Honorable Randolph D. Moss in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to an indictment charging unlawful distribution of 40 grams or more of fentanyl.  Judge Moss then sentenced him to a mandatory five years in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release.  Delatorre may face additional charges in California. 

            As part of his plea agreement, Delatorre took responsibility for the sale of 120 grams of fentanyl for $6,700 in February 2018 on Market Street NE. Unbeknownst to Delatorre, he was the subject of an undercover investigation. The substance that he sold was subsequently analyzed by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and confirmed to be fentanyl.

            Delatorre was not immediately arrested because he was expected to return to the District of Columbia approximately six days later, with multiple additional kilograms of narcotics.  On June 5, 2018, agents of the FBI and local law enforcement officers arrested Delatorre in California, and executed a search warrant at his residence.  During the execution of the search warrant, the FBI agents recovered approximately 500 grams of black-tar heroin.   

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu and Assistant Director in Charge McNamara commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office.  They expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the DEA. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Candace Battle and Legal Assistant Latoya Wade, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorneys William Schurmann and Anthony Scarpelli, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Brandon Dalton, 29, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to 17 months in prison after pleading guilty to escaping from a halfway house in the District of Columbia, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Robert Turner, United States Marshal for the District of Columbia.

            Dalton pled guilty to the escape charge in September 2018 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced on Dec. 7, 2018, by the Honorable Christopher R. Cooper. Following his prison term, he will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            Dalton was among four defendants to be sentenced within the past two weeks as a result of ongoing efforts of the U.S. Marshals Service and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to arrest violent offenders who escape from halfway houses. The other defendants received sentences ranging from seven to 33 months in prison.

            In 2017, the U.S. Marshals Service requested the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to increase the number of investigations, prosecutions, and dispositions of escape cases from the Hope Village Halfway House in Southeast Washington. The escapees were under the supervision of the Federal Bureau of Prisons and were afforded an opportunity to complete the final portion of their sentences at halfway houses to assist in their reentry to the community. To date, the effort has led to more than 20 felony convictions of defendants who failed to report or absconded from the Hope Village Halfway House.

            According to court filings, Dalton was released to report to Hope Village to serve the remainder of an 18-month sentence from a 2017 conviction in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia for unlawful possession of a firearm. He began serving that sentence at the Federal Correctional Institute in Hazelton, West Virginia. On June 14, 2018, he was furloughed to serve the remainder of his sentence at Hope Village. However, once furloughed, Dalton never reported to Hope Village. According to court documents, Dalton was re-arrested in Prince George’s County, Md., on July 25, 2018, on theft charges.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Marshal Turner commended the work of those who investigated the case. They also cited the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark A. Aziz of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section.

WASHINGTON – Kassim Tajideen, the operator of a network of businesses in Lebanon and Africa whom the U.S. Department of the Treasury designated as an important financial supporter to the Hezbollah terror organization, pleaded guilty today to charges associated with evading U.S. sanctions imposed on him.

            The announcement was made by Acting Attorney General Matthew G. Whitaker; Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers; U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu for the District of Columbia; Special Agent in Charge Raymond Donovan of the Special Operations Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Special Agent in Charge Valerie A. Nickerson of the DEA’s New Jersey Field Division, and Commissioner Kevin K. McAleenan of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

            Tajideen, 63, of Beirut, Lebanon, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Reggie B. Walton in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, in furtherance of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).  Tajideen was designated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in May 2009 as a result of his provision of significant financial support to Hezbollah, which was named a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. Department of State.  This designation prohibited Tajideen from being involved in, or benefiting from transactions, involving U.S. persons or companies without a license from the Department of the Treasury.

            “This Department of Justice has put a target on Hezbollah,” Acting Attorney General Whitaker said. “In January, we started the Hezbollah Financing and Narcoterrorism Team, and in October, former Attorney General Sessions named Hezbollah one of the five priority organizations for our Transnational Organized Crime Task Force.  The DEA worked for three years to bring this prosecution of a Treasury Department-designated terrorist for sanctions violations to successful completion.  I want to thank the prosecutors and agents Trial Attorney Joseph Palazzo and AUSAs Thomas Gillice, Luke Jones, Karen Seifert, Deborah Curtis, and SAUSA Jacqueline Barkett for helping us achieve this victory today. We are going to keep targeting Hezbollah and other terrorist groups and their supporters, and we are going to keep winning.”

            “This guilty plea demonstrates our commitment to vigorously investigate and prosecute violations of U.S. economic sanctions,” said U.S. Attorney Liu. “Through the efforts of law enforcement here and abroad, this defendant has been held accountable for violating laws protecting our national security and foreign policy interests.”

            “This is the latest example of DEA’s recent successes against Hezbollah’s global criminal support network and reflects DEA’s determination in combatting this transnational criminal organization,” said Special Agent in Charge Donovan.

            According to the statement of facts signed by Tajideen in conjunction with his plea, after his designation, Tajideen conspired with at least five other persons to conduct over $50 million in transactions with U.S. businesses that violated these prohibitions.  In addition, Tajideen and his co-conspirators knowingly engaged in transactions outside of the United States, which involved transmissions of as much as $1 billion through the United States financial system from places outside the United States.

            The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon sentence of 60 months in prison. The plea agreement also calls for Tajideen to pay $50 million as a criminal forfeiture in advance of his sentencing.  Tajideen has been detained since extradition to the United States in March 2017 after his arrest overseas.  Sentencing is scheduled to occur on Jan. 18, 2019.

            This guilty plea is the result of a three-year investigation by the DEA’s Special Operations Division (SOD)/Counter Narcoterrorism Operations Center (CNTOC) and the DEA New Jersey Field Division, with the assistance by CBP. Assistance was provided by the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

            Tajideen’s case falls under DEA’s Project Cassandra, which targets Hezbollah’s global criminal support network - dubbed by the DEA as the Business Affairs Component (BAC) - that operates as a logistics, procurement and financing arm for Hezbollah.  This investigation and others are part of the Department of Justice’s Hezbollah Financing and Narcoterrorism Team (“HFNT”), a component of the Department’s Transnational Organized Crime initiative (TOC).  The HFNT was formed in January 2018 to ensure an aggressive and coordinated approach to prosecutions and investigations, including Project Cassandra cases, targeting the individuals and networks supporting Hezbollah.  Comprised of experienced international narcotics trafficking, terrorism, organized crime, and money laundering prosecutors and investigators, the HFNT works closely with partners like the DEA, the Department of the Treasury, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, among others, to advance and facilitate prosecutions of Hezbollah and its support network in appropriate cases.

            This case is being prosecuted by the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the DEA and CPB’s National Targeting Center Counter Network Division, with assistance from the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section of the National Security Division.

            The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Joseph Palazzo of the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas A. Gillice, Luke Jones, Karen Seifert and Deborah Curtis and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline L. Barkett of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

WASHINGTON – Deangelo Jenkins, 33, of Washington, D.C., has pled guilty to federal firearms and narcotics offenses stemming from an investigation in which law enforcement recovered two loaded handguns and cocaine base, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Jenkins pled guilty on Dec. 4, 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year and one count of possession of cocaine basis. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Jenkins faces a likely range of 70 to 87 months in prison. The Honorable Timothy J. Kelly scheduled sentencing for Feb. 21, 2019. The Court ordered that Jenkins be held without bond pending her sentencing. 

            According to the government=s evidence, on Oct. 24, 2017, MPD officers observed Jenkins driving a white Infiniti that had been identified in connection with a homicide investigation. Officers made contact with Jenkins and advised him that the vehicle was being seized in reference to the pending homicide investigation. Jenkins was then asked to exit the vehicle. Jenkins, who was talking on a cellular phone at the time, did not comply. He acted nervous and failed to exit the vehicle despite being ordered to do so by officers on several occasions. An officer then reached through the driver’s side window and attempted to unlock the driver’s side door, but Jenkins re-locked the door before the officer could open it. This happened a number of times before officers could successfully get Jenkins out of the vehicle. Once he was out of the vehicle, MPD officers were able to impound it for investigative purposes.

            Jenkins was not arrested at that time. The following day on Oct. 25, 2017, pursuant to a search warrant, MPD officers searched the vehicle. During the search, officers recovered a .45-caliber handgun from the center console of the vehicle. The firearm had one round of ammunition in the chamber and 10 rounds in the magazine.

            Following the discovery of the gun and ammunition, an arrest warrant was issued. On Nov. 9, 2017, members of the U.S. Marshals Service observed Jenkins entering an apartment building in the 2900 block of 14th Street NW. Jenkins was arrested inside an apartment. During a search of Jenkins, officers recovered a .357-caliber revolver from his waistband area. The firearm was loaded with six rounds of ammunition in the chamber.

            Jenkins was arrested and transported to a hospital after complaints of feeling ill. While at the hospital, an additional search of the defendant was conducted, and officers found a large white rock-like substance located in the right front change pocket of the defendant’s pants. The white substance was tested and determined to be cocaine base.

            At the time of his arrest in this case, Jenkins was barred from possessing a firearm due to previous convictions in the District of Columbia and Prince George’s County, Md. for armed robbery, firearms and other offenses.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the U.S. Marshals Service. They also commended the efforts of those who worked in the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Paralegal Specialists Jeannette Litz and Teesha Tobias, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Emory V. Cole, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Deandre Bullock, 17, and Darius McNeal, 18, both of Washington, D.C., were sentenced today to prison terms on charges stemming from a pair of violent crimes committed earlier this year in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

            Bullock was 16 and McNeal was 17 at the time of the crimes. They were charged as adults because of the nature of the offenses, and both pled guilty in April 2018.

            Bullock pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to one count of carjacking, one count of carrying a pistol without a license, and one count of robbery.  The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of 10 to 12 years in prison. The Honorable Todd E. Edelman accepted the plea and sentenced Bullock to 10 years in prison. McNeal pled guilty to two counts of armed robbery.  The plea, which also was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of nine to 10 years in prison. Judge Edelman accepted the plea and sentenced McNeal to nine years in prison.

            Following their prison terms, both defendants will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            Bullock and McNeal pled guilty to an incident that took place shortly after 9 p.m. on Feb. 4, 2018, at the Benco Shopping Center located at East Capitol Street SE and Benning Road SE.  According to the government’s evidence, the victim parked his Jeep Compass in front of a carry-out restaurant at the shopping center and went inside the store to pick up food.  As the victim returned to his vehicle and got back into the driver’s seat, Bullock, McNeal and three other individuals approached his vehicle.  McNeal approached the passenger side.  Bullock and two of the other individuals approached the driver side and worked together to pull the victim from the driver’s seat of his vehicle, drag him to the ground, and assault him. Bullock, McNeal, and the others got into the victim’s vehicle and drove away. 

            Bullock and McNeal also pled guilty to an incident that took place at about 6 p.m. on Feb. 18, 2018, near Johnson Middle School in the 3100 block of Bruce Place SE.  According to the government’s evidence, McNeal communicated with the victims about buying a pair of shoes through the application OfferUp and told the victims to come to the school.  When the victims arrived, McNeal and another member of the group approached them and asked to see the shoes for sale.  One of the victims showed the shoes and asked for the money.  Bullock and another individual then approached.  Bullock was wearing a mask and had a black and silver handgun with a laser sight on it.  Bullock ordered one of the victims out of the car and to the ground at gunpoint.  The other individual ordered the other victim out of the driver’s seat of the car, demanded her car keys, and took her phone.  One of the victims struggled with Bullock over the gun, while the other defendants told Bullock to “shoot him.”  The gun went off, firing one round that hit McNeal in the leg.  The victims ran away, and Bullock, McNeal and two other individuals got into the victims’ vehicle and followed them.

            In announcing the sentences, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).  She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Tiffany Fogle and Victim/Witness Advocate James Brennan.  Finally, U.S. Attorney Liu commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Natasha Smalky, who investigated and prosecuted the case with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Kerkhoff.

WASHINGTON – Aminata Bah, 24, of Bowie, Md., has pled guilty to conspiring to obstruct justice stemming from her actions over the course of the investigation into a murder last year that was committed by her boyfriend, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced today.

            The boyfriend, Demarius Jackson, 26, pled guilty in May 2018, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of voluntary manslaughter while armed and assault with a dangerous weapon. On Aug. 17, 2018, Jackson received a sentence of 15 years of in prison following a hearing before the Honorable Judge Danya A. Dayson.

            Bah pled guilty on Nov. 28, 2018, also in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for a sentence between three and seven years and is probation eligible. The Honorable José M. López scheduled sentencing for March 1, 2019.

            According to a factual proffer submitted at the plea hearing, the shooting took place at approximately 2:50 a.m. on Saturday, July 8, 2017. The shooting, in the 3500 block of Water Street NW, in the Georgetown area, followed a verbal altercation between the victims and the occupants of a vehicle. The vehicle was operated by an associate of Bah’s. The interaction continued for about five minutes and concluded when Jackson, Bah’s boyfriend of several years, walked up, reached around Bah, and shot a 19-year-old victim, Kennedy Amaya-Olivares, once in the back of the head and once in the chest - killing him. Jackson then chased after the other victim, shooting at him multiple times and striking him twice in the torso.

            Following the shooting, Bah, her boyfriend, and her associates returned to their vehicle and fled the scene. They drove to Maryland, where they dropped off the shooter, and then immediately began to discuss what, if anything, they would say to law enforcement if they were questioned about the murder.

            Bah told the occupants of the vehicle what they should and should not say to the police, including instructing her associates that they should not mention her name or the name of her boyfriend, the shooter, to police. Bah and her associates acted upon their agreement. Not only did Bah influence the testimony of her associates, but she followed her own instruction. During the course of the investigation, Bah omitted and attempted to minimize her knowledge of and familiarity with Jackson, the shooter, and lied to the police in order to obstruct the investigation into the murder her boyfriend committed.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. She also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force. Finally, she acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Lornce Applewhite, Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Allen, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Merikas, who investigated and prosecuted the matter

WASHINGTON – Austin Peed, 36, of Avenue, Md., pled guilty today to trafficking in firearms following his arrest in a nearly year-long investigation involving narcotics and firearms trafficking, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            Peed pled guilty before the Honorable Richard J. Leon in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States. Peed faces a maximum of five years of incarceration and is currently held without bond. Judge Leon scheduled sentencing for March 26, 2019.

            According to the government’s evidence, Peed engaged in the sale of two separate AR-15 assault rifles in Maryland and Washington, D.C. to an undercover law enforcement officer in exchange for cash. The first purchase occurred on Sept. 6, 2017, in Bladensburg, Md., in exchange for $1,200. The second purchase occurred on Sept. 28, 2017 in the 1700 block of Girard Street NE, in exchange for $1,500. During the second purchase, Peed provided a rifle scope to accompany the rifle. The firearms were without serial numbers and were untraceable.

            Peed was arrested with eight other individuals in March 2018 in relation to a conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and 280 grams or more of crack. Numerous defendants were also charged with possessing and distributing various narcotics, including crack, cocaine, PCP and fentanyl, during the period of the investigation.

            This case is part of an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF specializes in the investigation and prosecution of drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and related criminal enterprises, which includes, corresponding firearms related crimes.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu and Assistant Director in Charge McNamara commended the work of those who investigated the case. They cited the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Paralegal Specialist Jeannette Litz, who assisted with the case, and Christopher Macchiaroli and Kevin Rosenberg of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Section, who conducted the underlying investigation, indicted the case, and are prosecuting the remaining defendants.

WASHINGTON – Santiago Rodriguez Campos, 34, a Mexican national who had been living in Alexandria, Va., pled guilty today to sexually abusing four women, including two in 2016 and two in 2018, U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu announced.

            Rodriguez Campos pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to two counts of fourth-degree sexual abuse and two counts of misdemeanor sexual abuse. Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 15, 2019 before the Honorable Juliet McKenna. As part of his sentence, Rodriguez Campos will be required to register for the rest of his life as a sex offender. Additionally, he will be subject to deportation proceedings following his prison term.

            According to the government’s evidence, in the first offense, on Sept. 5, 2016 at about 10:30 p.m., the victim was walking on N Street NW to the 1200 block of Potomac Street NW when she first observed a man, later identified through forensic evidence as Rodriguez Campos. She reported that he was dressed in dark-colored clothing with a hood covering his head and face. The victim initially thought that she was about to be robbed. She began to walk up the steps to her door when Rodriguez Campos approached her from behind. He then reached between the back of her legs and ran his hand between her inner thighs, through her buttocks over her outer garment. The blue-jean pants that the victim was wearing were subsequently tested for DNA. Later DNA testing established that the perpetrator was Rodriguez Campos.

            In the second offense, on Oct. 26, 2016 at approximately 8:15 p.m., the victim was walking to her car, which was parked in the 1600 block of 33rd Street NW. While she was walking, she observed a man, later identified through forensic evidence as Rodriguez Campos, wearing a grey hoodie covering his face. As he walked towards her, the victim stayed by a tree box and let Rodriguez Campos walk past. As soon as he walked past her, she turned her back and he reached under her dress from behind, between her legs, and grabbed her vagina. The victim immediately screamed at the defendant and began yelling for help. She stated she was either pushed or fell to the ground and while doing so, struck Rodriguez Campos with her elbow. He then ran away. The victim later observed what appeared to be lubricant left between her legs by the defendant. This substance was swabbed and recovered as evidence. DNA analysis was done on this evidence sample. Later DNA testing established that the perpetrator was Rodriguez Campos.

            In the third offense, on May 31, 2018, the victim was walking home at approximately 10:10 p.m. when a man, later identified through forensic evidence as Rodriguez Campos, grabbed her neck, put his hand under her skirt, and touched her buttocks, vagina, and thighs. Rodriguez Campos also placed an unknown liquid on her legs. He then fled through the courtyard of a church she was standing in front of, located in the 2400 block of K Street NW. The victim turned over her underwear and skirt to law enforcement as evidence and it was tested for DNA. Later DNA testing established that the perpetrator was Rodriguez Campos.

            In the fourth offense, on June 3, 2018, the victim was walking west in the 1500 block of P Street NW, when she was approached from behind by a man, later identified through forensic evidence as Rodriguez Campos. He reached under her dress and grabbed her left buttock, then reached in between her legs and touched her vagina. The victim felt a sticky substance transfer from Rodriguez Campos’s hand to an area under her dress. The victim’s underwear, dress, and swabs of her inner thighs were submitted for DNA analysis. Later DNA testing established that the perpetrator was Rodriguez Campos.

            The defendant was apprehended on Aug. 9, 2018 and has been in custody ever since.

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Liu commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department, which investigated the case, and the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. She also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocates Lezlie Richardson and Tracey Hawkins and Paralegal Specialists T.J. McPhail and D’Yvonne Key.

            Finally, she expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stuart D. Allen and Ryan Creighton, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Keith Loving, 33, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a prison term of 21 ½ years for carjacking a Metrobus and then fatally striking a man with the vehicle, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and Ron Pavlik, Chief of the Metro Transit Police Department.

            At the time he committed the crimes, Loving was under the influence of PCP.

            Loving pled guilty in July 2018, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of voluntary manslaughter while armed and carjacking. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed upon sentence of 21 ½ years. The Honorable Ronna L. Beck accepted the plea and sentenced the defendant accordingly. Following his prison term, Loving will be placed on XX years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Tuesday, May 3, 2016, at approximately 10:30 a.m., Loving boarded a Metrobus at a stop in the 3800 Block of Jay Street NE. He used his Metro SmarTrip card to pay the fare. Once on board, Loving remained standing in the front entry of the bus next to the bus operator, even as the bus began to travel. The bus operator asked Loving if he was okay because Loving was breathing heavily.  Loving yelled at the operator in an aggressive manner, and then lunged towards him with a pair of needle nosed pliers.  The operator struggled with Loving but was able to disarm him of the weapon.  During the altercation, all four of the other passengers exited the bus through the rear door.  Loving pushed the operator off the bus, closed the doors, sat in the operator’s seat, and began driving away.

            Loving drove the bus eastbound from the 3800 Block of Jay Street NE towards 800 Kenilworth Terrace NE, and then made a left turn onto northbound Kenilworth Terrace NE. He continued to drive the bus northbound in the 800 Block of Kenilworth Terrace NE and struck the left side of a Seabury Connector bus that was also traveling that way. At the time of that collision, the Connector Bus was transporting senior citizens.  After that collision, Loving continued to drive in a reckless and erratic manner by, for example, driving on to the opposite lanes of traffic, as vehicles drove towards the bus.

           At 10:32 a.m., Loving pulled the bus in an erratic manner onto the lot of a gas station in the 4200 block of Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue NE. After passing through the gas pumps, he momentarily stopped the bus.  While the bus was stopped, Anthony C. Payne was standing near a trash dumpster depositing trash, a short distance directly in front of the bus.  In an apparent effort to leave the parking lot, Loving propelled the bus forward and turned the bus directly towards Mr. Payne.  The bus struck Mr. Payne and pinned him under the front left side of the bus.  The bus then came to a stop, with Loving remaining behind the wheel. Mr. Payne, 40, was taken to a hospital, where he died a short time later.

            Loving was arrested on the scene. He was taken to a hospital for minor injuries. Sixth District Officers guarding Loving heard him advise hospital staff that he had smoked K-2 and PCP prior to the incident.  When he was arrested, Loving tested positive for PCP. He has remained in custody since his arrest.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu, Chief Newsham, and Chief Pavlik commended those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department and the Metro Transit Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the work of those who assisted with the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Silvia Gonzalez-Roman, Paralegal Specialists Lashone Samuels and Stephanie Siegerist, and Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward A. O’Connell and Michael Spence, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Patricia Pauline Driscoll, the former executive director of the Armed Forces Foundation, was found guilty by a jury today of charges stemming from a scheme in which she stole from the non-profit charity, defrauded donors, and lied to the Internal Revenue Service and the public about her salary and benefits.

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu, Matthew J. DeSarno, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division, and Special Agent in Charge Kelly R Jackson of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Washington D.C. Field Office.

            Driscoll, 40, of Ellicott City, Maryland, was found guilty of two counts of wire fraud and two counts of tax evasion, all federal offenses, and one count of first-degree fraud, a District of Columbia offense. The verdict followed a trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The Honorable Richard J. Leon scheduled sentencing for a date to be determined in mid-March, 2019.

            According to the government’s evidence, until July 2015, Driscoll was the executive director of the Armed Forces Foundation, a tax-exempt non-profit charity based in Washington, D.C.  The foundation’s stated mission was to protect and promote the physical, mental, and emotional wellness of military service members, veterans, and their families.

            While Driscoll was the executive director, in its promotions and requests for money, the Armed Forces Foundation claimed that 95% of all donations went directly to military members and their families through the charity’s programs. As a “highly compensated individual,” Driscoll’s salary and benefits were required to be disclosed on annual reports (called “Form 990”) to be filed each year with the IRS. These publicly available documents are often used by charity watch groups and donors to judge worthiness of the charity and by the IRS to determine whether the organization was operating with IRS law and regulations.

            According to the evidence, Driscoll caused false reports to be filed on the Form 990s in a number of ways. For example, she failed to include the fact that she received commissions from fundraising, the amounts of commissions that she received from fundraising, and the other benefits that she received. Driscoll also falsely categorized and caused others to falsely categorize expenses in the Armed Forces Foundation’s books and records as being for the benefit of the veterans, troops, and their families, when, in fact, they were for her own private benefit. Driscoll also concealed from the foundation’s accountants the money she took from the charity, such as rent that was paid for the use of office space in a building that she co-owned.

            Additionally, Driscoll falsely reported and caused others to falsely report the amount of donations received by the foundation on Forms 990, by inflating the amounts of donations and incorrectly listing the types of donations. According to the evidence, she sent false and fraudulent Forms 990 to members of the foundation’s Board of Directors and to the IRS, and caused to be published Forms 990, containing false and fraudulent information.

            The jury found that Driscoll took the foundation’s money for her own personal use and to pay her for-profit business expenses.  The tax evasion charges are for tax years 2012 and 2013.

            The wire fraud charge carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison. Tax evasion carries a statutory maximum of five years. First-degree fraud carries a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison. The maximum statutory sentence for federal offenses is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. The sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

            In announcing the verdicts, U.S. Attorney Liu, Special Agent in Charge DeSarno, and Special Agent in Charge Jackson commended the work performed by Special Agents from the FBI and Special Agents and Revenue Agents from the IRS.  They also acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Yvonne Bryant; Victim/Witness Services Coordinators Tonya Jones and Katina Adams-Washington; Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Tasha Harris; Paralegal Specialists Diane Brashears and Amanda Rohde; Forensic Accountant Bryan Snitselaar; Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas; former Paralegal Specialists Christopher Toms, Corinne Kleinman, and Kaitlyn Kruger; Litigation Technology Supervisor Leif Hickling; former Litigation Technology Supervisor Josh Ellen, and David Goodhand, Special Counsel to the U.S. Attorney, who provided midtrial legal research and writing.

            Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Virginia Cheatham, Kathryn Rakoczy, and Derrick Williams, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

            WASHINGTON – Steven Gorham, 30, formerly of Temple Hills, Md., was sentenced today to a 42-month prison term after pleading guilty to a federal firearms charge stemming from his arrest in Southeast Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Peter Newsham, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            Gorham pled guilty in September 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to a charge of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. He was sentenced by the Honorable Randolph D. Moss. Following his prison term, Gorham will be placed on three years of supervised release. He also faces the possibility of additional time for violating terms of his release from prison in an earlier case.

            According to the government’s evidence, on Dec. 4, 2017 at about 4:30 p.m., officers from the Metropolitan Police Department’s 7th District Crime Suppression Team approached Gorham and other individuals on the 2300 block of Ainger Place SE, in the Woodland Terrace neighborhood. The officers asked Gorham how he was doing, at which time he tried to flee. Officers pursued Gorham and stopped him a block away. They recovered from his waistband a .380-caliber firearm with five rounds of ammunition in the magazine and one round in the chamber.  The firearm previously was reported stolen from Thomasville, N.C.

            At the time of his arrest in this case, Gorham was barred from possessing a firearm due to a 2008 conviction in the Superior Court for the District of Columbia. That conviction was for assault with intent to kill while armed and a related firearms offense. In that case, on July 1, 2006, Gorham shot a man in the abdomen and then, when the victim turned to flee, shot him again in the back.  The victim was paralyzed during this assault, which took place on the 2300 block of Ainger Place SE, the same location where Gorham was stopped with this firearm. Gorham was sentenced to a 12-year prison term for the 2006 attack and placed on supervised release on Oct. 13, 2017. He was arrested in this case less than two months later.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Chief Newsham commended the work of MPD’s 7th District Crime Suppression Team.  They recognized the work of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; ATF’s Crime Gun Intelligence Center referred the case for federal prosecution.  They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Jeannette Litz and Teesha Tobias and Legal Assistants Katie Cowley and Emma Atlas. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Vanore, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Lonniel Peterson Jr., 28, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to 27 months in prison after pleading guilty to escaping from a halfway house in the District of Columbia, announced U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu and Robert Turner, United States Marshal for the District of Columbia.   Peterson pled guilty to the escape charge in October 2018 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was sentenced on Nov. 27, 2018, by the Honorable Timothy J. Kelly. Following his prison term, he will be placed on two years of supervised release.

            Peterson was among two defendant to be sentenced this week as a result of ongoing efforts of the U.S. Marshals Service and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to arrest violent offenders who escape from halfway houses. In the other case, a federal judge sentenced Daquan Jackson, 22, of Washington, D.C., to a 33-month prison term for a similar escape.

            In 2017, the U.S. Marshals Service requested the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office with the investigation, prosecution, and disposition of an increased number of escape cases. The escapees were under the supervision of the Federal Bureau of Prisons and were afforded an opportunity to complete the final portion of their sentences at halfway houses to assist in their reentry to the community. To date, the effort has led to 23 felony convictions of defendants who failed to report or absconded from the Hope Village Halfway House in Southeast Washington.

            According to court documents, Peterson was at Hope Village serving the remainder of a five-year sentence from a 2013 conviction in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia for assault to intent to kill. He began serving that sentence at the Federal Correctional Facility-Schuylkill in Minersville, Pa. On April 4, 2017, he was furloughed to serve the remainder of his sentence at Hope Village. On June 20, 2017, he left Hope Village without authorization and never returned.

            Peterson was re-arrested on June 13, 2018 by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). According to court filings, Peterson was arrested with 29 blue bags containing suspected crack cocaine and a 9mm semi-automatic pistol. He still faces firearms and narcotics charges in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia stemming from that arrest.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Liu and Marshal Turner commended the work of those who investigated the case. They also cited the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Rosen, who prosecuted the matter with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin L. Rosenberg of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section.

WASHINGTON - The United States has filed a complaint to forfeit $3,167,783 associated with a cooperating Singapore-based company (“Cooperating Company”); Apex Choice Ltd. (“Apex Choice”), a Chinese-based wax company; and Yuanye Wood Ltd. (“Yuanye Wood”), a Chinese-based wood company, announced U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jessie K. Liu and Michael DeLeon, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Phoenix Field Office. 

            The complaint alleges that these three companies laundered United States dollars on behalf of sanctioned North Korean banks.  According to the complaint, the North Korean banks used these laundered funds as part of a scheme to procure goods for the North Korean regime, as well as to illegally access the U.S. financial market. 

            The three companies allegedly were part of a scheme to launder payments to subsequently sanctioned entities, to include: Velmur Management Pte. Ltd. (“Velmur”), which the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned for procuring Russian petroleum products for North Korea; Dandong Zhicheng Metallic Material Co. (“Dandong Zhicheng”), which the Treasury Department sanctioned for purchasing coal from North Korea, and then in turn laundering the proceeds of those sales to purchase items for North Korea, including nuclear and missile components; and Wee Tiong (S) Pte. Ltd. (“Wee Tiong”), which the Treasury Department sanctioned for laundering money through the U.S. financial system on behalf of North Korea.

            The complaint also seeks a civil monetary penalty against Apex Choice and Yuanye Wood for prior sanctions and money laundering violations related to this scheme.

            “This complaint alleges that parties in China and Singapore are part of a global money laundering network that coordinates with front companies to move North Korean money through the United States and violate the sanctions imposed by our government on North Korea,” said U.S. Attorney Jessie K. Liu. “This case demonstrates that we will seek significant remedies to address companies that violate U.S. national security, regardless of where they are doing business.”

            “The FBI has found numerous foreign companies participating in North Korea’s scheme to launder money,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Michael DeLeon.  “As North Korea continues to find creative ways to circumvent international sanctions, we hope this investigation will compel foreign companies to do their due diligence when it comes to conducting business transactions and/or making third party payments using U.S. dollars. The FBI will continue to dedicate substantial resources to these types of investigations in order to stop illicit transactions. Companies engaging in deceptive banking practices may face criminal or civil action, and could be forced to forfeit funds.”

            The complaint was filed on Nov. 26, 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. According to the complaint, designated North Korean banks use companies, including the “Cooperating Company,” Apex Choice, and Yuanye Wood, to make U.S. dollar payments to North Korean front companies, which are managed by sanctioned North Korean banks. 

            The United Nations Panel of Experts described in 2017 how North Korean banks have been able to evade sanctions and continue to access the international banking system. Specifically, despite strengthened financial sanctions, North Korean networks are adapting by using greater ingenuity in accessing formal banking channels. This includes maintaining correspondent bank accounts and representative offices abroad that are staffed by foreign nationals making use of front companies. These broad interwoven networks allow North Korean banks to conduct illicit procurement and banking activity.

            The complaint alleges activity by the three companies that tracks this paradigm. The first company which is the subject of the complaint, the one identified as “Cooperating Company,” has agreed to the forfeiture of its funds.  As part of its agreement to cooperate with the government, this company acknowledged that it was directed by an unauthorized Chinese money remitter to send payments to North Korean companies, when this company was seeking discounted rates for exchanging currency.  Apex Choice, a wax company, is accused of paying numerous North Korean front companies with no relation to the wax industry.  In a submission to the government, Apex Choice claimed that the known North Korean financial facilitators were wax companies in China.  Chilbo, a North Korean wood exporting company based out of Equatorial Guinea, allegedly sold wood produced by North Koreans in forced labor camps to Yuanye Wood.  According to the complaint, Yuanye Wood paid known North Korean financial facilitators for these services.

            The claims made in the complaint are only allegations and do not constitute a determination of liability.

            The FBI’s Phoenix Field Office is investigating the case. Assistant U.S Attorneys Arvind K. Lal, Zia M. Faruqui, and Brian P. Hudak are litigating the case, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Brian Rickers, Legal Assistant Jessica McCormick and former Paralegal Specialist Toni Anne Donato, and Assistant U.S Attorney Ari Redbord.