District of Columbia

WASHINGTON – Chris Brown, 25, pled guilty today to a misdemeanor charge of simple assault stemming from an incident that took place last year outside a hotel in downtown Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Brown appeared in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and entered the guilty plea before the Honorable Senior Judge A. Franklin Burgess, Jr.

     A second defendant, Christopher Hollosy, 36, was found guilty in April 2014 of simple assault following a trial before the Honorable Senior Judge Patricia A. Wynn, also in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. Hollosy, of Glendale, Calif., is awaiting sentencing.

     “As Chris Brown himself has now finally acknowledged, he punched a man in the face without provocation in the District of Columbia,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “No matter your status or celebrity, you will be held accountable for such conduct in our city.”

     According to a proffer of facts submitted as part of the plea, signed by the defendant as well as the government, the assault took place at about 2:25 a.m. on Oct. 27, 2013, near the front of the W Hotel, in the 500 block of 15th Street NW. The victim, a 20-year-old man, was standing with two female friends near the front of the hotel when Brown exited one of the entrances. The two women approached Brown, and asked him if they could take a picture with him. Brown agreed to the request, and one of the women handed Hollosy a cellphone to take the picture.

     While the women were posing for the photo, the victim attempted to take a picture with the group. A verbal altercation ensued, and Brown punched the victim in the face with a closed fist. As stated in the proffer of facts, Brown’s actions were not justified by self-defense. At no point did Brown observe the victim act as the initial aggressor against anyone on the scene.

     The charge of simple assault carries a statutory maximum of 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. Under the plea agreement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office agreed not to seek additional jail time for this offense. The office took into account the fact that Brown accepted responsibility for his criminal conduct and that he served about 80 days of incarceration for a probation violation in California related to his arrest in this case, as well as the views of the victim. Brown remains on probation in California until early 2015.

     Judge Burgess agreed with the government’s recommendation and sentenced Brown to time served. He also ordered Brown to pay $150 in court costs.

     In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Kalisha Johnson-Clark and Lynette Briggs; Litigation Technology Specialists Aneela Bhatia, Anisha Bhatia, William Henderson, and Paul Howell; Criminal Investigator Melissa Matthews, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth Trosman, Chrisellen Kolb, and John Mannarino, of the Appellate Section.

     Finally, he expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kendra Briggs and Kevin Andrew Chambers, who prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON – Keir Johnson, 24, a member of a criminal street gang based at 14th and Girard Streets in Northwest Washington, was sentenced today to a 54-year prison term on murder and other charges stemming from a conspiracy to assault, kill, and threaten rivals and obstruct justice.

     The sentence, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department, and Robert D. MacLean, Acting Chief of the U.S. Park Police.

     Three co-defendants -- Robert Givens, 21, Lester Williams, 26, and Marcellus Jackson, 26 – were sentenced in June 2014 to decades in prison for their roles in the crimes.

     The men, all from Washington, D.C., were found guilty by a jury in March 2014, following nearly four months of trial. Johnson, Givens, and Williams were found guilty of murder and other offenses. Jackson was found guilty of murder, conspiracy, assault with a dangerous weapon, and related offenses.

     The Honorable Lynn Leibovitz sentenced Johnson today. In June, she sentenced Givens to 30 years in prison; Williams to 47 ½ years of incarceration; and Jackson to 38 years.

     The 14th and Girard gang, also known as G-Rod, 1-4, and the Cut Crew, was centered in the areas of 14th and Girard and 14th and Fairmont Streets NW.  The group was engaged in a longstanding conflict with rival crews, especially ones that were based in the areas of 17th and Euclid Streets NW and the 600 block of Morton Street NW. The gang’s victims included Sean Robinson, 18, who was killed in the parking lot of a school in August 2010, and Jamal Coates, 21, who was killed following a funeral in September 2010.

     Givens was found guilty of second-degree murder while armed in the slaying of Mr. Robinson, as well as a charge of assault with a dangerous weapon involving a second victim shot at the scene. He also was found guilty of conspiracy, firearms offenses, and charges that he committed the crimes for the benefit of a criminal street gang.

     Johnson and Williams were each found guilty of first-degree murder while armed in the killing of Mr. Coates. They also were found guilty of assault with intent to kill in the shooting of another individual in that attack, as well as assault with a dangerous weapon for firing upon a third person that day. Johnson and Williams also were found guilty of conspiracy, firearms offenses, and charges that they committed the crimes for the benefit of a criminal street gang. Finally, Johnson also was found guilty of a charge of assault with intent to kill while armed stemming from a separate attack in June 2010 in which a man was wounded.

     In addition to conspiracy, Jackson was found guilty of second-degree murder in the slaying of Mr. Coates, assault with a dangerous weapon involving an attack against one of the individuals with Mr. Coates, and charges that he committed the offenses for the benefit of a criminal street gang.

     According to the government’s evidence, the shootings resulted from a longstanding conflict with rival crews. The government presented evidence of these and other crimes:

     June 27, 2010: Johnson chased, shot, and attempted to kill a rival crew member in the parking lot of a gas station in the 3400 block of Georgia Avenue NW.

            Aug. 11, 2010: Givens and others committed the murder of Mr. Robinson, who lived in the area of 17th and Euclid Streets, as well as the shooting of two 14-year-olds who were with him while they stood together in the parking lot of a school in the 2600 block of Mozart Street NW.

            Sept. 28, 2010: Johnson and Williams committed the murder of Mr. Coates, a rival crew member, near 13th and U Streets NW, during the funeral procession for a young female with family ties to the rival crew. In addition to shooting Mr. Coates, Williams and Johnson shot a second person in the attack and fired upon a third individual. Jackson provided assistance to Johnson and Williams.

            After the funeral shooting, the defendants took many steps to attempt to obstruct justice and avoid prosecution, such as trying to find and locate witnesses and in the case of two of the defendants, fleeing to North Carolina. 

            The men were indicted in December 2011, following an investigation by the Metropolitan Police Department, the U.S. Park Police, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Two other members of the crew earlier pled guilty to charges stemming from their violent conduct.
In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, MPD Chief Lanier, and Acting U.S. Park Police Chief MacLean thanked those who investigated the case from theMPD, the Park Police, and the DEA. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the U.S. Marshals Service; the FBI/MPD Safe Streets Task Force; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; the FBI Cellular Analysis Survey Team; the FBI Digital Forensic and Analysis Section; the U.S. Secret Service Forensic Sciences Division; the District of Columbia Department of Corrections Office of Investigative Services; the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences; the Washington D.C./Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area; the Alexandria, Va. Police Department; the Marlboro County, S.C. Sherriff’s Office, and the Miami-Dade County State’s Attorney’s Office. They also acknowledged the assistance of Bruce Budowle, PhD, executive director of the University of North Texas Health Science Center’s Institute of Investigative Genetics.

            They expressed appreciation for the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including former Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sharad Khandelwal and Joseph P. Cooney, who helped secure the indictment; Assistant U.S. Attorney Kacie Weston, who assisted with trial preparation; Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chrisellen Kolb and David Goodhand who assisted with legal analysis; and Michael Ambrosino, Special Counsel for DNA and Forensic Evidence Litigation. In addition, they acknowledged the work of Legal Assistants Kendra Johnson, Marian Russell, Sharon Newman, Kwasi Fields, Philip Aronson, and Benjamin Kagan-Guthrie; former Intelligence Analyst Lawrence Grasso; Intelligence Analyst Zachary McMenamin; Information Technology Specialist Leif Hickling; Victim/Witness Security Specialists Michael Hailey, M. Laverne Forrest, Debra Cannon, Tanya Via, and Katina Adams; Victim/Witness Advocate Marcia Rinker; and Criminal Investigators Durand Odom, Tommy Miller, Mark Crawford, and Christopher Brophy.

            Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Todd Gee, Emily Miller, Laura Bach, and Deborah Sines, who prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON – Andre Townsend, 20, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to an eight-year prison term for his role in an armed home invasion that took place last fall in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Townsend pled guilty in March 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of armed robbery, first-degree burglary, tampering with physical evidence, and unlawful entry. He was sentenced by the Honorable William M. Jackson. Upon completion of his prison term, Townsend will be placed on five years of supervised release.

     According to the government’s evidence, Townsend and his accomplices, who were wearing ski masks, carried out the crimes at about 2:30 a.m. on Oct. 3, 2013. They saw a taxicab dropping off the victim in the 5700 block of Blaine Street NE. They followed the victim into his home. Once inside, they held the victim, the victim’s fiancé, and the victim’s mother at gunpoint for approximately 40 minutes while they ransacked the home and stole various items. Those items included cash, electronics, and the fiancé’s engagement ring, which the fiancé unsuccessfully tried to hide from the defendants during the burglary.

     Townsend and the other assailants left the home in two vehicles that belonged to the victims and deposited the proceeds from the burglary inside a vacant home on Raleigh Street SE. Worried that the police might recover fingerprints from the vehicles they had stolen, the men then drove the vehicles into a field adjacent to an elementary school on Alabama Avenue SE, set the vehicles on fire, and retreated on foot to the vacant home on Raleigh Street SE.

     One of the accomplices was wearing a GPS tracking device in connection with his supervised release in an unrelated robbery case. Members of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) used data generated by that device to track the defendants to the home on Raleigh Street SE. The police barricaded the residence and ultimately arrested all of the defendants in or near the residence. The police also recovered most of the proceeds of the burglary, along with several ski masks, from the Raleigh Street home. The police did not recover the engagement ring.

     A co-defendant in the case, Ricardo Blakeney, 21, of Washington, D.C., has pled guilty to second-degree burglary and is to be sentenced Oct. 17, 2014. A third co-defendant, Darnell Mason, 22, also of Washington, D.C., is scheduled for trial on Nov. 19, 2014.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen praised the work of the detectives and officers who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Richard Cheatham and Antoinette Sakamsa. Finally, U.S. Attorney Machen acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ben Schrader and Karen Seifert, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON – Abdul Ewumi, 39, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a 12-year prison term for attacking a co-worker with a sledgehammer last year at an auto body shop in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Ewumi was found guilty by a jury in July 2014, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, of assault with intent to kill while armed, aggravated assault while armed, and related offenses. He was sentenced by the Honorable William M. Jackson. Upon completion of his prison term, Ewumi will be placed on five years of supervised release.

     According to the government’s evidence, the victim and Ewumi worked in early 2013 as mechanics at an auto body shop on Benning Road NE. At Ewumi’s request, the victim repaired the transmission on a car. The owner of the car later returned the vehicle to Ewumi, complaining that, although the transmission was working properly, the heating system no longer worked.

     On April 1, 2013, Ewumi confronted the victim about the heating system issue. The victim denied responsibility. Ewumi became enraged, grabbed the victim by his head, pulled him across the exposed engine of a car the victim was working on, and began punching him in the back of the head. The shop manager, who was working in a nearby office, heard the commotion and intervened by separating the men.

     Ewumi nevertheless continued to threaten the victim. In an effort to dissuade Ewumi from antagonizing him, the victim threw a screwdriver across the garage, further enraging the defendant. Ewumi then retrieved his hand-held sledgehammer from his toolbox and ran towards the victim, shouting, “I’m gonna’ kill you!” Ewumi struck the victim in the head four to five times, leaving him with cuts to his head, a broken bone in his face, and more than $50,000 in medical bills. Another mechanic who was working outside the shop heard the second assault and intervened. The police arrived shortly thereafter and arrested the defendant.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen praised the work of the detectives and officers who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Richard Cheatham and Antoinette Sakamsa. Finally, U.S. Attorney Machen acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Ben Schrader, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

14-189

WASHINGTON – Justin Gage Jangraw, a former U.S. Army officer who operated a business that sold military-grade weapons parts and accessories, pled guilty today to violating the Arms Export Control Act by selling restricted items without a license. He also pled guilty to a separate charge stemming from his unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents that he obtained while he was in the Army.

     Jangraw, 34, of Rockford, Mich., entered the guilty plea in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

     The plea was announced by Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; John P. Carlin, Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice’s National Security Division; Ryan L. Spradlin, Acting Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) - Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Atlanta; Brad Bench, Special Agent in Charge U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) - Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Seattle; and Gregory T. Bretzing, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Portland, Oregon, Division.

     The Honorable James E. Boasberg scheduled sentencing for Nov. 21, 2014. The export charge carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison and the charge involving classified documents carries up to a year in prison. Both charges also carry potential financial penalties. In addition, Jangraw agreed, as a condition of his plea, to the forfeiture of an AR-15 assault rifle and 117 magazines, as well as various weapons parts, which were seized by law enforcement during the investigation.

     According to a statement of facts filed as part of the guilty plea, Jangraw is a former U.S. Army Captain once deployed to Iraq. He later operated an online business, using the names “Heapeach” and “Sexyweapon.com,” in Portland. The business sold military-grade weapons parts and accessories to customers located worldwide.

     The Arms Export Control Act (AECA) controls the export of defense articles as designated on the United States Munitions List. The AECA and its attendant regulations, the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), require a person to apply for and obtain a license from the Department of State before exporting from the United States any arms, ammunition or articles of war that are designated on the Munitions List.

     From November 2009 through January 2011, according to the statement of facts, Jangraw sold and exported from the United States a total of 287 Munitions List items – including riflescopes manufactured to military specifications - to international customers in 34 different foreign countries, generating more than $12,000.

     Jangraw willfully exported Munitions List parts and accessories even though he and his business never applied for or obtained a license to export defense articles from the United States. He did so with full knowledge of the licensing requirements.

     Following an undercover HSI investigation, HSI agents obtained a warrant to search Jangraw’s residence, which was then in Portland. During the search, in April 2011, agents seized four computers and electronic media, gun magazines, documents and products such as a weapon sight, gun rails, gun parts, and an AR-15 assault rifle.

     A subsequent review of images seized from Jangraw’s laptop computer led to the discovery of classified material that included e-mails from Jangraw’s work with the Army. The FBI was alerted and performed a follow-up search in July 2011 that led to the discovery of additional material that Jangraw had removed, without authorization, from Iraq. He took the laptop with him to numerous foreign countries and accessed unprotected Wi-Fi networks with the laptop while it contained the classified documents. The hundreds of classified documents contained information on military plans, weapons systems or operations, and other subjects pertaining to national security.

     “Justin Jangraw repeatedly showed a disregard for our national security,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “He held onto classified material after leaving the U.S. Army, keeping sensitive information on his laptop. Then, when he went into business, he sold strictly regulated weapons parts to international customers without a license. We appreciate the work of our law enforcement partners in now bringing him to justice.”

     “This defendant betrayed the oath he took to uphold the Constitution of the United States by knowingly circumventing our laws to export sensitive technology to anyone with the money to pay for it,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Spradlin, of ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Atlanta. “Thanks to the hard work of federal prosecutors and Homeland Security Investigations special agents in Atlanta and Portland, with significant support from the FBI, this criminal scheme has been shut down and the defendant will be held responsible for his flagrant violation of the law.”

     “The mishandling of classified material has the potential to cause serious damage to national security as well as to jeopardize the lives of our U.S. forces who put themselves in harm’s way every day,” said Special Agent in Charge Bretzing, of the FBI. “A top priority of the FBI has always been to protect critical national secrets and assets and prevent them from falling into the wrong hands.  This case is an excellent example of not only our dedication to protecting national security but also the hard work and dedication from our partners in the Department of Defense.” 

     This case was investigated by ICE-HSI offices in Portland and Atlanta and the FBI’s Portland Division, and assisted by U.S. Central Command. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brenda J. Johnson of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney David Recker of the Counterespionage Section of DOJ’s National Security Division. Assistance was provided by Assistant U.S. Attorney George P. Varghese, now with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.

14-187

WASHINGTON – Jeff Smith, 40, of Washington, D.C., a former candidate for the Council of the District of Columbia, was sentenced today to 60 days in jail, in addition to a year of probation and a $10,000 fine, for filing a false and misleading report with the District of Columbia’s Office of Campaign Finance that concealed campaign contributions in excess of those permitted under D.C. campaign finance laws.

     The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Timothy A. Gallagher, Acting Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Thomas J. Kelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).

     Smith pled guilty to the felony charge in June 2014 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Anita Josey-Herring.  Judge Josey-Herring’s sentence imposes six months of incarceration, but suspends all but 60 days of the time; requires Smith to serve one year of probation, during which time he is to perform 400 hours of community service; and imposes a fine of $10,000, the statutory maximum for his offense.

     The charge involved contributions to Smith’s 2010 campaign for the Ward 1 seat on the Council of the District of Columbia. Smith admitted that more than $140,000 was secretly channeled to his campaign from businessman Jeffrey E. Thompson. Smith lost the election.

     Smith is one of two Council candidates to plead guilty to charges in recent months. Kelvin Robinson, 53, pled guilty on June 3, 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to a charge of conspiring to violate District of Columbia campaign finance laws by defrauding the District of Columbia’s Office of Campaign Finance. He is awaiting sentencing.

     Thompson is the former chairman, chief executive officer, and majority owner of Thompson, Cobb, Bazilio and Associates (TCBA), a corporation that provided accounting, management, consulting, and tax services. He also is the former chairman, chief executive officer, and owner of D.C. Healthcare Systems, Inc. (DCHSI), an investment holding and for-profit corporation. Both companies generated millions of dollars in government contracts.

     Thompson and six others earlier pled guilty to charges involving Thompson’s illegal contributions to numerous federal and District of Columbia campaigns. In addition to Robinson, who also admitted receiving excess contributions from Thompson, the others who have pled guilty include Eugenia C. Harris, a business owner in the District of Columbia; Lee A. Calhoun, an executive for TCBA; Stanley Straughter, the owner of a business based in Philadelphia; Vernon Hawkins, who was a volunteer advisor in 2010 for a 2010 mayoral campaign; and Troy White, the owner of a marketing company based in New York.

     Another person, former District of Columbia Council member Michael A. Brown, pled guilty to charges in an unrelated bribery investigation. In those proceedings, he publicly admitted that his campaign committees had secretly received money from Thompson.  

     As part of Thompson’s guilty plea, on March 10, 2014, he agreed to cooperate fully in an ongoing investigation. No date has been set for his sentencing.

     “Jeff Smith now faces incarceration because he secretly financed his campaign for the District of Columbia Council with more than $140,000 from one of the District’s biggest contractors,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “He kept the true source of this money – businessman Jeffrey Thompson – from the public by filing false campaign reports. Despite all his illegal spending, Jeff Smith lost the election, and now his criminal activity has been exposed. He is among three candidates so far to admit receiving dirty money from Jeff Thompson, who has pled guilty to his crimes and is continuing to cooperate in our investigation. We remain determined to hold accountable all those who benefited from Jeff Thompson’s illegal campaign spending.”

     “Accepting and concealing illegal contributions for a political campaign will not be overlooked or downplayed,” said Acting Assistant Director in Charge Gallagher. “Today, Mr. Smith accepted his penalty for undermining campaign finance laws in the District of Columbia. Together with our law enforcement partners, the FBI will continue to investigate corruption, no matter at what level, in the District of Columbia.”

     According to a statement of offense submitted as part of Smith’s guilty plea, from at least December 2009 through December 2010, Smith, Thompson and others acted to make and to receive – and to conceal – campaign contributions in excess of those permitted under the District of Columbia Campaign Act.

     Smith admitted that Thompson, with his knowledge, provided more than $140,000 of in-kind contributions, contributions which were concealed from the Office of Campaign Finance.  Smith provided a budget to Thompson in March 2010, seeking $140,975 for voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts for his campaign. Then, from March 2010 until September 2010, Thompson used funds, via TCBA and DCHSI, to provide more than $140,000 in coordination with and in support of Smith’s campaign committee. At least part of this money was spent on campaign services and materials.

     The District of Columbia Campaign Act imposes limits on the amount of money that can be contributed to a District of Columbia candidate and that candidate’s principal campaign committee.  It also prohibits any person or corporation from making a contribution in the name of another, including by reimbursement. Finally, it requires principal campaign committees to file periodic reports of receipts and disbursements.

     The law limits the amount that an individual or entity can contribute in the aggregate in the primary and general elections of a candidate seeking election to a Ward seat to $500.

     In his plea, Smith admitted that, acting on behalf of his campaign committee, he filed, that is, authorized to be filed, a false and misleading report to the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance in December 2010.  The report concealed the excessive and unreported in-kind contributions provided directly and indirectly by Thompson.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Acting Assistant Director in Charge Gallagher, and Special Agent in Charge Kelly commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and IRS-CI.

     They also expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael K. Atkinson, Jonathan P. Hooks, Ellen Chubin Epstein, Lionel André, and Ephraim “Fry” Wernick, of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, who are prosecuting cases in the investigation.

     Finally, they acknowledged the efforts of others who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Deborah Connor, Chief of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section, as well as Criminal Investigators Matthew J. Kutz, Mark Crawford, Melissa Matthews, and Durand Odom; Forensic Accountants Crystal Boodoo and Maria Boodoo; Paralegal Specialists Krishawn Graham, Tasha Harris, and Corrine Kleinman; Former Paralegal Specialists Shanna Hays and Nicole Wattelet; and Legal Assistant Angela Lawrence.

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WASHINGTON – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced today that it will not pursue criminal charges against law enforcement officers in connection with the events last year at the Washington Navy Yard that led to the fatal shooting of Aaron Alexis.

     The decision was made after reviewing witness statements, surveillance video, photographs, diagrams, physical evidence, law enforcement agency reports from the FBI, Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), U.S. Park Police, and Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), and the autopsy report for Mr. Alexis. By the time of the shooting, Mr. Alexis had killed 12 people and wounded four others as he moved from floor to floor, repeatedly opening fire, in a five-story structure at the Navy Yard complex.

     The U.S. Attorney’s Office determined that none of the law enforcement officers whose actions were reviewed in this case possessed the requisite criminal intent at the time they either discharged their weapons or shot and killed Mr. Alexis. To the contrary, the review determined that there is more than sufficient evidence to conclude, that under all of the prevailing circumstances at the time of the shooting, the officers were acting in defense of themselves and others. The review determined that the officers acted reasonably at all times to neutralize a life-threatening situation.

     “After a careful review of the evidence, we have closed this investigation,” said U.S. Attorney Ronald C.  Machen Jr.  “We concluded that the law enforcement officers involved demonstrated exceptional valor in acting to protect the lives of Navy Yard employees and other responding law enforcement officers.”

     On Sept. 16, 2013, shortly after 8 a.m., Mr. Alexis, a 34-year-old military contractor for the Department of Defense, entered Building 197, which is on the west side of the Navy Yard complex in Southeast Washington. Within the next 15 minutes, Mr. Alexis, who was armed with a 12-gauge sawed-off shotgun, began an attack that caused the deaths of 12 civilians, as well as non-fatal injuries to three civilians and one MPD officer.  Multiple local and federal law enforcement agencies began responding within minutes of the first report of shootings.

     Throughout the attack, Mr. Alexis systematically moved from floor to floor, killing and wounding anyone he saw. Eight victims were shot and killed on the fourth floor; two others were shot and wounded. Two victims were killed on the third floor; two other victims, including an MPD officer, were shot and wounded. One victim, a building security officer, was killed on the first floor; and one victim was killed in a parking area. After killing the building security officer, Mr. Alexis took the officer’s 9-millimeter handgun, which he also used as a weapon.

     After killing the victims in rapid succession, Mr. Alexis kept moving through the building’s stairwells, hallways, and work areas and cubicles, repeatedly firing at law enforcement and security officers trying to apprehend him. He shot at a second building security officer and a U.S. Navy Military Police officer on the first floor, leading to an exchange of gunfire. The building security officer fired at Mr. Alexis as Mr. Alexis ran across the atrium and out of view. In a separate confrontation, Mr. Alexis fired at an NCIS agent and two officers with the Naval District of Washington, also on the first floor. They returned fire; however, there is no evidence that Mr. Alexis was hit by this gunfire.

     Mr. Alexis then returned to the third floor and once again confronted police, shooting a Special Operations Division officer from the MPD, who collapsed to the floor. Another NCIS agent fired back at Mr. Alexis after the officer was hit, but Mr. Alexis was not hit.

     Finally, after these shootings, Mr. Alexis hid under a desk on the third floor, waited, and attempted to ambush an Emergency Response Team officer from the MPD and a U.S. Park Police officer as they entered the area where he was located. At about 9:25 a.m., Mr. Alexis shot at the MPD Emergency Response Team officer, hitting the plate of his police tactical vest.  The MPD Emergency Response Team officer and the U.S. Park Police officer returned fire and were able to shoot and kill Mr. Alexis.

     Under the applicable federal criminal civil rights laws, prosecutors must establish beyond a reasonable doubt not only that an officer’s use of force was excessive, but also that the officer willfully deprived an individual of a constitutional right.  Proving “willfulness” is a heavy burden, and means that it must be proven that the officer acted with the deliberate and specific intent to do something the law forbids.  Accident, mistake, fear, negligence and bad judgment do not establish such a criminal violation.  After a careful, thorough and independent review of the evidence, federal prosecutors have found no evidence to prove a civil rights violation, beyond a reasonable doubt, against any of the officers involved in this matter. Accordingly, the investigation into this incident has been closed without prosecution. 

     The Justice Department 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.

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WASHINGTON – Sakinah Smith, 27, of New York, N.Y., was sentenced today to two years in prison for carrying out a pair of schemes, including one in which she used stolen personal identification information to collect more than $80,000 in fraudulent unemployment benefits, and another in which she stole more than $50,000 from a former employer.

     The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Timothy A. Gallagher, Acting Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; Bill Jones, Special Agent in Charge for the Washington Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General - Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, and Blanche L. Bruce, Interim Inspector General for the District of Columbia.

     Smith pled guilty in May 2014 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of wire fraud. She was sentenced by the Honorable Senior Judge Thomas F. Hogan. Upon completion of her prison term, Smith will be placed on three years of supervised release. She also was ordered to pay over $132,000 in restitution. While on supervised release, Judge Hogan ordered that Smith not hold any employment involving the handling of money.

     According to a statement of offense filed as part of the guilty plea, Smith created an events planning service in 2009 in Washington, D.C. She created a website for “Saki Mone Events Management” and posted employment advertisements on Craigslist. Potential applicants were asked to provide personal information, including dates of birth and social security numbers.

     Smith then used this personal information to fraudulently request unemployment benefits in the names of 17 individual applicants. Between 2009 and 2012, Smith obtained $80,111 in fraudulent unemployment benefits from the District of Columbia, Maryland and New York. The benefits, in the names of the 17 applicants, were deposited into Smith’s own financial accounts.

     In a second scheme, Smith admitted that she fraudulently wired about $52,174 from an employer’s bank account to accounts she created for herself. This activity took place from November 2009 through May 2010, while Smith was working for a temporary employment agency in Washington, D.C.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen, Acting Assistant Director in Charge Gallagher, Special Agent in Charge Jones, and Interim Inspector General Bruce commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office, the Labor Department’s Inspector General’s Office, and the District of Columbia Office of the Inspector General. They also thanked the New York State Department of Labor – Office of Special Investigations; the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation – Division of Unemployment Insurance; the Virginia Employment Commission; the District of Columbia Department of Employment Services, and the Burlington, N.C. Police Department for providing assistance in the investigation.

     They acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas, who assisted on forfeiture issues; Paralegal Specialists Donna Galindo and Angela Lawrence; Victim/Witness Advocate Yvonne Bryant; Intelligence Specialist Sharon Johnson, and former Intern Abigail Pierce. Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Selden, who prosecuted the matter.

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WASHINGTON – John Burrell Crist, 44, was sentenced today to 16 months in prison after earlier pleading guilty to two felony counts of pandering for inducing and compelling a woman to engage in prostitution in various sections of the District of Columbia, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Crist, of Alexandria, Va., pled guilty in June 2014 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable John Ramsey Johnson. Upon completion of his prison term, Crist will be placed on three years of supervised release.

     According to the government’s evidence, Crist posted ads on Backpage.com soliciting partners for his alleged escort business, promising to provide transportation and security for the dates in exchange for half of the profits.  Enticed by one of these ads, the victim agreed to meet Crist.  Crist picked the victim up from Union Station and housed her in his Alexandria home.  Crist would screen the calls for “dates,” telling the victim, who was unfamiliar with the District of Columbia, where she could and could not agree to go for dates, to which he would then provide the transportation.  The criminal activities began on April 20, 2014. Within days, Crist turned violent against the victim, beating her, taking all of her possessions, identification, and money as she was forced to continue to prostitute.  

     Crist came to the attention of the Metropolitan Police Department after he beat the victim in a public parking lot in the District of Columbia on April 28, 2014.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department.  He also praised those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist D’Yvonne Key and Assistant U.S. Attorney Mervin A. Bourne, Jr., who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

14-183

WASHINGTON - Catyondia Ballard, 48, a former employee of the District of Columbia Office of Tax and Revenue, was sentenced today to 16 weekends in jail, to be followed by 180 days of home detention, for the theft of over $114,000 from the bank account of a retired military member, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Blanche L. Bruce, Interim Inspector General for the District of Columbia.

     Ballard, of Bowie, Md., pled guilty in May 2014 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of wire fraud.  She was sentenced by the Honorable Judge Rudolph Contreras, who also ordered that she be placed on five years of probation. The judge also ordered Ballard to pay full restitution of $114,166 to the victim.

     According to the government’s evidence, Ballard became familiar with the victim through her job at the District of Columbia Office of Tax and Revenue. While there, Ballard gained access to the victim’s personal biographical information, as well as the victim’s bank account information.  Using the victim’s information, Ballard began wiring funds from the victim’s bank account directly to Ballard’s account at a loan servicing company in order to pay off Ballard’s mortgage.  From March 2007 through April 2010, Ballard directed a total of $114,166 of the victim’s funds to Ballard’s account without the victim’s permission. 

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen and Interim Inspector General Bruce commended the work of those who investigated the case from the District of Columbia’s Office of the Inspector General. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Donna Galindo, Corinne Kleinman, and Angela Lawrence; and Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard DiZinno, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

14-182

WASHINGTON - The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) has paid $4,240,341 to resolve allegations that it filed false claims in connection with using federal funds to impermissibly award a contract for a financial management information technology project without using competitive procurement procedures. 

     The settlement, in a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, was announced today by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Kathryn Jones, Regional Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.

     The conduct at issue involves a contract that WMATA awarded on or around July 10, 2010, to Metaformers, Inc., a Virginia-based business, to integrate the Authority’s financial and business systems.  The total cost of this integration project was approximately $14 million. WMATA funded the project with approximately $9 million in grant funds from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). 

     As a condition of receiving grant funds, WMATA certified that it would comply with statutes, regulations, and FTA rules mandating full and open competition when procuring goods and services using FTA grant funds. Also, as a condition of receiving the funds, WMATA certified that it would not award contracts in a manner that created a conflict of interest – for example, giving an unfair advantage to one bidder or contractor over others.  WMATA allegedly violated both the competition requirement and avoidance of “conflict of interest” rule in awarding the financial management information technology contract.

     “The American people have a right to know that their government is following rules and regulations in spending the taxpayers’ money,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “Our office has targeted government contractors who fail to meet their obligations, and this settlement shows that we expect agencies that receive federal funding to honor the integrity of the contracting process as well.”

     “This investigation and settlement agreement demonstrates our commitment to ensuring the integrity of the acquisition process and protecting taxpayer dollars from waste, fraud and abuse, which is a top priority for both the Office of Inspector General and the Department of Transportation,” said Special Agent-In-Charge Jones. “Working with the Department, as well as our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners, we will continue our efforts to prevent, detect, and prosecute the improper use of federal grant funds.”

     In or around August 2009, WMATA awarded Metaformers, using full and open competition procedures, a relatively modest contract valued at approximately $256,000 to assess WMATA’s financial system.  Less than one year later, in July 2010, WMATA awarded Metaformers the $14 million contract to integrate the Authority’s financial and business systems.  WMATA awarded the contract non-competitively and allegedly without legitimate justification for doing so, foreclosing an opportunity for other contractors and companies to submit proposals for the lucrative project.  WMATA’s conduct was allegedly in violation of its certification – and commitment - to administer the FTA grant funds using full and open competition. 

     In awarding the $14 million integration contract, WMATA also allegedly violated “conflict of interest rules” governing use of FTA grant funds.  WMATA’s noncompetitive award to Metaformers was based, in part, on the work completed by Metaformers under the assessment contract.  By competitively awarding the smaller assessment contract and then non-competitively awarding the far more lucrative integration project both to the same contractor, WMATA violated federal procurement conflict of interest rules by giving one contractor an advantage over others who might have been interested in competing for the integration project.

     Because of WMATA’s conduct, contractors who might have been interested in submitting proposals or bids for the integration project never had the opportunity to do so.  Thus, WMATA’s conduct was allegedly in violation of its certification and commitment to administer the FTA grant funds avoiding conflicts of interest in procurements. 

     The settlement resolves a qui tam, or whistleblower, lawsuit filed on behalf of the government by former WMATA employee Shahiq Khwaja, under the qui tam, or whistleblower provisions, of the False Claims Act. The False Claims Act is one of the government’s most powerful tools in the effort to combat fraud on federal programs. The Act allows private citizens to bring lawsuits on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery obtained by the government. Mr. Khwaja will receive approximately $996,480 as his share of the recovery.

     Mr. Khwaja’s qui tam lawsuit also includes allegations on behalf of Virginia and the District of Columbia.  The settlement with the federal government does not resolve the state and local allegations.

     In February 2012, Mr. Khwaja also filed a separate complaint with the U.S. Department of Transportation against WMATA for violating the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s (ARRA) provisions protecting whistleblowers.  Mr. Khwaja alleged that WMATA terminated him from his position as an information technology functional manager because he expressed concerns about the manner in which WMATA was financially and technically administering the integration project which was funded, in part, with ARRA funds.  In or around August 2012, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General, based on its separate investigation of Mr. Khwaja’s ARRA-related claims, found that the weight of evidence indicated that Mr. Khwaja’s disclosures were a contributing factor in his termination and that WMATA failed to show by clear and convincing evidence that it would have terminated Mr. Khwaja notwithstanding his disclosures.  As reflected in the settlement agreement, WMATA negotiated with Mr. Khwaja’s counsel to resolve Mr. Khwaja’s wrongful termination claim for $390,000. 

     In announcing the settlement, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General and the Federal Transit Administration. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the matter from the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, including Trial Attorneys Jennifer Koh and Elizabeth Young. Finally, he expressed appreciation for the work of those who handled the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Investigator Karen D. Caudill, Paralegal Specialist Cindy Parker, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Beverly M. Russell, who worked on the investigation and settlement of the matter.

     The claims settled by the agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.  Additionally, the settlement agreement is not based on any allegation that the contractor, Metaformers, engaged in any wrongdoing. 

     The case is captioned United States, Virginia and the District of Columbia, ex rel. Shahiq Khwaja v. Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, et al., Case No. 1:12-cv-00268-RJL (D.D.C.).

14-181

WASHINGTON – A 32-year-old man from Temple Hills, Md., has been sentenced to a 20-year prison term for sexually abusing a teenage relative in the District of Columbia, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced today.

     The defendant, who is not identified here to protect the privacy of the victim, pled guilty in April 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to two counts of first-degree child sexual abuse. The Honorable Lynn Leibovitz sentenced him on Aug. 11, 2014. Upon completion of his prison term, the defendant will be placed on supervised release for the rest of his life; he also must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.

     According to the government’s evidence, the defendant subjected the girl to chronic child sex abuse from 2010 to 2013, starting when she was only 10 or 11 years old. The guilty plea involves two attacks in 2012 and 2013, in the living room of her family’s residence in the District of Columbia. The girl, who often was left in the care of the defendant, became pregnant as a result of the abuse. DNA tests revealed that the defendant is the child’s biological father.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Division. He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Tiffany Jones; Victim/Witness Advocates Tracy Owusu and Tracey Hawkins, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenya K. Davis, who prosecuted the matter.

14-179

WASHINGTON – Omar Rimmer, 39, of Washington, D.C., was found guilty by a jury today of carrying out an early-morning attack in which he forced his way into a woman’s residence and attempted to sexually assault her, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     The jury found Rimmer guilty of assault with intent to commit first-degree sexual assault, attempted first-degree sexual assault, first-degree burglary, and kidnapping. The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.  The Honorable Russell F. Canan scheduled sentencing for Oct. 24, 2014. 

     According to the government’s evidence, on Feb. 5, 2011, at about 3:15 a.m., the victim was walking home in the 500 block of Florida Avenue NW.  Rimmer approached her from behind and began making small talk.  When she reached her home, Rimmer continued walking.  The victim unlocked the security gate and door. When she turned to close the security gate, Rimmer reappeared and asked the victim if he knew her.  She did not.

     As the victim turned the key to lock the security gate, Rimmer pulled the gate open, breaking the key off in the lock.  Rimmer then forced his way inside the residence and pushed the victim to the floor.  He got on top of the victim and began choking her while trying to remove her clothing.  The victim was able to scream her male roommate’s name, which caused Rimmer to hesitate.  The victim seized that opportunity to escape and lock herself in an upstairs bathroom and call 911. 

     In his haste to flee, Rimmer left behind a cigarette butt and a scarf inside the residence.  These items contained his DNA, which led to his arrest. 

     In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department.  He also acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Elsa Resendiz; Criminal Investigator Nelson Rhone; Paralegal Specialist Jason Manuel; David Foster and La June Thames, of the Victim/Witness Assistance Unit; and Information Technology Specialist Anisha Bhatia.  Finally, he praised the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff T. Cook, who investigated and prosecuted the matter.

14-180

WASHINGTON – Emmette Brown, 42, of Glenn Dale, Md., pled guilty today to a federal mail fraud charge stemming from a scheme in which he was able to take control of a home in Northwest Washington and sell it, making a profit of more than $178,000 for himself, all without the knowledge of the original owner who was overseas caring for his seriously ill mother.

     The guilty plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

     Brown pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The Honorable Beryl A. Howell scheduled sentencing for Oct. 31, 2014. Brown faces a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison and financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, he faces a likely range of 15 to 21 months in prison and a fine of up to $40,000. As part of the plea, Brown has agreed to pay $178,038 in restitution to the victim. He also is subject to forfeiture proceedings.

     According to the government’s evidence, the victim owned a house in the 3800 block of T Street NW. In June 2005, he traveled to Russia to take care of his seriously ill mother. The victim intended to return to Washington, D.C., and had purchased a return airline ticket. However, his mother’s condition worsened and he remained abroad until her passing in early 2009. When the victim returned to the United States, he found his home gutted and that he no longer had legal control of the home.

     While he was away, the victim had not paid his District of Columbia property taxes or his federal income taxes. In 2006, unbeknownst to the victim, the property went to a District of Columbia tax lien sale. The tax lien was sold to a company for just over $10,000 and the property went to foreclosure. Brown then began a series of actions, using false claims, power of attorney forms, where he forged the victim’s signature, and documents that enabled him to begin acting on behalf of the victim. Brown eventually sold the property for $465,000 and made approximately $277,000 in payments to pay off the victim’s taxes and liens.  Brown paid off these liens in order to complete his theft of the victim’s home. 

     In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director in Charge Parlave, and Chief Lanier commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and MPD. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Donna Galindo; Intelligence Specialist Sharon Johnson, Forensic Accountant Maria Boodoo and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Arvind K. Lal and Zia Faruqui, of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section. Finally, they expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Selden, who is prosecuting the case.

14-177

WASHINGTON - Jonathan Dawkins, 32, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to nine years in prison for the fatal stabbing of a man in May 2012 in Northwest Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Dawkins was found guilty in May 2014 by a jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia of voluntary manslaughter while armed. He was sentenced by the Honorable Russell F. Canan. Following his prison term, Dawkins will be placed on five years of supervised release.

     According to the government’s evidence, on May 1, 2012, at about 2:15 a.m., the victim, Dwayne Brisbon, 33, was stabbed to death in the 400 block of Florida Avenue NW.  Mr. Brisbon, a CT scan technician at Washington Hospital Center, was on his way home from Marvin, a bar and restaurant in the 2000 block of 14th Street NW. On his way home, Mr. Brisbon pulled his car over to check on a person he recognized from the establishment.

     Dawkins, who was walking with the person, became upset and aggressively approached Mr. Brisbon’s car.  Dawkins began arguing with Mr. Brisbon.  Mr. Brisbon eventually got out of his car and walked to the rear of the car, where Dawkins met him.  Mr. Brisbon punched Dawkins, and the two continued to fight.  During the fight, Dawkins stabbed Mr. Brisbon in the upper left bicep and the neck, piercing his carotid artery and jugular vein. 

     Dawkins then fled the scene while Mr. Brisbon got back in his car in an attempt to drive himself to the hospital.  Mr. Brisbon lost consciousness within seconds, and crashed into Shaw’s Tavern in the 500 block of Florida Avenue NW.  Surveillance video from Shaw’s Tavern captured the defendant and the person who was with him just minutes before the murder. 

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of members of the Metropolitan Police Department, who investigated the case.  U.S. Attorney Machen also thanked those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Mia Beamon and Kelly Blakeney; Victim/Witness Services Coordinators La June Thames and Katina Adams-Washington; Litigation Support Specialist Kimberly Smith; Criminal Investigator Durand Odom; and Victim Witness Specialist Tamara Ince.   Finally, U.S. Attorney Machen expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Veronica Sanchez and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Holly Shick, who prosecuted the case.

14-178

WASHINGTON – Nyerere Mitchell, 50, pled guilty today to carrying out a scheme in which he offered rides to people who had been drinking, talked them into letting him withdraw cash with their ATMS and pin numbers, and then secretly held onto their bank cards to generate more than $200,000 for himself, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     More than 60 people, mostly young adults, were conned in the scheme, which continued from at least April 2009 through November 2013. Many of them thought that Mitchell was a taxicab driver. Mitchell, who typically drove a silver-colored SUV Range Rover, often wore a woman’s wig and padded breasts so that many of his passengers believed he was a woman.

     Mitchell, of Clinton, Md., pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to five counts of first-degree felony fraud. Each charge carries a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison and financial penalties. The plea agreement calls for him to pay $228,036 in restitution. The Honorable Milton C. Lee scheduled sentencing for Oct. 10, 2014. He also ordered that Mitchell be incarcerated pending the sentencing.

     According to the government’s evidence, Mitchell frequented areas such as Dupont Circle, Adams Morgan, Foggy Bottom, Chinatown, and other busy neighborhoods in the District of Columbia and Arlington, Va., offering rides to individuals he believed had been drinking. The victims, in general, were intoxicated, and would give Mitchell their bank cards and pin numbers and allow him to obtain cash for the rides that they were getting.  Mitchell generally took the passengers to drive-through ATMs on Wisconsin Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. He created situations in which the passengers would need to provide him with the pin numbers and cards because the ATM machines were located on the driver’s side of the vehicle.

     Unbeknownst to the victims, Mitchell often withdrew hundreds of dollars from the ATMs -- as opposed to what they thought would be $10 to $40 fees. Often he would switch the victim’s ATM card with another one that he had earlier stolen from someone else. In fact, Mitchell maintained so many stolen cards that he could easily substitute a similar-looking card so that the victims didn’t notice the switch until much later.

     Over the course of the next few days, Mitchell would use the stolen ATM card without authorization or permission to purchase money orders, many of which he deposited into his credit union account or used to make large purchases at various stores in the area.

     An investigation by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) led to a search last November of Mitchell’s home. Law enforcement recovered 205 stolen credit cards in plastic bags inside a shoe box. They also found a wig that Mitchell can be seen wearing in bank surveillance video. Mitchell was arrested Nov. 27, 2013.

     In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Prince George’s County, Md., Police Department, Citibank, BB & T Bank, Sun Trust Bank and Wells Fargo Bank. Finally, he acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Corinne Kleinman, Legal Assistant Chris Samson, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie G. Miller, who is investigating and prosecuting the matter.

14-176

WASHINGTON – In Seon Lim, a former contracting official for the U.S. Department of the Army, pled guilty today to federal charges stemming from a scheme in which he accepted over $490,000 worth of benefits, including cash payments and vacations, from favored contractors. In return, he helped these businesses obtain millions of dollars in federal contracts.

     The guilty plea was announced by Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia; Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; Thomas J. Kelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI); Peggy E. Gustafson, Inspector General for the Small Business Administration (SBA); Robert E. Craig, Special Agent in Charge of the Mid-Atlantic Field Office of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS),  and Frank Robey, Director of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit (MPFU).

     Lim, 48, of Fairfax Station, Va., also known as InSeon Lim, pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to three offenses: conspiracy to commit bribery and honest services wire fraud; bribery; and attempting to interfere with and impede tax laws. The conspiracy charge carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison, the bribery charge carries up to 15 years, and the tax charge carries up to three years of incarceration. The charges also carry potential financial penalties. The plea agreement calls for Lim to pay restitution, including $250,000 to the Department of Defense and nearly $125,000 to the IRS. In addition, the plea agreement requires Lim to pay a forfeiture money judgment of $490,262. The Honorable Leonie M. Brinkema scheduled sentencing for Oct. 17, 2014.

     Lim is the latest person to plead guilty in an investigation into domestic bribery, bid-rigging, and federal contracting. He has agreed to cooperate in an ongoing investigation. In addition to Lim, a total of 17 other individuals and one corporation, Nova Datacom, LLC, have pled guilty to federal charges.

     “In Seon Lim, a former Army contracting officer, procured a half-million dollars in bribes in exchange for steering millions of dollars in Army contracts to corrupt businessmen,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “Lim sold out the public trust for cash, vacations, and a Lexus.  Today he joined 17 other individuals who have also pled guilty as part of this far-reaching bribery and bid-rigging scheme.  The breadth of this investigation and prosecution demonstrates our unwavering commitment to holding crooked public officials and contractors accountable for crimes which threaten the very integrity of our system of government.  I want to commend the outstanding work of the investigating agents and prosecutors who have worked so tirelessly on this matter.”

     “Abusing one’s position for personal gain is a blatant disregard to the oath that every government employee takes, especially those whose job it is to manage the procurement needs of our government,” said Assistant Director in Charge Parlave. “Working together to protect federal funds, the FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to ensure those who commit fraud and corruption are brought to justice.”

     “There is no place in our society for corrupt public officials, and the betrayal of the trust placed in them is an egregious act.  Anyone, including government contracting officials such as Mr. Lim, who promotes fraudulent schemes against the United States, will be held accountable for their blatant disregard of the duties and responsibilities of their official government position,” said Special Agent in Charge Kelly of IRS-CI. “These individuals face severe consequences, including imprisonment and substantial fines.”

     “Government employees who abuse their office to enrich themselves are not only guilty of criminal wrongdoing, but tarnish the reputation of all honest public servants and lessen citizens’ faith in our system. We will continue to aggressively investigate these crimes and seek justice for the victims, the American taxpayers,” said SBA Inspector General Gustafson. “I want to thank the U.S. Attorney's Office for its dedicated leadership and professionalism throughout this investigation.”

     “We are glad to see that justice has been served and Mr. Lim has been sentenced for his selfish criminal activities,” said Director Robey of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command's Major Procurement Fraud Unit. “Identifying and vigorously investigating contracting fraud remains a top priority for our special agents and we will continue to work seamlessly with our fellow law enforcement agencies to see that people who defraud the American taxpayer are brought to justice.”

     “Today's plea demonstrates the Defense Criminal Investigative Service's ongoing commitment to combating fraud and corruption that impacts the DoD procurement process,” said Special Agent in Charge Craig. “DCIS, with our partner agencies, will continue to work tirelessly to identify and prosecute corruption of this nature."

     According to a Statement of Offense signed by Lim as well as the government, Lim was a public official until April 2012. The charges involve his activities as an assistant project manager and product director with the Program Executive Office Enterprise Information Systems, a part of the Army that provides infrastructure and informational management systems.

     Until June 2010, Lim resided and worked in Seoul, South Korea. While in South Korea, his primary duties were to oversee and implement communications systems upgrades for the U.S. forces there, which included approximately 10 communications centers and various other special projects at military sites throughout the country. Among other things, Lim coordinated work on a major contract, which, in turn, had numerous sub-contracts.

     From June 2010 until his resignation in April 2012, Lim worked as a product director at Fort Belvoir, Va.

     In the statement of offense, Lim admits that he secretly used his official position to enrich himself by soliciting and accepting gifts, payments and other things of value from government contractors – totaling more than $490,000 -- in return for favorable official action. Among other things, the statement of offense notes, Lim received payments personally and to accounts that he controlled; payments for travel, vacation, vehicles, cellphones and cellular service for himself and family members; ownership interests in two companies, and other benefits.

     In exchange, Lim now admits, he provided favorable official action on subcontracts obtained and retained by the favored government contractors as requested and as opportunities arose. He also disclosed confidential bid information to the favored government contractors.

     The indictment provides details about numerous contracts and payments. For example:

      -Nova Datacom: According to the statement of offense, two former employees of the Northern Virginia company - Alex N. Cho, also known as Young N. Cho, and Nick Park - paid Lim $40,000 in cash in 2007. In addition, Park paid for Lim’s travel, lodging, meals and entertainment during a trip to the Philippines in 2007, and Cho paid for lodging and a $1,000 casino chip during a trip later that year to Las Vegas. Lim, meanwhile, agreed to use his official position to recommend the company for a contract valued at nearly $330,000.

     -Avenciatech: According to the statement of offense, former officials of Avenciatech, Inc., a government contractor based in Annandale, Va., provided Lim with cash payments; payments for hotel stays for Lim and family members, including a trip to the Atlantis resort in the Bahamas; payments to finance the purchase of a 2010 Lexus automobile, and payments for other things of value. One of the officials, Oh Song Kwon, also known as Thomas Kwon, also assisted Lim in obtaining financing for the purchase of a home in Fairfax Station, Va., where Lim resided following his reassignment in 2010 to a position at Fort Belvoir. Lim, meanwhile, assisted the company in obtaining more than $3 million in contracts.

     -UEI:Nick Park left Nova Datacom in 2007 and co-founded another government contractor, Unisource Enterprise Inc. (UEI), based in Annandale, Va. According to the statement of offense, in exchange for favorable treatment, Lim was given a secret ownership in UEI. Among other things, Lim provided Park with sensitive procurement information. He also assisted the company in obtaining a government sub-contract worth over $1.1 million.

     Cho, Park, and Kwon are among those who earlier pled guilty to charges in the case.

     In addition to pleading guilty to the conspiracy and bribery charges, Lim admitted that he failed to report the bribes he received on tax returns for the years 2007 through 2011. He also failed to keep records that would allow him to file accurate records for 2012 and 2013.

     This investigation is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office; the Washington Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, the Office of the Inspector General for the Small Business Administration; the Department of Defense’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service; the Defense Contract Audit Agency, and the Army Criminal Investigation Command. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael K. Atkinson and Bryan Seeley of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Saler of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, all of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack Hanly, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

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     ORLANDO, FLA. –Blayne S. Davis, 33, formerly of Naples, Fla., pled guilty today to a federal charge stemming from an investment fraud scheme in which more than 100 investors lost over $11 million, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and James D. Robnett, Special Agent in Charge of the Tampa Field Office of IRS- Criminal Investigation.

     Davis pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida to a charge of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. He is to be sentenced Oct. 9, 2014.

     The charge carries a maximum of 20 years of imprisonment and financial penalties. The parties agreed that, under the federal sentencing guidelines, Davis faces a range of between 87 and 168 months in prison and a fine of between $12,500 and $175,000. He also will be required to pay restitution of $11,894,776 to the investors who lost money.

     Davis has agreed to cooperate in the ongoing investigation. A co-defendant, Donovan G. Davis, Jr., 33, of Palm Bay, Fla., has pled not guilty and is awaiting trial in the case; he is not related to Blayne Davis. A third defendant, Damien L. Bromfield, 37, of Ocoee, Fla., pled guilty on Nov. 14, 2013, to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and is awaiting sentencing.

     According to a Statement of Offense, signed by Blayne Davis as well as the government, and filed with the Court today, Blayne Davis was the director of trading for Capital Blu Management, LLC, a Florida-based corporation that purported to offer investment and managed account services for investors in the off-exchange foreign currency, or “forex,” marketplace. Donovan Davis, Jr. was the managing member of Capital Blu, and Bromfield was the director of operations.

     Blayne Davis and Bromfield formed Capital Blu in January 2007. In 2007, according to the statement of offense, Donovan Davis, Jr. solicited relatives, friends, and associates to invest in Capital Blu, resulting in substantial amounts being placed under the company’s management. Donovan Davis, Jr., became a managing member of Capital Blu in August 2007, working out of an office in Melbourne, Fla.

     In or about September 2007, according to the statement of offense, the three men formed the CBM FX Fund, LP, which pooled investors’ money into a common fund to be traded by Capital Blu Management. Many of Capital Blu’s managed-account investors transferred their investments into the CBM FX Fund.

     By January 2008, according to the statement of offense, the three partners knew that the CBM FX Fund sustained significant trading losses, resulting in large losses for its investors. At or about that time, the statement of offense states, the men began defrauding investors by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises. These included, according to the statement of offense, a series of misrepresentations about Capital Blu’s trading performance, the value of the fund, and the risks of the fund.

     According to the statement of offense, the men conspired to post positive monthly returns to the CBM FX Fund’s investors from January through August of 2008, even though the fund and its investors had sustained net losses. In addition, the men diverted investors’ money from the fund to pay for Capital Blu’s operational expenses and personal expenses, including their salaries and payments for the use of a private airplane.

     In or about September 2008, the National Futures Association, an independent self-regulatory organization that oversees commodities and futures trading in the United States, conducted a surprise audit of Capital Blu and suspended its operations. As of September 2008, according to the statement of offense,  investors had invested over $16 million into the CBM FX Fund; the investors had lost over $11 million.  

      This case was transferred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia from the Middle District of Florida.

     The case is being investigated by a task force consisting of agents from the IRS- Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Secret Service, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Brevard County, Fla., Sherriff’s Office.  Related civil litigation was pursued by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. 

     Assistance on the criminal case was provided by Paralegal Specialists Donna Galindo and Corinne Kleinman; former Paralegal Specialist Diane Hayes; Legal Assistant Angela Lawrence; Forensic Accountant Crystal Boodoo; Information Technology Specialist Thomas (Ron) Royal; and Victim Witness Advocates Yvonne Bryant and Tasheeka Hawkins, all of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Catherine K. Connelly and Anthony Saler, of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, have assisted with guidance on asset forfeiture matters. 

            The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan P. Hooks and Ephraim (Fry) Wernick of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, who are designated as Special Attorneys in the Middle District of Florida.

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WASHINGTON - Ephonia M. Green, 44, of Upper Marlboro, Md., was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for embezzling more than $5 million from her former employer, a non-profit corporation, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

            Green pled guilty in November 2013 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds and one count of engaging in illegal monetary transactions. She was sentenced by the Honorable Beryl A. Howell.
Upon completion of her prison term, Green will be placed on three years of supervised release.

            As part of the plea agreement, Green agreed to criminal forfeiture in the amount of roughly $5.1 million and restitution in the amount of roughly $5.1 million. 

            According to the government’s evidence, from Jan. 5, 1998, through July 15, 2013, Green was employed by the Association of American Medical Colleges as an administrative assistant.  The association, located in Washington, D.C., represents all of the accredited medical schools in the United States and Canada and is responsible for administering the Medical College Admission Test or MCAT.  

            Green’s duties included processing invoices from the association’s vendors.  Separately, Green owned a bridal shop in Upper Marlboro, Md. that conducted business under the name Fabulous Concepts Inc. or FCI. 

            From July 15, 2005, through July 1, 2013, Green created and submitted false invoices to the Association of American Medical Colleges in the name of three entities – The Brookings Institute, FCI, and the University Health System Consortium, also known as UHC. In doing so, she was seeking payment for services that were never provided and without the association’s knowledge that Green would be the actual recipient of the payments. 

            Through this fraudulent scheme, Green embezzled approximately $5.1 million from her employer. Although the association received federal program funds each calendar year, none of the money that was embezzled came from federal program funds.

            The Brookings Institution is a private, non-profit policy organization based in Washington, D.C., and UHC is an alliance of academic medical centers and hospitals.  Green is not affiliated with either entity. Green’s bridal shop, FCI, was never entitled to receive any money from the association. For the false invoices in the name of The Brookings Institute and UHC, Green registered similar trade names with the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation and then opened bank accounts in those names. 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen and Assistant Director in Charge Parlave thanked the Association of American Medical Colleges for promptly reporting its discovery of the embezzlement to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in July 2013, and for its full cooperation with the investigation that followed. U.S. Attorney Machen and Assistant Director in Charge Parlave also commended the investigative work of agents and analysts of the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Finally, they praised the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Corinne Kleinman, Deputy U.S. Marshal Wayne Rollock, former Assistant U.S. Attorney David Johnson, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Zia Faruqui, who worked on forfeiture and sentencing issues.

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WASHINGTON – Willie Walker, Jr., 24, and Ricky Donaldson, 23, were sentenced today to prison terms of 88 years and 45 years, respectively for violent crimes, including the 2008 slaying of a government witness, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr.

            Walker and Donaldson were found guilty by a jury in March 2014, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The jury found them guilty of first-degree premeditated murder while armed with aggravating circumstances; conspiracy to commit first-degree murder while armed; obstructing justice; several firearms offenses; and related criminal street gang charges.  The jury also found Walker guilty of charges of aggravated assault and assault with intent to kill for two related shootings in February and March of 2008. 

            The defendants, both of Washington, D.C., were sentenced by the Honorable John Ramsey Johnson.

            “Willie Walker Jr. orchestrated the killing of a government witness from his jail cell, and Ricky Donaldson did the shooting,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “Now Walker will spend 88 years behind bars and Donaldson will spend 45 years in prison for their cold-blooded efforts to avoid justice at all costs. This case demonstrates our commitment to punish those who target witnesses for simply telling the truth.”

            According to the government’s evidence, Walker and Donaldson were members of a criminal street gang that operated in the area of the LeDroit Park neighborhood in Northwest Washington. The gang, known as “LDP,” or “Westside,” sold crack cocaine, among other illicit activities, in the Kelly Miller housing development in LeDroit Park. 

            On Feb. 4, 2008, after an argument, Walker shot a 55-year-old woman multiple times in the legs.  The victim immediately identified Walker as her assailant to law enforcement.  A warrant was issued for Walker’s arrest, but he was not immediately apprehended.  On March 31, 2008, Walker argued with Delois “Peaches” Persha, 44. Ms. Persha referenced the earlier shooting that Walker had committed, telling him that she would not be treated the same way. In response, Walker shot Ms. Persha multiple times in the torso, and then, as she lay on the ground, multiple times in the face.  Ms. Persha survived the attack, and immediately identified Walker as her assailant to law enforcement.  For her protection, Ms. Persha, who had grown up in LeDroit Park, was relocated out of the area.   

            After Walker was arrested and detained in July 2008, he and Donaldson, along with the aid of other LDP gang members, began communicating about hunting down and killing the witnesses against Walker.  On Sept. 13, 2008, Donaldson located Ms. Persha, who had returned to the area of LeDroit Park, and fatally shot her multiple times in the back and head.  Ms. Persha died from her injuries on Sept. 18, 2008. 

            The jury found Walker guilty of crimes for his role in the February and March 2008 shootings, as well as the murder of Ms. Persha. Donaldson was found guilty in the murder.

            In announcing the sentences, U.S. Attorney Machen praised the work of the detectives, officers, and crime scene technicians who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department.  He also expressed appreciation for the work of the FBI’s Cellular Analysis Survey Team.  He commended the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Marian Russell, Sharece Muschette, Gary Nails, and Rommell Pachoca; Lead Paralegal Specialist Philip Aronson; Supervisory Paralegal Specialist Sharon Newman; Victim/Witness Advocates Jennifer Clark and Yvonne Bryant; Victim/Witness Security Specialists Michael Hailey, Deborah Cannon, M. Laverne Forrest, Katina Adams-Washington, and David Foster; Intelligence Specialist Zachary McMenamin; former Intelligence Specialist Larry Grasso; Criminal Investigators John Marsh and Durand Odom; and Litigation Technology Specialist Leif Hickling. 

            Finally, U.S. Attorney Machen recognized the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chrisellen Kolb, Elizabeth Danello, David Goodhand, and Suzanne Curt, who provided legal assistance, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alessio Evangelista and Michael Brittin, who investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kimberley Nielsen and Jeffrey Pearlman, who prosecuted the case at trial.

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WASHINGTON - Jorida Davidson, 34, of Chevy Chase, Md., was found guilty by a jury today of voluntary manslaughter for causing a traffic crash in October 2010 that killed a woman near Dupont Circle, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Lynn Leibovitz scheduled sentencing for Sept. 19, 2014.

     Davidson was found guilty in June 2011, after an earlier jury trial, of charges of negligent homicide, leaving the scene of a collision involving injury, and driving while under the influence of alcohol. That jury was unable to reach a verdict on a charge of voluntary manslaughter, leading to a retrial this month on that specific charge. In the earlier case, Davidson was sentenced to a total of three years and nine months in prison, and she is now serving that time.

     According to the government’s evidence, on Oct. 7, 2010, at about 1:30 a.m., Davidson was operating a 2000 Lexus sport utility vehicle heading northbound on Connecticut Avenue NW, just south of Dupont Circle. She was driving in a lane that would take her into a tunnel that goes under Dupont Circle. At almost the last possible instant, Davidson rapidly changed lanes to avoid going into the tunnel, shifting to a non-tunnel lane on Connecticut Avenue.

     At about the same time, the victim, Kiela Ryan, 24, was exiting from a legally parked car on the right side of the street. Davidson hit Ms. Ryan - making no attempt to brake or sound her horn - and then kept driving. An eyewitness got on a bicycle, pursued Davidson’s vehicle and observed the defendant and made a mental note of her car’s tag number.

     Davidson, meanwhile, continued driving to her condominium building in Chevy Chase, Md. Police from Montgomery County, Md., found her in the basement garage there, sitting in her vehicle, at about 2:30 a.m. The right front headlight of the vehicle was damaged. The ignition was off, and Davidson had the keys to the Lexus in her hand. She smelled of alcohol and claimed not to know what had happened.

     After she was struck, Ms. Ryan was taken to a hospital, where she later died.

     In announcing this week’s verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen commended those who worked on the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also cited the efforts of the Montgomery County, Md. Police and the District of Columbia Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. In addition, he acknowledged the work of those who handled the case in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Sandra Lane; Information Technology Specialists Anisha Bhatia and Aneela Bhatia; David Foster and Marcia Rinker, of the Victim/Witness Assistance Unit, and Interns Brian Ganjei and Jacob Hjelmaas. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Mannarino and Lauren Bates of the office’s Appellate Division. Finally, he praised the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Liebman and Edward O’Connell, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON – The United States has intervened in a lawsuit against Symantec Corporation, alleging that Symantec submitted false claims to the United States on a General Services Administration (GSA) software contract, the Justice Department announced today.  Symantec is a Fortune 500 company located in Mountain View, California, and it sells a variety of computer security products.

     “This lawsuit demonstrates the government’s commitment to ensuring that the companies it does business with act with integrity,” said Assistant Attorney General Stuart Delery for the Department of Justice’s Civil Division.  “When the United States spends taxpayer dollars based on contractors’ representations about their business practices, we expect to be given complete and accurate information.”

     “When doing business with the government, honesty and transparency are essential,” said U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. “We are committed to ensuring that contractors who do business with the federal government provide honest services, prices and products.  We will continue to work with relators and federal investigators to protect federal taxpayer money.”

     In 2007, Symantec entered into a Multiple Award Schedule contract with GSA that allowed Symantec to sell software and related items directly to federal purchasers.  The case alleges that Symantec knowingly provided the United States with inaccurate and incomplete information about the prices it was offering to its commercial customers during the negotiation and performance of the contract.  GSA used Symantec’s disclosures about its commercial sales practices to negotiate the minimum discounts Symantec was required to provide government agencies that bought Symantec software.  In addition, the contract required Symantec to update GSA when commercial discounts improved and extend the same improved discounts to government purchasers.  The suit contends that Symantec misrepresented its true commercial sales practices, ultimately leading to government customers receiving discounts far inferior to those Symantec gave to its commercial non-government customers.  The contract at issue was in place from 2007 to 2012 and involved hundreds of millions of dollars in sales.

     “Contractors cannot provide GSA with inaccurate and incomplete pricing data,” said GSA Acting Inspector General Robert C. Erickson.  “American taxpayers deserve a fair deal.”

     The suit was filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to sue on behalf of the government for the submission of false claims for government funds and to receive a share of any recovery.  The False Claims Act also permits the government to intervene in such lawsuits, as it has done in this case.  The lawsuit is pending in the District of Columbia.

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

     The case is captioned United States ex rel. Morsell v. Symantec Corp., No. 12cv00800 (D.D.C.).  The claims asserted against Symantec are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.

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     WASHINGTON –Edward Dacy, 76, of West Melbourne, Fla., and A. Conrad Austin, 49, of Bowie, Md., have been indicted on conspiracy, bank fraud, and other federal charges stemming from a multi-million dollar mortgage fraud scheme in which they are accused of assisting their co-conspirators to defraud banks and mortgage lenders through the purchase of residential real estate in the District of Columbia and Maryland.

     The indictment, unsealed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr.; Michael P. Tompkins, Special Agent in Charge, Washington Field Office, Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General; Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; Kathy A. Michalko, Special Agent in Charge, Washington Field Office, U.S. Secret Service; Cary Rubenstein, Special Agent in Charge, Mid-Atlantic Region, Office of the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD); John Roth, Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and Michael P. Stephens​, Acting Inspector General for the Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General.

     Dacy and Austin, who were arrested today, were named in a 19-count indictment charging them with conspiracy, bank fraud, wire fraud, and mail fraud. Dacy is charged with all 19 counts; Austin is charged with conspiracy, one of the five bank fraud counts, all of the nine wire fraud counts, and two of the four mail fraud counts.  The indictment also includes forfeiture allegations seeking all proceeds that can be traced to the scheme.

     The government also announces the following seven guilty pleas, all of which occurred before the Honorable Reggie B. Walton in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia:

     Frank Davis, Jr., 49, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty on April 30, 2014 to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.  The plea carries a potential sentencing guideline term of imprisonment of 51 to 63 months, $2,296,463 in restitution, supervised release, fines and forfeiture.

     Lonnie Johnson, 47, of Greensboro, N.C., pled guilty on May 2, 2013 to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.  The plea carries a potential sentencing guideline term of imprisonment of 18 to 24 months, $375,000 in restitution, supervised release, and fines.

     Cheryl E. Morrison, 54, of West Melbourne, Fla., pled guilty on Sept. 25, 2013, to conspiracy to commit mail fraud. The plea carries a potential sentencing guideline term of imprisonment of 10 to 16 months, $42,600 in restitution, supervised release, fines and forfeiture.

     Pauline Pilate, 50, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty on July 3, 2014 to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.  The plea carries a potential sentencing guideline term of imprisonment of 18 to 37 months, at least $341,070 in restitution, supervised release, fines and forfeiture.

     Frederick Robinson, Sr., 52, of Montgomery, Ala., pled guilty on April 23, 2014, to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.  The plea carries a potential sentencing guideline term of imprisonment of 37 to 46 months, $971,900 in restitution, supervised release, fines and forfeiture.

     Howard Tutman, III, 54, of Woodstock, Md., pled guilty on July 2, 2014 to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.  The plea carries a potential sentencing guideline term of imprisonment of 24 to 37 months, $606,414 in restitution, supervised release, fines and forfeiture.

     Anthony Young, 47, of Clinton, Md., pled guilty on Jan. 30, 2013 to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.  The plea carries a potential sentencing guideline term of imprisonment of 27 to 33 months, $378,118 in restitution, supervised release, and fines.

     According to the indictment, Dacy and Austin defrauded banks, mortgage lenders, and the Federal Housing Administration, “FHA,” (part of U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) of money by assisting others to obtain mortgage loans on residential real estate properties through false loan applications and documents and fraudulent settlements, ultimately causing a loss to the banks, lenders, and FHA when mortgages were not paid.

     The indictment states that co-conspirators Frank Davis, Jr., and Frederick Robinson, Sr. purchased properties in the names of general partnerships; Davis and Robinson would then recruit individuals to re-purchase these same properties for higher amounts, funded by fraudulently obtained mortgage loans, by promising the buyers that they would not be required to: make financial contributions toward the purchase of the properties; pay the monthly mortgage payments or expenses; or maintain the properties. The straw buyers were used to purchase a number of properties; the indictment lists 15 transactions seeking or obtaining in excess of $4.3 million in mortgage loans. 

     Furthermore, according to the indictment, Austin is a Certified Public Accountant (“CPA”) licensed in the State of Maryland.  CPAs are licensed by an authorizing state or District of Columbia agencies, and may prepare tax returns and other financial documents.  CPAs are required periodically to attest that they had received continuing ethical training to maintain their CPA license. Mortgage lenders often give deference to documents prepared by CPAs based on the stringent standards required of CPAs to provide accurate analysis supported by detailed documentation.   In order to obtain mortgage loans in the names of some of the straw buyers, Robinson recruited Austin to create false CPA letters, inflated tax returns, and unjustified financial statements. 

     The indictment further alleges that Dacy was an agent for a settlement company, which would receive the funding from the mortgage lender and the buyer’s cash contribution and would be under the obligation to disburse the money only if all of the mortgage lender’s conditions were met and the buyer’s financial contribution collected.  Only then would the settlement company be authorized to release the lender’s money, and pay the costs of the closing, the debts of the property or seller, and any other authorized expenses as set forth on the Settlement Statement. According to the indictment, Dacy handled the straw buyers’ settlement of the properties, with knowledge that the straw buyers did not pay the cash contribution as required by the lenders.

     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 Machen,  Special Agent in Charge Tompkins, Assistant Director in Charge Parlave, Special Agent in Charge Michalko, Special Agent in Charge Rubenstein, Inspector General Roth, and Acting Inspector General Stephens expressed appreciation for the work performed by Special Agents and analysts from the FBI, U.S. Secret Service, and the Offices of Inspector General of Department of Homeland Security, Department of Justice, Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Federal Housing Finance Agency.  They also acknowledged the efforts of those who are working on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Donna Galindo, Corinne Kleinman, and Kristy Penny, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Saler and Arvind K. Lal, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Virginia Cheatham, who is prosecuting the case.

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WASHINGTON - The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia today joined in a motion to vacate the 1984 manslaughter conviction of Kevin Martin, based on the grounds of his actual innocence in the rape and murder of a woman in Southwest Washington.

     Mr. Martin, now 50, pled guilty in March 1984 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to one count of manslaughter while armed in the Nov. 1, 1982 rape-murder of Ursula Brown. He also pled guilty at that time to two counts of armed robbery stemming from other incidents that took place a week later. Although Mr. Martin admitted in court to carrying out the latter armed robberies, he entered what is known as an Alford plea to the manslaughter charge. Under such a plea, the defendant does not admit the allegations, but agrees that the government has enough evidence to secure a conviction.

     Mr. Martin was sentenced in July 1984 to a prison term of 15 years to life for manslaughter, and two consecutive terms of 10 years to life on the robbery charges, making his total sentence 35 years to life. He was paroled in 2009.

     DNA testing has now led to Mr. Martin’s exoneration of the attack on Ms. Brown.

     The U.S. Attorney’s Office joined Mr. Martin today in asking the Court to vacate his manslaughter conviction and issue a certificate of actual innocence for that conviction. The Honorable Robert I. Richter granted the motion at a hearing today.

     “Thirty years ago, Kevin Martin was unjustly branded a rapist and murderer,” said U.S. Attorney Machen.  “Although Mr. Martin had been justly convicted of a series of armed robberies, the system failed us all when he was wrongfully convicted of a brutal rape and murder and, as a result, spent far too long in prison.  DNA analysis has now provided evidence that a serial rapist – not Mr. Martin – committed this outrageous attack.  Mr. Martin has steadfastly declared his innocence for three decades, and today we joined him in asking the court to clear his name.  This exoneration reinforces the importance of the task force we created in early 2010 to pore through old records to identify wrongful convictions.  We continue to urge defense lawyers to come forward with any information about wrongful convictions where DNA testing or other evidence could remedy a wrong that was committed in the past.  It is never too late to do justice.”

     Ms. Brown, 19, was raped and murdered Nov. 1, 1982. According to the government’s evidence, early that morning, Ms. Brown was driving along Route 295 when her car was intentionally bumped from behind by a black Toyota. When she got out and confronted the driver, she was abducted and taken to the 4300 block of Martin Luther King Avenue SW. She was raped during this incident. When she attempted to escape from her attacker, Ms. Brown was shot in the head and stabbed with a serrated knife along her belly, neck, and arms. Her body was discarded by a dumpster near Chesapeake Street SE, next to an elementary school.

     The murder was among a series of crimes committed in late October and November of 1982 in which motorists were bumped and then attacked after stopping their vehicles. A total of eight victims – seven women and one man – were robbed or assaulted in separate incidents between Oct. 31 and Nov. 8, 1982. Ms. Brown was the only victim to be murdered.

     The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) arrested three men in 1982 for taking part in one or more of the crimes. They included Mr. Martin, William Davidson, and Kevin Williams.

     Mr. Martin spoke to the police after his arrest on Nov. 10, 1982, and admitted to being involved in three bump-and-rob incidents with Davidson, all on Nov. 8, 1982. The robbery charges stemmed from two of those attacks. He repeatedly denied killing Ms. Brown, however.

     In the murder case, the government’s evidence against Mr. Martin included hair fragments removed from Ms. Brown’s shoes. The FBI Laboratory issued a report stating that the fragments exhibited the same microscopic characteristics as samples taken from Mr. Martin.

     Davidson pled guilty in January 1984 to felony murder, rape, armed robbery and other charges. Consistent with the results of the hair analysis, Davidson claimed at his plea hearing that he acted as a look-out while Mr. Martin raped and killed Ms. Brown. Davidson is now serving a sentence of 65 years to life.

     Williams pled guilty to one count of rape while armed for his role in the bump-and-run incidents with Davidson and an unrelated kidnaping charge; neither of the charges related to Ms. Brown’s murder. He was sentenced to 15 years to life for the crimes. He was paroled in 2004.

     At Mr. Martin’s plea hearing, in March 1984, Mr. Martin’s lawyer said that Mr. Martin feared conviction of greater charges, citing the hair analysis. Mr. Martin stated, “I understand that I was wrong in committing the robberies, but I never took part in the murder.” Over the years, he continued to insist that he was innocent of the rape-murder.

     In November 2001, Mr. Martin’s current defense counsel, Bernard Grimm, filed a motion seeking to withdraw the 1984 guilty plea and vacate the conviction. At the request of the government and the defense, the Metropolitan Police Department searched for the physical evidence without success. A hearing on Mr. Martin’s motion began in July 2006. Before its conclusion, the government and defense negotiated a resolution calling for Mr. Martin’s sentence to be reduced. Pursuant to that agreement, the Court re-sentenced Mr. Martin to a total of 20 to 60 years in prison. The re-sentencing made Mr. Martin immediately eligible for parole. The U.S. Parole Commission, however, did not parole Mr. Martin until September 2009.

     Following the 2009 exoneration of another man convicted of a rape and murder, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia began a review of older cases in which the FBI had made a positive hair or fiber association. This led to a re-examination of Mr. Martin’s case, and, in November 2013, the U.S. Attorney’s Office again attempted to locate the evidence.

     By this time, MPD had performed a comprehensive inventory of all evidence in its possession as part of a transition to a new property warehouse. The hair sample still could not be located. However, through this search, in January 2014, the U.S. Attorney’s Office located semen-positive swabs taken from Ms. Brown’s body.

     The office subsequently contacted Mr. Grimm and the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project to determine if Mr. Martin wanted DNA testing performed. Upon learning that Mr. Martin was interested in DNA testing, the office obtained DNA samples from Mr. Martin as well as Davidson. The DNA testing took place in March and April 2014. The evidence excluded Mr. Martin, but matched the sample provided by Davidson.

     DNA testing was not available to the prosecution or defense in 1982. The results now establish that Davidson, not Martin, raped Ms. Brown. The results also undermine Davidson’s claim that he acted as only a look-out at the time of the murder. There is no other credible evidence connecting Mr. Martin to the murder.

     This is the first time that a U.S. Attorney’s Office has also resolved all civil claims against the United States simultaneously with a request for a certificate of actual innocence.

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WASHINGTON – Christopher Payton, a former specialist for the Social Security Administration in Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for soliciting more than $50,000 in bribes from Social Security recipients in return for providing them with extra, unauthorized benefits.

            The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Michael McGill, Special Agent in Charge of the Philadelphia Field Division of the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General.

            Payton, 46, of Mount Rainier, Md., pled guilty in April 2014, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, to one count of bribery. He was sentenced by the Honorable Senior Judge Gladys Kessler. Following his prison term, Payton will be placed on three years of supervised release. He also must pay $54,662 in restitution to the Social Security Administration.

            According to a statement of offense, signed by the defendant and the government, Payton was a Social Insurance Specialist for the Social Security Administration’s Anacostia Office in Southeast Washington. His duties included conducting interviews regarding eligibility for benefits, authorizing or disallowing entitlement, and reviewing and authorizing Supplemental Security Income. He had computerized access to the agency’s database.

            Between January and May of 2013, Payton met with 13 people as part of his responsibilities at the agency. Upon meeting these individuals, Payton told them, in substance, that if they gave him a tip, he would take care of them. After they agreed to his solicitation, Payton caused retroactive Supplemental Security Income benefits to go into the individuals’ bank accounts. These retroactive payments were not properly authorized, and Payton knew that the people receiving them were not entitled to the extra income.

            After the individuals began seeing increased retroactive benefits in their bank accounts, they met with Payton throughout the Anacostia neighborhood and gave him payments. All told, Payton received $54,662 in cash payments from the individuals for his actions.

            Payton’s activities came to light after someone reported his suspicious conduct. In addition, authorities received information through a fraud hotline operated by the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General. The public can report allegations of waste, fraud, and abuse online at http://oig.ssa.gov/report or by phone at 1-800-269-0271.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen and Special Agent in Charge McGill praised the work of those who investigated the case from the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General. They also acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Donna Galindo, Krishawn Graham, and Angela Lawrence; Investigative Analyst Sharon Johnson, Intern Dan Chin, and former Paralegal Specialist Shanna Hays. They expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by Trial Attorney Edward P. Sullivan of the Department of Justice’s Public Integrity Section.

            Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Selden, who prosecuted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Lucas, who assisted with forfeiture issues.

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WASHINGTON - James Dunmore, 40, of Hyattsville, Md., was sentenced today to 10 years in prison on charges stemming from a series of burglaries he committed last year at George Washington University, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

            Dunmore pled guilty in July 2013 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to a total of 12 charges, including first-degree burglary, second-degree burglary, second-degree theft, and unlawful entry. He was sentenced by the Honorable Robert I. Richter. Upon completion of his prison term, Dunmore will be placed on a period of supervised release.

            According to a proffer of evidence, signed by the defendant as well as the government, Dunmore entered a total of five apartments in January 2013 in the Ivory Tower Dormitory at George Washington University in Northwest Washington. Over two separate days, he took various electronic items, including laptops, and other property belonging to nine students.

            The series of crimes began on Jan. 25, 2013. That day, Dunmore entered the residence hall and went into a student’s apartment while the student was in the shower. He took a laptop and the student’s wallet, which contained the student’s G-World card, a student ID card that can be used to electronically gain entry to the university’s buildings.

            Then, on Jan. 28, 2013, Dunmore entered four more apartments in the same building. He got into the residence hall at about 1:30 p.m. by following another student into the building. First, he went to the sixth floor, where he entered three separate apartments. He took a pillowcase, three laptops, a camera, and an iPod from one apartment. In another, a student was asleep in bed when Dunmore entered the room and pretended to be looking for someone he knew; he took an iPod from that apartment. He went into a third apartment on the sixth floor, but left without taking anything after he saw someone there. Dunmore then went to the building’s third floor and entered yet another apartment, taking two laptops, a video game system, and a student’s suitcase, which he used to carry the items away.

            One student became suspicious of Dunmore’s activities and alerted campus police, who stopped Dunmore on his way out of the building with the stolen items in his possession.

In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen expressed his appreciation to the Metropolitan Police Department and the George Washington University Police Department.  He also acknowledged the efforts of Paralegal Specialists Allison Gregory Daniels and Victim/Witness Advocates Kristina Rose and Katina Adams-Washington, as well as former Intern Julie Herward.  Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Sroka, who investigated and indicted the case.

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WASHINGTON - Wendel Palmer, 46, a former officer with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), was sentenced today to 18 years in prison for sexually abusing a child on numerous occasions between 2004 and 2006, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

            A jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia found Palmer guilty in November 2013 of three counts of first-degree child sexual abuse with aggravating circumstances, two counts of second-degree child sexual abuse with aggravating circumstances, and two counts of enticing a child with aggravating circumstances. He was sentenced by the Honorable J. Herbert B. Dixon, Jr. Upon completion of his prison term, Palmer will be placed on 10 years of supervised release. During that 10-year period, he must register as a sex offender.

            According to the government’s evidence, at the time of the offenses, Palmer was an MPD officer who was also the youth choir director at the Bethuel Temple Church of Christ Apostolic, Inc., in the 2400 block of Martin Luther King Avenue SE.  The defendant’s family founded and operated the church.  The victim’s family belonged to the church, and the victim was a member of the choir.  The abuse began when the victim was 10 or 11 years old, and occurred at the defendant’s home in Maryland, at the church during breaks in choir rehearsals, and at other locations in the District of Columbia and in Maryland.  The victim was afraid to report the abuse while it was occurring, in part because the defendant was a police officer.  The victim reported the abuse in 2012, after she turned 18. 

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Youth Division and Mobile Crime Division.  He also expressed appreciation for the work of Victim/Witness Advocate Tracey Hawkins, Paralegal Specialists Jason Manuel and Kristy Penny, and the Litigation Support Staff. Lastly, he acknowledged the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amy Zubrensky, who investigated, indicted and tried the case, and Sarah McClellan, who also investigated the case.

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WASHINGTON – Marvin Jefferson, 25, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to an eight-year prison term on charges of aggravated assault while armed, armed robbery, and related firearms offenses for attacking a man in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

            Jefferson was found guilty by a jury in April 2014, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. He was sentenced by the Honorable Michael Ryan. Upon completion of his prison term, Jefferson will be placed on five years of supervised release.

            According to the government’s evidence, in the early evening hours of Oct. 28, 2013, Jefferson attacked a man he had just encountered at a liquor store in the 1300 block of North Capitol Street NE. The victim, a 24-year-old engineering graduate of Howard University, had stopped at the store to get a beer. Jefferson, also inside the store, tried to take the victim’s iPhone. The victim put his iPhone in his jacket pocket, paid for his beer, and left the store.

            Jefferson, however, followed the victim to the street. He tried to reach into the victim’s jacket to get the iPhone, and when the victim turned around, Jefferson began striking him. Jefferson hit the victim in the forehead with what appeared to be a gun, causing lacerations. Then, while the victim was in a disoriented and semi-conscious state, Jefferson robbed him of his phone, wallet and keys.  The victim lost consciousness and dropped to the ground, chipping his tooth.  Once he regained consciousness, he flagged down two police officers. A few days after the attack, he was able to identify Jefferson as his attacker.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Services Coordinator La June Thames; Victim/Witness Advocate Jennifer Clark; Paralegal Specialist Donville Drummond, and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Mannarino. Finally, he expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clayton O’Connor, who secured the indictment, and John P. Fucetola, who prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON - Gerald Canty, 21, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to 21 years in prison for sexually assaulting an 18-year-old woman and attempting to kidnap three additional young women in a series of incidents that took place earlier this year in Northeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

            Canty pled guilty on May 16, 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to one count of first-degree sexual abuse, one count of attempted kidnapping while armed, and two counts of attempted kidnapping. He was sentenced by the Honorable Jennifer Anderson.  Upon completion of his prison term, Canty will be placed on supervised release for the rest of his life. He also must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life and stay away from minors.

            According to the government’s evidence, on March 1, 2014, at about 10:40 a.m., the 18-year-old woman was walking on the footbridge from the Minnesota Avenue Metro station when Canty approached her from behind. Canty told her that he had a gun and forced her to walk several blocks with him to an isolated field.  When they got there, he sexually assaulted her.  After the assault, she immediately went home and told her mother what happened.  She reported the assault to the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), and was taken to a local hospital, where she received a sexual assault exam. 

            On March 5, 2014, at about 11:30 a.m., another victim - a 25-year-old woman - was walking in the area of 44th and Hayes Streets NE, about half a mile from the Metro station, when Canty approached her. He had his hand in his pocket to simulate that he had a gun.  He bumped into her, grabbed her arm, and stated, “Where’s the money at?”  He then forced her to walk with him while demanding money.  The victim saw what she believed to be the handle of a handgun in the defendant’s pocket. Canty forcibly led her towards an alley behind a residence in the next block. She managed to break away and yell for help.  An unidentified bystander came to her aid, and Canty fled on foot.  The victim reported the assault to MPD immediately.

            On March 7, 2014, at about 7:05 a.m., a third victim – a 17-year-old - was walking on the footbridge from the Minnesota Avenue Metro station, toward her school. Canty walked up beside her with his hand in his pocket to simulate that he had a gun, and stated, “I real life have a gun in my pocket and I’ll shoot you.  Just keep walking straight.  Don’t draw any attention to yourself.  Don’t do anything crazy.” He forced her to walk with him a short distance. She saw an acquaintance and then stopped walking with Canty, who fled on foot. She then reported the assault to her school principal, and later to MPD. 

            All three victims provided MPD detectives with descriptions of the assailant.  On March 13, 2014, the Minnesota Avenue Metro station manager contacted Metro Transit Police to report that an individual matching the descriptions had been seen on the footbridge of the Minnesota Avenue Metro station.  Metro Transit and MPD officers stopped the defendant.  Detectives with MPD’s Sexual Assault Unit responded and spoke to Canty. He subsequently admitted to sexually assaulting the 18-year-old and attempting to kidnap the 25-year-old and 17-year-old victims. The sexual assault kit from the 18-year-old’s examination was later tested, and showed that a single male DNA profile was found that matched Canty’s DNA profile.

            After Canty was charged in the above crimes, MPD detectives linked an additional case to him. In that offense, on Feb. 17, 2014, at approximately 5:45 p.m., a 19-year-old woman was walking through a cut near 51st Street NE when Canty approached her from behind.  He stated that he had a gun in his pocket, and threatened to shoot her if she yelled or screamed. Canty told her to keep walking, which she did. She saw an acquaintance walk into a house, and ran to follow that person inside. She told the occupants what had just occurred.  Several occupants went outside, but Canty was gone. This victim later identified the defendant as her attacker.

            In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department=s Sexual Assault Unit, Youth Investigations Division, Sixth District, and Mobile Crime Division.  He also acknowledged the work of the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences, Metro Transit Police, and Washington Metro Area Transit Authority.  He also praised those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Tracey Hawkins, Paralegal Specialist Jason Manuel, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Zubrensky, who investigated and prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON – David Shepherd, 50, of Washington, D.C., was found  guilty by a jury today of first-degree murder while armed in the June 2012 killing of a man in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     The verdict followed a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The jury also found Shepherd guilty of charges of fleeing police, destruction of property, and related firearms offenses. The Honorable Russell F. Canan scheduled sentencing for Oct. 3, 2014.

     According to the government’s evidence, in the early morning hours of June 3, 2012, Shepherd and the victim, Henry Miller, 32, encountered one another while at a house in the 1100 block of Chicago Street SE. Shepherd was outside and in a conversation with mutual friends of the two men when Mr. Miller approached and said “Excuse me,” to Shepherd and tried to reach for a cigarette inside the friends’ vehicle. Shepherd responded aggressively and began swearing and raising his voice. A verbal argument ensued, in which Shepherd threatened Mr. Miller. Others stepped in to defuse the situation, and the argument ended when Shepherd indicated he was leaving and walked toward his nearby truck.

     Shepherd, however, then returned to the scene, walked up to Mr. Miller, within arm’s reach, and shot him in the face with a revolver. He then got into his truck and fled the scene. 

     The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) quickly responded to the shooting and got a description of Shepherd and his truck. Officers in the area observed him driving and attempted to make a traffic stop, but Shepherd then engaged the police in a high-speed chase throughout the city, plowing through a gate a Gallaudet University, and then crashed his truck on Brentwood Parkway NE. MPD officers then apprehended Shepherd and recovered the murder weapon in his vehicle. 

     In announcing the verdict, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department. He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by 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 Paralegal Specialists Kwasi Fields and Kendra Johnson; former Paralegal Specialist Marian Russell; Information Technology Specialist Jeanie Latimore Brown; and Interns Megan Benevento and Kimberly Knipe. Finally, he praised the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Worm, who prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced today that there is insufficient evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights or local charges against officers from the U.S. Secret Service and U.S. Capitol Police who were involved in the fatal shooting of Miriam Carey on Oct. 3, 2013, just blocks from the U.S. Capitol.

     Officials from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia notified Ms. Carey’s family and their representatives of this decision today.

     The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Metropolitan Police Department conducted a comprehensive review of the incident, which included interviews of more than 60 witnesses and careful review of all crime scene evidence, ballistics reports, scene and traffic video footage, photographs, the autopsy report, and other evidence.  After a thorough review of all the evidence, the U.S. Attorney’s Office concluded that the evidence was insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers who were involved in the shooting used excessive force or possessed the requisite criminal intent at the time of the events.    

     The investigation covered a chain of events that took place on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2013, between 2:13 p.m. and 2:20 p.m., a time span of just seven minutes. During that period, Ms. Carey confronted officers at three locations – one at the White House and two near the Capitol.

     At 2:13 p.m., Ms. Carey, 34, of Stamford, Conn., drove into a well-marked, restricted White House checkpoint at 15th and E Streets NW, without authorization and without stopping.  After seeing Ms. Carey refuse to stop at the direction of two uniformed Secret Service officers, an off-duty U.S. Secret Service officer placed a metal bike rack in her path to block Ms. Carey’s exit.  Ms. Carey then struck the bike rack, and the off-duty Secret Service officer who was standing behind it, knocking both the bike rack and the officer onto the ground.  The incident at the White House checkpoint lasted about 30 seconds.

     Ms. Carey then drove down Pennsylvania Avenue at speeds estimated at 40-80 mph, while weaving through traffic, and ignoring red lights. 

     Four minutes after leaving the White House checkpoint, Ms. Carey arrived at Garfield Circle, one of two traffic circles in front of the U.S. Capitol. She drove into the circle going against the flow of traffic, almost hitting another vehicle head-on.  Ms. Carey then turned her vehicle towards the permanently-affixed black barriers that block vehicular traffic on the pedestrian walkway that leads to the steps of the U.S. Capitol.  The pursuing law enforcement officers blocked Ms. Carey’s exit from the left, right and rear of her vehicle, attempted to open her locked doors, and issued multiple commands for her to exit the vehicle.  Ms. Carey then put her vehicle in reverse and rammed the marked cruiser that was positioned behind her vehicle. 

     After ramming the cruiser, Ms. Carey drove forward onto the sidewalk, forcing officers to run out of Ms. Carey’s path to avoid being struck by her vehicle.  It was at this point, as Ms. Carey drove on the sidewalk between the wall that borders the U.S. Capitol lawn and the tree boxes on the sidewalk, that two U.S. Secret Service police officers and a U.S. Capitol Police officer fired eight rounds at Ms. Carey. Investigators do not believe that Ms. Carey was hit by any of these rounds. Ms. Carey then drove back around Garfield Circle, against the flow of traffic, and headed towards Constitution Avenue.  The incident at Garfield Circle lasted approximately 35 seconds.

     The U.S. Capitol, the U.S. Supreme Court, and other buildings within the Capitol square were put on lockdown in response to the “shots fired” report. With continued reckless and evasive driving, Ms. Carey traveled along the north side of the Capitol and headed towards the Senate and House office buildings.  A U.S. Capitol Police officer who was responding to the scene in his cruiser slammed into one of the barriers that had just been raised in response to the lockdown order, causing what sounded like an explosion that was later reported by witnesses.  The cruiser was totaled and the officer had to be airlifted to the hospital for treatment of his injuries. 

     Approximately one minute after the shooting at Garfield Circle, Ms. Carey arrived at the manned U.S. Capitol Police Truck Interdiction Point at 2nd Street and Maryland Avenue NE.  With raised barriers blocking her path, Ms. Carey made a sharp left, drove up a curb, over the center median, and struck an unmarked Supreme Court police officer’s vehicle that had stopped in front of the Hart office building.  After ignoring multiple commands given by officers who were running towards her vehicle with guns drawn, Ms. Carey revved her engine and then reversed her vehicle and drove directly at a U.S. Capitol Police officer who was approaching Ms. Carey’s vehicle from behind.  As the U.S. Capitol Police officer ran towards the median to avoid being struck by Ms. Carey’s vehicle, he and another officer from the U.S. Secret Service (who also had fired shots at the Garfield Circle location) started firing.  The two officers fired nine rounds each.  Twenty seconds after Ms. Carey had arrived at the 2nd and Maryland location, her vehicle crashed into the kiosk and came to rest.  Ms. Carey was unconscious at this time, and did not get out of the vehicle. No additional rounds were fired by officers after the crash. 

     After the shooting and after Ms. Carey’s vehicle crashed into the kiosk and came to rest, the officers on the scene discovered that there was a young child in the vehicle. They carried the child from the car. The child, who was not seriously injured, was taken to a hospital.

     Medical personnel arrived on the scene and attempted to revive Ms. Carey. She was transported to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.  Ms. Carey sustained five gunshot wounds to her neck and torso area, one of which was fatal.  She was not under the influence of illegal drugs or alcohol, and no weapon was recovered from inside her vehicle.

     Under the applicable federal criminal civil rights laws, prosecutors must establish beyond a reasonable doubt not only that an officer’s use of force was excessive, but also that the officer willfully deprived an individual of a constitutional right.  Proving “willfulness” is a heavy burden, and means that it must be proven that the officer acted with the deliberate and specific intent to do something the law forbids.  Accident, mistake, fear, negligence and bad judgment do not establish such a criminal violation.  After a careful, thorough and independent review of the evidence, federal prosecutors have found insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that these officers used excessive force under the circumstances known to them at the time or that they acted with the requisite criminal intent.  Accordingly, the investigation into this incident has been closed without prosecution. 

     The Justice Department 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.

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WASHINGTON – David Mario Riley, 38, of Tampa, Fla., pled guilty today to a federal charge of possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

     Riley entered the guilty plea in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The Honorable Christopher R. Cooper is to sentence him on Oct. 1, 2014.  Riley faces a maximum sentence of 20 years of imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.

     According to the government's evidence, on Dec. 10, 2013, Riley contacted an undercover officer with the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, who had posted an ad on a social network site.  Over the next few days, Riley engaged in e-mail and instant message conversations with the undercover officer about child pornography and a shared sexual interest in children. During their communications, Riley sent the undercover officer eight still images of child pornography. 

     Pursuant to a search of various electronic equipment in Riley’s hotel room in Crystal City, Va., law enforcement recovered about 14 videos and 40 still images of child pornography.

     This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice's Project Safe Childhood initiative and investigated by the FBI's Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes members of the FBI's Washington Field Office and MPD.  In February 2006, the Attorney General created Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the U.S. Attorney's Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

     In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director Parlave and Chief Lanier praised the work of the MPD Detectives and Special Agents of the FBI Child Exploitation Task Force. They also commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Ari Redbord, who is prosecuting the case.

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WASHINGTON – Three men, all from Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to 16 felony charges stemming from their roles in a drive-by shooting on North Capitol Street early March 11, 2013, that injured a total of 13 people, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department.

     Andrew D. Allen, 20, Keith D. Bobb, 22, and Arnell L. Smith, 21, pled guilty in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to 13 counts of assault with intent to kill and one count each of conspiracy to commit a crime of violence, possession of a firearm during a crime of violence and tampering with physical evidence. Their plea agreements, which are contingent upon the Court’s approval, call for Allen to be sentenced to 25 years of incarceration and for Bobb and Smith each to be sentenced to 20 years in prison.

     The Honorable John Ramsey Johnson scheduled sentencing for Oct. 10, 2014.

     “Today three men confessed to their active participation in a caravan of carnage that resulted in 13 people being shot on a sidewalk outside an apartment building in Northwest D.C.,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “It is a miracle that no one perished in this senseless drive-by attack on a crowd of innocent people.  The young men who plotted and carried out this cowardly assault will now spend decades in prison for their heinous actions.”     

     “This was a brazen act, in which the defendants fired upon a crowd of people with no regard for who or how many people would be injured,” said Police Chief Lanier. “I applaud the MPD members who investigated and quickly made arrests in this case, so that these criminals will be held accountable.”

     According to the government’s evidence, the violence stemmed from a longstanding conflict between rival groups. The defendants, who had ties to a Northeast Washington neighborhood, were engaged in disputes with a group of individuals associated with the Sursum Corda neighborhood near where the shootings occurred, and also with the area near 10th and G Streets NE. Over the years, various violent crimes between members of the two groups were committed. Specifically, soon before the shootings, a dispute took place at the Fur Nightclub.

     Allen, Smith, and other individuals were among those at the nightclub late March 10, 2013 and early March 11, 2013, when the dispute took place. Afterward, Allen, Smith, and a third individual met with Bobb and, armed, they traveled in two cars to the Sursum Corda neighborhood in search of retaliation. A fifth individual, not responsible for the shootings, also was in one of the cars. 

     Shortly after 2 a.m., driving in caravan-style, one car behind the other, they traveled to the 1200 block of North Capitol Street NW, near the Tyler House Apartments, adjacent to the Sursum Corda neighborhood.  Smith drove one car, Allen’s black 1999 Mercedes Benz, and Allen fired a Taurus 9 mm semi-automatic pistol, with an extended magazine, from the front passenger seat of the vehicle. Bobb drove the other car, a light blue 1999 Mercedes Benz, close behind Smith and Allen, and his passenger likewise opened fire, using a Glock 9 mm semi-automatic pistol, which also had an extended magazine.

     After Allen began to shoot, some individuals, using .40-caliber semi-automatic firearms, shot back at the two cars. The defendants fled the area at a high rate of speed, turning right on H Street NW and running a red light. Red light cameras at the intersection of North Capitol and H Streets NW photographed the license tags of both cars.

     On the afternoon of March 11, 2013, Allen grew concerned and agitated about televised news accounts of the shootings. The newscasts had footage from the crime scene in which Allen could recognize his car. He decided that he needed to “torch” his vehicle, which had been damaged by gunfire, because it could be identified by law enforcement. He and other defendants headed to the 3000 block of Stanton Road SE, where the vehicle was set on fire to devalue or destroy it as evidence. Following a series of 9-1-1 calls reporting the blaze, District of Columbia emergency personnel responded to the burning car. The remains of the car were seized by law enforcement, and evidence was recovered that later tied the vehicle to Allen’s family.

     In the late afternoon of March 11, 2013, after the car had been destroyed, Allen, Bobb, and Smith resolved to get rid of the guns used in the shootings on North Capitol Street.  The three received a ride to an apartment complex in Northeast, Washington, D.C.  There, Allen and Bobb met with another individual and traded away the Taurus and Glock pistols used in the North Capitol Street shootings in return for two Ruger semi-automatic pistols.

     The defendants have been in custody since their arrests in 2013.

     In announcing the pleas, U.S. Attorney Machen and Chief Lanier commended the work of the detectives, mobile crime scene officers, intelligence officers, and others who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences. They acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Christopher Brophy, Tommy Miller, Derek Starliper, Durand Odom, Steve Cohen, Melissa Matthews, Mark Crawford, John Marsh, Nelson Rhone, Juan Juarez, and Matthew Kutz, all of the Criminal Investigation Unit;  Jelahn Stewart, Michael Hailey, Wanda Queen, Jennifer Clark, and James Brennan, all of the Victim Witness Assistance Unit; former Victim/Witness Advocate Kristina Rose, and Paralegal Specialist Debra Joyner. They also commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin Flynn and Jocelyn Ballantine, and former Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas A. Bednar and James E. Smith, who assisted in the investigation.

     Finally, they commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Brittin, who is prosecuting the case.

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WASHINGTON – Gregory Harris, 24, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a 10-year prison term on charges stemming from a shooting in Northeast Washington that seriously injured an innocent victim, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Harris pled guilty in April 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, to charges of assault with intent to kill while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence. He was sentenced by the Honorable Michael Ryan. Upon completion of his prison term, Harris will be placed on five years of supervised release.

     According to the government’s evidence, the shooting followed a chain of events that began about 8 p.m. on May 24, 2013, outside a liquor store in the 1000 block of Bladensburg Road NE.  When Harris arrived on the scene, he observed a friend of his involved in a physical altercation with another individual. While watching the fight, Harris saw a third person use a firearm to pistol-whip his friend in the head.  He then ran down an adjacent alleyway, and, within a couple of minutes, he returned to Bladensburg Road.

     By the time Harris returned to the street, the fight had stopped. The two men who had been fighting with his friend, and a woman who was not part of the altercation, were close to each other. They were heading south down Bladensburg Road, away from the scene of the fight, and no longer near Harris’s friend. Harris then used a firearm to shoot multiple bullets in the direction of the three people, aiming to hit the person who pistol-whipped his friend.

     Instead, Harris shot the woman, hitting her in the neck and causing her to collapse on the street.  As a result of getting shot in the neck, the victim has been mostly paralyzed below her neck, retaining only limited movement in her left arm.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Kalisha Johnson-Clark, Victim/Witness Specialists Jennifer Clark and David Foster, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Clayton O'Connor, who prosecuted the matter.

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WASHINGTON – Joshua Andrews, 22, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced today to a prison term of 41 ½ years for a 2010 murder that took place in Southeast Washington, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

     Andrews was found guilty in April 2014, following a trial in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, of first-degree premeditated murder while armed, assault with intent to kill while armed, and related offenses. He was sentenced by the Honorable Rhonda Reid Winston.

     According to the government’s evidence, during the spring of 2010, Andrews, then 18, was seeking revenge on the victim, 17-year-old Durand Lucas, who Andrews “assumed” had shot at him on a prior occasion. On June 4, 2010, the day before the murder, Andrews explained exactly how he was going to kill Mr. Lucas.  He found out where he could locate Mr. Lucas – at an apartment building in the 1600 block of W Street SE – armed himself, and went to that location. Early June 5, 2010, he saw Mr. Lucas go into the apartment building, and together with a co-conspirator, waited for him outside the door to the building.

     About 20 minutes later, just before 3 a.m., Mr. Lucas and another man exited the building. Andrews jumped out from the shadows in the corner of the building and shot at both men. When the two victims tried to flee, Andrews’s co-conspirator jumped out from around the corner of the building and began firing. 

     Mr. Lucas tried to run away, but was struck by a bullet that broke his leg.  After he fell to the ground, Andrews and his accomplice leaned over Mr. Lucas and continued to fire at point-blank range, killing him. The victim was shot a total of 15 times, including three times in the back of the head.  The second man was shot twice, but managed to escape.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of the detectives, crime scene officers, and others who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Criminal Investigator Derek Starliper; Intelligence Analysts Zach McMenamin, Shannon Alexis, and William Hamann; Litigation Technology Specialists Leif Hickling and Paul Howell; Litigation Technology Supervisor Joseph Calvarese; Victim/Witness  Advocates Lezlie Richardson and Jennifer Clark; Victim/Witness Security Specialists Debra Cannon, Wanda Queen, and M. LaVerne Forrest; Victim/Witness Supervisory Security Specialist Michael Hailey; Paralegal Specialists Mia Beamon, Deb Joyner, and Phaylyn Hunt; and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Natalia Medina, Lauren Bates,  Deborah Sines, Gary Wheeler, and Stephen Rickard.  Finally, he expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melinda A. Williams and Jonathan Kravis, who prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON - Calvin Jenkins, 24, of Washington, D.C., has been sentenced to a 22-year prison term on charges stemming from two armed robberies using a stolen car in Northeast Washington, D.C., U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced today. 

     Jenkins was found guilty by a jury in April 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, of two counts of armed robbery, one count of unauthorized use of a vehicle during a crime of violence, one count of fleeing a law enforcement officer, and related firearms offenses. He was sentenced on June 27, 2014 by the Honorable Ronna L. Beck.  Upon completion of his prison term, Jenkins will be placed on five years of supervised release.

     According to the government’s evidence, on Jan. 15, 2013, just after 8 p.m., Jenkins and his former co-defendant, who pled guilty in August 2013, robbed their first victim of $22 in the 4800 block of 8th Street NE. One minute later and approximately a block-and-a-half away, the men robbed the second victim of approximately $40 in the 800 block of Buchanan Street NE.

     Both robberies were committed using a distinctive Tec-9-style handgun.  The robbers were seen departing the scene of the second robbery in a vehicle that had been stolen two days earlier.  Police spotted that vehicle a few minutes later, resulting in a high-speed chase that continued over a mile to the parking lot of a Home Depot on Rhode Island Avenue NE. Both robbers fled from the car.  Jenkins was stopped by police on a ramp adjacent to the Home Depot, and the gun was found on his flight path.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work of those who investigated the case for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Allison Daniels and Wanda Trice; Investigative Analyst Shannon Alexis; Information Technology Specialists Leif Hickling and Anisha Bhatia, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Philip A.  Selden, Scott Ray, John Giovannelli, Ann Carroll, Kevin Flynn, and John Mannarino.  Finally, he expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Spence and Christine Macey, of the Felony Major Crimes Trial Section, who prosecuted the matter.

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WASHINGTON – Stanley McCord, 42, of Alexandria, Va., has been sentenced to 18 months in prison on a federal charge of failure to register as a sex offender, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Michael Hughes, U.S. Marshal for the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, announced today.

     McCord has one prior conviction in Texas for a sex offense involving a minor victim, which requires him to register as a sex offender.  According to the government’s evidence, McCord was registering as a sex offender in the District of Columbia, but, between April 2012 and February 2013, he lived in Alexandria, Va., and did not register that information with the District of Columbia.

     McCord pled guilty in April 2014 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to failure to register as a sex offender.  He was sentenced on June 27, 2014, by the Honorable Richard J. Leon. His prison term is to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. Also, upon completion of his prison term, McCord will face a warrant for a probation violation in Texas.

     As part of an overall strategy to combat child exploitation, the U.S. Marshals Service launched a nationwide operation in 2010 to target sex offenders who knowingly fail to comply with their sex offender registration requirements.  The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act in 2006.  The Adam Walsh Act also provides for the use of federal law enforcement resources, including the U.S. Marshals Service, to assist the states in locating and apprehending non-compliant sex offenders.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen and U.S. Marshal Hughes praised the members of the D.C. Superior Court Sex Offender Investigations Section of the U.S. Marshals Service, who investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ari Redbord, who prosecuted the case.

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Defendant Makes Initial Court Appearance Today

     WASHINGTON - Ahmed Abu Khatallah, aka Ahmed Mukatallah, made his first appearance today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on a federal terrorism offense arising from his alleged participation in the September 11-12, 2012, terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya, which resulted in the deaths of Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty.

     Khatallah was indicted by a federal grand jury on the charge of conspiracy to provide material support and resources to terrorists, knowing and intending that these would be used in preparation for and in carrying out a killing in the course of an attack on a federal facility, and the offense resulted in death.

     The investigation is ongoing and the Justice Department can bring additional charges as the case continues.

     "Now that Ahmed Abu Khattalah has arrived in the United States, he will face the full weight of our justice system," said Eric Holder, U.S. Attorney General. "We will prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, the defendant’s alleged role in the attack that killed four brave Americans in Benghazi."

     "Capturing Ahmed Abu Khattalah and bringing him to the U.S. to face justice for his role in killing American citizens in Benghazi is a major step forward in our ongoing investigation," said FBI Director James B. Comey. "Our work, however, is not over.  This case remains one of our top priorities and we will continue to pursue all others who participated in this brazen attack on our citizens and our country."

     "Ahmed Abu Khatallah's capture and his appearance in court today were critical steps toward bringing him to justice for his role in the terrorist attacks on our diplomatic facilities in Benghazi," said John Carlin, Assistant Attorney General for National Security. "We will not rest in our pursuit of the others who attacked our facilities and killed the four courageous Americans who perished that day."

     "In a courtroom in our nation's capital, today we took the first step down the road to justice for the four American heroes killed in Benghazi," said Ronald C. Machen Jr., U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. "This prosecution is a reflection of our determination to honor the sacrifice of U.S. citizens who perish on foreign soil in service to our country.  We will be steady, deliberate, and relentless in seeking to hold accountable all who were responsible for this deadly act of terror."

     "The capture and return to the United States of Ahmed Abu Khatallah should be a warning to all those who want to harm the United States," said George Venizelos, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s New York Field Office. "As alleged in the indictment, Khatallah participated in September 11-12, 2012, terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya which resulted in the deaths of four innocent Americans. Now he is in the United States to stand trial for his actions. The FBI will continue to pursue and bring to justice those who conduct such heinous acts no matter where they are located."

     Khatallah, a Libyan national approximately 43 years of age, was taken into custody earlier this month. He initially was charged in a criminal complaint that was filed under seal on July 15, 2013 and that became public on June 17, 2014. The Justice Department secured the defendant’s initial indictment on June 26, 2014, and the charging document was unsealed today.

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

     The case is being investigated by the FBI New York Office's Joint Terrorism Task Force with substantial assistance from various other government agencies.  The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Counterterrorism Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division.

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WASHINGTON - U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and numerous community partners today hosted an anti-violence summit attended by more than 350 youths in Northeast Washington.

     The fourth annual youth summit took place at Friendship Collegiate Academy and featured discussions about the importance of speaking out against violence and other topics, including the consequences of drug use, the importance of making good decisions, cyber-bullying, and Internet Safety. The event’s co-sponsors included the Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force, the Columbia Heights/Shaw Family Support Collaborative, the East River Family Strengthening Collaborative, and other law enforcement and community partners.

     “We’re here today because we can put an end to this senseless violence,” U.S. Attorney Machen told the youths. “If just one of you listens and thinks twice when you are at that crossroads in your life -- before picking up that gun, before getting in that car where there is nothing but trouble – then this  day will be well worth it. You must protect your future at all times. It is your responsibility and yours alone.”

     U.S. Attorney Machen concluded his remarks with this challenge: “Ask yourself: Are you willing to stand up for what you believe and know in your heart is the right course of action? Are you willing to say no to drugs, no to abuse, no to bullying, no to hatred, no to retaliation? I believe that each one of you has the strength and courage to do so and in doing so becoming a leader for our community.  You can be a voice for positive change.”

     The event, emceed by DJ Flava of WKYS Radio (93.9 FM), featured speakers, entertainment, and invaluable resources. Performers included Young Motive, KRU3H, and Main Girl.

     The summit assembles young people from under-served neighborhoods in the District of Columbia to discuss the most pressing public safety challenges facing their communities. Previous summits also attracted more than 300 youth participants. The goal is to reach out to area youth on current public safety topics in an informative and inspiring way.

     Several collaborative partners joined in the day’s programs, including the Ward 3 and 4 D.C. Prevention Center; the Metropolitan Police Department; the Street Wize Foundation; Black Women for Positive Change; Friendship Collegiate Academy; the National Institute on Drug Abuse; the Street Wize Foundation; and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The effort is supported by Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice initiative aimed at reducing gun and gang crimes.

     The youth summit is one in a series of community events sponsored by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, including town hall meetings, crime prevention presentations, and various outreach programs for people of all ages.

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WASHINGTON - Pamela J. Beard, 52, of Bowie, Md., was sentenced today to three years in prison on a federal mail fraud charge stemming from the embezzlement of more than $3.6 million from her former employer, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. and Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.

     Beard pled guilty in January 2014 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. She was sentenced by the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson. Upon completion of her prison term, Beard will be placed on three years of supervised release. She also must pay $3,688,649 in criminal forfeiture and restitution.

     According to the government's evidence, from approximately March 1997 through February 2013, Beard was employed as a billing clerk and the office manager at the Office of Orthopaedic Medicine & Surgery, in Washington, DC.  Her duties included paying vendors and creditors, as well as making payments on the business’s corporate credit card accounts.  She had access to the office’s financial information and payment systems, and, as a result, could generate checks on the office’s corporate checking account. She also was authorized to use a corporate credit card to pay for business-related expenses.  Beard was not authorized to use the office’s bank accounts or corporate credit card to pay for personal expenses.

     From May 1, 2006, through June 26, 2013, Beard embezzled $3,688,649 from the office. She used the proceeds to pay for, among other things: a home mortgage; vehicles; a timeshare with Disney Vacation Development, Inc.; expenses associated with her husband’s landscaping business; vacations, including a trip to the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas; a personal trainer; jewelry, and parties, including Beard’s 50th   birthday party at the Sunset Room at National Harbor, in or around February 2012, for which she spent about $18,703 on ice sculptures.

     Beard embezzled the money in a variety of ways:

     From May 1, 2006, through Jan. 22, 2013, Beard generated more than 100 corporate checks, totaling $1,289,736, on her employer’s checking account. Each check was made payable to Bank of America.  Once the checks were generated by Beard through the office’s payment system, she provided them to a physician, who signed them on the office’s behalf. Because the checks were payable to Bank of America, the physician believed that they were  intended to pay a corporate credit card account at Bank of America. Beard, however, deposited them at various Bank of America branches to make payments, without authorization, on Bank of America credit card accounts for Beard, her husband, and her husband’s landscaping business.

     From Oct. 6, 2006, through June 26, 2013, Beard generated and mailed additional checks drawn on the office’s corporate checking account to pay personal credit card accounts for herself and her husband at American Express. She also made on-line payments from the corporate checking account to American Express.  Beard conducted these financial transactions, without authorization, in the total amount of $2,207,882.

     Finally, from April 21, 2006, through Dec. 30, 2012, Beard used the office’s corporate credit card without authorization, to purchase goods and services for her own personal use in the total amount of $191,030.

     In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen and Assistant Director in Charge Parlave commended the investigative work of special agents and analysts of the FBI’s Washington Field Office and Senior Inspector Wayne Rollock of the U.S. Marshals Service.  He also praised those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialists Corinne Kleinman, Rosalind Pressley, and Nicole Wattelet; Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine K. Connelly, who handled forfeiture issues; and former Assistant U.S. Attorney David Johnson, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Seeley, who prosecuted the case.

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WASHINGTON – Cristian Gutierrez, 22, of Washington, D.C., pled guilty today to child pornography and child sexual abuse charges, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Clark Settles, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Washington, D.C., and Cathy L. Lanier, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

     Gutierrez pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of possession of child pornography and two counts of second-degree child sexual abuse. He is to be sentenced Sept. 22, 2014 by the Honorable Senior Judge Gladys Kessler. The child pornography charge carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison. Each count of second-degree child sexual abuse carries a statutory maximum of 10 years of incarceration. The charges also carry potential financial penalties. Gutierrez also must register for at least 25 years as a sex offender.

     According to the government’s evidence, a law enforcement investigation determined that, between May 4, 2013 and Aug. 13, 2013, Gutierrez received and possessed child pornography on his personal laptop computer and other electronic storage devices at his residence. On various dates during that time-frame, he downloaded numerous images and videos depicting child pornography to his computer using a peer-to-peer file sharing program and made those files available for downloading by other users of the program.

     On Aug. 16, 2013, pursuant to a warrant, law enforcement searched the defendant’s residence. Law enforcement located a total of more than 700 videos and more than 100 images depicting child pornography on the laptop and other electronic storage devices. Gutierrez initially denied possessing child pornography, but eventually admitted that he downloaded the suspected child pornography files that were on the laptop computer.

     The search led to evidence of the defendant’s other conduct. An investigation revealed that between April and August of 2013, on at least five occasions, Gutierrez touched the genitals on top of the clothing of two 12-year-old boys.

     In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen, Special Agent in Charge Settles, and Chief Lanier praised the work of the HSI Special Agents who investigated the case and expressed appreciation for the assistance of MPD detectives. They also commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassidy Kesler Pinegar, who is prosecuting the case.

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At Friendship Collegiate Academy in Northeast Washington
- Free Program Includes Musical Performances, Workshops, Information -

            WASHINGTON - U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force, the Columbia Heights/Shaw Family Support Collaborative, the East River Family Strengthening Collaborative, and law enforcement and community partners are sponsoring a Youth Summit on Friday, June 27, 2014, at Friendship Collegiate Academy.

            This year’s event will engage youth on the consequences and harms of marijuana, encourage young people to make responsible decisions to avert criminal behavior, and help them understand the consequences of violence. The event will be filled with dynamic speakers, entertainment, and invaluable resources. The guest emcee is DJ Flava of WKYS Radio (93.9 FM). Performers scheduled to appear include Young Motive, KRU3H, and Main Girl.

            Youths from the District of Columbia are invited to the program, which runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and is free of charge. Friendship Collegiate Academy, 4095 Minnesota Avenue NE, is conveniently located directly across the street from the Minnesota Avenue Metro station in order to provide accessibility for students to attend. 

            This is the office’s fourth annual Youth Summit, which assembles young people from under-served neighborhoods in the District of Columbia to discuss the most pressing public safety challenges facing their communities. Previous summits have attracted more than 300 youth participants. The goal of the program is to reach out to area youth on current public safety topics in an informative and inspiring way. This year’s topics also include discussion about child safety, cyberbullying, and Internet safety.

            Several collaborative partners will be coming together to present the day’s programs, including the Ward 3 and 4 D.C. Prevention Center; the Metropolitan Police Department; the Street Wize Foundation; Black Women for Positive Change; Friendship Collegiate Academy; the National Institute on Drug Abuse; the Street Wize Foundation; and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The effort is supported by Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice initiative aimed at reducing gun and gang crimes. People with questions or interest in bringing a youth group to the Youth Summit may contact Melanie Howard at the U.S. Attorney’s Office at (202)-252-6930 or [email protected].

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At Friendship Collegiate Academy in Northeast Washington
- Free Program Includes Musical Performances, Workshops, Information -

            WASHINGTON - U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force, the Columbia Heights/Shaw Family Support Collaborative, the East River Family Strengthening Collaborative, and law enforcement and community partners are sponsoring a Youth Summit on Friday, June 27, 2014, at Friendship Collegiate Academy.

            This year’s event will engage youth on the consequences and harms of marijuana, encourage young people to make responsible decisions to avert criminal behavior, and help them understand the consequences of violence. The event will be filled with dynamic speakers, entertainment, and invaluable resources. The guest emcee is DJ Flava of WKYS Radio (93.9 FM). Performers scheduled to appear include Young Motive, KRU3H, and Main Girl.

            Youths from the District of Columbia are invited to the program, which runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and is free of charge. Friendship Collegiate Academy, 4095 Minnesota Avenue NE, is conveniently located directly across the street from the Minnesota Avenue Metro station in order to provide accessibility for students to attend. 

            This is the office’s fourth annual Youth Summit, which assembles young people from under-served neighborhoods in the District of Columbia to discuss the most pressing public safety challenges facing their communities. Previous summits have attracted more than 300 youth participants. The goal of the program is to reach out to area youth on current public safety topics in an informative and inspiring way. This year’s topics also include discussion about child safety, cyberbullying, and Internet safety.

            Several collaborative partners will be coming together to present the day’s programs, including the Ward 3 and 4 D.C. Prevention Center; the Metropolitan Police Department; the Street Wize Foundation; Black Women for Positive Change; Friendship Collegiate Academy; the National Institute on Drug Abuse; the Street Wize Foundation; and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The effort is supported by Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice initiative aimed at reducing gun and gang crimes. People with questions or interest in bringing a youth group to the Youth Summit may contact Melanie Howard at the U.S. Attorney’s Office at (202)-252-6930 or [email protected].

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For Prostituting Girlfriend, Who He Physically Abused
Second Man Sentenced to Six Months in Prison for Aiding in the Prostitution

            WASHINGTON – Leschon Gonzales, 25, of Atlantic City, N.J., was sentenced today to a two-year prison term for prostituting and abusing his girlfriend multiple times last year, and Cornell Ford, 42, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to a six-month prison term for aiding in the prostitution activities, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

            The men pled guilty in April 2014 in the Superior Court for the District of Columbia. Gonzales pled guilty to two counts each of pandering, procuring, and simple assault. Ford pled guilty to one count of pandering.  Both were sentenced by the Honorable Michael Ryan.  Upon completion of their respective prison terms, each will be placed on probation for 12 months.  

            According to the government’s evidence, Gonzales, also known as “Smoov,” began dating the 22-year-old victim in the summer of 2013. On June 30, 2013, he and the victim met Ford at Union Station. From there, Ford advised Gonzales where to take the victim to prostitute herself.  Gonzales took the victim to the location Ford advised, an area in the District of Columbia known for prostitution, and instructed the victim how to behave with customers.  The victim complied, and after she sold her body for sex, Gonzales took the money. When the victim stated that she did not want to sell herself, Gonzales struck her multiple times.  Over the next several days, Gonzales arranged, via online advertisements, for the victim to engage in sexual acts for money throughout the District of Columbia. Gonzales received all of the proceeds.

           On Oct. 25, 2013, the victim and Gonzales were again in the District of Columbia with Ford. Gonzales chose the victim’s clothing and Ford drove Gonzales and the victim to the same area they had gone in June.  Ford instructed Gonzales exactly where the victim should walk to pick up customers. As a result, the victim engaged two customers in transactions for oral sex.  Gonzales received all of the money from those transactions.  The next evening, they went to another area of the District of Columbia, and the victim had several customers. When the victim did not return with as much money as expected, Gonzales grabbed her and put her in the car.

            A few days later, on Oct. 30, 2013, Gonzales and the victim were in Union Station when the victim told Gonzales that she was not going back on the street to sell her body.  Gonzales grabbed her by the arm and dragged her out of Union Station.  Gonzales let go of her, and she ran back into Union Station to hide in a restroom.  From inside the restroom, she called her mother, who notified police.  Gonzales was arrested as he approached the women’s restroom, where the victim had been hiding.  Ford was identified through additional investigation. 

           In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department.  He also praised the work those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Veronica Vaughan and Paralegal Specialist Jason Manuel.  Finally, he commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff T. Cook, who investigated the matter.

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For Prostituting Girlfriend, Who He Physically Abused
Second Man Sentenced to Six Months in Prison for Aiding in the Prostitution

            WASHINGTON – Leschon Gonzales, 25, of Atlantic City, N.J., was sentenced today to a two-year prison term for prostituting and abusing his girlfriend multiple times last year, and Cornell Ford, 42, of Washington, D.C., was sentenced to a six-month prison term for aiding in the prostitution activities, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. announced.

            The men pled guilty in April 2014 in the Superior Court for the District of Columbia. Gonzales pled guilty to two counts each of pandering, procuring, and simple assault. Ford pled guilty to one count of pandering.  Both were sentenced by the Honorable Michael Ryan.  Upon completion of their respective prison terms, each will be placed on probation for 12 months.  

            According to the government’s evidence, Gonzales, also known as “Smoov,” began dating the 22-year-old victim in the summer of 2013. On June 30, 2013, he and the victim met Ford at Union Station. From there, Ford advised Gonzales where to take the victim to prostitute herself.  Gonzales took the victim to the location Ford advised, an area in the District of Columbia known for prostitution, and instructed the victim how to behave with customers.  The victim complied, and after she sold her body for sex, Gonzales took the money. When the victim stated that she did not want to sell herself, Gonzales struck her multiple times.  Over the next several days, Gonzales arranged, via online advertisements, for the victim to engage in sexual acts for money throughout the District of Columbia. Gonzales received all of the proceeds.

           On Oct. 25, 2013, the victim and Gonzales were again in the District of Columbia with Ford. Gonzales chose the victim’s clothing and Ford drove Gonzales and the victim to the same area they had gone in June.  Ford instructed Gonzales exactly where the victim should walk to pick up customers. As a result, the victim engaged two customers in transactions for oral sex.  Gonzales received all of the money from those transactions.  The next evening, they went to another area of the District of Columbia, and the victim had several customers. When the victim did not return with as much money as expected, Gonzales grabbed her and put her in the car.

            A few days later, on Oct. 30, 2013, Gonzales and the victim were in Union Station when the victim told Gonzales that she was not going back on the street to sell her body.  Gonzales grabbed her by the arm and dragged her out of Union Station.  Gonzales let go of her, and she ran back into Union Station to hide in a restroom.  From inside the restroom, she called her mother, who notified police.  Gonzales was arrested as he approached the women’s restroom, where the victim had been hiding.  Ford was identified through additional investigation. 

           In announcing the sentence, U.S. Attorney Machen commended the work performed by those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department.  He also praised the work those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Victim/Witness Advocate Veronica Vaughan and Paralegal Specialist Jason Manuel.  Finally, he commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff T. Cook, who investigated the matter.

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More Than $190,000 in Funds
Defendant Spent Thousands on Hotel Stays, Clothing, Other Personal Expenses

            WASHINGTON – JC Stamps, a former union official, pled guilty today to embezzling more than $190,000 from two labor organizations he founded and an employee benefits fund.

            The guilty plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and Bill Jones,Special Agent in Charge for the Washington Region of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General - Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations.

            Stamps, 67, of Upper Marlboro, Md., pled guilty to one count of theft from an employee benefit plan. The Honorable Chief Judge Richard W. Roberts scheduled sentencing for Sept. 17, 2014. The charge carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Stamps faces a likely range of 18 to 24 months in prison and a fine of up to $40,000. He also has agreed to pay $194,611 in restitution and is subject to a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $84,745.

            Stamps, a retired detective from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), founded two labor organizations based in Washington, D.C.: the National Union of Protective Services Associations, which represented private security guards, and the National Union of Law Enforcement Associations, which represented police officers. In addition, he founded a security guard firm, Stamps Associates, which also was based in Washington, D.C.

            According to a statement of offense, signed by the defendant as well as the government, between 2004 and 2008, Stamps devised a scheme to defraud and embezzle money in several ways from the unions and the National Union of Protective Services Health and Welfare Fund.
In 2007 and 2008, for example, Stamps used money from the health and welfare fund’s bank account to pay American Express for a total of $48,541 in credit card charges for personal purchases and union expenses. None of these charges were related to the administration and operation of the health and welfare fund. Instead they paid for personal expenses, such as hotel stays, furniture, men’s fragrances, clothing, other retail purchases, and online services, as well as for union expenses, including hotel rental (for a holiday party) and automobile rentals.

            Also, according to the statement of offense, from 2006 to 2008, Stamps caused the withdrawal of $36,203 from the health and welfare fund bank account to pay an attorney for legal expenses incurred by the unions – and not for the fund’s intended purpose.

            In addition to the theft and embezzlement from the health and welfare fund, Stamps stole and embezzled at least $109,866 from the unions from 2004 to 2008. According to the statement of offense, more than half of this money was used to cover debts of Stamps Associates, the security guard company. Other money was used for personal expenses and fraudulent salary payments to an individual identified only as “Person A” in the court documents. “Person A,” who is described in the statement of offense as a close personal friend of Stamps, was nominally the sole owner of Stamps Associates, although Stamps controlled the company.

            This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, as well as the Labor Department’s Office of Labor Management Standards and Employee Benefits Security Administration. Assistance was provided by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Saler, who is handling forfeiture issues; Paralegal Specialist Donna Galindo; former Paralegal Specialists Shanna Hays, Lenisse Edloe, and Nicole Wattelet, all of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

            The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ellen Chubin Epstein of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and Trial Attorney Kelly Pearson of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.

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More Than $190,000 in Funds
Defendant Spent Thousands on Hotel Stays, Clothing, Other Personal Expenses

            WASHINGTON – JC Stamps, a former union official, pled guilty today to embezzling more than $190,000 from two labor organizations he founded and an employee benefits fund.

            The guilty plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and Bill Jones,Special Agent in Charge for the Washington Region of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General - Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations.

            Stamps, 67, of Upper Marlboro, Md., pled guilty to one count of theft from an employee benefit plan. The Honorable Chief Judge Richard W. Roberts scheduled sentencing for Sept. 17, 2014. The charge carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Stamps faces a likely range of 18 to 24 months in prison and a fine of up to $40,000. He also has agreed to pay $194,611 in restitution and is subject to a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $84,745.

            Stamps, a retired detective from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), founded two labor organizations based in Washington, D.C.: the National Union of Protective Services Associations, which represented private security guards, and the National Union of Law Enforcement Associations, which represented police officers. In addition, he founded a security guard firm, Stamps Associates, which also was based in Washington, D.C.

            According to a statement of offense, signed by the defendant as well as the government, between 2004 and 2008, Stamps devised a scheme to defraud and embezzle money in several ways from the unions and the National Union of Protective Services Health and Welfare Fund.
In 2007 and 2008, for example, Stamps used money from the health and welfare fund’s bank account to pay American Express for a total of $48,541 in credit card charges for personal purchases and union expenses. None of these charges were related to the administration and operation of the health and welfare fund. Instead they paid for personal expenses, such as hotel stays, furniture, men’s fragrances, clothing, other retail purchases, and online services, as well as for union expenses, including hotel rental (for a holiday party) and automobile rentals.

            Also, according to the statement of offense, from 2006 to 2008, Stamps caused the withdrawal of $36,203 from the health and welfare fund bank account to pay an attorney for legal expenses incurred by the unions – and not for the fund’s intended purpose.

            In addition to the theft and embezzlement from the health and welfare fund, Stamps stole and embezzled at least $109,866 from the unions from 2004 to 2008. According to the statement of offense, more than half of this money was used to cover debts of Stamps Associates, the security guard company. Other money was used for personal expenses and fraudulent salary payments to an individual identified only as “Person A” in the court documents. “Person A,” who is described in the statement of offense as a close personal friend of Stamps, was nominally the sole owner of Stamps Associates, although Stamps controlled the company.

            This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, as well as the Labor Department’s Office of Labor Management Standards and Employee Benefits Security Administration. Assistance was provided by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Saler, who is handling forfeiture issues; Paralegal Specialist Donna Galindo; former Paralegal Specialists Shanna Hays, Lenisse Edloe, and Nicole Wattelet, all of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

            The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ellen Chubin Epstein of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, and Trial Attorney Kelly Pearson of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.

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To Filing a False Statement on Campaign Finance Report
-Campaign Secretly Received More Than $140,000 From D.C. Businessman- 

            WASHINGTON – Jeff Smith, 40, of Washington, D.C., a former candidate for the Council of the District of Columbia, pled guilty today to a felony charge for filing a false and misleading report with the District of Columbia’s Office of Campaign Finance that concealed campaign contributions in excess of those permitted under D.C. campaign finance laws.

            The guilty plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Thomas J. Kelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).

            Smith is the second candidate to plead guilty to charges in recent weeks. Kelvin Robinson, 53, pled guilty on June 3, 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to a charge of conspiring to violate District of Columbia campaign finance laws by defrauding the District of Columbia’s Office of Campaign Finance. He is awaiting sentencing.

            Smith also entered his plea in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Anita Josey-Herring scheduled sentencing for Aug. 28, 2014. The charge of making a false statement or report carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under the Court’s voluntary sentencing guidelines, the parties have agreed that Smith faces a range of six to 24 months in prison, or, possibly, probation.

            The charge involves contributions to Smith’s 2010 campaign for the Ward 1 seat on the Council of the District of Columbia. Smith admitted that more than $140,000 was secretly channeled to his campaign from businessman Jeffrey E. Thompson. Smith lost the election.

            Thompson is the former chairman, chief executive officer, and majority owner of Thompson, Cobb, Bazilio and Associates (TCBA), a corporation that provided accounting, management, consulting, and tax services. He also is the former chairman, chief executive officer, and owner of D.C. Healthcare Systems, Inc. (DCHSI), an investment holding and for-profit corporation. Both companies generated millions of dollars in government contracts.

            Thompson and six others earlier pled guilty to charges involving Thompson’s illegal contributions to numerous federal and District of Columbia campaigns. In addition to Robinson, who also admitted receiving excess contributions from Thompson, the others who have pled guilty include Eugenia C. Harris, a business owner in the District of Columbia; Lee A. Calhoun, an executive for TCBA; Stanley Straughter, the owner of a business based in Philadelphia; Vernon Hawkins, who was a volunteer advisor in 2010 for a 2010 mayoral campaign; and Troy White, the owner of a marketing company based in New York.

            Another person, former District of Columbia Council member Michael A. Brown, pled guilty to charges in an unrelated bribery investigation. In those proceedings, he publicly admitted that his campaign committees had secretly received money from Thompson.  

            As part of Thompson’s guilty plea, on March 10, 2014, he agreed to cooperate fully in an ongoing investigation. No date has been set for his sentencing.

**

            “Three months ago, Jeff Thompson’s guilty plea pulled back the curtain on widespread corruption that tainted election after election, year after year in D.C. politics,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “Today Jeff Smith became the third candidate to stand before a judge and confess to taking Thompson’s secret campaign cash.  We commend Jeff Smith for acknowledging his misconduct and will press forward with our efforts to hold accountable all those who participated in under-the-table deals with Jeff Thompson.”

            “Today, Mr. Smith admitted to accepting illegal contributions to his campaign for D.C. Council and to filing a report which concealed these illegal in-kind contributions to the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance,” said Assistant Director in Charge Parlave. “Along with our law enforcement partners, the FBI remains vigilant to abuses of campaign finance laws to protect the citizens of the District of Columbia from schemes within the electoral process.”

            According to a statement of offense submitted as part of today’s guilty plea, from at least December 2009 through December 2010, Smith, Thompson and others acted to make and to receive – and to conceal – campaign contributions in excess of those permitted under the District of Columbia Campaign Act.

            Smith admitted that Thompson, with his knowledge, provided more than $140,000 of in-kind contributions, contributions which were concealed from the Office of Campaign Finance.  Smith provided a budget to Thompson in March 2010, seeking $140,975 for voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts for his campaign. Then, from March 2010 until September 2010, Thompson used funds, via TCBA and DCHSI, to provide more than $140,000 in coordination with and in support of Smith’s campaign committee. At least part of this money was spent on campaign services and materials.

            The District of Columbia Campaign Act imposes limits on the amount of money that can be contributed to a District of Columbia candidate and that candidate’s principal campaign committee.  It also prohibits any person or corporation from making a contribution in the name of another, including by reimbursement. Finally, it requires principal campaign committees to file periodic reports of receipts and disbursements.

            The law limits the amount that an individual or entity can contribute in the aggregate in the primary and general elections of a candidate seeking election to a Ward seat to $500.

            In his plea, Smith admitted that, acting on behalf of his campaign committee, he filed, that is, authorized to be filed, a false and misleading report to the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance in December 2010.  The report concealed the excessive and unreported in-kind contributions provided directly and indirectly by Thompson.

In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director in Charge Parlave, and Special Agent in Charge Kelly commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and IRS-CI.

            They also expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael K. Atkinson, Jonathan P. Hooks, Ellen Chubin Epstein, Lionel André, and Ephraim “Fry” Wernick, of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, who are prosecuting cases in the investigation.

            Finally, they acknowledged the efforts of others who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Deborah Connor, Chief of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section, as well as Criminal Investigators Matthew J. Kutz, Mark Crawford, Melissa Matthews, and Durand Odom; Forensic Accountants Crystal Boodoo and Maria Boodoo; Paralegal Specialists Krishawn Graham, Tasha Harris, and Corrine Kleinman; Former Paralegal Specialists Shanna Hays and Nicole Wattelet; and Legal Assistant Angela Lawrence.

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To Filing a False Statement on Campaign Finance Report
-Campaign Secretly Received More Than $140,000 From D.C. Businessman- 

            WASHINGTON – Jeff Smith, 40, of Washington, D.C., a former candidate for the Council of the District of Columbia, pled guilty today to a felony charge for filing a false and misleading report with the District of Columbia’s Office of Campaign Finance that concealed campaign contributions in excess of those permitted under D.C. campaign finance laws.

            The guilty plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Thomas J. Kelly, Special Agent in Charge of the Washington Field Office of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).

            Smith is the second candidate to plead guilty to charges in recent weeks. Kelvin Robinson, 53, pled guilty on June 3, 2014, in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to a charge of conspiring to violate District of Columbia campaign finance laws by defrauding the District of Columbia’s Office of Campaign Finance. He is awaiting sentencing.

            Smith also entered his plea in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. The Honorable Anita Josey-Herring scheduled sentencing for Aug. 28, 2014. The charge of making a false statement or report carries a statutory maximum of five years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under the Court’s voluntary sentencing guidelines, the parties have agreed that Smith faces a range of six to 24 months in prison, or, possibly, probation.

            The charge involves contributions to Smith’s 2010 campaign for the Ward 1 seat on the Council of the District of Columbia. Smith admitted that more than $140,000 was secretly channeled to his campaign from businessman Jeffrey E. Thompson. Smith lost the election.

            Thompson is the former chairman, chief executive officer, and majority owner of Thompson, Cobb, Bazilio and Associates (TCBA), a corporation that provided accounting, management, consulting, and tax services. He also is the former chairman, chief executive officer, and owner of D.C. Healthcare Systems, Inc. (DCHSI), an investment holding and for-profit corporation. Both companies generated millions of dollars in government contracts.

            Thompson and six others earlier pled guilty to charges involving Thompson’s illegal contributions to numerous federal and District of Columbia campaigns. In addition to Robinson, who also admitted receiving excess contributions from Thompson, the others who have pled guilty include Eugenia C. Harris, a business owner in the District of Columbia; Lee A. Calhoun, an executive for TCBA; Stanley Straughter, the owner of a business based in Philadelphia; Vernon Hawkins, who was a volunteer advisor in 2010 for a 2010 mayoral campaign; and Troy White, the owner of a marketing company based in New York.

            Another person, former District of Columbia Council member Michael A. Brown, pled guilty to charges in an unrelated bribery investigation. In those proceedings, he publicly admitted that his campaign committees had secretly received money from Thompson.  

            As part of Thompson’s guilty plea, on March 10, 2014, he agreed to cooperate fully in an ongoing investigation. No date has been set for his sentencing.

**

            “Three months ago, Jeff Thompson’s guilty plea pulled back the curtain on widespread corruption that tainted election after election, year after year in D.C. politics,” said U.S. Attorney Machen. “Today Jeff Smith became the third candidate to stand before a judge and confess to taking Thompson’s secret campaign cash.  We commend Jeff Smith for acknowledging his misconduct and will press forward with our efforts to hold accountable all those who participated in under-the-table deals with Jeff Thompson.”

            “Today, Mr. Smith admitted to accepting illegal contributions to his campaign for D.C. Council and to filing a report which concealed these illegal in-kind contributions to the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance,” said Assistant Director in Charge Parlave. “Along with our law enforcement partners, the FBI remains vigilant to abuses of campaign finance laws to protect the citizens of the District of Columbia from schemes within the electoral process.”

            According to a statement of offense submitted as part of today’s guilty plea, from at least December 2009 through December 2010, Smith, Thompson and others acted to make and to receive – and to conceal – campaign contributions in excess of those permitted under the District of Columbia Campaign Act.

            Smith admitted that Thompson, with his knowledge, provided more than $140,000 of in-kind contributions, contributions which were concealed from the Office of Campaign Finance.  Smith provided a budget to Thompson in March 2010, seeking $140,975 for voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts for his campaign. Then, from March 2010 until September 2010, Thompson used funds, via TCBA and DCHSI, to provide more than $140,000 in coordination with and in support of Smith’s campaign committee. At least part of this money was spent on campaign services and materials.

            The District of Columbia Campaign Act imposes limits on the amount of money that can be contributed to a District of Columbia candidate and that candidate’s principal campaign committee.  It also prohibits any person or corporation from making a contribution in the name of another, including by reimbursement. Finally, it requires principal campaign committees to file periodic reports of receipts and disbursements.

            The law limits the amount that an individual or entity can contribute in the aggregate in the primary and general elections of a candidate seeking election to a Ward seat to $500.

            In his plea, Smith admitted that, acting on behalf of his campaign committee, he filed, that is, authorized to be filed, a false and misleading report to the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance in December 2010.  The report concealed the excessive and unreported in-kind contributions provided directly and indirectly by Thompson.

In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director in Charge Parlave, and Special Agent in Charge Kelly commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and IRS-CI.

            They also expressed appreciation for the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael K. Atkinson, Jonathan P. Hooks, Ellen Chubin Epstein, Lionel André, and Ephraim “Fry” Wernick, of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, who are prosecuting cases in the investigation.

            Finally, they acknowledged the efforts of others who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Deborah Connor, Chief of the Fraud and Public Corruption Section, as well as Criminal Investigators Matthew J. Kutz, Mark Crawford, Melissa Matthews, and Durand Odom; Forensic Accountants Crystal Boodoo and Maria Boodoo; Paralegal Specialists Krishawn Graham, Tasha Harris, and Corrine Kleinman; Former Paralegal Specialists Shanna Hays and Nicole Wattelet; and Legal Assistant Angela Lawrence.

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WASHINGTON – Claudius Kai Kpakima, 34, of Silver Spring, Md., pled guilty today to a federal offense stemming from the embezzlement of more than $245,000 from his employer, a visa processing company, announced U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr., Valerie Parlave, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Bryan Porter, Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Alexandria, Va.

     In a separate scheme, Kpakima admitted collecting more than $14,000 in fraudulent unemployment benefits.

     Kpakima pled guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to a charge of interstate transportation of stolen property. The Honorable Senior Judge Royce C. Lamberth scheduled sentencing for Sept. 12, 2014. The charge carries a statutory maximum of 10 years in prison and financial penalties. Under federal sentencing guidelines, Kpakima faces a likely range of 46 to 57 months in prison and a fine of up to $50,000. The plea agreement calls for him to pay restitution of $246,191 to his former employer and another $14,615 to the District of Columbia Department of Employment Services.

     According to the government’s evidence, Kpakima worked from May 2011 until November 2012 as a visa consultant for a company identified in court documents as “Company A,” a visa processing company that focused on obtaining expedited visas for individuals and corporate clients across the United States.

     Kpakima performed visa processing and expediting duties, and he was able to request money orders from his supervisors through the company’s money order machine. He was required to provide a reason to supervisors for the money orders. Between May 2011 and November 2012, Kpakima fraudulently requested more than 2,900 money orders, which he then cashed at various establishments. He gave the establishments various reasons why he had the money orders, including a false claim that he got them in return for delivering passports.

     All told, Kpakima obtained and cashed $246,191 in money orders, even though he was not entitled to any of this money.

     In the second scheme, between July 2011 and June 2012, while Kpakima was working for “Company A,” he received $14,615 in fraudulent unemployment benefits from the District of Columbia Department of Employment Services. On at least 35 occasions, he recertified that he was eligible for these benefits when he was in fact working at “Company A.”

     Kpakima has several previous convictions for theft and related activity. His plea agreement is part of a broader resolution that includes charges filed in the City of Alexandria, Va. A court appearance there is scheduled for October 2014.

     In announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Machen, Assistant Director in Charge Parlave, and Commonwealth’s Attorney Porter commended the work of those who investigated the case from the FBI and the Alexandria, Va. Police Department. They also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney David Lord of the Alexandria Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney, who is prosecuting the case in Virginia. They acknowledged the efforts of those who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Catherine K. Connelly, Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division, who assisted with forfeiture issues; Paralegal Specialist Donna Galindo, and Intelligence Specialist Sharon Johnson. Finally, they thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Selden, who is prosecuting the case in the District of Columbia.

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