District of Columbia

WASHINGTON – Tyree Irving, 20, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to two years in prison for breaking into two elementary schools and a barber shop within a matter of hours last year, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.

 

            Irving pled guilty in November 2016, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to one count of conspiracy to commit burglary and three counts of second-degree burglary. He was sentenced by the Honorable Neal E. Kravitz. Following his prison term, Irving will be placed on three years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, in the early morning of April 2, 2016, officers from the District of Columbia Public Schools and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) responded to break-ins at two different schools.

 

            First, officers responded to Barnard Elementary School, in the 400 block of Decatur Street NW. Individuals had broken a window to get into the school and removed a multi-unit Apple Macbook / iPad charging unit and wheeled it outside. These individuals also stole 14 D.C. Public School iPads, two iMac computers, two keyboards, and two mice. Video surveillance showed four young males wearing masks walking throughout the empty school at approximately 1:40 a.m., carrying varying pieces of electronic equipment, including the charging unit.

 

            Officers then responded to Houston Elementary School, in the 1100 block of 50th Place NE. Individuals had broken a window to get into the school and stole a personal laptop from a teacher, as well as a laptop and iPad that belonged to D.C. Public Schools. Video surveillance showed three young males wearing masks walking and running throughout the empty school at approximately 2:50 a.m., carrying varying pieces of electronic equipment. The individuals on the video surveillance in Barnard Elementary and the individuals on the video surveillance in Houston Elementary appear, with the exception of one missing person, to be the same.

 

            Outside of Houston Elementary School, police discovered a van that was still running with its ignition punched out. Inside the van, police located a revolver, as well as multiple pieces of equipment stolen from Barnard Elementary, including two iMac computers, four keyboards, four mice, and multiple iPads. Police learned that the van was stolen the previous night.

 

            In a separate investigation, police learned of another break-in early April 2, 2016 at a barber shop in the 800 block of Rhode Island Avenue NW. Burglars there took two Apple keyboards and two Apple mice. This burglary took place at 2:07 a.m.

 

            Police and members of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences (DFS) processed the crime scenes and the van. DFS collected latent fingerprints from the items recovered inside of the van. Irving later was linked to several items, including an Apple iMac monitor stolen from Barnard Elementary School, a computer mouse, and an apple keyboard with number pad stolen from Barnard Elementary School.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance of the District of Columbia Public Schools and the Latent Fingerprint Unit of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. He acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gregory Rosen and Jillian Willis, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

WASHINGTON – Eugene Sherman, 54, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for his role in the killing of a man following a break-in of the victim’s condominium in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            Sherman pled guilty in January 2017, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to a charge of second-degree murder. He was sentenced by the Honorable Hiram E. Puig-Lugo. Following his prison term, Sherman will be placed on five years of supervised release. A co-defendant, Joseph Jennings, Jr., 36, was sentenced in December 2016 to a 24-year prison term after earlier pleading guilty to a charge of second-degree murder while armed.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, on the morning of Jan. 22, 2016, Sherman enlisted the assistance of Jennings and another man in a plan to break into a condominium in the 400 block of M Street NW and steal marijuana. Jennings and the other man both were armed. At about 9:48 a.m., Jennings used an object to forcibly pry open the locked front door to the building. Sherman waited nearby, while Jennings and the other man continued inside the building. As they attempted to gain entry to the unit through a sliding glass balcony door, the victim, Matthew Shevlin, fled out of the front door and began screaming for help.

 

            Jennings chased Mr. Shevlin, and a struggle ensued. During this struggle, Jennings shot Mr. Shevlin, 37, who later died of multiple gunshot wounds.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Acting Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocates James Brennan and Jennifer Clark, and Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Sharon Newman. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney David Misler, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

WASHINGTON – Robert Horne, 36, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a 15-year prison term for assaulting the victim, his ex-girlfriend’s new boyfriend, with a firearm, discharging the gun in public to threaten the victim, and then trying to cover up the crime by asking the victim to lie, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips.

 

            Horne was found guilty by a jury in February 2017 of assault with a dangerous weapon, felony threats, obstruction of justice, contempt of court, and related firearms offenses. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Danya A. Dayson. Following his prison term, Horne will be placed on eight years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, early on April 13, 2016, Horne’s ex-girlfriend and her boyfriend, the victim, found Horne in a drunken state, passed out in his ex-girlfriend’s apartment in Southwest Washington. The victim, anticipating a fight between Horne and Horne’s ex-girlfriend, walked out of the apartment to de-escalate the situation. The victim thereafter waited in the lobby, charging his phone, waiting for Horne to leave.

 

            However, after leaving the apartment, Horne found the victim and began to scream at him for interfering with his family. The victim once again tried to calm Horne, to no avail. Instead, Horne brandished a weapon, pistol-whipped the victim in the face, and then dragged the victim outside. Once outside, Horne continued to threaten the victim as the victim held his hands up in surrender. Horne then shot the gun into the air and fled the scene.

 

            Officers with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) stopped Horne shortly after the gunshot and found him with the weapon. He was arrested and later ordered by the Court to stay away from and have no contact with the victim. Regardless, Horne began to violate these stay-away conditions and tried to contact the victim through his ex-girlfriend. He wrote letters and begged his ex-girlfriend to convince the victim to drop the charges, recant his testimony, and lie in court. He even offered to pay the victim $2,000 to avoid any involvement in the case.

 

            The victim refused these offers. His testimony at trial helped to convict the defendant, along with other evidence, including video footage from the apartment complex, ShotSpotter evidence, and police officer testimony.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys David Gorman, Christopher Bruckmann, and Kamil E. Shields; Paralegal Specialist T.J. McPhail; Litigation Technology Specialists Aneela Bhatia and Anisha Bhatia; Victim/Witness Advocate Lu Lan; Victim/Witness Program Specialist Wanda Queen, and Intern A.J. Carvalho. Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jessica Brooks and Louis Manzo, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – A criminal complaint was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia charging Ayad Fatafta and Kifah Ghanimat, both approximately 39 years of age and from areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority, in connection with the Dec. 18, 2010, murder of Kristine Luken, a U.S. citizen, in Israel.

 

            Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia, and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.

 

            The complaint charges Fatafta and Ghanimat with murder of a U.S. National Outside the U.S., in violation of Title 18 United States Code sections 2332(a)(1) and 2. Arrest warrants were also issued today for both defendants.

 

            According to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint and arrest warrants, Fatafta and Ghanimat stabbed to death Ms. Luken, a 44-year old U.S. national who was hiking near an archaeological site while visiting Israel. She died at the scene. Another individual who was with Ms. Luken, a citizen of the United Kingdom and Israel, was seriously wounded in the attack but survived. The affidavit states that in 2012, Fatafta and Ghanimat each were convicted in an Israeli court of murder and other offenses in connection with the abduction and stabbing of both women. Fatafta was sentenced to one life term of incarceration plus 20 years, while Ghanimat was sentenced to two life terms of incarceration plus 60 years, for this and another crime.

 

            The charges in criminal complaints are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The maximum penalty for a person convicted of murdering a U.S. national outside the U.S. is a lifetime term of incarceration or death. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, a defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

 

            The investigation into this matter was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The Office of International Affairs of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division provided significant assistance. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

A criminal complaint was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia charging Ayad Fatafta and Kifah Ghanimat, both approximately 39 years of age and from areas controlled by the Palestinian Authority, in connection with the Dec. 18, 2010, murder of Kristine Luken, a U.S. citizen, in Israel.

Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia, and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.

The complaint charges Fatafta and Ghanimat with murder of a U.S. National Outside the U.S., in violation of Title 18 United States Code sections 2332(a)(1) and 2. Arrest warrants were also issued today for both defendants.

According to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint and arrest warrants, Fatafta and Ghanimat stabbed to death Ms. Luken, a 44-year old U.S. national who was hiking near an archaeological site while visiting Israel. She died at the scene. Another individual who was with Ms. Luken, a citizen of the United Kingdom and Israel, was seriously wounded in the attack but survived. The affidavit states that in 2012, Fatafta and Ghanimat each were convicted in an Israeli court of murder and other offenses in connection with the abduction and stabbing of both women. Fatafta was sentenced to one life term of incarceration plus 20 years, while Ghanimat was sentenced to two life terms of incarceration plus 60 years, for this and another crime.

The charges in criminal complaints are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The maximum penalty for a person convicted of murdering a U.S. national outside the U.S. is a lifetime term of incarceration or death. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, a defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The investigation into this matter was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office.  The Office of International Affairs of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division provided significant assistance. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

2017 04 13 Fatafta Ghanimat Complaint Affidavit

WASHINGTON – Emeka H. Chijioke, 40, formerly of Atlanta, Ga., and Nigeria, has been indicted on charges alleging that he schemed to defraud the District of Columbia’s Medicaid program out of more than $2 million.

 

            The indictment was announced by U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Nicholas DiGiulio, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), for the region that includes Washington, D.C.

 

            The indictment was unsealed on April 7, 2017, and Chijioke pled not guilty at his arraignment last week. A status hearing in the case has been set for April 19 before the Honorable Senior Judge Paul L. Friedman.

 

            Chijioke was arrested in December 2016 in Germany and extradited to the United States last week. The 21-count indictment charges him with one count of health care fraud, nine counts of making false statements related to health care matters, seven counts of wire fraud, three counts of engaging in a monetary transaction with proceeds of specified unlawful activity in an amount greater than $10,000, and one count of first-degree theft. The indictment also includes a forfeiture allegation seeking all proceeds that can be traced to the fraud scheme.

 

            According to the indictment, Chijioke was the majority owner, registered agent, and chief executive officer of Mead Medical Group, LLC, a durable medical equipment company organized in Maryland. Mead Medical provided medical equipment supplies, including incontinence supplies and garments, to District of Columbia Medicaid recipients.

 

            As alleged in the indictment, from 2008 through 2012, Chijioke engaged in a scheme to defraud Medicaid out of more than $2 million and unjustly enriched himself by billing Medicaid for incontinence supplies that were not provided. The indictment alleges that Chijioke used some of the proceeds from his fraudulent scheme to purchase vehicles. According to the indictment, Chijioke instructed his office staff to contact the Medicaid recipients to determine from them the actual amount of incontinence supplies they needed, and to provide them with those supplies. At the same time, the indictment alleges, Chijioke hired a billing company to submit claims to the Medicaid contractor as if the maximum amount of supplies were provided to the recipients rather than the actual amount supplied. By arranging for the maximum amount of incontinence supplies to be billed, rather than the amount actually provided, Chijioke obtained money which he was not entitled to receive from Medicaid.

 

            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.

 

            In announcing the charges, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, and Special Agent in Charge DiGiulio expressed appreciation for the work performed by Special Agents from the FBI and HHS OIG. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who are working on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section; Assistant U.S. Attorney Kondi Kleinman of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section; former Assistant U.S. Attorney Lionel André; Paralegal Specialists Christopher Toms and Jessica Mundi; former Paralegal Specialists Corinne Kleinman and Kaitlyn Kruger, and Litigation Technology Specialist Claudia Gutierrez. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Virginia Cheatham, who investigated the case and obtained the indictment.

A Pakistani citizen pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme to smuggle undocumented migrants from Pakistan into the United States. 

Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia and Special Agent in Charge Angel M. Melendez of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in New York made the announcement.

Sharafat Ali Khan, 32, a Pakistani citizen and former resident of Brazil, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to smuggle undocumented migrants into the United States for profit before U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton of the District of Columbia.  Khan was extradited to the United States from Qatar on July 13, 2016.  Judge Walton scheduled Khan’s sentencing hearing for July 6, 2017. 

According to admissions in the plea agreement, between March 2014 and May 2016, Khan and other co-conspirators organized and arranged the unlawful smuggling of large numbers of undocumented migrants to the United States.  For their smuggling operation, Khan admitted that he and his co-conspirators used a network of facilitators to transport undocumented migrants from Pakistan and elsewhere through Brazil and Central America and then into the United States by land, air or sea travel.  Khan further admitted that he was responsible for managing safe houses for the migrants and arranging a network of associates in other countries to serve as escorts during different legs of the smuggling route.  Khan also admitted that voyage included harsh conditions that caused a substantial risk of serious bodily injury or death – including lengthy foot hikes with little food and water through the Darien Gap, a dangerous tropical forest area in Panama.

The investigation was conducted under the Extraterritorial Criminal Travel Strike Force (ECT) program, a joint partnership between the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and HSI. The ECT program focuses on human smuggling networks that may present particular national security or public safety risks, or present grave humanitarian concerns. ECT has dedicated investigative, intelligence and prosecutorial resources. ECT coordinates and receives assistance from other U.S. government agencies and foreign law enforcement authorities.

HSI New York investigated this case, with assistance from HSI Brazil, Mexico, Panama and Washington, D.C. field offices, the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force, FBI-Miami, the Human Smuggling Cell, U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service in Brasilia, Brazil, the Brazilian Federal Police and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center.  The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs provided significant support with the defendant’s extradition and foreign legal assistance requests.   The Justice Department thanks the Government of Qatar for their assistance with the extradition in this case.  Senior Trial Attorney Michael Sheckels of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard DiZinno of the District of Columbia are prosecuting the case.  

WASHINGTON – A Pakistani citizen pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme to smuggle undocumented migrants from Pakistan into the United States.

 

            Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia and Special Agent in Charge Angel M. Melendez of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in New York made the announcement.

 

            Sharafat Ali Khan, 32, a Pakistani citizen and former resident of Brazil, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to smuggle undocumented migrants into the United States for profit before U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton of the District of Columbia. Khan was extradited to the United States from Qatar on July 13, 2016. Judge Walton scheduled Khan’s sentencing hearing for July 6, 2017.

 

            According to admissions in the plea agreement, between March 2014 and May 2016, Khan and other co-conspirators organized and arranged the unlawful smuggling of large numbers of undocumented migrants to the United States. For their smuggling operation, Khan admitted that he and his co-conspirators used a network of facilitators to transport undocumented migrants from Pakistan and elsewhere through Brazil and Central America and then into the United States by land, air or sea travel. Khan further admitted that he was responsible for managing safe houses for the migrants and arranging a network of associates in other countries to serve as escorts during different legs of the smuggling route. Khan also admitted that voyage included harsh conditions that caused a substantial risk of serious bodily injury or death – including lengthy foot hikes with little food and water through the Darien Gap, a dangerous tropical forest area in Panama.

 

            The investigation was conducted under the Extraterritorial Criminal Travel Strike Force (ECT) program, a joint partnership between the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and HSI. The ECT program focuses on human smuggling networks that may present particular national security or public safety risks, or present grave humanitarian concerns. ECT has dedicated investigative, intelligence and prosecutorial resources. ECT coordinates and receives assistance from other U.S. government agencies and foreign law enforcement authorities.

 

            HSI New York investigated this case, with assistance from HSI Brazil, Mexico, Panama and Washington, D.C. field offices, the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force, FBI-Miami, the Human Smuggling Cell, the U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service in Brasilia, Brazil; the Brazilian Federal Police, and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s National Targeting Center. The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs provided significant support with the defendant’s extradition and foreign legal assistance requests. The Justice Department thanks the Government of Qatar for their assistance with the extradition in this case. Senior Trial Attorney Michael Sheckels of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard DiZinno of the District of Columbia are prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON – David Tyrone Johnson, 48, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to federal charges of bank fraud and making false statements, arising from a real estate scheme involving a forged mortgage satisfaction document, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

 

            Johnson pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Johnson faces an estimated range of 24 to 30 months in prison as well as a fine of up to $95,000. Under the plea agreement, Johnson also must pay more than $337,000 in restitution to SunTrust Mortgage, Inc. He also is subject to a forfeiture money judgment of $170,688. The Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson scheduled sentencing for July 13, 2017.

 

            According to a statement of offense, signed by the defendant as well as the government, signed by the defendant as well as the government, SunTrust Mortgage, Inc. loaned a friend of Johnson’s approximately $470,000 in 2008 to purchase residential real estate in the 100 block of 57th Street SE. By 2009, the friend had failed to repay the mortgage loans, and in 2010, SunTrust Mortgage filed a notice of foreclosure with the District of Columbia’s Recorder of Deeds. In April 2013, SunTrust Mortgage began the process of foreclosing on the mortgage and taking possession of the property, due to the friend’s failure to make good and timely payments on the mortgage loans.

 

            Sometime before Oct. 2, 2013, Johnson caused the creation of two phony and forged certificates of satisfaction, which falsely represented that the SunTrust Mortgage loans at the property on 57th Street SE had been paid and that his friend owned the property “free and clear.” According to the statement of offense, on Oct. 2, 2013, Johnson filed these two phony certificates of satisfaction with the Recorder of Deeds.

 

            In or about December 2013, after the fake certificates of satisfaction allowed the friend to sell the property without paying the outstanding mortgages, the title and escrow company wired out the sales proceeds of $337,105, of which approximately $170,688 was obtained by Johnson.

 

            In addition, in 2015, Johnson was required to submit a financial disclosure form to his government agency employer; however, on that form, Johnson failed to disclose the money he obtained from the sales proceeds of the property, knowing that he had obtained the money. This failure to inform his government agency employer was material or important to his employer, and one that resulted in a false statement on his financial disclosure form.

 

            Johnson was indicted in August 2016 and had been due to stand trial next month.

 

            In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Assistant Director in Charge Vale expressed appreciation for the work performed by those who investigated the case and assisted in preparing it for trial from the FBI, including the Washington Field Office and the FBI Laboratory. They also acknowledged the efforts of those working on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Christopher Toms; former Paralegal Specialists Corinne Kleinman and Kaitlyn Krueger; Litigation Tech Specialist Ron Royal, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Swanton, who is assisting with forfeiture issues. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Virginia Cheatham who is prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and the Victim Witness Assistance Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia paid tribute today to crime victims, their families, witnesses, community members, and Good Samaritans for their bravery, compassion, and dedication to the pursuit of justice.

 

            The honorees were recognized by the U.S. Attorney’s Office during an event at the Ceremonial Courtroom of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals. The ceremony was timed with the annual observance of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week. This year’s national theme, “Strength, Resilience, Justice,” reflects a vision for the future in which victims grow stronger from the response they receive, organizations show resilience in response to challenges, and communities are able to seek collective justice and healing.

 

            “All of us are inspired by the strength and resilience shown by victims and witnesses in their pursuit for justice,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “The people being honored today include men, women, and children who have shown incredible courage and perseverance throughout the criminal justice process. They represent the remarkable commitment that we see every day from victims, witnesses, and the members of the community who respond to their needs.”

 

            The featured speakers were Gerfa Lunsmann and her son, Kevin, of Virginia, who were kidnapped by armed gunmen in July of 2011 from a beach cottage where they were vacationing in the Philippines. The kidnappers forced Ms. Lunsmann and Kevin, then 14, into a boat and took them to another island, where they held them for ransom and threatened them with death. Throughout the ordeal, in the United States, Heiko Lunsmann worked with law enforcement in hopes of getting his wife and son back home safely.

 

            The kidnappers held Ms. Lunsmann for 82 days before her release. Kevin remained a hostage until he managed to escape after a total of 151 days in captivity. As he described it in his remarks today, “Every day was just a struggle to survive.” Both talked about the physical, mental and emotional traumas they suffered and the power of resilience and recovery.

 

            In addition to the Lunsmann family, the U.S. Attorney’s Office today honored other individual victims, survivors, and Good Samaritans whose efforts furthered the cause of justice. For example, the honorees included a robbery victim whose powerful statement at sentencing brought one of his assailants to tears; a child who witnessed his mother’s murder and advocated on her behalf throughout the court process, and three citizens who came to a woman’s rescue as she was about to be raped on a weekday morning in downtown Washington.

 

            The honorees also included an off-duty police officer from Georgia who stepped into action after he saw someone robbing a homeless man in July 2014 near an abandoned building at Fourth and G Streets NW. The officer, who was in town for the week, flagged down police officers, provided comfort to the victim, and positively identified the assailant, who was in possession of the victim’s coins. The officer returned to the District of Columbia to be a witness at the defendant’s trial. Once the defendant saw him in the courtroom, he pled guilty to the crime; he later was sentenced to three years in prison.

 

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office also paid special recognition to two interpreters who assist victims and witnesses, as well as two people who help child victims with the challenges of going back to school after undergoing a trauma.

 

            Today’s event was developed and organized by the Victim Witness Assistance Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Members of the Unit provide essential services and support to victims and witnesses, such as making referrals for counseling and other services, addressing safety concerns, arranging travel, and accompanying victims to court proceedings. The Unit also notifies victims of their rights and provides information regarding significant case events, such as the filing of charges, plea hearings, trials and sentencing hearings.

 

            Additional information about the Victim Witness Assistance Unit is available at https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/victim-witness-assistance

 

            Further information about National Crime Victims’ Rights Week is available at http://ovc.ncjrs.gov/ncvrw/.

WASHINGTON – Tamara Kukla, who worked as the “Director of Membership” for a Washington based non-profit organization, has been sentenced to a year and a day in prison for embezzling nearly $250,000 from her employer, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Brian J. Ebert, Special Agent in Charge, Washington Field Office, U.S. Secret Service.

 

            Kukla, 47, of Plano, Texas, pled guilty in November 2016, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to interstate transportation of stolen property. The Honorable James E. Boasberg sentenced her on April 4, 2017. Kukla will be placed on three years of supervised release following completion of her prison term. She also must pay $248,755 in restitution and an identical amount in a forfeiture money judgment.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, Kukla’s employer provided her with a credit card to assist her with her duties and responsibilities as the “Director of Membership.” Kukla’s duties and responsibilities included, among others, formulating and executing marketing plans designed to maintain and increase her employer’s membership rolls. Beginning around October 2009 and continuing through about December 2011, Kukla devised and carried out a scheme to defraud her employer by embezzling funds through her corporate credit card. Kukla used the credit card for both legitimate and personal purchases, but provided false descriptions of the personal purchases as work-related expenses so that her employer would pay for them. These unauthorized purchases and expenses included, among others, personal expenses related to travel, transportation, hotel lodgings, retail purchases, meals, food, and entertainment. Kukla also devised a scheme whereby she caused her employer to pay for thousands of dollars in expenses for personal services from two different private companies.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Special Agent in Charge Ebert commended the work of those who investigated the case from the National Capitol Region Fraud Task Force of the U.S. Secret Service’s Washington Field Office. They also expressed appreciation for the efforts of those who worked on the matter for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including former Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Vesna Harasic-Yaksic and Assistant U.S. Attorney Zia Faruqui, who handled forfeiture issues; Paralegal Specialists Krishawn Graham and Angela Lawrence; former Assistant U.S. Attorney Loyaan A. Egal, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mervin A. Bourne, Jr., who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Christopher Galloway, 49, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to five years in prison for attacking a woman last year in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced. The assault was stopped by officers with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), who were driving by the scene and heard the victim’s screams.

 

            Galloway was found guilty by a jury in December 2016 of a charge of assault with intent to commit robbery while armed. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced on March 30, 2017, by the Honorable Neal E. Kravitz. Upon completion of his prison term, he will be placed on five years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, on March 23, 2016, at approximately 9:40 a.m., two MPD Officers were driving along the 1900 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, on truancy duty, with the windows of their van cracked. They heard a woman’s cries for help and spotted, in the space between two nearby buildings, a man standing over a woman who was on the ground, on her back.

 

            The officers stopped the van and ran to the woman’s assistance, interrupting Galloway as he stood with a knife in his hand over the victim. The knife was recovered on the scene.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura R. Bach; Victim/Witness Advocate James Brennan; Paralegal Specialist Richard Cheatham, and the staff of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Litigation Technology Department. Finally, he expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys William E. Schurmann and John B. Timmer, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Jerome M. Holliway, 37, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to a charge of first-degree sexual abuse for attacking another defendant last fall while they were in a courthouse cellblock, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.

 

     Hollliway pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon sentence of 17 ½ years in prison. The Honorable José M. Lopez set a hearing for June 9, 2017 to determine whether to accept the plea and sentence. Holliway remains in custody pending his sentencing.

 

     According to the government’s evidence, on Nov. 11, 2016, Holliway and the victim were held in the same cellblock at the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Both had finished their court hearings and were awaiting transport back to the District of Columbia Jail. At approximately 11:35 a.m., Holliway began attacking the victim -- beating, biting, kicking, and sexually assaulting him, mostly in the toilet area behind a metal divider.

 

     After the attack, Holliway pulled the naked victim up by his chains and stated, “Don’t tell anyone that I did this, tell them a ghost did it or the devil did it or something.”

 

     In a separate matter, Holliway pled guilty today to a charge of attempted threats stemming from another incident that took place last fall. The plea agreement calls for the sentence imposed in this case to run concurrently with the 17 ½ years for the sexual assault. In this matter, Holliway admitted calling his estranged wife’s telephone and leaving a voicemail on Oct. 5, 2016, in which he threatened to beat her and kill anyone she loved.

 

     In announcing the pleas, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the cases from the U.S. Marshals Service and the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist D'Yvonne Key and Victim/Witness Advocate Shawn Slade. Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Elana Suttenberg, who investigated and prosecuted the sexual assault, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Poulin, who investigated and prosecuted the threats matter.

WASHINGTON – A federal complaint was unsealed today charging Candace Marie Claiborne, an employee of the U.S. Department of State, with obstructing an official proceeding and making false statements to the FBI, both felony offenses, for allegedly concealing numerous contacts that she had over a period of years with foreign intelligence agents.

 

            The charges were announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia, and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

 

            The FBI arrested Claiborne, 60, of Washington, D.C., on March 28, 2017. She made her first appearance this afternoon in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

 

            “Candace Marie Claiborne is a U.S. State Department employee who possesses a Top Secret security clearance and allegedly failed to report her contacts with Chinese foreign intelligence agents who provided her with thousands of dollars of gifts and benefits,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General McCord. “Claiborne used her position and her access to sensitive diplomatic data for personal profit. Pursuing those who imperil our national security for personal gain will remain a key priority of the National Security Division.”

 

            “Candace Claiborne is charged with obstructing an official proceeding and making false statements in connection with her alleged concealment and failure to report her improper connections to foreign contacts along with the tens of thousands of dollars in gifts and benefits they provided, “ said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “As a State Department employee with a Top Secret clearance, she received training and briefing about the need for caution and transparency. This case demonstrates that U.S. government employees will be held accountable for failing to honor the trust placed in them when they take on such sensitive assignments”

 

            “Candace Claiborne is accused of violating her oath of office as a State Department employee, who was entrusted with Top Secret information when she purposefully mislead federal investigators about her significant and repeated interactions with foreign contacts," said Assistant Director in Charge Vale. "The FBI will continue to investigate individuals who, though required by law, fail to report foreign contacts, which is a key indicator of potential insider threats posed by those in positions of public trust.”

 

            According to the affidavit in support of the complaint and arrest warrant, which was unsealed today, Claiborne began working as an Office Management Specialist for the Department of State in 1999. She has served overseas at a number of posts, including embassies and consulates in Baghdad, Iraq, Khartoum, Sudan, and Beijing and Shanghai, China. As a condition of her employment, Claiborne maintains a TOP SECRET security clearance. Claiborne also is required to report any contacts with persons suspected of affiliation with a foreign intelligence agency.

 

            Despite such a requirement, the affidavit alleges, Claiborne failed to report repeated contacts with two intelligence agents of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), even though these agents provided tens of thousands of dollars in gifts and benefits to Claiborne and her family over five years. According to the affidavit, the gifts and benefits included cash wired to Claiborne’s USAA account, an Apple iPhone and laptop computer, Chinese New Year’s gifts, meals, international travel and vacations, tuition at a Chinese fashion school, a fully furnished apartment, and a monthly stipend. Some of these gifts and benefits were provided directly to Claiborne, the affidavit alleges, while others were provided through a co-conspirator.

 

            According to the affidavit, Claiborne noted in her journal that she could “Generate 20k in 1 year” working with one of the PRC agents, who, shortly after wiring $2,480 to Claiborne, tasked her with providing internal U.S. Government analyses on a U.S.-Sino Strategic Economic Dialogue that had just concluded.

 

            Claiborne, who allegedly confided to a co-conspirator that the PRC agents were “spies,” willfully misled State Department background investigators and FBI investigators about her contacts with those agents, the affidavit states. After the State Department and FBI investigators contacted her, Claiborne also instructed her co-conspirators to delete evidence connecting her to the PRC agents, the affidavit alleges.

 

            Charges contained in a criminal complaint are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

            The maximum penalty for a person convicted of obstructing an official proceeding is 20 years in prison. The maximum penalty for making false statements to the FBI is five years in prison. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

 

            At her court appearance today, Claiborne pleaded not guilty before the Honorable Magistrate Judge Robin M. Meriweather. A preliminary hearing was set for April 18, 2017.

 

            The FBI’s Washington Field Office is leading the investigation into this matter. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John L. Hill and Thomas A. Gillice of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Julie Edelstein of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

A federal complaint was unsealed today charging Candace Marie Claiborne, 60, of Washington, D.C., and an employee of the U.S. Department of State, with obstructing an official proceeding and making false statements to the FBI, both felony offenses, for allegedly concealing numerous contacts that she had over a period of years with foreign intelligence agents.

 

The charges were announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary B. McCord for National Security, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew W. Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

 

“Candace Marie Claiborne is a U.S. State Department employee who possesses a Top Secret security clearance and allegedly failed to report her contacts with Chinese foreign intelligence agents who provided her with thousands of dollars of gifts and benefits,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General McCord. “Claiborne used her position and her access to sensitive diplomatic data for personal profit. Pursuing those who imperil our national security for personal gain will remain a key priority of the National Security Division.”

 

“Candace Claiborne is charged with obstructing an official proceeding and making false statements in connection with her alleged concealment and failure to report her improper connections to foreign contacts along with the tens of thousands of dollars in gifts and benefits they provided,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “As a State Department employee with a Top Secret clearance, she received training and briefing about the need for caution and transparency. This case demonstrates that U.S. government employees will be held accountable for failing to honor the trust placed in them when they take on such sensitive assignments”

 

“Candace Claiborne is accused of violating her oath of office as a State Department employee, who was entrusted with Top Secret information when she purposefully mislead federal investigators about her significant and repeated interactions with foreign contacts," said Assistant Director in Charge Vale. "The FBI will continue to investigate individuals who, though required by law, fail to report foreign contacts, which is a key indicator of potential insider threats posed by those in positions of public trust.”

 

The FBI arrested Claiborne on March 28. She made her first appearance this afternoon in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

 

According to the affidavit in support of the complaint and arrest warrant, which was unsealed today, Claiborne began working as an Office Management Specialist for the Department of State in 1999. She has served overseas at a number of posts, including embassies and consulates in Baghdad, Iraq, Khartoum, Sudan, and Beijing and Shanghai, China. As a condition of her employment, Claiborne maintains a Top Secret security clearance. Claiborne also is required to report any contacts with persons suspected of affiliation with a foreign intelligence agency.

 

Despite such a requirement, the affidavit alleges, Claiborne failed to report repeated contacts with two intelligence agents of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), even though these agents provided tens of thousands of dollars in gifts and benefits to Claiborne and her family over five years. According to the affidavit, the gifts and benefits included cash wired to Claiborne’s USAA account, an Apple iPhone and laptop computer, Chinese New Year’s gifts, meals, international travel and vacations, tuition at a Chinese fashion school, a fully furnished apartment, and a monthly stipend. Some of these gifts and benefits were provided directly to Claiborne, the affidavit alleges, while others were provided through a co-conspirator.

 

According to the affidavit, Claiborne noted in her journal that she could “Generate 20k in 1 year” working with one of the PRC agents, who, shortly after wiring $2,480 to Claiborne, tasked her with providing internal U.S. Government analyses on a U.S.-Sino Strategic Economic Dialogue that had just concluded.

 

Claiborne, who allegedly confided to a co-conspirator that the PRC agents were “spies,” willfully misled State Department background investigators and FBI investigators about her contacts with those agents, the affidavit states. After the State Department and FBI investigators contacted her, Claiborne also instructed her co-conspirators to delete evidence connecting her to the PRC agents, the affidavit alleges.

 

Charges contained in a criminal complaint are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

The maximum penalty for a person convicted of obstructing an official proceeding is 20 years in prison. The maximum penalty for making false statements to the FBI is five years in prison. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

 

At her court appearance today, Claiborne pleaded not guilty before the Honorable Magistrate Judge Robin M. Meriweather. A preliminary hearing was set for April 18.

 

The FBI’s Washington Field Office is leading the investigation into this matter. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John L. Hill and Thomas A. Gillice for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Julie Edelstein of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

 

2017 03 29 Claiborne Complaint and Redacted Affidavit

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced today that it has completed its review of the June 27, 2016, fatal shooting of Sherman Evans, Sr., by Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers in the 100 block of Varnum Street NE. After a careful review of all of the evidence, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has concluded that there is insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights or District of Columbia charges against the officers involved in the fatal shooting of Mr. Evans.

 

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Metropolitan Police Department conducted a comprehensive review of the incident. This included interviews of civilian and law enforcement witnesses, as well as a review of autopsy and toxicology reports; Mobile Crime and District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences reports, photographs, and diagrams; body worn camera footage; audio transmissions; and physical evidence collected on the scene, including a BB pistol that is virtually identical in appearance to a real firearm.

 

            According to the evidence, on June 27, 2016, at approximately 10:22 p.m., Mr. Evans called 911 and told the dispatcher, “yes, miss, look, uh, uh, it's a man out in front of the building brandishing a gun” in front of 109 Varnum Street NE. When the dispatcher asked for additional information, Mr. Evans, whose cellphone was used to make the 911 call and whose voice on the 911 call was authenticated, repeated, “It’s a man out in front of the building brandishing a gun.” Mr. Evans then disconnected the call.

 

            Several officers responded to the 100 block of Varnum Street NE, for the report of a “man with a gun.” When they arrived, Mr. Evans was standing outside on the sidewalk with a weapon, later identified as a Marksman Repeater .177 caliber BB gun, in his right hand. As shown on the body worn camera footage and as reported by witnesses, although Mr. Evans initially had the barrel of his weapon pointed towards the ground, on several occasions, he raised the barrel up, pointing the weapon in the officers’ direction. The officers did not initially fire their weapons. Rather, over a period of several minutes, they repeatedly ordered Mr. Evans to “drop the gun,” and “come on, sir, put it down. We’ll talk, we’ll talk.” Mr. Evans, however, did not comply. After several minutes, Mr. Evans again pointed his weapon at the officers, but this time he started to move in the officers’ direction. At that point, the officers started shooting.

 

            An autopsy revealed that Mr. Evans, 63, was shot two to three times, including once in the right forearm, once in the right buttock, and once in the chest, which was possibly a reentry wound from the gunshot wound to the right forearm. The Toxicology Report further indicated the presence of narcotics in Mr. Evans’s blood and urine.

 

            After a careful, thorough, and independent review of the evidence, federal prosecutors have found insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers used excessive force under the circumstances. To the contrary, there is sufficient evidence to corroborate the officers’ account that they were acting in self-defense at the time of the shooting.

 

Use-of-force investigations generally

 

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office reviews all police-involved fatalities to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to conclude that any officers violated either federal criminal civil rights laws or District of Columbia law. To prove such violations, prosecutors must typically be able to prove that the involved officers willfully used more force than was reasonably necessary. Proving “willfulness” is a heavy burden. Prosecutors must not only prove that the force used was excessive, but must also prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the officer acted with the deliberate and specific intent to do something the law forbids. A conclusion that “there is insufficient evidence” is not meant to suggest anything further about what evidence, if any, exists.

 

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office remains committed to investigating allegations of excessive force by law enforcement officers and will continue to devote the resources necessary to ensure that all allegations of serious civil rights violations are investigated fully and completely. The Metropolitan Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division investigates all police-involved fatalities in the District of Columbia.

WASHINGTON – Dominic White, 30, of Lanham, Md., has been found guilty by a jury of charges for assaulting a man with a metal pole at a towing establishment in Northeast Washington. In addition, White and a co-defendant, Phanessa Haynes, 29, of Washington, D.C. were found guilty of charges of insurance fraud and conspiracy to commit insurance fraud.

 

            The verdicts, which were returned March 24, 2017 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, were announced today by U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips. Both defendants are to be sentenced on May 24, 2017, by the Honorable Juliet McKenna.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, on Nov. 4, 2014, at approximately 5 p.m., Haynes arrived at a towing company in the 1000 block of Kenilworth Avenue NE to pick up her car, which was getting its rims and tires replaced. She quickly noticed that the job wasn’t completed to her standards and became angry at the man who was doing the work. She called her boyfriend – White - multiple times expressing her frustrations.

 

            White raced over and once arriving, picked up a metal pipe. Haynes pointed to the victim, and said, “That’s him, that’s the one.” White rushed to the victim and struck him with the metal pipe a couple of times, hitting and injuring him. He then dropped the pipe and fled. The victim’s head injuries required 18 staples and resulted in debilitating migraines for approximately a year. Following the attack, other employees at the towing shop called 911 and one gave a partial license tag of White’s car. White was later identified as the owner of a car with the same make and color described by witnesses, with a similar tag.

 

            Further investigation showed that Haynes and White were involved with an insurance policy that was purchased by Haynes, which led to her car being at the towing establishment on the day of the assault. Soon after purchasing the policy, and making sure it covered tires and rims, Haynes filed a claim with the insurer for “stolen” rims.

 

            White was arrested on March 30, 2015, and Haynes was arrested at the scene on Nov. 4, 2014.

 

            In announcing the verdicts, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the FBI’s Cellular Analysis Survey Team and the U.S. Marshals Service. He acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen Rickard, Daniel Lenerz, Jocelyn Ballantine, Fernando Campoamor-Sanchez, Kathryn Rakoczy, and Opher Shweiki; Victim/Witness Advocate James Brennan; Paralegal Specialists Richard Cheatham, Debra McPherson, Crystal Waddy, and Tiffany Fogle; Criminal Investigator, Melissa Matthews; Litigation Technology Specialists, Josh Ellen and Leif Hickling; Investigative Analyst, Zachary McMenamin, and Computer Forensic Examiner; John Marsh.

 

            Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen Seifert and David Misler, who investigated and indicted the case, and Monica Trigoso and Alysa Kociuruba, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Edgar Maddison Welch, 28, of Salisbury, N.C., pled guilty today to charges stemming from an incident in which he carried a loaded AR-15 assault rifle and a revolver into a Northwest Washington pizza restaurant, scattering employees and customers, and fired his assault rifle into a door.

 

            The guilty plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            Welch pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a federal charge of interstate transportation of a firearm and ammunition, and a District of Columbia charge of assault with a dangerous weapon. The federal charge carries a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison and the District of Columbia charge carries a statutory maximum of 10 years. Under sentencing guidelines, the parties have agreed that Welch faces a likely range of 18 to 24 months in prison for the federal charge, and 18 to 60 months for the District of Columbia charge.

 

            The Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson scheduled sentencing for June 22, 2017. Welch has been in custody since his arrest on the day of the incident.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, on Sunday, December 4, 2016, Welch transported three loaded firearms, together with ammunition, from North Carolina to Washington, D.C. The firearms included a 9mm AR-15 assault rifle loaded with approximately 29 rounds of ammunition, a fully-loaded, six-shot, .38-caliber revolver, and a loaded shotgun with additional shotgun shells. He drove directly to the Comet Ping Pong restaurant on Connecticut Avenue in Northwest Washington. According to the government’s evidence, Welch was motivated, at least in part, by unfounded rumors concerning a child sex-trafficking ring that supposedly was being perpetrated at the establishment.

 

            Upon arriving at the restaurant, Welch parked his car and armed himself. At about 3 p.m., he marched inside the restaurant, which was occupied by employees and customers, including children. He was carrying the AR-15 assault rifle and the revolver. He was carrying the AR-15 openly, with one hand on the pistol grip, and the other hand on the hand guard around the barrel, such that anyone with an unobstructed view could see the gun.

 

            The customers and employees fled the building. At one point, Welch encountered a locked room and attempted to force open the door, first using a butter knife and then discharging his assault rifle multiple times into the door.

 

            A few minutes later, an unaware employee entered the restaurant, carrying pizza dough. Welch saw the employee and turned toward the worker with the assault rifle, causing the worker to immediately fear he would be shot. The worker fled. Welch was left alone in the restaurant. After spending more than 20 minutes inside, he left his firearms and exited the restaurant unarmed. He was then arrested. The assault rifle and revolver were recovered inside the restaurant. A shotgun also was recovered from the defendant’s car, along with a box of shotgun ammunition.

 

           In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, and Acting Chief Newsham commended the work of those who responded to the scene and those who investigated the case. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Yvonne Bryant, Paralegal Specialist Chela Okonji, and Arvind K. Lal, Chief of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, who assisted with forfeiture issues. Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Demian S. Ahn and Sonali D. Patel, who are prosecuting the case.

Kassim Tajideen, a prominent financial supporter of the Hizballah terror organization, has been arrested and charged with evading U.S. sanctions imposed on him because of his financial support of Hizballah.

 

Tajideen, 62, of Beirut, Lebanon, was arrested overseas on March 12, 2017, based on an 11-count indictment unsealed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia following his arrival to the United States. Tajideen made his initial court appearance today before Magistrate Judge Robin M. Meriweather.   

 

The arrest and indictment are the result of a two-year investigation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and assisted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The effort is part of DEA’s Project Cassandra, which targets Hizballah’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 Hizaballah.

 

Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary B. McCord of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia, DEA Special Agent in Charge Raymond Donovan of the Special Operations Division, and CBP Acting Commissioner Kevin K. McAleenan made the announcement.

 

“Because of his support for Hizballah, a major international terrorist group, the U.S. government imposed sanctions on Kassim Tajideen in 2009 that barred him from doing business with U.S. individuals and companies,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Blanco. “Those sanctions are a powerful tool in our efforts to combat terrorists and those who would support them. Indeed, the sanctions posed such a significant threat to Tajideen’s extensive business interests that he allegedly went to great lengths to evade them by hiding his identity from the U.S. entities he did business with, and from the government agencies responsible for enforcing the sanctions. Thanks to the diligent work of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners, we broke through the web of intermediaries Tajideen allegedly used to conceal his involvement, and he has been brought to the United States to face justice.”

 

“Kassim Tajideen is alleged to have willfully flouted U.S. sanctions that were based on his prior support for Hizballah, a designated foreign terrorist organization,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security McCord. “Those sanctions are designed to protect our national security and public safety by limiting terrorists’ access to resources, and this extradition sends a clear message that we are resolved to find and hold accountable those who violate these laws.”

 

“The investigation of this case and the arrest and extradition of this defendant demonstrates our commitment to enforcing vitally important sanctions laws that are in place to protect our national security and foreign policy interests,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “Because of the hard work of law enforcement here and abroad, Kassim Tajideen will now face charges in an American courtroom.”

“Kassim Tajideen posed a direct threat to safety and stability around the world,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Donovan. “A prominent money man for Hizballah, Tajideen acted as a key source of funds for their global terror network. DEA and our partners are unrelenting in our pursuit of the world’s most dangerous terror and criminal networks and their many facilitators who threaten the rule of law and innocent lives.”

The indictment charges Tajideen with one count of willfully conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations, seven counts of unlawful transactions with a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, and one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. The indictment also indicates that the government will seek a forfeiture money judgment against the defendants equal to the value of any property, real or personal, which constitutes or is derived from proceeds traceable to these offenses.

 

According to the indictment, Tajideen allegedly presided over a multi-billion-dollar commodity distribution business that operates primarily in the Middle East and Africa through a web of vertically integrated companies, partnerships and trade names. The indictment further alleges that Tajideen and others engaged in an elaborate scheme to engage in business with U.S. companies while concealing Tajideen’s involvement in those transactions.

 

The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control named Tajideen a Specially Designated Global Terrorist on May 27, 2009. This designation prohibits U.S. companies from transacting unlicensed business with Tajideen or any companies which are operated for his benefit – in essence stripping Tajideen’s global business empire of its ability to legally acquire goods from, or wire money into, the U.S.  However, the indictment alleges that Tajideen restructured his business empire after the designation in order to evade the sanctions and continue conducting transactions with U.S. entities.  Tajideen and others are alleged to have created new trade names and to have misrepresented his ownership in certain entities in order to conceal Tajideen’s association. The scheme allowed Tajideen’s companies to continue to illegally transact business directly with unwitting U.S. vendors, as well as to continue utilizing the U.S. financial and freight transportation systems to conduct wire transfers and move shipping containers despite the sanctions against Tajideen.

 

According to the indictment, between approximately July of 2013 until the present day, the conspirators illegally completed at least 47 individual wire transfers, totaling over approximately $27 million, to parties in the U.S. During the same time period, the conspirators caused dozens of illegal shipments of goods to leave U.S. ports for the benefit of Tajideen, without obtaining the proper licenses from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

 

Tajideen pleaded not guilty and was ordered held pending a detention hearing set for March 29.

 

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 investigation was carried out by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, the DEA and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’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 Department of Justice’s National Security Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas A. Gillice and Deborah Curtis and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline L. Barkett of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Joseph Palazzo from the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section.

 

Participating investigative agencies in DEA’s Project Cassandra include the DEA’s New Jersey Field Division and Special Operations Division and various DEA country offices, as well as the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

2017 03 24 Tajideen Indictment

WASHINGTON – Kassim Tajideen, a prominent financial supporter of the Hizballah terror organization, has been arrested and charged with evading U.S. sanctions imposed on him because of his financial support of Hizballah.

 

            Tajideen, 62, of Beirut, Lebanon, was arrested overseas on March 12, 2017, based on an 11-count indictment unsealed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia following his arrival to the United States. Tajideen made his initial court appearance today before Magistrate Judge Robin M. Meriweather.

 

            The arrest and indictment are the result of a two-year investigation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and assisted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The effort is part of DEA’s Project Cassandra, which targets Hizballah’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 Hizaballah.

 

            Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting Assistant Attorney General Mary B. McCord of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia, DEA Special Agent in Charge Raymond Donovan of the Special Operations Division, and CBP Acting Commissioner Kevin K. McAleenan made the announcement.

 

            “Because of his support for Hizballah, a major international terrorist group, the U.S. government imposed sanctions on Kassim Tajideen in 2009 that barred him from doing business with U.S. individuals and companies,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Blanco. “Those sanctions are a powerful tool in our efforts to combat terrorists and those who would support them. Indeed, the sanctions posed such a significant threat to Tajideen’s extensive business interests that he allegedly went to great lengths to evade them by hiding his identity from the U.S. entities he did business with, and from the government agencies responsible for enforcing the sanctions. Thanks to the diligent work of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners, we broke through the web of intermediaries Tajideen allegedly used to conceal his involvement, and he has been brought to the United States to face justice.”

 

            “Kassim Tajideen is alleged to have willfully flouted U.S. sanctions that were based on his prior support for Hizballah, a designated foreign terrorist organization,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security McCord. “Those sanctions are designed to protect our national security and public safety by limiting terrorists’ access to resources, and this extradition sends a clear message that we are resolved to find and hold accountable those who violate these laws.”

 

            “The investigation of this case and the arrest and extradition of this defendant demonstrates our commitment to enforcing vitally important sanctions laws that are in place to protect our national security and foreign policy interests,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “Because of the hard work of law enforcement here and abroad, Kassim Tajideen will now face charges in an American courtroom.”

 

            “Kassim Tajideen posed a direct threat to safety and stability around the world,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Donovan. “A prominent money man for Hizballah, Tajideen acted as a key source of funds for their global terror network. DEA and our partners are unrelenting in our pursuit of the world’s most dangerous terror and criminal networks and their many facilitators who threaten the rule of law and innocent lives.”

 

            The indictment charges Tajideen with one count of willfully conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations, seven counts of unlawful transactions with a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, and one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments. The indictment also indicates that the government will seek a forfeiture money judgment against the defendants equal to the value of any property, real or personal, which constitutes or is derived from proceeds traceable to these offenses.

 

            According to the indictment, Tajideen allegedly presided over a multi-billion-dollar commodity distribution business that operates primarily in the Middle East and Africa through a web of vertically integrated companies, partnerships and trade names. The indictment further alleges that Tajideen and others engaged in an elaborate scheme to engage in business with U.S. companies while concealing Tajideen’s involvement in those transactions.

 

            The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control named Tajideen a Specially Designated Global Terrorist on May 27, 2009. This designation prohibits U.S. companies from transacting unlicensed business with Tajideen or any companies which are operated for his benefit – in essence stripping Tajideen’s global business empire of its ability to legally acquire goods from, or wire money into, the U.S. However, the indictment alleges that Tajideen restructured his business empire after the designation in order to evade the sanctions and continue conducting transactions with U.S. entities. Tajideen and others are alleged to have created new trade names and to have misrepresented his ownership in certain entities in order to conceal Tajideen’s association. The scheme allowed Tajideen’s companies to continue to illegally transact business directly with unwitting U.S. vendors, as well as to continue utilizing the U.S. financial and freight transportation systems to conduct wire transfers and move shipping containers despite the sanctions against Tajideen.

 

            According to the indictment, between approximately July of 2013 until the present day, the conspirators illegally completed at least 47 individual wire transfers, totaling over approximately $27 million, to parties in the U.S. During the same time period, the conspirators caused dozens of illegal shipments of goods to leave U.S. ports for the benefit of Tajideen, without obtaining the proper licenses from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

 

            Tajideen pleaded not guilty and was ordered held pending a detention hearing set for March 29.

 

            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 investigation was carried out by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, the DEA and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’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 Department of Justice’s National Security Division. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas A. Gillice and Deborah Curtis and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacqueline L. Barkett of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Joseph Palazzo from the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section.

 

            Participating investigative agencies in DEA’s Project Cassandra include the DEA’s New Jersey Field Division and Special Operations Division and various DEA country offices, as well as the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

WASHINGTON – George Maurice Brooks, 54, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to six years in prison for stabbing a man last fall outside an emergency shelter in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.

 

            Brooks pled guilty in January 2017, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to a charge of aggravated assault. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for an agreed-upon sentence of six years in prison. The Honorable Judith Bartnoff accepted the plea today and sentenced Brooks accordingly. Following his prison term, Brooks will be placed on three years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, the assault took place at about 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 12, 2016. Brooks and the victim had been in line together outside an emergency shelter in the 2200 block of Adams Place NE and had begun arguing. The argument turned physical, and a security guard separated the men. Minutes later, the argument resumed. Brooks became angry and stabbed the victim numerous times. The victim was taken to a hospital for treatment of stab wounds to the face, ribcage area, and back. Brooks turned himself in a day after the stabbing.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Barker and Vivien Cockburn, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Donald Thompson, 23, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a seven-year prison term on charges stemming from a carjacking in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.

 

            Thompson pled guilty in December 2016, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of carjacking, armed robbery, and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for a sentence of seven years in prison. The Honorable Zoe Bush accepted the plea today and sentenced Thompson accordingly. Following his prison term, Thompson will be placed on five years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, on March 26, 2016, at approximately 11 p.m., Thompson and an accomplice approached the victim in the area of 16th and Gales Streets NE. The victim was waiting for a friend just outside a 2016 Dodge Ram truck that he rented earlier that day. The victim’s dirt bike was strapped into the back of truck. Thompson and his accomplice asked about the dirt bike and then walked away.

 

            Moments later, however, Thompson and his accomplice returned to the scene. The accomplice pointed what appeared to be a dark-colored semiautomatic handgun at the victim, and Thompson snatched an iPhone from the victim’s hands. Thompson then entered the Dodge Ram and drove away, making a right onto Gales Street. The accomplice stayed with the victim, holding him at gunpoint and robbing him of approximately $1,000.

 

            Minutes after the robbery and carjacking, Thompson and his accomplice met up in the 2000 block of D Street NE, where they attempted to remove the dirt bike from the Dodge Ram, leaving their fingerprints on the truck’s tailgate. After attempting, unsuccessfully, to remove the dirt bike, Thompson and his accomplice abandoned the Dodge Ram and the dirt bike.

 

            Thompson was arrested on July 12, 2016 after his fingerprints were found on the Dodge Ram. He has remained in custody ever since.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Barker and Vivien Cockburn, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Urlick Evans, 41, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to a charge of first-degree child sexual abuse involving a 15-year-old girl, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            Evans pled guilty before the Honorable Reggie B. Walton of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon 102-month prison term. Judge Walton set a hearing for June 26, 2017 to determine whether the plea and sentence will be accepted. In addition to the prison term, Evans would be required to register as a sex offender for a period of 10 years.

 

            According to a statement of offense submitted during the plea proceedings, at the end of July 2015, the 15-year-old victim ran away from her residence in Baltimore. Once in Washington, D.C., she made contact with her estranged father, and stayed with him for approximately one week until she met Evans.

 

            Evans, who was 39 at the time, asked the girl how old she was and she initially told him that she was 18. He invited her to his apartment in Southeast Washington. Once there, he sexually abused the girl. Shortly thereafter, he was contacted by members of the girl’s family and informed that she was only 15. Specifically, on Aug. 20, 2015, the girl’s parents contacted Evans to inquire about the whereabouts of their daughter. The father requested that Evans return the girl to him. Evans, however, told the parents that she no longer was living with him and that he did not know where they could find her.

 

            After this conversation, the girl continued to live with Evans at his apartment in Washington, D.C. Also, according to the statement of offense, over the course of the next several weeks and up until Evans’s arrest on September 22, 2015, he continued to sexually abuse the girl.

 

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, and Acting Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from MPD’s Youth Division and the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force. They also expressed appreciation for the work of those who handled the case at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Criminal Investigator John Marsh and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrea L. Hertzfeld and Lindsay J. Suttenberg, who are prosecuting the matter.

WASHINGTON - Donald Williams, 26, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to an 8½-year prison term for forcing his way at gunpoint into the kitchen of the food service department at Gallaudet University, where he used to work, and ordering employees to turn over money kept in a safe, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.

 

            Two of the victims, who are deaf, helped identify him as the gunman.

 

            Williams pled guilty in January 2017, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to a charge of first-degree burglary while armed. He was sentenced by the Honorable Danya A. Dayson. Following completion of his prison term, Williams will be placed on three years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, in the late afternoon of Oct. 22, 2016, Williams entered his former place of employment, the food service department on the campus of Gallaudet University, in the 800 block of Florida Avenue NE. Upon entry, he pointed a gun at two female employees and forced them into the rear of the kitchen. He forced one of the two victims into a storage room and the other, who is deaf, into a back office space that contained a safe that held daily deposits. He pointed a gun at the latter victim and motioned for her to open the safe. When she refused, he struck her upon the head with the gun, causing a laceration.

 

            Williams left the office and approached a third female employee, who was located in a different area of the kitchen and was unaware that a robbery was taking place; this employee is also deaf. Williams pointed his gun at her, grabbed her by the shirt, forced her into the office with the other victim, and directed her to open the safe. Once she opened the safe, she and the other victim handed money to Williams, who then fled the scene.

 

            During their interviews with members of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), the two victims who were directed to open the safe indicated that their assailant reminded them of their former colleague, Williams, who had been fired from Gallaudet University a few weeks before the crime. Although their assailant had a mask covering his face, the victims stated that his build, skin complexion, leanness, mannerisms, and gait were consistent with the defendant’s, whom they had worked with regularly for more than a year.

 

            During their investigation, MPD located surveillance video footage depicting a vehicle similar to the defendant’s enter a parking garage on campus around the time of the crime. The video also depicted a male, wearing clothing identical to the look-out description, exit the vehicle and walk toward the building where the robbery occurred. MPD also recovered video from the defendant’s cell phone showing him dumping a large amount of cash into a bathroom sink bundled with red bands consistent with the description given by the victims. Williams recorded the cell phone video approximately three and a half hours after the crime. Finally, a black mask consistent with the mask described by the victims as the one worn by the assailant was found at the scene and was swabbed for DNA. Subsequent testing revealed the presence of Williams’s DNA on it. Williams was arrested on Dec. 20, 2016.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the work performed by the Forensic Biology Unit of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences as well as Sorensen Forensics. He acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Shana Fulton and Tamika Griffin; Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation; Diana Lim, Katina Adams-Washington, and LaJune Thames, all of the Victim/Witness Assistance Unit; Supervisory Paralegal Supervisor Darline Douglas; Lead Paralegal Specialist Lynda Randolph, and Paralegal Specialist Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie.

 

            Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Vanessa Goodwin, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Larry Russell Dawson, 67, of Antioch, Tenn., was sentenced today to 11 months in prison on a federal offense stemming from a confrontation with law enforcement while he was being screened at the United States Capitol Visitor Center, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Matthew R. Verderosa, Chief of the U.S. Capitol Police.

 

             Dawson pled guilty on Dec. 13, 2016, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to a federal charge of assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers while using a deadly or dangerous weapon. He was sentenced by the Honorable James E. Boasberg. Following his prison term, Dawson must complete three years of supervised release. Judge Boasberg also ordered that Dawson receive mental health treatment while in prison and while on release.

 

            According to the plea documents, on Monday, March 28, 2016, at about 2:37 p.m., Dawson entered the north security screening facility at the visitor center. He placed several personal items in a bowl in preparation for going through a metal detector. He then walked through a metal detector, which indicated the presence of metal at his waist level. Dawson was instructed to pass back through the detector, and metal again was detected.

 

            A Capitol Police officer then ushered Dawson through the metal detector. In response to the officer’s request, Dawson spread his arms. The officer then scanned Dawson with a hand-held metal detector, which indicated the presence of metal in the area of Dawson’s right waistband. Suddenly, Dawson reached into the area of his waist with his right hand, and removed what appeared to be a black handgun. Dawson also raised his left hand between himself and the officer. The officer grabbed Dawson’s left upper arm. As Dawson moved away from the officer and to Dawson’s right, the officer placed the hand-held metal detector on Dawson’s torso. Dawson seized the hand-held metal detector from the officer and quickly moved further into the visitor center. While moving, he threw the hand-held metal detector onto the floor.

 

            A few moments later, Dawson turned around, held the gun in his right hand, and pointed it at the officer who had screened him. While Dawson brandished the pistol at the officer, other officers moved civilians, including children, out of harm’s way. Other Capitol Police officers ordered Dawson to drop the weapon and put his hands in the air. Dawson ignored their verbal commands and advanced toward the officer who had screened him, continuing to point the weapon. One of the other Capitol Police officers then shot Dawson. The entry doors into the screening facility as well as the doors leading into the Capitol Visitor Center were locked to contain the threat. Dawson was apprehended, searched, rendered first aid, and transported to a hospital.

 

            The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Mobile Crime units recovered Dawson’s gun, a Daisy spring-loaded BB gun. In color, shape, weight, and other outward appearances, the gun resembled a semi-automatic handgun. Under federal law, an imitation gun, when used in circumstances such as those described in the plea documents, qualifies as a dangerous weapon.

 

            Dawson has been in custody since his arrest on the day of the incident.

 

            At today’s proceedings, Dawson also was sentenced on a second charge arising from another matter. On Oct. 22, 2015, Dawson was arrested after allegedly having disrupted Congress. He was charged in that case in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia with assaulting, resisting or interfering with a police officer and disorderly and disruptive conduct on U.S. Capitol grounds. He was released in that case with a court order to return for a hearing on Dec. 8, 2015. Dawson failed to appear for that hearing. He pled guilty in December 2016 to a charge of failing to appear in court, a District of Columbia offense. Judge Boasberg sentenced him to 90 days in prison for this offense, consecutive to the 11 months for the incident at the Capitol.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Chief Verderosa commended the work of those who investigated the case from the U.S. Capitol Police. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Metropolitan Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including former Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacqueline Barkett and Nathan Charles. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney David Mudd, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – James Durrette, 45, of Clinton, Md., has been found guilty by a jury of a federal drug charge stemming from his role in a drug trafficking organization that operated in the Washington, D.C. area.

 

            The guilty verdict, which was returned March 16, 2017, was announced today by U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, Andre R. Watson, Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Baltimore, and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            Durrette was found guilty of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 100 grams of heroin. The verdict followed a trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Under federal sentencing guidelines, he could face a sentence of up to life incarceration. With his prior conviction for a similar drug offense, Durrette faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison. He is to be sentenced June 1, 2017, by the Honorable Amit P. Mehta.

 

            The government’s evidence established that Durrette and others participated in a conspiracy to distribute large amounts of narcotics between 2009 and2014. This drug trafficking group mainly involved itself with trafficking very large quantities of marijuana, but also involved itself with redistributing various and significant quantities of heroin and cocaine. In that regard, during the conspiracy, California suppliers frequently sent – or conspired to send – large quantities of marijuana, heroin, or cocaine to the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, where Durrette and others participated in the illegal redistribution of one or more of the controlled substances to others in the Washington, D.C., area for profit.

 

            Several others previously pled guilty to charges in the investigation.

 

            In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, Special Agent in Charge Watson, and Acting Chief Newsham praised the work of the FBI Safe Streets Gang Task Force, which in this case involved work from the FBI, the Metropolitan Police Department, and HSI. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Prince George’s County, Md. Police Department. In addition, they commended the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Jeannette Litz, Candace Battle, Rommel Pachoca, Mary Downing, and Teesha Tobias; Legal Assistants Holly Crouse and Peter Gaboton; Intern Zachary Kaplan, and Litigation Technology Specialist Kimberly Smith. Finally, they commended the work of Trial Attorney Andrea G. Duvall of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth F. Whitted and Emory V. Cole, who indicted and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Demetrius Muschetta, 33, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a prison term of thirteen years stemming from his leadership role in a narcotics conspiracy that operated in the District of Columbia and Maryland. He is among 16 people to plead guilty following an investigation that led to the seizure of kilograms of narcotics, firearms, and cash.

 

            The sentence was announced by Channing D. Phillips, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; Rod J. Rosenstein, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland; Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), Henry P. Stawinski III, Chief of the Prince George’s County, Md. Police Department; Robert D. MacLean, Chief of the United States Park Police, and Robert Turner, Acting U.S. Marshal for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

 

            Muschetta pled guilty in November 2016, 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 a kilogram of heroin, 500 grams of cocaine, and 280 grams of cocaine base, and a charge of possession with the intent to distribute a kilogram of heroin. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for a prison sentence of 11 to 13 years on each charge, with the sentences to run concurrently. The Honorable Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell accepted the plea today and sentenced the defendant accordingly. Following his prison term, Muschetta will be placed on five years of supervised release. He also must pay a forfeiture judgment of $237,336.

 

            The Government’s evidence established that in January 2015, the FBI/MPD Safe Streets Task Force began a long-term investigation of a narcotics enterprise involving Muschetta and Myron Williams that primarily focused in the Barnaby Terrace area of Southeast Washington, and extended into Maryland. The investigation revealed that Muschetta and Williams were partners in a drug business and purchased kilogram amounts of cocaine and heroin from multiple sources, including Ricco Johnson and William Winter, and then in turn supplied it to other co-defendants for eventual distribution. According to the government’s evidence, Muschetta exercised decision-making authority by determining the price of the narcotics and controlled the supply of the drugs to other co-conspirators.

 

            In addition to numerous recorded telephone calls and text messages that revealed the role of the narcotics enterprise, law enforcement seized large amounts of narcotics, firearms, and U.S. currency, especially from Muschetta. On May 6, 2015, law enforcement stopped Muschetta in District Heights, Md., and recovered from his vehicle three kilograms of heroin. Later that evening, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Muschetta’s residence in Washington, D.C. and recovered additional kilograms of narcotics, including crack cocaine drying on the windowsill, and three separate firearms in an area where small children resided. During subsequent search warrants of the co-defendants’ residences, law enforcement recovered additional quantities of narcotics, firearms, narcotics paraphernalia, and large amounts of cash.

 

            Over the past 18 months, Chief Judge Howell has also accepted felony pleas from 15 others charged in the case. They include Myron Williams, 40, of Oxon Hill, Md.; Ricco Johnson, 40, of Brandywine, Md., and William Winter, 39, of Suitland, Md. Williams earlier was sentenced to a nine-year prison term for his role in the conspiracy. Johnson and Winter earlier were sentenced to five-year prison terms.

 

            The others who have pled guilty include: Chaka Al-Fatah, 37, of Washington, D.C.; Andre Arrington, 34, of Washington, D.C.; Tijuan Arrington, 40, of Washington, D.C.; Donovan Bostick, 32, of Washington, D.C.; Tamara Davies-Henry, 28, of Oxon Hill, Md.; Donnell Ennels, 41, of Washington, D.C.; Earica Hamilton, 34, of Washington, D.C.; Rodney Jones, 22, of Washington, D.C.; Kyree Mitchell, 20, of Washington, D.C.; Kevin Morris, 43, of Washington, D.C.; Jonathan Taylor, 33, of Washington, D.C., and Don Whitaker, 22, of Washington, D.C.

 

            The 16 defendants were arrested after months of investigation by the FBI/MPD Safe Streets Task Force, which is comprised of agents from the FBI, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Prince George’s County Police Department, the United States Park Police, and the United States Marshals Service. The Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force sponsored and supported this complex investigation

 

            In announcing the conclusion of the government’s prosecution, U.S. Attorney Phillips, U.S. Attorney Rosenstein, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, Acting Chief Newsham, Chief Stawinski, Chief MacLean, and Acting Marshal Turner commended the work of the D.C. Safe Streets Task Force. 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. Attorneys Anthony Scarpelli and Christopher Macchiaroli of the Violent Crimes and Narcotics Trafficking Section; Assistant U.S. Attorney Zia Faruqui and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section; former Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Han and Todd Gee; Paralegal Specialists Candace Battle, Mary Downing, Teesha Tobias, Catherine O’Neal, and Toni Anne Donato, and Legal Assistants Brendan Coyne, Diane Brashears, and Latoya Wade. They also commended those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland including Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Sullivan, who prosecuted the Maryland portion of Muschetta’s narcotics seizure prior to the charges being transferred to Washington, D.C. for resolution before Chief Judge Howell.

WASHINGTON – A 34-year-old man, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 14 years in prison after earlier pleading guilty to first-degree child sexual abuse of his 14-year-old daughter and attempted first-degree child sexual abuse of his 12-year-old daughter, as well as attempted possession of a prohibited weapon and threats charges against two Special Police Officers, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.

 

            The man, who is not identified here to protect the privacy of the victims in the sexual assault case, pled guilty in January 2017 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for a sentence of 14 years in prison. The Honorable José M. Lopez accepted the plea today and sentenced the defendant accordingly. Following his prison term, the man will be placed on 10 years of supervised release. He also must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

 

            According to the government’s investigation in the sexual assault case, the defendant had sexually abused his older daughter several times in the past year, while he had been sexually abusing his younger daughter since she was approximately eight years old. On one occasion that took place on or around Sept. 1, 2016, the defendant penetrated his older daughter’s vagina with his penis while they were at her mother’s home. On another occasion, which took place on or about Oct. 2, 2016, the defendant was at their mother’s home when he had his younger daughter perform oral sex on him. The defendant asked his younger daughter if she “liked” performing oral sex, to which she responded, “No.” The defendant then met with both daughters and apologized to them for his actions. It was then that the girls learned they were both victims of the defendant’s sexual abuse. The girls then decided to disclose the incidents to their aunt, ultimately leading to the defendant’s arrest.

 

            In the defendant’s other case, the government’s investigation revealed that the defendant had been barred from a homeless shelter in Northeast Washington on April. 29, 2016. The defendant entered the shelter on Aug. 29, 2016, and was immediately told by two Special Police Officers to leave the facility. The defendant left but returned moments later, at which point he pulled out a knife and threatened to fight and stab the Special Police Officers. After the Special Police Officers ordered the defendant several times to put down the knife, the defendant walked up the street, at which point an officer from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) stopped the defendant and placed him under arrest.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips praised the work of detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Investigations Division, which investigated the sexual-assault case, and members of the MPD’s Fifth District who were involved in the threats case. He acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Angelina Slagle and Victim/Witness Advocate Lezlie Richardson. Finally, he commended Assistant U.S. Attorneys Danny Nguyen and Maryam Adeyola, who investigated and prosecuted this case.

WASHINGTON – A criminal complaint was unsealed today charging Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi, also known as “Khalti” and “Halati,” a Jordanian national in her mid-30s, with conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction against U.S. nationals outside the U.S., resulting in death. The charge is related to the defendant’s participation in an Aug. 9, 2001, suicide bomb attack at a pizza restaurant in Jerusalem that killed 15 people, including two U.S. nationals. Four other U.S. nationals were among the approximately 122 others injured in the attack. Also unsealed today was a warrant for Al-Tamimi’s arrest and an affidavit in support of the criminal complaint and arrest warrant. The criminal charge had been under seal since July 15, 2013.

            Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.

            “Al-Tamimi is an unrepentant terrorist who admitted to her role in a deadly terrorist bombing that injured and killed numerous innocent victims. Two Americans were killed and four injured. The charges unsealed today serve as a reminder that when terrorists target Americans anywhere in the world, we will never forget – and we will continue to seek to ensure that they are held accountable,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General McCord. “I want to thank the many dedicated agents and prosecutors who have worked on this investigation.”

            “We have never forgotten the American and non-American victims of this awful terrorist attack,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “We will continue to remain vigilant until Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi is brought to justice.”

            “Al-Tamimi is a terrorist who participated in an attack that killed United States citizens,” said Assistant Director in Charge Vale. “The bombing that she planned and assisted in carrying out on innocent people, including children, furthered the mission of a designated terrorist organization. The FBI continues to work with our international partners to combat terrorists like Al-Tamimi and hold them accountable.”

            According to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint and arrest warrant, Al- Tamimi was living in the West Bank in the summer of 2001, while attending school and working as a journalist for a television station. Al-Tamimi agreed that summer to carry out attacks on behalf of the military wing of Hamas (the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades), a Palestinian organization designated by the U.S. as a terrorist organization.

            The affidavit states that on Aug. 9, 2001, Al-Tamimi met with the suicide bomber in Ramallah, in the West Bank, and traveled with the suicide bomber by car to Jerusalem. The suicide bomber was in possession of an explosive device concealed within a guitar. Al-Tamimi led the suicide bomber to a crowded area in downtown Jerusalem and instructed the suicide bomber to detonate the explosive device in the area, or somewhere nearby if an opportunity arose to cause more casualties. According to the affidavit, the suicide bomber entered a Sbarro pizza restaurant and detonated the explosive device, causing extensive damage, bodily injury, and death. Seven of the dead were children, including one U.S. national.

            The affidavit states that Al-Tamimi pleaded guilty in an Israeli court in 2003 to multiple counts of murder arising from the Sbarro suicide bomb attack and was sentenced to 16 life terms of incarceration. The defendant served only eight years of the sentence before being released on or about Oct. 28, 2011, as part of a prisoner exchange between the government of Israel and Hamas.

            Al-Tamimi was returned to Jordan upon her release from incarceration. Jordan’s courts, however, have ruled that their constitution forbids the extradition of Jordanian nationals. The U.S. has worked and will continue to work with its foreign partners to obtain custody of Al- Tamimi so she can be held accountable for her role in the terrorist bombing. The FBI also announced today that Al-Tamimi has been placed on its list of Most Wanted Terrorists.

            Charges contained in a criminal complaint are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

            The maximum penalty for a person convicted of this charge is a lifetime term of incarceration or death. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

            The investigation into this matter was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The Office of International Affairs of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division provided significant assistance. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

            Victims and their families can contact the Department of Justice via e-mail at [email protected].

A criminal complaint was unsealed today charging Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi, also known as “Khalti” and “Halati,” a Jordanian national in her mid-30s, with conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction against U.S. nationals outside the U.S., resulting in death. The charge is related to the defendant’s participation in an Aug. 9, 2001, suicide bomb attack at a pizza restaurant in Jerusalem that killed 15 people, including two U.S. nationals. Four other U.S. nationals were among the approximately 122 others injured in the attack. Also unsealed today was a warrant for Al-Tamimi’s arrest and an affidavit in support of the criminal complaint and arrest warrant. The criminal charge had been under seal since July 15, 2013.

Acting Assistant Attorney General for National Security Mary B. McCord, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia and Assistant Director in Charge Andrew Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.

“Al-Tamimi is an unrepentant terrorist who admitted to her role in a deadly terrorist bombing that injured and killed numerous innocent victims. Two Americans were killed and four injured. The charges unsealed today serve as a reminder that when terrorists target Americans anywhere in the world, we will never forget – and we will continue to seek to ensure that they are held accountable,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General McCord. “I want to thank the many dedicated agents and prosecutors who have worked on this investigation.”

“We have never forgotten the American and non-American victims of this awful terrorist attack,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “We will continue to remain vigilant until Ahlam Aref Ahmad Al-Tamimi is brought to justice.”

“Al-Tamimi is a terrorist who participated in an attack that killed United States citizens,” said Assistant Director in Charge Vale. “The bombing that she planned and assisted in carrying out on innocent people, including children, furthered the mission of a designated terrorist organization. The FBI continues to work with our international partners to combat terrorists like Al-Tamimi and hold them accountable.”

According to the affidavit in support of the criminal complaint and arrest warrant, Al-Tamimi was living in the West Bank in the summer of 2001, while attending school and working as a journalist for a television station. Al-Tamimi agreed that summer to carry out attacks on behalf of the military wing of Hamas (the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades), a Palestinian organization designated by the U.S. as a terrorist organization.

The affidavit states that on Aug. 9, 2001, Al-Tamimi met with the suicide bomber in Ramallah, in the West Bank, and traveled with the suicide bomber by car to Jerusalem. The suicide bomber was in possession of an explosive device concealed within a guitar. Al-Tamimi led the suicide bomber to a crowded area in downtown Jerusalem and instructed the suicide bomber to detonate the explosive device in the area, or somewhere nearby if an opportunity arose to cause more casualties. According to the affidavit, the suicide bomber entered a Sbarro pizza restaurant and detonated the explosive device, causing extensive damage, bodily injury and death. Seven of the dead were children, including one U.S. national.

The affidavit states that Al-Tamimi pleaded guilty in an Israeli court in 2003 to multiple counts of murder arising from the Sbarro suicide bomb attack and was sentenced to 16 life terms of incarceration. The defendant served only eight years of the sentence before being released on or about Oct. 28, 2011, as part of a prisoner exchange between the government of Israel and Hamas.

Al-Tamimi was returned to Jordan upon her release from incarceration. Jordan’s courts, however, have ruled that their constitution forbids the extradition of Jordanian nationals. The U.S. has worked and will continue to work with its foreign partners to obtain custody of Al-Tamimi so she can be held accountable for her role in the terrorist bombing. The FBI also announced today that Al-Tamimi has been placed on its list of Most Wanted Terrorists.

Charges contained in a criminal complaint are merely allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The maximum penalty for a person convicted of this charge is a lifetime term of incarceration or death. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The investigation into this matter was conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. The Office of International Affairs of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division provided significant assistance. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

Victims and their families can contact the Department of Justice via e-mail at [email protected].

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced today that it has completed its review of the actions of four officers from the Prince George’s County and Forest Heights, Md., Police Departments who were involved in the fatal shooting of James W. Covington, Jr. on Nov. 2, 2015, following a carjacking in Maryland and a police pursuit into Washington, D.C. After a careful review of all of the evidence, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has concluded that there is insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights or District of Columbia charges against the officers involved in the fatal shooting of Mr. Covington.

 

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) conducted a comprehensive review of the incident, including interviews of civilian and law enforcement witnesses as well as a review of forensic and autopsy reports, photographs, diagrams, physical evidence, recorded radio communications, video evidence, and reports from law enforcement agencies and the District of Columbia Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services.

 

            According to the evidence, the shooting took place on Nov. 2, 2015, at approximately 7:30 p.m., in the 2800 block of Gainesville Street SE. It followed a chain of events that began at 7:15 p.m., when a 2011 Toyota Camry was stolen from a man during an armed carjacking and assault in Fort Washington, Md. The Prince George’s County Police Department responded within minutes of the crime, and a look-out was broadcast with a description of the vehicle and the suspect.

 

            A Prince George’s County police officer spotted the vehicle a quarter mile from where it was stolen, followed it a short distance, and then activated his lights and siren. The Camry’s driver, later identified as Mr. Covington, failed to stop, and other officers joined the pursuit. Once Mr. Covington reached Route 210, he increased his speed to 85 to 95 mph. When the pursuit crossed into Forest Heights, Md., two Forest Heights police officers responded to a call for assistance. A police helicopter was also dispatched to assist with the pursuit. As the pursuit approached the Suitland Parkway and 30th Street SE in Washington, D.C., the carjacked vehicle hit a curb and the front tire became flat. Mr. Covington did not stop. Mr. Covington continued onto Naylor Road SE, before turning left onto Gainesville Street SE.

 

            According to the evidence, Mr. Covington bailed out of the car and attempted to flee on foot, at one point jumping over a fence. He did not respond to orders from police to stop or show his hands. During a foot pursuit, Mr. Covington was armed with a gun and he pointed the weapon at police. The four officers from Prince George’s County and Forest Heights, who were involved in the pursuit, discharged their weapons during the confrontation, fatally wounding Mr. Covington.

 

            Mobile Crime technicians recovered a 9mm Luger semi-automatic handgun near Mr. Covington’s body. The handgun had one round in the chamber and 11 rounds in the magazine; the magazine has a capacity of 15 rounds. Two of the officers involved in the shooting reported that they believed Mr. Covington fired the gun during the confrontation, but no shell casings were found and there is insufficient evidence to determine whether Mr. Covington had recently fired the weapon.

 

            An autopsy determined that Mr. Covington, 62, died from multiple gunshot wounds.

 

            After a careful, thorough, and independent review of the evidence, federal prosecutors have found insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers used excessive force under the circumstances. To the contrary, there is sufficient evidence that the officers were acting in self-defense at the time of the shooting.

 

Use-of-force investigations generally

 

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office reviews all police-involved fatalities to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to conclude that any officers violated either federal criminal civil rights laws or District of Columbia law. To prove such violations, prosecutors must typically be able to prove that the involved officers willfully used more force than was reasonably necessary. Proving “willfulness” is a heavy burden. Prosecutors must not only prove that the force used was excessive, but must also prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the officer acted with the deliberate and specific intent to do something the law forbids. A conclusion that “there is insufficient evidence” is not meant to suggest anything further about what evidence, if any, exists.

 

            The U.S. Attorney’s Office remains committed to investigating allegations of excessive force by law enforcement officers and will continue to devote the resources necessary to ensure that all allegations of serious civil rights violations are fully and completely investigated. The Metropolitan Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division investigates all police-involved fatalities in the District of Columbia.

WASHINGTON – Jabarr Emerson Jr. and Dalonte Stewart, both 16 years old and from Washington, D.C., have been sentenced to prison terms for robbing two people inside their home last September in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Philips announced today.

 

     Emerson and Stewart were charged as adults given the serious nature of their crimes. Emerson pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia in January 2017, and Stewart in December 2016, to armed robbery for their roles in the crime. Emerson also pled guilty to robbery in a separate case.

 

     The Honorable Maribeth Raffinan sentenced both defendants to four years in prison for the armed robbery. She also sentenced Emerson to an additional 18 months in prison for the second robbery offense. Following their prison terms, both will be placed on five years of supervised release. Emerson was sentenced today and Stewart was sentenced March 9, 2017.

 

     According to the government’s evidence, on Sept. 22, 2016, at about 12:45 a.m., Emerson, Stewart, and an accomplice, all wearing masks, approached a woman in the 1900 block of Lincoln Road NE. One assailant grabbed the victim from behind and placed her in a chokehold while pointing a handgun to her head. The group demanded her money, and she replied that she did not have any. When asked where her money was located, she told them that it was inside her apartment, and the three then forced the victim into her home.

 

     Once inside the apartment, the assailants realized that a man was also present, and subsequently they held him at gunpoint and demanded his money, too. The victims told the assailants that they had a safe and where the key could be found. The assailants retrieved the key, located the safe, opened the safe, and took approximately $400.

 

     Emerson also pled guilty to a second robbery on Aug. 26, 2016, also in Northeast Washington. In this instance, at 2:50 a.m., the victim had just arrived at his home in the unit block of R Street NE. He was walking into his basement apartment when Emerson and a second assailant approached from behind. The victim heard a noise, turned around, and saw Emerson and his cohort, wearing hooded sweatshirts tied around their faces, with long guns that appeared to be sawed-off shotguns. One of the assailants demanded that the victim open the door, get on his knees, and crawl through the door while the gun was placed to the back of his head. Once inside the residence, the two intruders demanded the man’s money and other property. The man gave them $40, an iPhone and several credit cards. The two also took the man’s two laptops, and one also went through the man’s pockets. They then asked if anyone else was home. When they learned that a roommate was in a bedroom, one of the assailants went inside. The roommate woke up when the bedroom lights were turned on, and he saw one of the intruders pointing a sawed-off shotgun at his head. The intruder went through the roommate’s suitcase and pants, walked out of room with two credit cards, and he and his accomplice left the residence.

 

     Emerson and Stewart were arrested in November 2016.

 

     In announcing the sentences, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the cases from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Latent Fingerprint Unit of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard Barker and Vivien Cockburn, who prosecuted the matter.

WASHINGTON – CA Inc. (CA) has agreed to pay $45 million to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act that it made false statements and claims in the negotiation and administration of a General Services Administration (GSA) contract, the Department of Justice announced today. CA is an information technology management software and services company headquartered in New York, New York.

 

            “Today’s settlement demonstrates our continuing vigilance to ensure that contractors deal forthrightly with federal agencies when seeking taxpayer funds,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “We will take action against contractors who withhold information and cause the government to pay more than it should for commercially available items.”

 

            “This case illustrates that we will vigorously pursue federal contractors who fail to negotiate and perform their obligations with transparency and fairness,” said U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia. “Together with our federal partners, we will zealously press such claims in court to recover what is owed to the American taxpayer.”

 

            The settlement resolves allegations related to a GSA contract awarded to CA for software licenses and maintenance services. Under Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contracts like this one, GSA pre-negotiates prices and contract terms for subsequent orders by federal agencies. At the time of CA’s contract, contractors were required to fully and accurately disclose to GSA how they conducted business in the commercial marketplace so that GSA could use that information to negotiate a fair price for government agencies using the GSA contract to purchase CA products and services. The contract also contained a price reduction clause that set forth when the contractor had to reduce the prices it charged to the government if its prices to commercial customers improved.

 

            This settlement resolves allegations that CA did not fully and accurately disclose its discounting practices to GSA contracting officers. Specifically, the agreement resolves claims that CA provided false information about the discounts it gave commercial customers for its software licenses and maintenance services at the time the contract was negotiated in 2002 and was extended in 2007 and 2009. Additionally, the settlement resolves claims that CA violated the price reduction clause in the contract by not providing government customers with additional discounts when commercial discounts improved.

 

            “GSA contractors must be honest and forthcoming when doing business with the federal government,” said GSA Inspector General Carol Fortine Ochoa. “American taxpayers deserve a fair deal.”

 

            The allegations against CA were first made in a whistleblower lawsuit filed under the False Claims Act by Dani Shemesh, a former employee of CA Software Israel LTD. Under the False Claims Act, private individuals can sue on behalf of the government and share in any recovery. The False Claims Act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did, in part, in this case. Shemesh’s share of the settlement is $10.195 million.

 

            This case was handled by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and the GSA Office of Inspector General.

 

            The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Shemesh v. CA, Inc., No. 09-1600 (D.D.C.) The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.

CA Inc. (CA) has agreed to pay $45 million to resolve allegations under the False Claims Act that it made false statements and claims in the negotiation and administration of a General Services Administration (GSA) contract, the Department of Justice announced today.  CA is an information technology management software and services company headquartered in New York, New York.  

“Today’s settlement demonstrates our continuing vigilance to ensure that contractors deal forthrightly with federal agencies when seeking taxpayer funds,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “We will take action against contractors who withhold information and cause the government to pay more than it should for commercially available items.” 

The settlement resolves allegations related to a GSA contract awarded to CA for software licenses and maintenance services.  Under Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contracts like this one, GSA pre-negotiates prices and contract terms for subsequent orders by federal agencies.  At the time of CA’s contract, contractors were required to fully and accurately disclose to GSA how they conducted business in the commercial marketplace so that GSA could use that information to negotiate a fair price for government agencies using the GSA contract to purchase CA products and services.  The contract also contained a price reduction clause that set forth when the contractor had to reduce the prices it charged to the government if its prices to commercial customers improved.  

This settlement resolves allegations that CA did not fully and accurately disclose its discounting practices to GSA contracting officers.  Specifically, the agreement resolves claims that CA provided false information about the discounts it gave commercial customers for its software licenses and maintenance services at the time the contract was negotiated in 2002 and was extended in 2007 and 2009. Additionally, the settlement resolves claims that CA violated the price reduction clause in the contract by not providing government customers with additional discounts when commercial discounts improved.  

 “This case illustrates that we will vigorously pursue federal contractors who fail to negotiate and perform their obligations with transparency and fairness,” said U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia.  “Together with our federal partners, we will zealously press such claims in court to recover what is owed to the American taxpayer.” 

“GSA contractors must be honest and forthcoming when doing business with the federal government,” said GSA Inspector General Carol Fortine Ochoa.  “American taxpayers deserve a fair deal.”

The allegations against CA were first made in a whistleblower lawsuit filed under the False Claims Act by Dani Shemesh, a former employee of CA Software Israel LTD.  Under the False Claims Act, private individuals can sue on behalf of the government and share in any recovery.  The False Claims Act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did, in part, in this case.  Shemesh’s share of the settlement is $10.195 million.

This case was handled by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and the GSA Office of Inspector General.

The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Shemesh v. CA, Inc., No. 09-1600 (D.D.C.) The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.

WASHINGTON – Therion Bryant, 49, of Baltimore, Md., and formerly of Washington, D.C., was indicted today on one count of first-degree murder while armed for the 1993 slaying of a woman in Northwest Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            The indictment was returned by a grand jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Bryant is to be arraigned March 10, 2017 before the Honorable Hiram E. Puig-Lugo.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, on the morning of Oct. 16, 1993, the almost completely naked body of the victim, Charlene Johnson, was discovered at the bottom of a stairwell to the rear, basement entrance of a row home in the 3600 block of New Hampshire Avenue Northwest. The District of Columbia’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined that Ms. Johnson, 25, was killed as a result of multiple stab wounds.

 

            DNA evidence was obtained from the victim’s body and in the area surrounding where Ms. Johnson was found. Bryant was identified as a suspect in 2014 through the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), a web of state and national databases containing DNA profiles from convicted offenders and crime scenes that is used as an investigative tool. He was arrested on June 1, 2016, by members of the Capital Area Regional Fugitive Task Force.

 

            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 Metropolitan Police Department with assistance from the FBI’s Laboratory Division. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sharon Donovan.

WASHINGTON – Dominick Simons, 26, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to charges of first-degree sexual abuse, robbery, and attempted robbery, for three separate crimes against victims he accosted at or near Metro stations within a two-day span, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Ron Pavlik, Chief of the Metro Transit Police, and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            Simons pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia before the Honorable Judith Bartnoff. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for a sentence within the range of 22 to 30 years in prison. In addition to prison, Simons will be required to register as a sex offender for the remainder of his life. Judge Bartnoff set a hearing for May 12, 2017, to determine whether the plea will be accepted.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, Simons approached a 26-year-old male victim on May 21, 2016, at approximately 4:40 p.m., while both were exiting the L’Enfant Metro station in Southwest Washington. As they approached the 400 block of 7th Street SW, Simons asked the victim whether he knew of anyone interested in buying a gun that the defendant currently had in his possession. The victim answered, “No.” Simons then told the victim that he needed money and did not want to have to shoot the victim. Simons took his right hand and placed it inside of his sweatshirt to suggest that he was reaching for a firearm. The victim said that he did not have any money. Simons then directed the victim to walk to the nearest ATM, which was at a CVS store on 4th Street SW. There, the victim withdrew $100 and gave it to the defendant. Simons also took the victim’s cell phone before separating from the victim.

 

            Two days later, at approximately 3 p.m. on May 23, 2016, Simons approached a 17-year-old male victim while walking into the Bethesda Metro station in Montgomery County, Maryland. As they approached the mezzanine level of the station, Simons asked the victim if he could use the victim’s cellular telephone. The victim said, “Yes.” The victim then gave his phone to the defendant to use, at which point Simons immediately began to walk away.

 

            The victim followed Simons and told him to return the phone. Simons turned towards the victim and told him he was keeping the phone, that he had a “.38,” and that if the victim made any “noise” about the phone, the defendant would “blow [his] [expletive] brains out over the Metro station.” Simons opened his sweatshirt and brandished an object that the victim perceived to be the butt of a handgun. Simons then returned the phone to the victim after learning that the victim was only 17 years old. Simons, however, ordered the minor to board a train traveling to the District. He and the victim exited the train at Friendship Heights and entered the Chevy Chase Pavilion in Northwest Washington. Simons then ordered the victim to enter a bathroom and stand against the wall of a stall, at which point the defendant sexually assaulted him.

 

            After a few moments, the victim told Simons, “No, I have to go. Let me go.” The victim pushed Simons to get out of the stall, at which point the victim patted the area of his jacket where the victim had seen the butt of a handgun. The victim said, “No. I’m done. I have to go. Let me leave.” Simons directed the victim to keep his voice down, but the minor replied, “I’ll scream if you don’t let me go now.” Simons allowed the victim to exit the bathroom.

 

            Simons eventually walked back to the Friendship Heights Metro station, where he boarded a train towards downtown Washington. He exited the train at the Van Ness station. At approximately 5:20 p.m., he approached a 14-year-old boy in the mezzanine level of the train station and told the victim, “I have a gun on me. I don’t want to have to use it. Do you have any money or jewelry on you?” then took his right hand and placed it inside of his sweatshirt to suggest that he was reaching for a firearm. The victim responded, “No.” then asked the victim if he was in possession of a cellular telephone and a fare card. The victim removed his phone and fare card from his pocket and handed it to the defendant. used the card to open the fare gates and left the victim behind. After the victim lost sight of , he went to the station kiosk and reported the incident to a manager.

 

            Simons was ultimately arrested at approximately 7 p.m., at the Gallery Place Metro station, where he admitted that he had the child’s phone in his pocket.

 

            In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Chief Pavlik, and Acting Chief Newsham commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the Metro Transit Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Division and Metropolitan Police Department’s First District. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Angelina Slagle and Victim Witness Advocate Veronica Vaughan. Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Danny Nguyen and L’Shaunteé Robertson, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

WASHINGTON – Robert Lewis, 21, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to burglary and robbery charges stemming from separate incidents in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.

 

            Lewis pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to second-degree burglary, robbery, and contempt. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon sentence of five years in prison. The Honorable Kimberley S. Knowles set a hearing for June 2, 2017 to determine whether the plea and sentence will be accepted.

 

            The guilty plea comes less than a week after Lewis was found guilty by a jury in another case of second-degree burglary and second-degree theft, with a finding that the crimes were committed while Lewis was on pretrial release. He is to be sentenced in that case on June 2, 2017, by the Honorable Juliet McKenna. Under the Court’s voluntary sentencing guidelines, he could face an additional three to five years in prison on those charges.

 

            In today’s guilty plea, Lewis admitted to carrying out a burglary during the daytime hours of Oct. 16, 2015 in the 700 block of Taylor Street NW. A laptop and several other items were stolen from that home. The laptop was found about six weeks later when law enforcement executed a search at Lewis’s apartment in Northeast Washington.

 

            Lewis also admitted taking part in an armed robbery that took place at about 2:45 p.m. on June 24, 2016, in the 600 block of Buchanan Street NW. A co-defendant, Donathan Taylor, 19, pled guilty on March 3, 2017, to an armed robbery charge in the robbery, and is to be sentenced on May 19, 2017. Finally, Lewis pled guilty to a contempt charge for leaving a halfway house, where he was being held while awaiting trial, without authorization on June 22, 2016.

 

            The verdict in the case last week followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on charges stemming from a burglary on April 9, 2015 at a home in the unit block of Gallatin Street NW, in which a laptop was taken. At the time of the burglary, Lewis was on pretrial release in another case. Fingerprint evidence linked him to the crime.

 

            In announcing the plea and verdict, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the cases from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Latent Fingerprint Unit of the Forensic Science Laboratory of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the cases from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael J. Romano, Alysa Kociuruba, and Kamil E. Shields, who prosecuted the matters leading to today’s guilty pleas, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kociuruba and C.B. Buente, who prosecuted the matter that led to the verdict last week.

WASHINGTON – Luvell Alverson, 23, of Suitland, Md., was sentenced today to 14 years and four months in prison for robbing four people at gunpoint last summer in Southeast Washington and then firing a gun at police officers, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            Alverson pled guilty in October 2016, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to four counts of armed robbery and three counts of assaulting a police officer while armed. The plea, which was contingent upon the Court’s approval, called for a prison sentence of 10 to 16 years. The Honorable Danya A. Dayson accepted the plea today and sentenced the defendant accordingly. After his prison term, Alverson will be placed on five years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, during the evening of July 11, 2016, and into the early morning hours of July 12, 2016, Alverson was with five other individuals; all arrived in a Lincoln Navigator that was parked behind Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School in the area of the 600 block of Alabama Avenue SE. While behind the school, Alverson retrieved a semi-automatic handgun and went to a nearby basketball court, where four men were playing basketball. Alverson brandished the gun, ordered the men to the ground, and took their cell phones and keys. Before leaving, he fired multiple shots at the ground.

 

            After the robberies, Alverson returned to his group and they all entered the Lincoln Navigator, with Alverson in the rear. As the vehicle attempted to leave the school, it was met by a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) vehicle containing three officers who were responding to a report of shots in the area. The Navigator’s path was blocked by the MPD vehicle, and the Navigator backed up and stopped. Alverson lowered the rear passenger window and fired multiple shots in the direction of the officers. Officers returned fire, and Alverson left the vehicle and fled. He was identified and arrested later on July 12, 2016, and has been in custody ever since.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Acting Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney William E. Schurmann, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

WASHINGTON – Joseph N. Davenport, 45, of Washington, D.C., has pled guilty to charges of robbery and obstruction of justice for beating and robbing an acquaintance at her apartment, and then trying to get his girlfriend to lie about his whereabouts at the time of the attack, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced today.

 

            The plea took place on March 6, 2017, before the Honorable Zoe Bush in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon sentence of nine years in prison. Judge Bush scheduled a hearing for June 2, 2017, to determine whether the plea and sentence will be accepted.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, in the early morning hours of May 1, 2014, Davenport went to the Southeast Washington apartment of a female acquaintance who lived in the same complex as Davenport’s then-girlfriend. He told the woman that his girlfriend had put him out of her apartment and that he needed a place to stay. He asked whether he could spend the night sleeping on the victim’s couch. When the victim told Davenport “no,” he became enraged, punched her in the face, and knocked her onto a glass-topped table, which shattered as she fell through it. He then grabbed her debit card and other property and fled.

 

            An arrest warrant was issued and Davenport was arrested on May 6, 2014. A few days later, he called his then-girlfriend from the District of Columbia Jail, where all such calls are recorded. During that call, Davenport tried to get his girlfriend to create a false alibi for him for the time during which he was beating and robbing the other woman. She refused to do so. Prosecutors subpoenaed Davenport’s jail calls and this call became the basis of the obstruction of justice charge to which Davenport pleaded.

 

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips praised the work of officers from the Seventh District of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and from a joint task force comprised of members of the MPD and U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. He also expressed appreciation for the work of the Special Police Officers from the apartment complex, who assisted in the investigation of the case.

 

            He acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Colleen M. Kennedy, Special Counsel for Mental Health Litigation; Assistant U.S. Attorney Silvia Gonzalez Roman, of the Office’s Special Proceedings Division; Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation; Paralegal Specialists D’Yvonne Key, Donhue Troy Griffith and Brenda C. Williams; Victim/Witness Advocate Lezlie Richardson; Criminal Investigators Melissa Matthews and Nelson Rhone; Investigative Analysts Shannon Alexis, William Hamann, and Sharon Johnson; Information Technology Specialist Aneela Bhatia, and Legal Intern Emma McArthur. Finally, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Aziz, Kenechukwu Okocha and Peter V. Taylor, who investigated and prosecuted this case.

WASHINGTON - Johnathan Waddell, 18, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to charges stemming from two robberies of taxicab drivers that took place within a one-week period in December of 2016, announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            Waddell pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to one count of armed robbery and another count of attempted robbery. The Honorable Kimberley S. Knowles

scheduled sentencing for May 15, 2017.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, on Dec. 12, 2016, at approximately 6 p.m., Waddell entered a cab at Union Station in Washington, D.C., and requested that the driver take him to 300 Evarts Street NE. When they arrived at the intersection of Third and Evarts Streets, Waddell said he would get out there. The taxicab driver turned around to tell Waddell how much money was owed. At that point, Waddell brandished a handgun and demanded money. The driver handed him his wallet, and Waddell fled the scene with between $100 and $200.

 

            The second robbery took place on Dec. 18, 2016, at approximately 5:30 p.m. Once again, Waddell entered a cab at Union Station and asked to be taken to 300 Evarts Street. When they arrived at Third and Evarts Streets, Waddell had his hands in his pockets and acted as though he aimed a weapon. He told the driver: “Give me your money.” The driver took about $16 from his pocket and turned it over, and Waddell once again fled the scene.

 

            Detectives with the Metropolitan Police Department reviewed surveillance footage from Union Station and noticed that the riders from both robberies appeared to be the same person. Further investigation led to Waddell’s arrest on Dec. 21, 2016. He has been in custody ever since.

 

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips and Acting Chief Newsham commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael J. Christin, Vanessa Goodwin, and Shana L. Fulton, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON – Donathan Taylor, 19, of Washington, D.C., has pled guilty to charges stemming from two robberies and a home break-in, all committed in broad daylight and in different neighborhoods, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced today.

 

            Taylor pled guilty on March 3, 2017, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of armed robbery, robbery, and destruction of property. The plea, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for an agreed-upon sentence of seven years in prison. The Honorable Kimberley S. Knowles set a hearing for May 19, 2017 to determine whether the plea and sentence will be accepted.

 

            In his guilty plea, Taylor admitted involvement in three crimes: damaging a door during a home break-in that took place at about 10:30 a.m. on April 1, 2015, in the 200 block of 17th Street NE; a robbery that took place at about 11:35 a.m. on May 25, 2016, in the 1600 block of G Street SE, and an armed robbery that took place at about 2:45 p.m. on June 24, 2016, in the 600 block of Buchanan Street NW. A co-defendant is awaiting trial in the latter robbery.

 

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Latent Fingerprint Unit of the Forensic Science Laboratory of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael J. Romano and Kamil E. Shields, who prosecuted the case.

WASHINGTON - Demetrius Banks, 33, of Riverdale, Md., was sentenced today to life in prison with no possibility of release, plus 82 years, for assaulting five women at knifepoint who were walking home alone from Metro stations. Two of the victims were sexually assaulted.

 

            The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and Ron Pavlik, Chief of the Metro Transit Police.

 

            Banks was found guilty by a jury in November 2016 of 23 felony counts, following a four-week trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Banks was found guilty of three counts of first-degree sexual abuse while armed with aggravating circumstances; one count of attempted first-degree sexual abuse with aggravating circumstances; one count of third-degree sexual abuse with aggravating circumstances; five counts of robbery while armed; four counts of kidnapping while armed; four counts of assault with a dangerous weapon; four counts of threats, and one count of credit card fraud. He was sentenced by the Honorable José M. Lopez.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, the assaults occurred over a one-month period, from July 28 to Aug. 28, 2015, and included this series of attacks:

 

            July 28, 2015: The defendant’s first victim, a 21-year-old cashier, was walking home alone after work, headed from the Fort Totten Metro station at about 10:30 p.m. The victim encountered Banks, a stranger to her, standing in the unit block of Riggs Road NE. As she passed him, he suddenly grabbed her from behind, pressed a knife to her side, and threatened to kill her. He forced her at knifepoint into a dark driveway behind a school. He then raped her and robbed her. The victim was taken to Washington Hospital Center, where she underwent a sexual assault examination, which included collection of forensic evidence.

 

            July 31, 2015: The second victim, a 26-year-old bartender, was walking home from the Fort Totten Metro station at about midnight, in the 800 block of Gallatin Street NE. Banks pretended to be leaving a house on the block, then grabbed the victim from behind and forced her at knifepoint into a dark alleyway, where he robbed her.

 

            Aug. 4, 2015: The third victim, a 26-year-old government employee, was walking home from the Fort Totten Metro station at approximately 10:30 p.m., taking the same route as the first victim. In the unit block of Riggs Road NE - across the street from where the defendant had committed a sexual assault exactly one week earlier - Banks grabbed this victim from behind, threatened her with a knife, and began dragging her by her hair into a nearby wooded area. When a passerby saw the assault and intervened, Banks grabbed the victim’s purse and fled.

 

            Aug. 23, 2015: The fourth victim, a 41-year-old server, was walking home from the Fort Totten Metro station at about 3:30 a.m. when Banks approached her and demanded she give him her property. He was again armed with a knife. This robbery occurred in the 600 block of Gallatin Street NE, a couple of blocks from the July 31, 2015 attack.

 

            Aug. 28, 2015: The fifth victim, a 22-year-old waitress, was walking home from the Brookland Metro station, one stop from the Fort Totten station, at about midnight. Banks pretended to arrive at a house, and when the victim passed him by, he grabbed her from behind and forced her at knifepoint into a dark driveway. In the driveway, he raped and robbed her. The victim was able to escape and ran naked into the middle of the street, where police officers happened to drive by and find her. She was also taken to Washington Hospital Center and underwent a sexual assault examination, which included collection of forensic evidence.

 

            Detectives with the Metropolitan Police Department obtained surveillance footage of the defendant using the fifth victim’s credit card shortly after sexually assaulting and robbing her. This footage was broadcast by the news media, and tips led to the identification of Banks as a suspect. In subsequent forensic testing, the defendant’s DNA was found on evidence collected during the sexual assault examinations of the two victims. The police investigation also uncovered that Banks had used the credit cards of the third and fifth victims at convenience stores shortly after those assaults. In addition, investigation by the Metro Transit Police Department revealed that Banks had been using the Metro cards of both sexual assault victims to travel around the city. When search warrants were executed for the defendant’s home and property with the assistance of the Prince George’s County Police Department, police recovered numerous items of property belonging to the third and fifth victims, as well as victims from unrelated cases. Banks was arrested on Sept. 4, 2015.

 

            In announcing the sentences, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Acting Chief Newsham, and Chief Pavlik commended the work of detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Sexual Assault Unit and Fourth Police District, as well as the Metro Transit Police Department. They also commended those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patricia A. Riley, Chrisellen Kolb, and Deborah Sines; Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation; Paralegal Specialists Wanda Trice, D’Yvonne Key, Angelina Slagle, Michelle Wicker, Kathryn Hoey, and Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; Victim/Witness Advocates Lezlie Richardson, Tracey Hawkins, and Veronica Vaughan; Litigation Technology Specialists Leif Hickling and Anisha Bhatia; David Foster, Katina Adams-Washington, and La June Thames, all of the Victim/Witness Assistance Unit; Criminal Investigators Durand Odom and Mark Crawford; Investigative Analysts William Hamann and Sharon Johnson, and Computer Forensic Examiner John Marsh.

 

            Finally, they acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason Park and Julianne Johnston, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

The Justice Department filed a proposed consent decree today to resolve a complaint that the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) discriminated against a job applicant on the basis of his disability, in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

 

The department’s complaint alleges that WMATA extended a job offer as an elevator/escalator parts supervisor to an applicant but withdrew the offer upon learning that the applicant had epilepsy. The complaint further alleges that WMATA failed to discuss with the applicant how his disability might affect his ability to do the job or whether there were any available accommodations that would allow him to do the job.

 

As part of the consent decree, which is subject to approval by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, WMATA will institute new policies to ensure that employees and job applicants with disabilities have the opportunity to confer with WMATA about their limitations as well as opportunities for reasonable accommodation in the workplace. WMATA will also ensure that supervisors are fully trained in those policies. In addition, WMATA has agreed to pay $175,000 in compensatory damages to the applicant. This matter was based on a referral from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s Washington Field Office, which completed the initial investigation of the facts.

 

“The ADA mandates that job applicants with disabilities receive fair and equal consideration in the hiring process,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Tom Wheeler of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This settlement provides for new hiring policies that will protect against discriminatory practices and safeguard the rights of all individuals with disabilities who seek employment with WMATA. We commend WMATA for agreeing to revise its policies and offering to compensate the job applicant.”

 

“The discriminatory conduct in this case deprived a qualified candidate of a job opportunity and caused him economic and emotional stress,” said U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia. “This case shows there will be consequences for employers who fail to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. We are pleased that WMATA recognizes the need for new policies and will compensate the job candidate.”

 

To read the consent decree, please visit http://www.ada.gov/wmata/wmata_cd.html. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. For more information on the Civil Rights Division’s Disability Rights Section, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov.

 

WMATA Consent Decree

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department filed a proposed consent decree today to resolve a complaint that the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) discriminated against a job applicant on the basis of his disability, in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

 

            The department’s complaint alleges that WMATA extended a job offer as an elevator/escalator parts supervisor to an applicant but withdrew the offer upon learning that the applicant had epilepsy. The complaint further alleges that WMATA failed to discuss with the applicant how his disability might affect his ability to do the job or whether there were any available accommodations that would allow him to do the job.

 

            As part of the consent decree, which is subject to approval by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, WMATA will institute new policies to ensure that employees and job applicants with disabilities have the opportunity to confer with WMATA about their limitations as well as opportunities for reasonable accommodation in the workplace. WMATA will also ensure that supervisors are fully trained in those policies. In addition, WMATA has agreed to pay $175,000 in compensatory damages to the applicant. This matter was based on a referral from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s Washington Field Office, which completed the initial investigation of the facts.

 

            “The ADA mandates that job applicants with disabilities receive fair and equal consideration in the hiring process,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Tom Wheeler of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This settlement provides for new hiring policies that will protect against discriminatory practices and safeguard the rights of all individuals with disabilities who seek employment with WMATA. We commend WMATA for agreeing to revise its policies and offering to compensate the job applicant.”

 

            “The discriminatory conduct in this case deprived a qualified candidate of a job opportunity and caused him economic and emotional stress,” said U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia. “This case shows there will be consequences for employers who fail to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. We are pleased that WMATA recognizes the need for new policies and will compensate the job candidate.”

 

            To read the consent decree and complaint, please visit http://www.ada.gov/wmata/wmata_cd.html. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. For more information on the Civil Rights Division’s Disability Rights Section, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov.

INTERPOL Washington partnered with U.S. and international law enforcement agencies to bring down four multi-million dollar international fraud and money laundering schemes perpetrated by a transnational organized crime network.  In a March 1st news conference announcing the indictment of 19 individuals, Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Channing D. Phillips lauded the contributions of and coordination between U.S. and international law enforcement partners.

Sixteen of the 19 defendants were arrested overnight and today in a law enforcement operation coordinated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Another was previously arrested, and two remain at large. The arrests took place in New York and Los Angeles, as well as Hungary, Bulgaria, Germany, and Israel. The arrests were conducted by more than 50 law enforcement agents.

INTERPOL Washington began providing support for these cases in 2015. Information gleaned through various INTERPOL and other database queries, participation in operational case meetings and conference calls, as well as processing of multiple routine and urgent notices by INTERPOL Washington contributed to the successful investigations.

 “These indictments and today’s arrests followed an international investigation into an interconnected web of money launderers, fraudsters and individuals that aided and abetted their criminal activities,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “The defendants in the cases being unsealed today are accused of taking part in schemes in the United States and abroad, costing victims millions of dollars. The investigation demonstrates the importance of international cooperation amongst law enforcement in combatting fraud and money laundering on a global basis.”

Read the full news release from the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.

WASHINGTON – Federal indictments were unsealed today in the District of Columbia charging 19 people with taking part in various international fraud and money laundering conspiracies that led to more than $13 million in losses, including one scheme in which mid-level corporate employees were tricked into wiring millions of dollars to bank accounts under control of those in the criminal enterprise.

 

            The charges were announced by U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips; Assistant Director in Charge Andrew Vale of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; Assistant Inspector General for Investigations John L. Phillips of the U.S. Department of the Treasury; Special Agent in Charge Clark E. Settles of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Washington, D.C.; Assistant Director Joseph Trigg of INTERPOL Washington (U.S. National Central Bureau); Director Vaughn Ary of the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs; Acting Director Christian Schurman of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), and Special Agent in Charge Brian J. Ebert, Washington Field Office, U.S. Secret Service.

 

            Sixteen of the 19 defendants were arrested overnight and today in a law enforcement operation coordinated by the FBI. Another was previously arrested, and two remain at large. The arrests took place in New York and Los Angeles, as well as Hungary, Bulgaria, Germany, and Israel. The arrests were conducted by more than 50 law enforcement agents.

 

            The arrests followed a multi-year investigative effort by federal and international law enforcement agencies to target multimillion-dollar fraud and money laundering schemes perpetrated by a transnational organized crime network.

 

            “These indictments and today’s arrests followed an international investigation into an interconnected web of money launderers, fraudsters and individuals that aided and abetted their criminal activities,” said U.S. Attorney Phillips. “The defendants in the cases being unsealed today are accused of taking part in schemes in the United States and abroad, costing victims millions of dollars. The investigation demonstrates the importance of international cooperation amongst law enforcement in combatting fraud and money laundering on a global basis.”

 

            “Members of the transnational organized crime group who carried out these schemes were sophisticated, well connected and continually honed their techniques to exploit their victims,” said Assistant Director in Charge Vale. “In total, they stole more than $13 million from over 170 victims, primarily in the United States. Because of the dedication and perseverance by our law enforcement partners in the United States and abroad, the FBI’s multi-year investigation into these schemes and this international criminal network, has yielded the disruption or return of more than $56 million in victim funds.”

 

            “I would like to commend our law enforcement partners, the FBI, HSI and our international partners for the outstanding joint investigation that has led us to the arrests reported today,” said Assistant Inspector General Phillips. “Treasury OIG is committed to continuing to work with our law enforcement partners to protect the Treasury and the nation’s financial infrastructure from Transnational criminal organizations that attempt to exploit financial institutions and money service businesses and their anti-money laundering programs by moving illicit funds obtained in various scams perpetrated against businesses and citizens across the United States and the world that use the financial infrastructure of the United States to launder their illicit proceeds.”

 

            A total of four indictments were unsealed today in these alleged schemes:

 

            Online Vehicle Fraud: Participants in this scheme used the Internet to falsely advertise cars for sale that they did not own, the indictment alleges. Operating out of Europe, the participants marketed the cars on popular websites aiming to attract buyers in the United States. They offered prices that were lower than those offered by legitimate sellers. Prospective buyers were directed to deposit money into fraudulently created bank accounts via wire transfers. The funds were then immediately withdrawn and the expectant buyers never received any vehicles.

 

            The indictment alleges that the criminal activities took place from November 2010 until April 2013 in the District of Columbia and elsewhere. According to the indictment, the co-conspirators induced at least 170 victims, located primarily in the United States, collectively to transfer at least $4 million to bank accounts controlled by those in the conspiracy, and the co-conspirators were able to withdraw approximately $3.2 million from the fraudulently opened accounts in the United States.

 

            Eight defendants have been arrested and are charged with conspiracy to commit bank and mail fraud, conspiracy to commit a travel act violation, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. They include Alex Almasi, 35; Ferenc Gajdos, 33; Laszlo Hesz,, 41; Attila Kartaly, 35; Zoltan Koszegi, 41; Alfred Kuttenberg, 34; Attila Molnar, 37, and Gabor Pataki, 35, all of Hungary. Gajdos and Kuttenberg also are charged with one count each of bank fraud.

 

            Business Email Compromise (BEC): This scheme was an outgrowth of the vehicle fraud scheme, according to the indictment. The defendants allegedly used the Internet and primarily U.S.-based electronic communications to target mid-sized and large companies and impersonate executive-level employees in e-mail communications with mid-level employees. These mid-level employees were led to believe they were being entrusted to handle a large financial transaction, such as a “secret” corporate acquisition, the indictment alleges. The employees were instructed to initiate wire transfers from the company’s corporate bank accounts to bank accounts controlled by members of the criminal enterprise. Once the funds were transferred, the money was quickly wire transferred out of the reach of the target corporation into accounts located in the People’s Republic of China and elsewhere, with the funds ultimately being delivered to co-conspirators located in Europe and elsewhere.

 

            The indictment alleges that this scheme took place from approximately January 2014 through March 2015. The indictment details over $10 million in transactions involving six companies from Germany, Spain, Finland, and Portugal.

 

            Four defendants are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Those arrested include: Harry Meir Mimoun Amar aka “Harry Amar,” or “Ari Amar,” 38, a resident of Israel and a citizen of Morocco and Israel; Sabina Selimovic, a resident of Germany and citizen of Serbia; and Cristian Flamanzeanu aka “Christiano Flamanzeano,” 32, a resident and citizen of Romania. A fourth defendant remains at large.

 

            Unlicensed Money Transmitting Network: While investigating the fraud schemes and the co-conspirators’ related efforts to launder the fraud proceeds, law enforcement uncovered an unlicensed money transmitting network (“hawala”) operating in the United States, Europe, and Israel. This indictment reflects the FBI’s efforts to expose and identify certain “hawala” co-conspirators by transmitting FBI undercover funds through the “hawala” network in separate transactions in New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C. The activities charged in the indictment took place from June 2015 through April 2016.

 

            Six defendants were arrested and are charged with conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. Those arrested include Ori Saadon, 53, born in Israel and a resident of Israel; Itzhak Salama, 40, born in Israel and a resident of Los Angeles; Golan Chkechkov, 39, born in Israel and a resident of New York, New York.; Michael Admon, 50, born in Israel and a resident of New York, New York, and Haviv Arazi, 27, a citizen of Israel and a resident of New York, N.Y. A sixth defendant remains at large.

 

            International Money Laundering Conspiracy: This indictment alleges that Stanislav Nazarov, an Israeli citizen, generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in proceeds from various fraudulent schemes and engaged in international money laundering. Nazarov was arrested and is charged with three money laundering offenses during December 2016.

 

            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 investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Treasury with assistance from HSI Washington, D.C.; the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Secret Service Washington Field Office, and the DSS. Assistance was provided by the Israeli National Police; the Hungarian National Bureau of Investigation, Rapid Response and Special Police Services; Federal Criminal Police Office of Germany; Warsaw Metropolitan Police, and the Polish National Police, Police of the Czech Republic; the Slovak National Police; the General Inspectorate of Romanian Police, and Bulgaria's Ministry of Interior, Sofia Interpol, as well as INTERPOL Washington, the U.S. National Central Bureau. The FBI Legal Attaches in Warsaw, Tel Aviv, Budapest, Bucharest, Prague, and Berlin also provided assistance.

 

            This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael J. Marando and David Kent of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Assistance was provided by former Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Atkinson and David Last, former Paralegal Specialists Taryn McLaughlin and Angela Lawrence, Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Tasha Harris, Paralegal Specialists C. Rosalind Pressley, Brittany Phillips and Christopher Toms, and Litigation Technology Specialist Jeanie Latimore-Brown.

 

Attachments

Business Email Compromise Timeline
Hawala System

WASHINGTON – Paolo Aldorasi, 34, of London, was indicted today on a federal kidnapping charge stemming from the recent abduction of a man in the Georgetown area of Washington, D.C., announced U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips, Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department.

 

            Aldorasi was arrested by the FBI’s Seattle Field Office on Feb. 24, 2017, in SeaTac, Washington, on a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He made his first appearance on Feb. 27, 2017, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. He was ordered detained there pending a hearing set for March 2, 2017.

 

            The indictment today was returned by a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The charge of kidnapping carries a statutory maximum of life in prison.

 

            According to the complaint, the victim reported that he was abducted on the afternoon of Jan. 26, 2017, from the 3400 block of O Street NW. Aldorasi, who was operating a sport utility vehicle, pulled alongside the victim as he was walking on the street, the complaint alleges. According to the complaint, Aldorasi ordered the victim to get into the vehicle and demanded money. He allegedly took the victim to four ATMs in the District of Columbia, in unsuccessful attempts to withdraw money, as well as to two retail establishments. After about two hours, the complaint states, Aldorasi eventually released the victim, unharmed, in the District of Columbia.

 

            An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal laws and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.

 

            In announcing the indictment, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, and Acting Chief Newsham commended the work of those who are investigating the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department. They expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the FBI’s Seattle Field Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington. Finally, they acknowledged the efforts of those who are working on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including Paralegal Specialist Teesha Tobias, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emory V. Cole and Kamilah House, who are prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON – Gregory Hull, 22, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to offenses stemming from his role in a series of armed robberies that targeted commercial businesses in Washington, D.C. and Maryland during a four-week period in 2015.

 

            The guilty plea was announced by Channing D. Phillips, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

 

            Hull pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by robbery and two counts of interference with interstate commerce by robbery. He is to be sentenced on May 16, 2017, by the Honorable Amy Berman Jackson. He faces a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, he faces a likely range of 57 to 71 months in prison and a potential fine of $20,000 to $200,000. Hull remains held without bond pending sentencing.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, Hull and his co-defendants, Anthony Burns, 23, Bradley Lee, 21, and Lee’s brother, Breyon Lee, 23, committed a series of armed robberies of commercial businesses in November and December 2015.

 

            On Nov. 27, 2015, at approximately 2 p.m., store surveillance video captured Hull and two other men, who were armed with handguns, as they robbed the City Beats shoe store, located in the 3000 block of Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue SE. The men ordered everyone in the store to get on the floor, and forced a store employee to open the cash register. Hull and the two other men fled with approximately $1,594 in stolen cash and several pairs of stolen shoes.

 

            On Dec. 21, 2015, at approximately 8:30 p.m., four men entered the Rite Aid pharmacy located in the 4000 block of South Capitol Street SW. Surveillance video showed that two of the men had handguns. One of the men pointed a gun at a store employee and demanded money from a cash register. The employee was unable to open the register before the men fled together from the store. One of the men jumped over a pharmacy counter and grabbed several bottles, including a bottle of promethazine with codeine. Witnesses observed the men enter a stolen white BMW and flagged down MPD officers who were driving nearby. The police officers followed the BMW until it crashed in the Barry Farm neighborhood of Southeast Washington. All of the men fled on foot and escaped, except for Hull who was caught nearby and had the key to the stolen BMW on his person.

 

            The co-defendants, also of Washington, D.C., have pled not guilty to charges.

 

            In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Phillips, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, and Acting Chief Newsham commended the actions of those who worked on the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Prince George’s County, Md. Police Department. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including former Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret Barr, Paralegal Specialist Catherine O’Neal, and Legal Assistant Peter Gaboton. Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamila Hodge, who is prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON – Chaka Al-Fatah, 37, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty to a federal firearms charge today, concluding the prosecution of 16 defendants for narcotics and firearms offenses that resulted in felony convictions, lengthy periods of incarceration, and the forfeiture of assets.

 

            The plea was announced by Channing D. Phillips, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; Rod J. Rosenstein, U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland; Andrew Vale, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; Peter Newsham, Acting Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), Henry P. Stawinski III, Chief of the Prince George’s County, Md. Police Department; Robert D. MacLean, Chief of the United States Park Police, and Robert Turner, Acting U.S. Marshal for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

 

            Al-Fatah pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia before Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell to the possession of a firearm in furtherance of a narcotics trafficking offense. The plea agreement, which is contingent upon the Court’s approval, calls for a sentence of five to eight years in prison. Chief Judge Howell scheduled sentencing for April 21, 2017.

 

            Over the past 18 months, Chief Judge Howell has also accepted felony pleas from 15 others charged in the case. They include Andre Arrington, 34, of Washington, D.C.; Tijuan Arrington, 40, of Washington, D.C.; Donovan Bostick, 32, of Washington, D.C.; Tamara Davies-Henry, 28, of Oxon Hill, Md.; Donnell Ennels, 41, of Washington, D.C.; Earica Hamilton, 34, of Washington, D.C.; Ricco Johnson, 40, of Brandywine, Md.; Rodney Jones, 22, of Washington, D.C.; Kyree Mitchell, 20, of Washington, D.C.; Kevin Morris, 43, of Washington, D.C.; Demetrius Muschetta, 33, of Washington, D.C.; Jonathan Taylor, 33, of Washington, D.C.; Don Whitaker, 22, of Washington, D.C.; Myron Williams, 40, of Oxon Hill, Md., and William Winter, 38, of Suitland, Md.

 

            Notably, Chief Judge Howell sentenced Morris to 10 years of incarceration and Williams to nine years, each followed by multiple years of supervised release. A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for Muschetta for March 17, 2017, and pursuant to the plea agreement, Muschetta is to be sentenced to a term of 11 to 13 years of incarceration.

 

            As established through the defendant’s guilty pleas, in January 2015, the FBI/MPD Safe Streets Task Force began a long-term investigation into a narcotics enterprise involving Williams and Muschetta that primarily focused in the Barnaby Terrace area of Southeast Washington and extended into Maryland. The investigation revealed that Williams and Muschetta were partners in a drug business and purchased kilogram amounts of cocaine and heroin from multiple sources, including Johnson and Winter, and then in turn supplied it to other co-defendants for eventual distribution.

 

            In addition to numerous recorded telephone calls and text messages that revealed the role of the narcotics enterprise, law enforcement seized large amounts of narcotics, firearms, and cash. On April 6, 2015, law enforcement stopped Morris and recovered from his vehicle a kilogram of heroin. On May 6, 2015, law enforcement stopped Muschetta in Maryland and recovered from his vehicle three kilograms of heroin. Later that evening, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Muschetta’s residence in Washington, D.C. and recovered additional kilograms of narcotics and multiple firearms. During subsequent search warrants of the co-defendants’ residences, law enforcement recovered additional quantities of narcotics, firearms, narcotics paraphernalia, and large amounts of U.S. currency.

 

            The 16 defendants were arrested after months of investigation by the FBI/MPD Safe Streets Task Force, which is comprised of agents from the FBI, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Prince George’s County Police Department, the United States Park Police, and the United States Marshals Service. The Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force sponsored and supported this complex investigation

 

            In announcing the conclusion of the government’s prosecution, U.S. Attorney Phillips, U.S. Attorney Rosenstein, Assistant Director in Charge Vale, Acting Chief Newsham, Chief Stawinski, Chief MacLean, and Acting Marshal Turner commended the work of the D.C. Safe Streets Task Force.

 

            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. Attorneys Anthony Scarpelli and Christopher Macchiaroli of the Violent Crimes and Narcotics Trafficking Section; Assistant U.S. Attorney Zia Faruqui and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Bateman of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section; former Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Han and Todd Gee; Paralegal Specialists Candace Battle, Mary Downing, Teesha Tobias, Catherine O’Neal, and Toni Anne Donato, and Legal Assistants Brendan Coyne, Diane Brashears, and Latoya Wade. They also commended those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland including Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Sullivan, who prosecuted the Maryland portion of Muschetta’s narcotics seizure prior to the charges being transferred to Washington, D.C. for resolution before Chief Judge Howell.

WASHINGTON - Richard Butler, III, 35, formerly of Alexandria, Va., has been sentenced to a 17-year prison term for shooting at two Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officers and also firing at the occupant of a parked car that he tried to use as a shield in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips announced.

 

            Butler pled guilty in July 2016, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to assault of a police officer while armed, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, and unlawful possession of a firearm. He was sentenced on Feb. 17, 2017, by the Honorable Zoe Bush. Following his prison term, he will be placed on five years of supervised release.

 

            According to the government’s evidence, on Wednesday, March 23, 2016, at approximately 5:50 p.m., two Metropolitan Police Department officers saw a group of individuals gambling in an alley alongside 625 Mellon Street SE. The officers approached the group because they believed Butler resembled an individual wanted by law enforcement in Prince George’s County, Maryland, on a criminal charge. As the officers got closer to the group, Butler turned away from them and ran. At the time, Butler was wearing a backpack on his chest from which a protruding handgun could be seen. When Butler got to the end of the alley, he turned around, shot at the officers, and fled out of the alley. The officers returned fire and pursued Butler on foot through the surrounding neighborhood. During the foot chase, Butler attempted to use parked cars as shields while he shot at the officers. Inside one of the cars used by Butler was a man seated in the driver’s seat of the parked car. Butler shot directly through the windshield of the car. The man was not injured, but the windshield was damaged.

 

            Butler was stopped in a nearby alley. He was wearing a long-hair wig and was identified as the individual who shot at the officers and the parked car. Butler was also confirmed as the same individual wanted in Maryland, where his case remains pending. Along Butler’s flight path were two firearms.

 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jean Sexton and Sarah C. Santiago, who investigated the case and handled the sentencing.