Southern District of Florida
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Former Vice President and Controller of Publicly Traded Company Pleads Guilty to Insider TradingRead the Press Release
MIAMI – A Florida man pleaded guilty today in the Southern District of Florida for his role in an insider trading scheme that netted him over $1.6 million in illicit profits.
According to court documents, Stephen George, 54, of Parkland, was a member of the Finance Department at Company A from November 2017 until April 7, 2023, where he held roles including vice president and controller. Company A is a consumer-packaged goods company headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, that is the maker of a fitness drink and whose securities are publicly traded on the NASDAQ Stock Market. In his role at Company A, George received material non-public information (MNPI) regarding Company A’s profit and revenue performance.
George’s last day of employment at Company A was April 7, 2023. On that day, George used a Company A computer to generate out of Company A’s enterprise resource planning system a consolidated income statement showing Company A’s financial performance for the first quarter of 2023, which George knew contained MNPI. The income statement showed that Company A’s first quarter of 2023 had greatly exceeded expectations. Shortly after generating the income statement, George emailed it to himself using two personal email accounts.
Beginning on April 10, 2023, the first trading day after his last day of employment with Company A, and continuing through May 8, 2023, George purchased Company A securities on the basis of MNPI — specifically, 20,000 shares of Company A common stock and 300 call option contracts. On May 9, 2023, after the market close, Company A publicly reported better-than-expected earnings and sales for the first quarter of 2023, including an all-time quarterly record in revenue. After the public announcement, Company A’s stock price increased significantly. During the next trading day, May 10, 2023, George sold all 20,000 shares of common stock and 300 call option contracts, resulting in over $1.6 million in personal profits.
George pleaded guilty to one count of securities fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 28 and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida; Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Justin E. Fleck of the FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Miami Field Office investigated the case. The Justice Department appreciates the assistance of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Criminal Prosecution Assistance Group.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eli S. Rubin and Elizabeth Young for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorneys Matthew F. Sullivan and Matt Kahn of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Grosnoff for the Southern District of Florida is handling asset forfeiture.
George’s guilty plea comes on the heels of three guilty pleas entered in a separate insider trading prosecution in the Southern District of Florida: United States v. Federico Nannini, et al., 24-cr-20398-RAR. Based on court filings in that case, defendant Federico Nannini, through his work at a global consulting firm, learned that Mas Tec Inc. planned to acquire Infrastructure and Energy Alternative, Inc. Federico Nannini tipped his father, defendant Mauro Nannini, and childhood friend, defendant Alejandro Thermiotis, who each traded on the insider information. In total, they made over $1.1 million in illegal profits. Assistant United States Attorneys Alexandra D. Comoli, Eli S. Rubin, and Elizabeth Young are prosecuting that case, with AUSA Annika Miranda handling forfeiture.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
###
Former Vice President and Controller of Publicly Traded Company Pleads Guilty to Insider TradingRead the Press Release
A Florida man pleaded guilty today in the Southern District of Florida for his role in an insider trading scheme that netted him over $1.6 million in illicit profits.
According to court documents, Stephen George, 54, of Parkland, was a member of the Finance Department at Company A from November 2017 until April 7, 2023, where he held roles including vice president and controller. Company A is a consumer-packaged goods company headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, that is the maker of a fitness drink and whose securities are publicly traded on the NASDAQ Stock Market. In his role at Company A, George received material non-public information (MNPI) regarding Company A’s profit and revenue performance.
George’s last day of employment at Company A was April 7, 2023. On that day, George used a Company A computer to generate out of Company A’s enterprise resource planning system a consolidated income statement showing Company A’s financial performance for the first quarter of 2023, which George knew contained MNPI. The income statement showed that Company A’s first quarter of 2023 had greatly exceeded expectations. Shortly after generating the income statement, George emailed it to himself using two personal email accounts.
Beginning on April 10, 2023, the first trading day after his last day of employment with Company A, and continuing through May 8, 2023, George purchased Company A securities on the basis of MNPI — specifically, 20,000 shares of Company A common stock and 300 call option contracts. On May 9, 2023, after the market close, Company A publicly reported better-than-expected earnings and sales for the first quarter of 2023, including an all-time quarterly record in revenue. After the public announcement, Company A’s stock price increased significantly. During the next trading day, May 10, 2023, George sold all 20,000 shares of common stock and 300 call option contracts, resulting in over $1.6 million in personal profits.
George pleaded guilty to one count of securities fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 28 and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Justin E. Fleck of the FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Miami Field Office investigated the case. The Justice Department appreciates the assistance of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Criminal Prosecution Assistance Group.
Trial Attorneys Matthew F. Sullivan and Matt Kahn of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eli S. Rubin and Elizabeth Young for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Grosnoff for the Southern District of Florida is handling asset forfeiture.
Palm Beach County drug dealer sentenced to 10 years in prison for distributing fentanylRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Jan. 30, a federal district judge in West Palm Beach, Florida sentenced Anthony Raul Del Valle, 29, of Lake Worth Beach, Florida, to 120 months in federal prison. The sentence comes after a federal jury found Del Valle guilty of distributing acetyl fentanyl and fentanyl and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime in November 2024.
On April 8, 2024, Del Valle distributed pills that appeared to be oxycodone, but in fact were fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl, to three family members in Lantana, Florida. All three family members immediately ingested the pills after the distribution. Two of the family members died less than two hours after the distribution.
On April 10, 2024, law enforcement agents identified and arrested Del Valle as the source of the pills after conducting a controlled purchase from Del Valle. Law enforcement agents recovered a loaded firearm from Del Valle during the arrest.
U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, announced the sentence.
The DEA, Miami Field Division investigated the case with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Office, Lantana Police Department, Boynton Beach Police Department and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Shannon O’Shea Darsch and Alexandra Chase prosecuted it.
According to the DEA’s National Drug Threat Assessment, synthetic drugs, such as fentanyl, are poisoning our nation. Fentanyl has proven to be a deadly poison that does not discriminate. Its victims include every gender, race, age, and economic background, and its debilitating effects are the same across all demographics. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Even in small doses, fentanyl can be deadly. Just one fentanyl pill can kill, as noted in DEA’s One Pill Can Kill campaign. As little as two milligrams, about the size of 5 grains of salt, can be fatal. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), fentanyl and other synthetic opioids are the most common drugs involved in overdose deaths. Over 150 people die every day from overdoses related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. The State of Florida has also seen an exponential increase in overdoses associated with fentanyl. In 2022, more than 5,622 people died from overdoses involving fentanyl and fentanyl analogs in Florida.
For more information visit: https://www.fdle.state.fl.us/MEC/Publications-and-Forms/Documents/Drugs-in-Deceased-Persons/2022-Annual-Drug-Report-FINAL-(1).aspx; https://www.cdc.gov/opioids/basics/fentanyl.html#; and https://www.dea.gov/factsheets/fentanyl.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-80062.
###
Illegal Alien Indicted on Voter Fraud and Gun ChargesRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Carlos Jose Abreu, 45, an illegal alien living in Broward County, Florida, appeared in federal court today to face charges of impersonating a United States citizen when registering to vote and when voting in a federal election. Abreu is also charged with unlawfully possessing a firearm.
Abreu was previously indicted for passport application fraud and aggravated identity theft (case no: 24-cr-60155). On January 8, 2025, Abreu pled guilty to the passport fraud allegations.
According to allegations in the charging documents and statements made during court proceedings: Abreu is a national of the Dominican Republic who entered the United States illegally about 20 years ago and has lived in the country unlawfully since then. In 2007, the state of New Jersey issued an arrest warrant for Abreu on charges of kidnapping, sexual assault, endangering a child, and criminal restraint. Abreu moved to Florida, assumed the identity of a real person (a United States citizen) and used it to obtain a Florida driver license and apply for a passport. Abreu has been living in the United States under the assumed identity of the American citizen victim for about 18 years.
According to the recently returned indictment (case no. 25-cr-60015), Abreu also used the assumed identity of the American citizen victim to register to vote in September 2020, and to vote in the November 2022 federal midterm elections. It is also alleged that Abreu illegally possessed a firearm. It is a federal crime for an illegal alien to possess a firearm in the United States. If convicted on the voter fraud and gun charges, Abreu faces up to 15 years in federal prison. He also is subject to deportation.
U.S. Attorney Hayden O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida and Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Conklin of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The DSS Miami Field Office investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Brianna Coakley is prosecuting it.
An indictment is merely an accusation, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
###
St. Lucie County company and woman sentenced for conspiring to harbor aliens by means of employmentRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Jan. 24, Martinez Builders Supply, d/b/a East Coast Trust (ECT) and Kelly Yanira Del Valle, 43, of Fort Pierce, Florida, were sentenced after pleading guilty to conspiring to harbor aliens by means of employment in August and October 2024. Del Valle also pleaded guilty for filing false tax returns and aiding the filing of false tax returns.
ECT was sentenced to two years of probation, to include the implementation of a corporate compliance program, ordered to forfeit $450,000 to the United States and ordered to pay a $100,000 fine. Del Valle was sentenced to 13 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, ordered to forfeit $100,000 to the United States and to pay $100,146 in restitution to the IRS.
From June 2018 through August 2021, Del Valle, who was employed by ECT at the time, along with several of ECT’s officers and employees, conspired to harbor migrants by means of employment. In June 2018, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) law enforcement agents conducted an audit of ECT. The audit revealed that dozens of ECT’s employees were migrants, who were not authorized to work in the United States. To conceal, harbor, and shield the undocumented migrants from HSI, Del Valle and several of ECT’s officers and employees, transferred the undocumented migrants from ECT’s payroll to the payroll of two shell companies. The undocumented migrants continued to work at ECT while purportedly being employed and paid by the shell companies. ECT paid Del Valle a fee for each undocumented migrant that she transferred from ECT’s to the shell companies’ payroll.
Between June 2018 and July 2021, ECT, through its agents and employees, transferred money to bank accounts operated by Del Valle in the name of the shell companies for the express purpose of paying the undocumented migrants who worked at ECT.
On Aug. 6, 2021, HSI law enforcement agents discovered 28 undocumented migrants working at ECT’s headquarters in St. Lucie County.
Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida, Acting Special Agent in Charge José R. Figueroa Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami and Special Agent in Charge Emmanuel Gomez of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
The HSI Fort Pierce Field Office and IRS CI Miami Filed Office investigated the case with assistance from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), U.S. Border Patrol Miami Sector, U.S. Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office, and Fort Pierce Police Department (FPPD). Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Porter prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case numbers 24-cr-14019 and 24-cr-14035.
###
Owners of Florida labor-staffing companies sentenced for tax and immigration fraud and money launderingRead the Press Release
Defendants prosecuted as part of Operation RoomKey
MIAMI – Two Ukrainian nationals who were extradited from the Kingdom of Thailand to the United States in September 2024 were sentenced today on charges related to labor-staffing companies they operated in Florida. Oleg Oliynyk and Oleksandr Yurchyk were each sentenced to 15 years in prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to court documents, Oliynyk, Yurchyk and others owned and operated a series of labor-staffing companies in South Florida — including Paradise Choice LLC, Paradise Choice Cleaning LLC, Tropical City Services LLC and Tropical City Group LLC — from at least April 2008 and August 2021. Through these staffing companies, Oliynyk, Yurchyk and co-defendants Oleksandr Morgunov, Mykhaylo Chugay and Volodymyr Ogorodnychuk facilitated the employment of non-resident aliens in the hospitality industry who were not authorized to work in the United States and helped evade the assessment and collection of more than $25 million of federal income and employment taxes.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Court Judge Jose E. Martinez ordered Oliynyk and Yurchyk to each serve three years of supervised release, pay $10,863,233.05 in restitution to the United States and to forfeit $11 million.
Oliynyk and Yurchyk are the latest defendants sentenced as part of Operation RoomKey, a joint criminal investigation initiative led by the Tax Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Homeland Security Investigations and IRS Criminal Investigation.
Co-defendant Chugay, was convicted at trial in June 2022, and was sentenced in August 2022 to more than 24 years in prison. Co-defendants Morgunov and Ogorodnychuk each pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 96 months in prison and 48 months in prison, respectively.
In March 2022, Mikus Berzins, former City of Key West Police Officer Igor Kasyanenko, Roman Riabov and Andrejs Kozlovs each pleaded guilty to their crimes in the operation of the labor staffing company, Phoenix ADB Services Inc. (Phoenix ADB), which, according to court records, facilitated the employment of aliens without work authorization.
In May 2022, the court sentenced Igor Kasyanenko and Riabov to 22 months and 18 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in the tax and immigration conspiracy. The court also sentenced Berzins and Kozlovs to 28 months and 12 months in prison, respectively, for knowingly hiring ten or more aliens who were not authorized to work in the United States. Later, in September 2023, Nataliya Vasylivna Kasyanenko, a former housekeeping manager at a large Key West hotel, was sentenced for participating in the tax and immigration conspiracy related to the operation of Phoenix ADB.
Batyr Myatiev, the owner and operator of two labor staffing companies, AmeriHos LLC and Golden Sands Management LLC, pleaded guilty in March 2023 and was sentenced in June 2023 to 32 months in prison. According to court records, Myatiev’s labor staffing companies caused a tax loss to the United States of more than $3.5 million and facilitated the employment of aliens without work authorization.
In July 2023, Eka Samadashvili and Davit Pavliashvili, were sentenced for their respective roles in the operation of several labor staffing companies, including PSEB Services JD Inc., Paradise Hospitality Solutions LLC, Paradise Hospitality Group LLC, Paradise Hospitality Inc. and HBSM Corp. According to court records, these labor staffing companies caused a tax loss to the United States of more than $8.4 million and facilitated the employment of non-resident aliens in hotels, bars and restaurants in Key West and elsewhere who were not authorized to work in the United States.
Finally, in March 2024, Petr Sutka was sentenced to four years in prison for his role in operating a series of labor staffing companies — including PSEB Specialty Service Inc., Perfect Service Excellent Benefits Services Inc., Starline Hospitality Inc., Norbert Janitorial Service Inc., E.S.F. Services Inc. and Expert Services F.S. Inc. — which, according to court records, caused a tax loss to the United States of more than $3.5 million and facilitated the employment of aliens without work authorization. In April 2024, Sutka’s co-defendants, Zdenek Strnad and Vasil Khatiashvili, were each sentenced to more than three years, respectively, for their roles in the tax and immigration conspiracy.
Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida and Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Karen E. Kelly of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
Homeland Security Investigations and IRS Criminal Investigation are investigating the case.
Senior Litigation Counsel Chris Clark of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Senior Litigation Counsel Sean Beaty, and Trial Attorneys Jessica A. Kraft, Matthew C. Hicks, and Wilson Rae Stamm of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 21-cr-10009.
###
Fort Pierce man sentenced to 20 years for production of child sexual abuse materialRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Jan. 23, U.S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg sentenced Blaine Korbin Hulten, to 20 years imprisonment, followed by 25 years of supervised release for production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
According to court records, Hulten, 24, of Fort Pierce, Fla., admitted to having sex with a 13-year-old minor and a 16-year-old minor, and to recording the sex act with the 16-year-old victim. Corroborating his confession, his social media records contained conversations with both minor victims, as well as evidence that Hulten was aware both victims were under the age of 18. Social media records also showed that Hulten distributed the recording of his 16-year-old victim using the social media platform.
Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida, Acting Special Agent in Charge José R. Figueroa Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami Field Office, and John Budensiek, Martin County Sheriff, made the announcement.
HSI Fort Pierce and Martin County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Hudock prosecuted this case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 22-cr-14027.
###
Woman pleads guilty to human smuggling conspiracy resulting in 16 deathsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Jan. 21, Yaquelin Dominguez-Nieves, 26, of Sebring, Florida, pleaded guilty in federal court in Miami to conspiring to smuggle aliens into the United States.
According to court documents and information presented during the case’s detention hearing, around November 2022, Dominguez-Nieves, who entered the United States illegally, collected at least $11,500 from the migrants’ family members in South Florida with the promise to smuggle the migrants from Cuba into the United States. Dominguez-Nieves transferred the money she collected to her co-conspirator located in Cuba. Then, Dominguez-Nieves’s co-conspirator loaded approximately 18 migrants onto a small fishing vessel with no life jackets and with a captain who, according to the two survivors, did not appear to know how to operate the vessel. The vessel sank roughly 30 miles into its journey to the United States, killing all but two migrants aboard. Many of the 16 victims were young children and teenagers, including children ranging from nine months to seven years old, as well as two 16-year-olds. Four of the migrants’ bodies were recovered at sea, and their cause of death was ruled drowning.
A sentencing hearing is set for April 11, at 11:00 a.m. in Miami. Dominguez-Nieves faces up to life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison.
Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Matthew J. Margelot U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS), Southeast Region, made the announcement.
CGIS, Southeast Region, investigated the case with assistance from the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Key West, U.S. Border Patrol (BP) Miami Sector, Monroe County Medical Examiner’s Office and Highlands County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO).
Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Keller is prosecuting the case.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20223.
###
Two North Korean nationals and three facilitators indicted for multi-year fraudulent remote information technology worker scheme that generated revenue for the Democratic People’s Republic of KoreaRead the Press Release
Action is latest disruption of U.S.-based “Laptop Farms” that deceive U.S. companies into hiring DPRK nationals
Note: View the indictment here.
MIAMI – The Justice Department today announced the indictment of North Korean nationals Jin Sung-Il (진성일) and Pak Jin-Song (박진성), Mexican national Pedro Ernesto Alonso De Los Reyes, and U.S. nationals Erick Ntekereze Prince and Emanuel Ashtor for a fraudulent scheme to obtain remote information technology (IT) work with U.S. companies that generated revenue for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea).
“This indictment reflects the Southern District of Florida’s commitment to disrupting North Korea’s attempts to generate revenue through intricate schemes that victimize U.S. companies and threaten our national security,” said Michael S. Davis, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “In the United States, we do not tolerate the targeting and defrauding of American companies in aid of sanctioned regimes.”
“The DPRK continues its efforts to evade sanctions to fund the regime’s priorities,” said Jeffrey B. Veltri, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Miami Field Office. “The FBI and our partners at the Departments of State and Treasury, as well as the Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida will continue to identify and disrupt these schemes and make every effort to thwart North Korea’s efforts to victimize U.S. companies and bring in fraudulent gains.”
“The Department of Justice remains committed to disrupting North Korea’s cyber-enabled sanctions-evading schemes, which seek to trick U.S. companies into funding the North Korean regime’s priorities, including its weapons programs,” said Supervisory Official Devin DeBacker of the Justice Department's National Security Division. “Our commitment includes the vigorous pursuit of both the North Korean actors and those providing them with material support. It also includes standing side-by-side with U.S. companies to not only disrupt ongoing victimization, but also to help them independently detect and prevent such schemes in the future.”
“FBI investigation has uncovered a years-long plot to install North Korean IT workers as remote employees to generate revenue for the DPRK regime and evade sanctions,” said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI’s Cyber Division. “The indictments announced today should highlight to all American companies the risk posed by the North Korean government. As always, the FBI is available to assist victims of the DPRK. Please reach out to your local FBI field office should you have any questions or concerns.”
According to the indictment, over the course of their scheme, from approximately April 2018 through August 2024, the defendants and their unindicted co-conspirators obtained work from at least sixty-four U.S. companies. Payments from ten of those companies generated at least $866,255 in revenue, most of which the defendants then laundered through a Chinese bank account. As part of this prosecution, the FBI arrested Ntekereze and Ashtor and executed a search of Ashtor’s residence in North Carolina, where he previously operated a “laptop farm” that hosted victim company-provided laptops to deceive companies into thinking they had hired U.S.-located workers. Alonso was arrested in the Netherlands on Jan. 10, pursuant to an arrest warrant from the United States.
The DPRK has dispatched thousands of skilled IT workers to live abroad, primarily in China and Russia, with the aim of deceiving U.S. and other businesses worldwide into hiring them as freelance IT workers to generate revenue for the regime. DPRK IT worker schemes involve the use of pseudonymous email, social media, payment platform and online job site accounts, as well as false websites, proxy computers, and witting and unwitting third parties located in the United States and elsewhere. As described in a May 2022 tri-seal public service advisory released by the FBI, and State and Treasury Departments, such IT workers have been known individually earn up to $300,000 annually, generating hundreds of millions of dollars collectively each year, on behalf of designated entities, such as the North Korean Ministry of Defense and others directly involved in the DPRK’s weapons of mass destruction programs.
According to the indictment, the defendants used forged and stolen identity documents, including U.S. passports containing the stolen personally identifiable information of a U.S. person, to conceal the true identities of Jin, Pak, and other North Korean co-conspirators, so that these North Korean nationals could circumvent sanctions and other laws to obtain employment with U.S. companies. Ntekereze and Ashtor received laptops from U.S. company employers at their residences, downloading and installing remote access software on them, without authorization, to facilitate IT worker access and to perpetuate the deception of U.S. companies. The defendants further conspired to launder payments for the remote IT work through a variety of accounts designed to promote the scheme and conceal its proceeds.
All five defendants are charged with conspiracy to cause damage to a protected computer, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to transfer false identification documents. Jin and Pak are charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence of each defendant after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Under the Department-wide “DPRK RevGen: Domestic Enabler Initiative,” launched in March 2024 by the National Security Division and the FBI’s Cyber and Counterintelligence Divisions, Department prosecutors and agents are prioritizing the identification and shuttering of U.S.-based “laptop farms” – locations hosting laptops provided by victim U.S. companies to individuals they believed were legitimate U.S.-based freelance IT workers – and the investigation and prosecution of individuals hosting them. Today’s announcement follows successful actions taken by the Department in October 2023, May 2024, August 2024, and December 2024, which targeted similar and related conduct.
The FBI Miami Field Office is investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Stratton and Sean Cronin for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Gregory J. Nicosia, Jr. of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case. Substantial assistance was also provided by Tracy Varghese and Menno Goedman of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.
The FBI, in conjunction with the State and Treasury Departments, issued a May 2022 advisory to alert the international community, private sector, and public about the North Korea IT worker threat. Updated guidance was issued in October 2023 by the United States and the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and in May 2024 by the FBI, which include indicators to watch for that are consistent with the North Korea IT worker fraud and the use of U.S.-based laptop farms. Today, the FBI issued additional guidance regarding extortion and theft of sensitive company data by North Korean IT workers, along with recommended mitigations.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 25-cr-20021.
###
Two North Korean Nationals and Three Facilitators Indicted for Multi-Year Fraudulent Remote Information Technology Worker Scheme that Generated Revenue for the Democratic People’s Republic of KoreaRead the Press Release
Note: View the indictment here.
The Justice Department today announced the indictment of North Korean nationals Jin Sung-Il (진성일) and Pak Jin-Song (박진성), Mexican national Pedro Ernesto Alonso De Los Reyes, and U.S. nationals Erick Ntekereze Prince and Emanuel Ashtor for a fraudulent scheme to obtain remote information technology (IT) work with U.S. companies that generated revenue for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK or North Korea).
“The Department of Justice remains committed to disrupting North Korea’s cyber-enabled sanctions-evading schemes, which seek to trick U.S. companies into funding the North Korean regime’s priorities, including its weapons programs,” said Supervisory Official Devin DeBacker of the Justice Department's National Security Division. “Our commitment includes the vigorous pursuit of both the North Korean actors and those providing them with material support. It also includes standing side-by-side with U.S. companies to not only disrupt ongoing victimization, but also to help them independently detect and prevent such schemes in the future.”
“FBI investigation has uncovered a years-long plot to install North Korean IT workers as remote employees to generate revenue for the DPRK regime and evade sanctions,” said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI’s Cyber Division. “The indictments announced today should highlight to all American companies the risk posed by the North Korean government. As always, the FBI is available to assist victims of the DPRK. Please reach out to your local FBI field office should you have any questions or concerns.”
According to the indictment, over the course of their scheme, from approximately April 2018 through August 2024, the defendants and their unindicted co-conspirators obtained work from at least sixty-four U.S. companies. Payments from ten of those companies generated at least $866,255 in revenue, most of which the defendants then laundered through a Chinese bank account. As part of this prosecution, the FBI arrested Ntekereze and Ashtor and executed a search of Ashtor’s residence in North Carolina, where he previously operated a “laptop farm” that hosted victim company-provided laptops to deceive companies into thinking they had hired U.S.-located workers. Alonso was arrested in the Netherlands on Jan. 10, pursuant to an arrest warrant from the United States.
The DPRK has dispatched thousands of skilled IT workers to live abroad, primarily in China and Russia, with the aim of deceiving U.S. and other businesses worldwide into hiring them as freelance IT workers to generate revenue for the regime. DPRK IT worker schemes involve the use of pseudonymous email, social media, payment platform and online job site accounts, as well as false websites, proxy computers, and witting and unwitting third parties located in the United States and elsewhere. As described in a May 2022 tri-seal public service advisory released by the FBI, and State and Treasury Departments, such IT workers have been known individually earn up to $300,000 annually, generating hundreds of millions of dollars collectively each year, on behalf of designated entities, such as the North Korean Ministry of Defense and others directly involved in the DPRK’s weapons of mass destruction programs.
According to the indictment, the defendants used forged and stolen identity documents, including U.S. passports containing the stolen personally identifiable information of a U.S. person, to conceal the true identities of Jin, Pak, and other North Korean co-conspirators, so that these North Korean nationals could circumvent sanctions and other laws to obtain employment with U.S. companies. Ntekereze and Ashtor received laptops from U.S. company employers at their residences, downloading and installing remote access software on them, without authorization, to facilitate IT worker access and to perpetuate the deception of U.S. companies. The defendants further conspired to launder payments for the remote IT work through a variety of accounts designed to promote the scheme and conceal its proceeds.
All five defendants are charged with conspiracy to cause damage to a protected computer, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to transfer false identification documents. Jin and Pak are charged with conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence of each defendant after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Under the Department-wide “DPRK RevGen: Domestic Enabler Initiative,” launched in March 2024 by the National Security Division and the FBI’s Cyber and Counterintelligence Divisions, Department prosecutors and agents are prioritizing the identification and shuttering of U.S.-based “laptop farms” – locations hosting laptops provided by victim U.S. companies to individuals they believed were legitimate U.S.-based freelance IT workers – and the investigation and prosecution of individuals hosting them. Today’s announcement follows successful actions taken by the Department in October 2023, May 2024, August 2024, and December 2024, which targeted similar and related conduct.
The FBI Miami Field Office is investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Stratton and Sean Cronin for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Gregory J. Nicosia, Jr. of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case. Substantial assistance was also provided by Tracy Varghese and Menno Goedman of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.
The FBI, in conjunction with the State and Treasury Departments, issued a May 2022 advisory to alert the international community, private sector, and public about the North Korea IT worker threat. Updated guidance was issued in October 2023 by the United States and the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and in May 2024 by the FBI, which include indicators to watch for that are consistent with the North Korea IT worker fraud and the use of U.S.-based laptop farms. Today, the FBI issued additional guidance regarding extortion and theft of sensitive company data by North Korean IT workers, along with recommended mitigations.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Jury convicts California man in diamond investment fraud schemeRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Jan. 14, Murray Todd Petersen, 73, of Fair Oaks, California, was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud, after a seven-day jury trial in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
From March 2013 through August 2019, Petersen, who worked as a salesman for Petersen & Lowe LLC, induced investors to purchase fancy-colored diamonds using materially false and fraudulent representations concerning the safety and security of the investments, the value of the investments, the expected profits and rates of return, and the use of investors’ funds. After selling his victims expensive fancy-colored diamonds supplied with fraudulent overvalued appraisals, he instructed his clients to hold onto their investments often for one to two years prior to looking to liquidate. When trying to cover his investors cash out demands at the overpriced appraisal prices, he used another false representation of a China investment program, where he would purportedly invest the victims’ money into the Chinese diamond market with a purported guaranteed five to eight percent monthly dividend return on investment. Unbeknownst to his victims, this new investment program was really a Ponzi scheme in disguise designed to pay off his first round of investor clients. When customers began to complain about missing promised returns and highly inaccurate overvalued appraisals, the scheme pivoted again to a theft model, where investors prepaid for diamonds that were never delivered. Petersen took approximately $850,000 in sales commissions from his victims, which he used to pay off his high IRS tax liens and cover his business operating expenses.
After his conviction, Petersen was remanded into custody. A sentencing hearing is set for April 24 at 10:00 a.m. in Fort Lauderdale. Petersen faces up to 20 years in prison on each count. Petersen’s co-conspirators Adam Jonathan Lowe, 43, of West Pittston, Pennsylvania, was previously convicted of conspiracy to commit wire Fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering in July 2024 and Scott Schafer, 62, of Pembroke Pines, Florida, was previously convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in June 2024.
Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, announced the conviction.
FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Marc Anton and Latoya Brown prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marx Calderon is handling asset forfeiture.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 23-cr-60225.
###
Florida man sentenced to life in prison for sex trafficking nearly a dozen women and girlsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Shannima Yuantrell Session, also known as Shalamar, 47, of Lake Placid, Florida, was sentenced today to life in prison for trafficking nearly a dozen women and girls. Previously, a jury in the Southern District of Florida found him guilty of 10 counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and three counts of sex trafficking of a minor. The court has set a restitution hearing date of April 17.
“Protecting victims of human trafficking and child exploitation is a top priority for the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida. “We are committed to aggressively combating these exploitative crimes that victimize the most vulnerable people in our society. Human beings are not commodities to be bought and sold, but rather demand our united protection. Our dedicated team of prosecutors, victim witness coordinators, and support personnel will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to combat human trafficking and child exploitation to bring these offenders to justice.”
“This substantial sentence is indicative of the egregious sexual exploitation committed by Shannima Yuantrell Session on numerous juveniles and women in Highlands County, Florida,” said Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office. “It is a testament to the cooperation and commitment of several law enforcement agencies including the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. We will continue working with these and other partners to dismantle human trafficking networks that operate in the shadows and brutalize their victims.”
The evidence presented at the nine-day trial in September 2024 demonstrated that Session compelled victims to commit commercial sex acts between July 2011 and July 2013 as well as between February 2016 and February 2019. Session made promises of legitimate work and housing assistance to women and girls struggling with unstable living accommodations, substance abuse and neglect or who otherwise led unstable lives. Session’s promises were often false and empty, designed to provide him with the opportunity to learn about a victim’s vulnerabilities while misrepresenting himself as caring and empathetic. Session then exploited the victims’ vulnerabilities to compel their commercial sex acts.
At times, Session used food and housing to control and coerce the victims. For example, he would not permit one of his victims to eat if the victim did not follow his instructions. Often, Session required his victims to engage in sexual activity with him after they had spent a night having compelled sexual intercourse with up to 18 men.
Further, the evidence presented during the trial demonstrated that Session resorted to extreme physical violence to compel and intimidate certain victims. He violently punched some of the victims in the back of their heads in order not to leave marks on their bodies. Once, Session dragged a victim to a shower and beat her in the back of her head with a metal object until she fell limp to the floor. Session also choked another victim to the point that she lost consciousness, beat another victim with a bat and brutalized yet another so badly that her nose ring fell out due to the force of the assault. In addition, Session took multiple victims to a nearby lake, where he held two of their heads underwater and threatened to drown them if they did not do as he ordered.
The evidence also showed that Session used a firearm to intimidate and control his victims. He consistently kept a firearm in his possession and frequently displayed it to victims or referred to it when talking with them. Once, Session pointed a firearm at a victim while he was driving and threatened to “kill” her after she asked him how he would feel if someone treated his daughter the way he treated her.
Finally, the evidence indicated that Session manipulated and took advantage of some victims’ substance abuse problems to compel their commercial sex services. For example, Session provided victims with cocaine and methamphetamine to give them sufficient energy to engage in commercial sex acts and force them to lose weight.
The FBI Miami Field Office, Ft. Pierce Resident Agency, investigated the case, with assistance from the Highlands County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Hoover for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorneys Leah Branch and Matthew Thiman of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit prosecuted the case.
Anyone who has information about human trafficking should report that information to the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about human trafficking, visit www.humantraffickinghotline.org. Information on the Justice Department’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 22-cr-14074.
###
Florida Man Sentenced to Prison for Preparing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Jan. 6, Juan Mendieta, of Miami-Dade County, was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in October 2024 to one count of criminal conspiracy and four counts of aiding and assisting the preparation of false tax returns.
Beginning in 2019 and continuing through at least 2023, Mendieta conspired with others to prepare fraudulent tax returns for his clients by using false business losses and expenses. These false items resulted in inflated federal tax refunds. For multiple clients, Mendieta prepared two different sets of tax returns. One set directed certain refunds from the IRS to Mendieta’s clients. Mendieta provided this set to his clients and misrepresented to them that he would file these tax returns with the IRS. Instead, Mendieta filed a second set of tax returns, which directed even greater refunds to bank accounts that he and a co-conspirator controlled.
The IRS has identified at least 29 tax filings that fraudulently inflated refunds, which Mendieta filed on behalf of at least 13 separate clients during the conspiracy period. As a result of Mendieta’s fraudulent conduct, the IRS is entitled to over $11 million in restitution.
Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida and Acting Special Agent in Charge Emmanuel Gomez of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, announced the sentence imposed by U.S. District Chief Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga.
IRS-CI Miami Field Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacob Koffsky and Katherine Guthrie prosecuted this case.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20320.
###
Florida Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Sex Trafficking Nearly a Dozen Women and GirlsRead the Press Release
Shannima Yuantrell Session, also known as Shalamar, 47, of Lake Placid, Florida, was sentenced today to life in prison for trafficking nearly a dozen women and girls. Previously, a jury in the Southern District of Florida found him guilty of 10 counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and three counts of sex trafficking of a minor. The court has set a restitution hearing date of April 17.
“Protecting victims of human trafficking and child exploitation is a top priority for the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida. “We are committed to aggressively combating these exploitative crimes that victimize the most vulnerable people in our society. Human beings are not commodities to be bought and sold, but rather demand our united protection. Our dedicated team of prosecutors, victim witness coordinators, and support personnel will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to combat human trafficking and child exploitation to bring these offenders to justice.”
“This substantial sentence is indicative of the egregious sexual exploitation committed by Shannima Yuantrell Session on numerous juveniles and women in Highlands County, Florida,” said Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office. “It is a testament to the cooperation and commitment of several law enforcement agencies including the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. We will continue working with these and other partners to dismantle human trafficking networks that operate in the shadows and brutalize their victims.”
The evidence presented at the nine-day trial in September 2024 demonstrated that Session compelled victims to commit commercial sex acts between July 2011 and July 2013 as well as between February 2016 and February 2019. Session made promises of legitimate work and housing assistance to women and girls struggling with unstable living accommodations, substance abuse and neglect or who otherwise led unstable lives. Session’s promises were often false and empty, designed to provide him with the opportunity to learn about a victim’s vulnerabilities while misrepresenting himself as caring and empathetic. Session then exploited the victims’ vulnerabilities to compel their commercial sex acts.
At times, Session used food and housing to control and coerce the victims. For example, he would not permit one of his victims to eat if the victim did not follow his instructions. Often, Session required his victims to engage in sexual activity with him after they had spent a night having compelled sexual intercourse with up to 18 men.
Further, the evidence presented during the trial demonstrated that Session resorted to extreme physical violence to compel and intimidate certain victims. He violently punched some of the victims in the back of their heads in order not to leave marks on their bodies. Once, Session dragged a victim to a shower and beat her in the back of her head with a metal object until she fell limp to the floor. Session also choked another victim to the point that she lost consciousness, beat another victim with a bat and brutalized yet another so badly that her nose ring fell out due to the force of the assault. In addition, Session took multiple victims to a nearby lake, where he held two of their heads underwater and threatened to drown them if they did not do as he ordered.
The evidence also showed that Session used a firearm to intimidate and control his victims. He consistently kept a firearm in his possession and frequently displayed it to victims or referred to it when talking with them. Once, Session pointed a firearm at a victim while he was driving and threatened to “kill” her after she asked him how he would feel if someone treated his daughter the way he treated her.
Finally, the evidence indicated that Session manipulated and took advantage of some victims’ substance abuse problems to compel their commercial sex services. For example, Session provided victims with cocaine and methamphetamine to give them sufficient energy to engage in commercial sex acts and force them to lose weight.
The FBI Miami Field Office, Ft. Pierce Resident Agency, investigated the case, with assistance from the Highlands County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Hoover for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorneys Leah Branch and Matthew Thiman of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit prosecuted the case.
Anyone who has information about human trafficking should report that information to the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about human trafficking, visit www.humantraffickinghotline.org. Information on the Justice Department’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.
On Last Day, United States Attorney Markenzy Lapointe Reflects on the District’s AccomplishmentsRead the Press Release
Today is my last day as United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. Since announcing my resignation, I have continued reflecting on my experiences over the past two years – ones made extraordinary by the attorneys, support professionals, and law enforcement partners who serve the Southern District of Florida. I am proud of the office’s many accomplishments and take this opportunity to share some of those.
National Security and Hate Crimes
The office protected our nation and local communities from security threats, both foreign and domestic. For example, we have secured convictions against six individuals (five of whom received life sentences) in an ongoing prosecution charging defendants for their roles in planning and carrying out the assassination of a sitting head of state: then-Haitian president Jovenel Moïse. In addition, we charged a defendant with attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate (now United States President-elect Donald J. Trump) in the weeks leading up to the 2024 election.
The office obtained a conviction and significant prison sentence for Victor Manuel Rocha, a former United States diplomat and National Security Council member who betrayed his oath to our country by operating as a covert agent of the Cuban government; successfully prosecuted a South Florida man for attempting to bomb the New York Stock Exchange; and secured decades-long prison sentences for two former Colombian soldiers turned armed revolutionaries who attempted to kill United States military personnel with a car bomb outside a base at the Colombia-Venezuela border.
We combatted hate crimes too, using both enforcement and outreach. For example, the office successfully prosecuted the woman who made anti-Semitic phone threats to the former Executive Director of Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue, as well as the man who assaulted a Muslim United States Postal Service employee while she delivered mail wearing her hijab.
The office collaborated with local law enforcement, religious, and other leaders to teach our communities to identify, prevent, and report hate crimes. We used town hall events, print and social media, a public service announcement, and other channels to communicate our message.
Violent Crimes, Narcotics Trafficking, and Firearms Crimes
As strong as the office’s commitment to battling national security and hate crimes, was its commitment to battling violence, gun crimes, and narcotics trafficking. The office put behind bars the South Florida kidnappers who dumped their victims (two of whom died) on the side of a road after torturing them. We did the same with another kidnapper who held a rideshare driver at gunpoint during a forced cross-country trip. In a case that involved murder contracts, arson, poisoning, and other violence, the office charged several men with furthering a Miami real estate mogul’s terror campaign against the wife he wanted dead.
We combatted gun crimes by aggressively prosecuting international firearms smugglers, unlicensed dealers, and felons who illegally possessed these weapons. From January to May 2024 alone, we indicted 13 defendants on federal gun offenses and seized over 140 firearms.
Stopping domestic and transnational narcotics traffickers from flooding our communities with their poison was a top priority. For example, we sent seven Sinaloa Cartel members and associates to prison for fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine trafficking. The office is also part of a team prosecuting Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia, one of the cartel’s leaders. When a former British Virgin Islands Premier worked with others to traffic cocaine into our country and launder money, we successfully prosecuted him: a jury found him guilty and a judge sentenced him to 11 years in prison.
On deadly fentanyl, we attacked every link of the supply chain. The office charged Chinese chemical manufacturing companies and Chinese nationals with trafficking fentanyl precursor chemicals into the United States. We secured convictions and decades-long prison sentences for fentanyl distributors and dealers whose product killed people, including a baby.
Our asset forfeiture and civil division lawyers battled the drug trade from a financial angle. We secured millions in forfeiture judgments against international drug trafficking organizations (including a vast one headquartered in the Dominican Republic), whose members laundered dirty money through real estate purchases, sophisticated bank transactions, and other means. We also achieved a $475 million settlement in a False Claims Act civil lawsuit claiming that a drug manufacturer had falsely marketed its opioid product as abuse-resistant, knowing that it was, in fact, highly addictive and easy to abuse.
Financial Frauds, Cyber, and Corruption Crimes
We prosecuted hackers, doctors, business executives, local law enforcement personnel, foreign officials, and others on crimes ranging from cyber, identity theft, and insider trading to the full panoply of frauds: health care, securities, Ponzi schemes, mortgage, tax, cryptocurrency-related, and more.
In a cybercrimes case with worldwide impact, the office was part of the prosecution team that disrupted Blackcat, the sophisticated ransomware group whose remote kidnappings of sprawling computer networks, including ones supporting critical American infrastructure, caused tens of millions of dollars in losses to victims around the world. As a result of our work, victims were able to proceed with their data and network operations.
In a fraud case that sounded patient-safety alarm bells at nursing schools, licensing boards, and medical facilities across the country, the office successfully prosecuted dozens of fraudsters involved in a scheme to sell fake school diplomas and transcripts to aspiring nurses.
On health care fraud matters, the work of our civil division was impressive. For example, the office successfully litigated a False Claims Act civil lawsuit alleging that a Florida man and his laboratories conspired to fraudulently bill Medicare for cancer genomic tests that were medically unnecessary and procured through illegal kickback payments. The owner of the laboratories agreed to pay over $27 million to settle the case.
The office also held accountable criminals who defrauded Covid-19 pandemic relief programs, stealing money intended for small business owners and others who economically struggled during the pandemic. In the last two years alone, criminal prosecutors have charged many defendants, including dozens of officers and staff employed with local law enforcement and corrections departments: Broward Sheriff’s Office, Miami-Dade Police Department, City of Miami Police Department, Florida Department of Corrections, and Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department. Civil division litigators have recovered over $9.6 million, and asset forfeiture division litigators have secured multi-million-dollar forfeiture orders, in pandemic-related fraud cases.
Corrupt government officials who abused their power faced justice in this district. In one matter, we secured a conviction against a City of Miami police officer who illegally stopped vehicles to steal kilograms of cocaine and drug cash. In another, the office successfully prosecuted a former comptroller general of Ecuador (whose job it was to protect public funds and root out corruption in that country) for soliciting and taking over $10 million in bribes and laundering it through Miami real estate purchases and bank transactions. Following a three-week jury trial, guilty verdict, and asset forfeiture trial in that case, Carlos Ramon Polit Faggioni was sentenced to a decade in prison and ordered to forfeit $16.5 million. We also secured a conviction against his son, a former Miami banker, for his part in the scheme.
The office expanded enforcement efforts for certain non-violent crimes by launching a Whistleblower Non-Prosecution Pilot Program with twin goals: helping to identify high-level offenders within significant governmental and private organizations and encouraging organizations to develop robust compliance programs.
Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Matters
The office aggressively combatted human trafficking and child exploitation, using enforcement and outreach. We secured a 30-year prison sentence against a cruise ship employee who used hidden cameras planted in staterooms to secretly record children; a 15-year prison sentence for a Miami attorney and former prosecutor who solicited minors online; long prison terms (14 and 30 years) for cross country sex-traffickers; and a conviction against a man who forced women and girls into commercial sex acts through beatings, near-drownings, food deprivation, and other violence and intimidation.
Through a public service announcement, visits to schools and community centers, and other engagement, we warned parents and children about the dangers of online sex crimes and offered tips to identify and prevent them. Interacting with the community has been one of the most meaningful parts of this job.
Moving Forward
Beginning January 18, 2025, First Assistant United States Attorney Michael S. Davis, who has served the office for over 30 years, will be Acting United States Attorney. Having witnessed the passion, dedication, and commitment that the members of the office bring to their jobs – including the 45 lawyers we hired despite budget challenges – I know that I leave the district in strong and capable hands.
-Markenzy Lapointe
* * * * *
Four People Sentenced to Prison for Distributing FentanylRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Four South Florida residents have been sentenced to federal prison for distributing fentanyl and meth.
On Jan. 16, Gito St Fort, 35, of West Palm Beach, Florida, a career criminal, was sentenced to 320 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death. On Dec. 24, 2023, St Fort sold the victim the fentanyl which resulted in his death while the victim was visiting his parents.
On Jan. 15, Anwar Hazzi, 36, of Sunny Isles Beach, Florida, was sentenced to 200 months in federal prison. From June 2023 to May 2024, Hazzi sold drugs, including more than 900 grams of fentanyl and 500 grams of meth. The fentanyl was concealed within counterfeit prescription pills resembling oxycodone and the meth was concealed within counterfeit prescription pills resembling Adderall. In September 2024, Hazzi pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.
Also, on Jan. 15, Samantha Yi, 31, of Lake Worth, Florida, was sentenced to 288 months in federal prison. Yi and her then boyfriend, Darnell Julio Mendez, 32, of Lake Worth, sold fentanyl to the mother of a 10-month-old baby who fatally overdosed on the fentanyl in March 2022. Both defendants pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, distribution of fentanyl resulting in death, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and possession of firearms by a convicted felon. Mendez, a career criminal, was sentenced to 360 months in federal prison in October 2024.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter of the DEA, Miami Field Division, announced the sentence.
The DEA Miami Field Division investigated the cases with assistance from PBSO, BBPD and the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam McMichael, Brian Ralston and Shannon O’Shea Darsch prosecuted the cases.
According to the DEA’s National Drug Threat Assessment, nitazenes are synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, but some nitazenes can match or surpass the potency of fentanyl. Different nitazenes have been appearing in fentanyl mixtures in the United States since 2019. When combined with fentanyl, the effects of both drugs are heightened, which significantly increases the chance of a fatal drug poisoning.
Synthetic drugs such as fentanyl are poisoning the nation. Fentanyl has proven to be a deadly poison that does not discriminate. Its victims include every gender, race, age, and economic background, and its debilitating effects are the same across all demographics. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Even in small doses, fentanyl can be deadly. Just one fentanyl pill can kill, as noted in DEA’s One Pill Can Kill campaign. As little as two milligrams, about the size of 5 grains of salt, can be fatal. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), fentanyl and other synthetic opioids are the most common drugs involved in overdose deaths. Over 150 people die every day from overdoses related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. The State of Florida has also seen an exponential increase in overdoses associated with fentanyl. In 2022, more than 5,622 people died from overdoses involving fentanyl and fentanyl analogs in Florida.
For more information visit: https://www.fdle.state.fl.us/MEC/Publications-and-Forms/Documents/Drugs-in-Deceased-Persons/2022-Annual-Drug-Report-FINAL-(1).aspx; https://www.cdc.gov/opioids/basics/fentanyl.html#; and https://www.dea.gov/factsheets/fentanyl.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case numbers 24-cr-80063, 24-cr-80070 and 24-cr-80041.
###
Miami-Based Real Estate Broker Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Violate Russia-Ukraine Sanctions and to Commit Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Miami real estate broker Roman Sinyavsky pleaded guilty today to engaging in a scheme to violate U.S. sanctions and commit money laundering by conducting transactions involving blocked properties owned by sanctioned Russian oligarchs Viktor Perevalov and Valeri Abramov.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Perevalov and Abramov for conduct including owning and operating VAD, AO, a Russia-based construction company responsible for constructing the Tavrida Highway in the Russian-occupied Crimea Region of Ukraine. Perevalov was designated again by OFAC in December 2024 for operating in the construction sector of the Russian economy.
As described in court documents, from in or around January 2018 through in or around March 2023, Sinyavsky conspired with others to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and commit money laundering by maintaining, transferring, selling, and leasing several luxury condominiums in the Miami area that Perevalov and Abramov owned and by collecting, sharing, and using the proceeds to maintain the properties.
Sinyavsky faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. As part of the plea agreement, Sinyavsky agreed to forfeit the proceeds he received from the scheme totaling $182,442.45.
On Feb. 22, 2024, the United States filed a civil forfeiture complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, alleging that two luxury condominiums owned by Perevalov are subject to forfeiture based on the unlawful transactions. On Jan. 6, the court ordered forfeiture of $1.8 million representing the proceeds from the sales of those properties. Abramov’s property was sold in June 2018.
Concurrent with today’s guilty plea, OFAC announced a separate settlement with Sinyavsky and his real estate company Family International Realty LLC in connection with a related, parallel proceeding. Under the terms of that resolution, Sinyavsky and his company have agreed to pay a civil penalty of approximately $1,076,923. In recognition of the amount Sinyavsky has agreed to forfeit in connection with today’s guilty plea, OFAC will credit the forfeiture against its civil penalty.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brent S. Wible, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Miami Field Office is investigating the case with assistance from the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also provided valuable assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Eli Rubin for the Southern District of Florida, Trial Attorneys Sinan Kalayoglu and Lindsay Gorman of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and Trial Attorney Joshua E. Kurland of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marx P. Calderon for the Southern District of Florida is handling asset forfeiture.
The investigation was coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls and economic countermeasures that, beginning in 2014, the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, and under the leadership of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.
###
Miami-Based Real Estate Broker Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Violate Russia-Ukraine Sanctions and to Commit Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
Miami real estate broker Roman Sinyavsky pleaded guilty today to engaging in a scheme to violate U.S. sanctions and commit money laundering by conducting transactions involving blocked properties owned by sanctioned Russian oligarchs Viktor Perevalov and Valeri Abramov.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Perevalov and Abramov for conduct including owning and operating VAD, AO, a Russia-based construction company responsible for constructing the Tavrida Highway in the Russian-occupied Crimea Region of Ukraine. Perevalov was designated again by OFAC in December 2024 for operating in the construction sector of the Russian economy.
As described in court documents, from in or around January 2018 through in or around March 2023, Sinyavsky conspired with others to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and commit money laundering by maintaining, transferring, selling, and leasing several luxury condominiums in the Miami area that Perevalov and Abramov owned and by collecting, sharing, and using the proceeds to maintain the properties.
Sinyavsky faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. As part of the plea agreement, Sinyavsky agreed to forfeit the proceeds he received from the scheme totaling $182,442.45.
On Feb. 22, 2024, the United States filed a civil forfeiture complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, alleging that two luxury condominiums owned by Perevalov are subject to forfeiture based on the unlawful transactions. On Jan. 6, the court ordered forfeiture of $1.8 million representing the proceeds from the sales of those properties. Abramov’s property was sold in June 2018.
Concurrent with today’s guilty plea, OFAC announced a separate settlement with Sinyavsky and his real estate company Family International Realty LLC in connection with a related, parallel proceeding. Under the terms of that resolution, Sinyavsky and his company have agreed to pay a civil penalty of approximately $1,076,923. In recognition of the amount Sinyavsky has agreed to forfeit in connection with today’s guilty plea, OFAC will credit the forfeiture against its civil penalty.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brent S. Wible, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Miami Field Office is investigating the case with assistance from the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also provided valuable assistance.
Trial Attorneys Sinan Kalayoglu and Lindsay Gorman of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, Trial Attorney Joshua E. Kurland of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Eli Rubin for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.
The investigation was coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls and economic countermeasures that, beginning in 2014, the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, and under the leadership of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.
Owner of Foreign Currency Trading Firm Pleads Guilty to Running a Ponzi-SchemeRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Henry Abdo, 47, of Lebanon, pled guilty in federal court to orchestrating an over $6 million investment fraud (Ponzi) scheme run through his company, Titanium Capital LLC (“Titanium”). According to court records, Abdo’s company, Titanium, purported to operate a sophisticated foreign-exchange platform that guaranteed fixed returns for investors. In reality, Titanium had no such platform, and Abdo used investor funds to pay off earlier investors and finance his personal lifestyle.
Beginning in July 2014, Abdo falsely claimed that Titanium was a “zero-risk” investment fund that generated profits from fees on foreign currency transactions. Abdo further deceived investors by claiming Titanium was part of a multibillion-dollar holding company, had developed proprietary software, and was registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In addition to fraudulent investment claims, court records reveal that Abdo attempted to bolster his credibility by falsely associating himself with various charitable and educational organizations. None of these claims were true.
Court documents indicate that Abdo solicited investments through in-person meetings, emails, video conferences, and phone calls. Abdo directed potential investors to websites and promotional materials that falsely depicted Titanium as a legitimate enterprise. In truth, Titanium operated as a classic Ponzi scheme, using funds from new investors to pay earlier investors while diverting large sums of money for Abdo’s personal use, including international travel and other expenses.
After soliciting millions from over 200 investors, Abdo’s scheme unraveled. Many victims were financially devastated. Several victims reported losing retirement accounts and personal savings that they had relied on for basic living expenses, such as food and medication.
On Jan. 13, 2025, during a hearing before U.S. District Court Judge William P. Dimitrouleas, Abdo pled guilty to wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343. Abdo faces up to 20 years in prison. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
FBI Miami’s Palm Beach Resident Agency investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jonathan Bailyn and Justin Chapman prosecuted this case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 23-cr-80209.
###
Nigerian National Pleads Guilty to Scheme That Defrauded More Than 400 U.S. VictimsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Today, a Nigerian national pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to operating a transnational inheritance fraud scheme that defrauded elderly and vulnerable consumers across the United States.
According to court documents, Okezie Bonaventure Ogbata, 36, was a member of a group of fraudsters that sent personalized letters to elderly victims in the United States over the course of several years. The letters falsely claimed that the sender was a representative of a bank in Spain and that the recipient was entitled to receive a multimillion-dollar inheritance left for the recipient by a family member who had died overseas years before. Ogbata and his co-conspirators told a series of lies to victims, including that, before they could receive their purported inheritance, they were required to send money for delivery fees, taxes and other payments to avoid questioning from government authorities. Ogbata and his co-conspirators collected money victims sent in response to the fraudulent letters through a complex web of U.S.-based former victims, whom the defendants convinced to receive money and forward to the defendants or persons associated with them. Victims who sent money never received any purported inheritance funds. In pleading guilty, Ogbata admitted to defrauding over $6 million from more than 400 victims, many of whom were elderly or otherwise vulnerable.
“The long arm of the American justice system has no limits when it comes to reaching fraudsters who prey on our nation’s most vulnerable populations, to include the elderly,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “We will not allow transnational criminals to steal money from the public we serve. Individuals who defraud American consumers will be brought to justice, no matter where they are located.”
“The Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch will continue to pursue transnational criminals wherever they are located,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This case is a testament to the critical role of international collaboration in tackling transnational crime. I want to thank the members of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), as well as the Portuguese Judicial Police and Public Prosecution Service of Portugal, for their outstanding contributions to this case.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) has a long tradition of protecting American citizens from these types of schemes and bringing those responsible to justice,” said Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Steven Hodges of the USPIS Miami Division. “This guilty plea is a testament to the dedicated partnership between the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch, HSI and USPIS to protect our citizens from these scams.”
“Transnational fraud schemes thrive in the shadows, turning illicit gains into a facade of legitimacy, especially those involving seniors or other vulnerable people,” said Special Agent in Charge Francisco B. Burrola of HSI Arizona. “HSI and our law enforcement partners commitment to investigate criminals who steal money sends a clear message: justice will prevail, and those who exploit others for personal gain will be held accountable. We thank all our partners who assisted in this investigation.”
On Jan. 15, Ogbata pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Ogbata is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman on April 14. Ogbata faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
This is the second indicted case related to this international fraud scheme. Six other co-conspirators from the United Kingdom, Spain and Nigeria have previously been convicted and sentenced in connection with this scheme. On Nov. 1, 2023, the Honorable Kathleen M. Williams sentenced Ezennia Peter Neboh, who was extradited from Spain, to 128 months in prison. On Oct. 20, 2023, Judge Williams sentenced another defendant who was also extradited from Spain, Kennedy Ikponmwosa, to 97 months in prison. Three other defendants who were extradited from the United Kingdom also received prison sentences. Judge Williams sentenced Emmanuel Samuel, Jerry Chucks Ozor and Iheanyichukwu Jonathan Abraham to prison sentences of 82 months, 87 months and 90 months, respectively, for their roles in the scheme. Lastly, Prince Amos Okey Ezemma was paroled into the United States from Nigeria and was sentenced to 90 months in prison for his role in the scheme.
USPIS, HSI and the Consumer Protection Branch are investigating the case.
Senior Trial Attorney and Transnational Criminal Litigation Coordinator Phil Toomajian and Trial Attorneys Josh Rothman and Brianna Gardner of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, UK National Crime Agency, and authorities from Spain and Portugal all provided critical assistance.
If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This Justice Department hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. English, Spanish and other languages are available.
More information about the department’s efforts to help American seniors is available at its Elder Justice Initiative webpage. For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints can be filed with the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov/ or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Justice Department provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.
###
Nigerian National Pleads Guilty to Scheme That Defrauded More Than 400 U.S. VictimsRead the Press Release
Today, a Nigerian national pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to operating a transnational inheritance fraud scheme that defrauded elderly and vulnerable consumers across the United States.
According to court documents, Okezie Bonaventure Ogbata, 36, was a member of a group of fraudsters that sent personalized letters to elderly victims in the United States over the course of several years. The letters falsely claimed that the sender was a representative of a bank in Spain and that the recipient was entitled to receive a multimillion-dollar inheritance left for the recipient by a family member who had died overseas years before. Ogbata and his co-conspirators told a series of lies to victims, including that, before they could receive their purported inheritance, they were required to send money for delivery fees, taxes and other payments to avoid questioning from government authorities. Ogbata and his co-conspirators collected money victims sent in response to the fraudulent letters through a complex web of U.S.-based former victims, whom the defendants convinced to receive money and forward to the defendants or persons associated with them. Victims who sent money never received any purported inheritance funds. In pleading guilty, Ogbata admitted to defrauding over $6 million from more than 400 victims, many of whom were elderly or otherwise vulnerable.
“The Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch will continue to pursue transnational criminals wherever they are located,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This case is a testament to the critical role of international collaboration in tackling transnational crime. I want to thank the members of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), as well as the Portuguese Judicial Police and Public Prosecution Service of Portugal, for their outstanding contributions to this case.”
“The long arm of the American justice system has no limits when it comes to reaching fraudsters who prey on our nation’s most vulnerable populations, to include the elderly,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “We will not allow transnational criminals to steal money from the public we serve. Individuals who defraud American consumers will be brought to justice, no matter where they are located.”
“The U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) has a long tradition of protecting American citizens from these types of schemes and bringing those responsible to justice,” said Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Steven Hodges of the USPIS Miami Division. “This guilty plea is a testament to the dedicated partnership between the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch, HSI and USPIS to protect our citizens from these scams.”
“Transnational fraud schemes thrive in the shadows, turning illicit gains into a facade of legitimacy, especially those involving seniors or other vulnerable people,” said Special Agent in Charge Francisco B. Burrola of HSI Arizona. “HSI and our law enforcement partners commitment to investigate criminals who steal money sends a clear message: justice will prevail, and those who exploit others for personal gain will be held accountable. We thank all our partners who assisted in this investigation.”
On Jan. 15, Ogbata pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Ogbata is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman on April 14. Ogbata faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
This is the second indicted case related to this international fraud scheme. Six other co-conspirators from the United Kingdom, Spain and Nigeria have previously been convicted and sentenced in connection with this scheme. On Nov. 1, 2023, the Honorable Kathleen M. Williams sentenced Ezennia Peter Neboh, who was extradited from Spain, to 128 months in prison. On Oct. 20, 2023, Judge Williams sentenced another defendant who was also extradited from Spain, Kennedy Ikponmwosa, to 97 months in prison. Three other defendants who were extradited from the United Kingdom also received prison sentences. Judge Williams sentenced Emmanuel Samuel, Jerry Chucks Ozor and Iheanyichukwu Jonathan Abraham to prison sentences of 82 months, 87 months and 90 months, respectively, for their roles in the scheme. Lastly, Prince Amos Okey Ezemma was paroled into the United States from Nigeria and was sentenced to 90 months in prison for his role in the scheme.
USPIS, HSI and the Consumer Protection Branch are investigating the case.
Senior Trial Attorney and Transnational Criminal Litigation Coordinator Phil Toomajian and Trial Attorneys Josh Rothman and Brianna Gardner of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, UK National Crime Agency, and authorities from Spain and Portugal all provided critical assistance.
If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This Justice Department hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. English, Spanish and other languages are available.
More information about the department’s efforts to help American seniors is available at its Elder Justice Initiative webpage. For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints can be filed with the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov/ or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Justice Department provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.
Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Selling Fentanyl and Other Synthetic OpioidsRead the Press Release
MIAMI– On Dec. 10, Blake Alfonso Kolessa, 27, of Greenacres, Fla., was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks for possessing with intent to distribute metonitazene, N-desethyl isotonitazene, and methamphetamine.
Kolessa previously pled guilty to selling thousands of pressed pills containing metonitazene, N-desethyl isotonitazene, and methamphetamine, between January and June 2024. Kolessa also admitted possessing over six kilograms of powders and pressed pills containing fentanyl, protonitazene and N-pyrrolidino protonitazene.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Deanne Reuter of the DEA Miami Field Division, and West Palm Beach Police Chief Tony Araujo made the announcement.
DEA West Palm Beach and the West Palm Beach Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Funk prosecuted it.
According to the DEA’s National Drug Threat Assessment, nitazenes are synthetic opioids, like fentanyl, but some nitazenes can match or surpass the potency of fentanyl. Different nitazenes have been appearing in fentanyl mixtures in the United States since 2019. When combined with fentanyl, the effects of both drugs are heightened, which significantly increases the chance of a fatal drug poisoning.
Synthetic drugs, such as fentanyl, are poisoning the nation. Fentanyl has proven to be a deadly poison that does not discriminate. Its victims include every gender, race, age, and economic background, and its debilitating effects are the same across all demographics. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. Even in small doses, fentanyl can be deadly. Just one fentanyl pill can kill, as noted in DEA’s One Pill Can Kill campaign. As little as two milligrams, about the size of 5 grains of salt, can be fatal. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), fentanyl and other synthetic opioids are the most common drugs involved in overdose deaths. Over 150 people die every day from overdoses related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl. The State of Florida has also seen an exponential increase in overdoses associated with fentanyl. In 2022, more than 5,622 people died from overdoses involving fentanyl and fentanyl analogs in Florida.
For more information visit: https://www.fdle.state.fl.us/MEC/Publications-and-Forms/Documents/Drugs-in-Deceased-Persons/2022-Annual-Drug-Report-FINAL-(1).aspx; https://www.cdc.gov/opioids/basics/fentanyl.html#; and https://www.dea.gov/factsheets/fentanyl.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-80077.
###
Justice Department Secures Civil Forfeiture of over $20M in Foreign Bribery and Money Laundering Proceeds from Venezuelan Bribery SchemeRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Jan. 8, U.S. District Judge Melissa Damian entered a final judgment forfeiting to the United States over $20 million in foreign bribery and money laundering proceeds, including interest.
On Aug. 9, 2023, the Justice Department filed a civil forfeiture complaint against approximately $21,248,434.25 in U.S. currency alleging that the funds were proceeds of foreign bribery and money laundering offenses. As alleged in the complaint, from 2008 to 2014, a Venezuelan national, Naman Wakil, controlled a number of companies that sold food products to Venezuela’s state-owned food agency, Corporacion de Abastecimiento y Servicios Agricola (CASA). To obtain these food contracts, Wakil paid tens of millions of dollars in bribes to multiple presidents of CASA. As a result of those bribes, Wakil, through his companies, obtained hundreds of millions of dollars in proceeds into accounts he controlled in the Cayman Islands and Switzerland. Wakil laundered the proceeds from the scheme into South Florida and elsewhere.
“This forfeiture is a reminder that the United States is prepared to uphold the integrity of the U.S. financial system against those who elect to launder ill-gotten gains by depositing and transferring those funds through U.S. financial accounts and acquiring assets in an attempt to cover their tracks,” said Markenzy Lapointe, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.
“This significant forfeiture underscores the HSI Miami El Dorado Task Force’s commitment to safeguarding the U.S. financial system from illicit activities. We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that those who seek to launder money through our financial institutions are held accountable," said José R. Figueroa Acting Special Agent in Charge Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami.
“This announcement underscores our commitment to holding accountable those who engage in foreign bribery and money laundering,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Hipkins of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office. “This forfeiture of more than $20 million demonstrates our resolve to disrupt criminal networks and ensure their corrupt practices do not go unpunished. We will continue to use every tool at our disposal to combat financial crimes that undermine the rule of law and global stability.”
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Acting Special Agent in Charge José R. Figueroa of HSI Miami, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Hipkins of IRS-CI Miami Field Office made the announcement.
HSI Miami Field Office and IRS-CI Miami Field Office investigated this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Marx P. Calderón, Michael Berger, and Joshua Paster prosecuted this case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 23-cv-22987.
###
Air and Marine Operations Interdicts Vessel Carrying 188 Kilos of Cocaine - Two Defendants Charged FederallyRead the Press Release
MIAMI — Two Bahamian nationals have been charged by criminal complaint with attempting to smuggle approximately 188 kilograms of cocaine into the United States via a water vessel.
According to the criminal complaint, on Jan. 5 at approximately 11 a.m., Air and Marine Operations (AMO) Marine Interdiction agents from the Fort Lauderdale and Miami Marine Units were notified by the Air and Marine Operations Center (AMOC) of a suspicious vessel enroute to the Port Everglades Inlet in the Southern District of Florida. Agents responded and launched multiple Coastal Interceptor Vessels (CIV) to stop the approaching vessel. Using constant position, course, and speed updates from the AMOC, they were able to intercept a Contender Center Console vessel with Alfred Lynton Laing and Runo Traveeno Laing, both of the Bahamas, on board approximately four nautical miles from Hillsboro Inlet. The vessel was escorted to a nearby harbor for a thorough and safe inspection. During the inspection, Marine Interdiction agents discovered approximately 188 kilograms of individually wrapped bricks of cocaine hidden within the vessel.
Alfred and Runo Laing are scheduled to be arraigned on Jan. 21 at 11 a.m.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, AMO Executive Director Andres “Andy” Blanco, and Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, made the announcement.
AMO and DEA investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nardia Haye is prosecuting it.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 25-cr-6004.
###
Justice Department Secures Third Settlement with a Non-Depository Mortgage Company to Resolve Redlining Claims in MiamiRead the Press Release
MIAMI — The Justice Department announced today that The Mortgage Firm, Inc. (The Mortgage Firm) agreed to pay $1.75 million to resolve allegations that it engaged in a pattern or practice of lending discrimination by redlining predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area (Miami MSA).
Redlining is an illegal practice by which lenders avoid providing credit services to individuals living in communities of color because of the race, color or national origin of residents in those communities.
“Our efforts to protect everyone’s civil rights is never ending,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “The unlawful practice of lending discrimination is not merely a thing of the past, but persists in this country, to include within the Southern District of Florida. Our office is fully committed in ensuring that every person living in the Southern District of Florida, to include residents in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods, can achieve the American dream of building wealth through home ownership. We will continue to work with the Civil Rights Division to hold those lenders accountable who engage in unlawful discriminatory practices in our diverse district.”
“Non-depository institutions, including mortgage companies, are now originating a higher share of loans to homebuyers than banks and credit unions,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “With this trend comes the obligation to ensure full compliance with our federal laws that prohibit redlining. By denying predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the greater Miami area access to credit, The Mortgage Firm violated the law, denied communities equal access to credit and exacerbated the racial wealth gap. This settlement will provide impacted communities in Miami with expanded access to homeownership, and makes clear that no matter the type of financial institution — bank, credit union or mortgage company — the department is committed to rooting out redlining across the country.”
The Mortgage Firm is a non-depository mortgage company headquartered in Altamonte Springs, Florida. The complaint, filed today in the Southern District of Florida, alleges that The Mortgage Firm violated the Fair Housing Act and Equal Credit Opportunity Act by failing to provide equal access to mortgage lending services to majority- and high-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA and discouraging people seeking credit in those communities from obtaining home loans. The Mortgage Firm located its offices in predominantly white neighborhoods and took inadequate steps to market to and develop referral networks within Black and Hispanic neighborhoods. As a result, The Mortgage Firm generated mortgage loan applications in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA at rates far below peer institutions.
The proposed consent order, which awaits court approval, would require The Mortgage Firm to:
Conduct a Community Credit Needs Assessment to identify the credit needs of residents of predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA and to consider the results of that assessment to develop future loan programs, marketing campaigns and outreach efforts.
Provide $1.75 million for a loan subsidy program to offer affordable home purchase, refinance and home improvement loans in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA. The program may provide lower interest rates, down payment assistance, closing cost assistance or payment of initial mortgage insurance premiums.
Conduct a detailed assessment of its fair lending program in the Miami MSA, specifically as it relates to fair lending obligations and lending in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods.
Enhance its fair lending training and staffing to ensure equal access to credit is provided across The Mortgage Firm’s market area, including by maintaining a Director of Community Lending.
Expand its outreach and advertising efforts by maintaining an office location in a majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhood in Miami-Dade County, translating its website into Spanish and requiring all of its loan officers in the Miami MSA to engage in marketing to majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods.
Bolster connections with the community and build referral sources in predominately Black and Hispanic neighborhoods by providing four outreach events per year, six financial education seminars per year and partnering with one or more community partner to increase access to credit in predominately Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA.
The Justice Department opened this investigation into The Mortgage Firm’s lending practices after receiving a referral from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This settlement marks the Justice Department’s 16th redlining settlement under the Combating Redlining Initiative, and the third non-depository institution to reach a redlining settlement with the department. Non-depository lenders, which are not traditional banks and do not provide typical banking services, engage in mortgage lending and now make the majority of mortgages in this country. Under the Combating Redlining Initiative, the department has secured over $153 million in relief for communities of color that have been the victims of lending discrimination. This historic amount of relief is expected to generate over $1 billion in investment to address unequal access to credit in communities of color across the country.
A copy of the complaint and proposed consent order, as well as information about the Justice Department’s fair lending enforcement work, can be found at www.justice.gov/fairhousing. Individuals may report lending discrimination by calling the Justice Department’s housing discrimination tip line at 1-833-591-0291 or submitting a report online.
###
Justice Department Secures Third Settlement with a Non-Depository Mortgage Company to Resolve Redlining Claims in MiamiRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that The Mortgage Firm, Inc. (The Mortgage Firm) agreed to pay $1.75 million to resolve allegations that it engaged in a pattern or practice of lending discrimination by redlining predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Florida, Metropolitan Statistical Area (Miami MSA).
Redlining is an illegal practice by which lenders avoid providing credit services to individuals living in communities of color because of the race, color or national origin of residents in those communities.
“Non-depository institutions, including mortgage companies, are now originating a higher share of loans to homebuyers than banks and credit unions,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “With this trend comes the obligation to ensure full compliance with our federal laws that prohibit redlining. By denying predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the greater Miami area access to credit, The Mortgage Firm violated the law, denied communities equal access to credit and exacerbated the racial wealth gap. This settlement will provide impacted communities in Miami with expanded access to homeownership, and makes clear that no matter the type of financial institution — bank, credit union or mortgage company — the department is committed to rooting out redlining across the country.”
“Our efforts to protect everyone’s civil rights is never ending,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “The unlawful practice of lending discrimination is not merely a thing of the past, but persists in this country, to include within the Southern District of Florida. Our office is fully committed in ensuring that every person living in the Southern District of Florida, to include residents in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods, can achieve the American dream of building wealth through home ownership. We will continue to work with the Civil Rights Division to hold those lenders accountable who engage in unlawful discriminatory practices in our diverse district.”
The Mortgage Firm is a non-depository mortgage company headquartered in Altamonte Springs, Florida. The complaint, filed today in the Southern District of Florida, alleges that The Mortgage Firm violated the Fair Housing Act and Equal Credit Opportunity Act by failing to provide equal access to mortgage lending services to majority- and high-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA and discouraging people seeking credit in those communities from obtaining home loans. The Mortgage Firm located its offices in predominantly white neighborhoods and took inadequate steps to market to and develop referral networks within Black and Hispanic neighborhoods. As a result, The Mortgage Firm generated mortgage loan applications in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA at rates far below peer institutions.
The proposed consent order, which awaits court approval, would require The Mortgage Firm to:
- Conduct a Community Credit Needs Assessment to identify the credit needs of residents of predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA and to consider the results of that assessment to develop future loan programs, marketing campaigns and outreach efforts.
- Provide $1.75 million for a loan subsidy program to offer affordable home purchase, refinance and home improvement loans in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA. The program may provide lower interest rates, down payment assistance, closing cost assistance or payment of initial mortgage insurance premiums.
- Conduct a detailed assessment of its fair lending program in the Miami MSA, specifically as it relates to fair lending obligations and lending in predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods.
- Enhance its fair lending training and staffing to ensure equal access to credit is provided across The Mortgage Firm’s market area, including by maintaining a Director of Community Lending.
- Expand its outreach and advertising efforts by maintaining an office location in a majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhood in Miami-Dade County, translating its website into Spanish and requiring all of its loan officers in the Miami MSA to engage in marketing to majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods.
- Bolster connections with the community and build referral sources in predominately Black and Hispanic neighborhoods by providing four outreach events per year, six financial education seminars per year and partnering with one or more community partner to increase access to credit in predominately Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the Miami MSA.
The Justice Department opened this investigation into The Mortgage Firm’s lending practices after receiving a referral from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This settlement marks the Justice Department’s 16th redlining settlement under the Combating Redlining Initiative, and the third non-depository institution to reach a redlining settlement with the department. Non-depository lenders, which are not traditional banks and do not provide typical banking services, engage in mortgage lending and now make the majority of mortgages in this country. Under the Combating Redlining Initiative, the department has secured over $153 million in relief for communities of color that have been the victims of lending discrimination. This historic amount of relief is expected to generate over $1 billion in investment to address unequal access to credit in communities of color across the country.
A copy of the complaint and proposed consent order, as well as information about the Justice Department’s fair lending enforcement work, can be found at www.justice.gov/fairhousing. Individuals may report lending discrimination by calling the Justice Department’s housing discrimination tip line at 1-833-591-0291 or submitting a report online.
Justice Department Secures Forfeiture of Two Miami Condos for Violations of Russia-Related U.S. SanctionsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – The Department of Justice announced today that, pursuant to a court-ordered default judgment and final order of forfeiture entered on Jan. 7, has secured the forfeiture of two luxury Miami condominiums which were maintained, transferred, and leased in violation of U.S. sanctions against Russian national Viktor Perevalov. The forfeited properties have a combined value of approximately $1.8 million.
The judgment is the result of a civil forfeiture complaint filed by the United States in February 2024 seeking the forfeiture of the properties.
“Today’s successful forfeiture once again demonstrates that the attempt to hide assets behind nominees and shell companies is a risky short-term game with real long-term costs,” said Co-Director Michael Khoo of the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture. “The prosecutors and agents who investigated and brought this case are the proof that the United States has the people, the tools, and the will to vigorously enforce our nation’s sanctions programs.”
As alleged in the complaint, Viktor Perevalov and Valeri Abramov were co-founders of VAD, AO, a Russia-based construction company responsible for constructing the Tavrida Highway in the Russian-occupied Crimea Region of Ukraine. On Jan. 26, 2018, pursuant to Executive Order 13685, the U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Victor Perevalov, Valeri Abramov, VAD, AO, and others following the Russian invasion of Crimea. OFAC added Perevalov, Abramov, and VAD, AO to the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) and Blocked Persons List. OFAC never issued a license which was required for anyone to transact with, or on behalf of, Perevalov and Abramov. Perevalov was re-designated by OFAC on Dec. 18, 2024, pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating in the construction sector of the Russian economy.
From in or around January 2018 through in or around March 2023, the condominiums were maintained, transferred, and leased in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Specifically, on or about June 14, 2018, a Miami real estate agent retained to manage the properties transferred the two condominiums owned by Perevalov to a limited liability company set up to obfuscate Perevalov’s interest in the properties. Following the transfer, the properties continued to be leased, generating proceeds used to maintain them.
The FBI Miami Field Office investigated the case with assistance from the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Paster, Marx P. Calderón, and Eli Rubin for the Southern District of Florida, Trial Attorneys Sinan Kalayoglu and Lindsay Gorman of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and Trial Attorney Joshua E. Kurland of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section prosecuted the civil action.
This case was coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls, and economic countermeasures that, beginning in 2014, the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, and under the leadership of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the Department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.
###
Justice Department Secures Forfeiture of Two Miami Condos for Violations of Russia-Related U.S. SanctionsRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced today that, pursuant to a court-ordered default judgment and final order of forfeiture entered on Jan. 7, it has secured the forfeiture of two luxury Miami condominiums that were maintained, transferred, and leased in violation of U.S. sanctions against Russian national Viktor Perevalov. The forfeited properties have a combined value of approximately $1.8 million.
The judgment is the result of a civil forfeiture complaint filed by the United States in February 2024 seeking the forfeiture of the properties.
“Today’s successful forfeiture once again demonstrates that the attempt to hide assets behind nominees and shell companies is a risky short-term game with real long-term costs,” said Co-Director Michael Khoo of the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture. “The prosecutors and agents who investigated and brought this case are the proof that the United States has the people, the tools, and the will to vigorously enforce our nation’s sanctions programs.”
As alleged in the complaint, Viktor Perevalov and Valeri Abramov were co-founders of VAD, AO, a Russia-based construction company responsible for constructing the Tavrida Highway in the Russian-occupied Crimea Region of Ukraine. On Jan. 26, 2018, pursuant to Executive Order 13685, the U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Victor Perevalov, Valeri Abramov, VAD, AO, and others following the Russian invasion of Crimea. OFAC added Perevalov, Abramov, and VAD, AO to the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) and Blocked Persons List. OFAC never issued a license, which was required for anyone to transact with, or on behalf of, Perevalov and Abramov. Perevalov was also re-designated by OFAC on Dec. 18, 2024, pursuant to E.O. 14024, for operating in the construction sector of the Russian economy.
From in or around January 2018 through in or around March 2023, the condominiums were maintained, transferred, and leased in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Specifically, on or about June 14, 2018, a Miami real estate agent retained to manage the properties transferred the two condominiums owned by Perevalov to a limited liability company set up to obfuscate Perevalov’s interest in the properties. Following the transfer, the properties continued to be leased, generating proceeds used to maintain them.
The FBI Miami Field Office investigated the case with assistance from the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joshua Paster, Marx P. Calderón, and Eli Rubin for the Southern District of Florida, Trial Attorneys Sinan Kalayoglu and Lindsay Gorman of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, and Trial Attorney Joshua E. Kurland of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section prosecuted the civil action.
This case was coordinated through the Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls, and economic countermeasures that, beginning in 2014, the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia’s unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, and under the leadership of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the Department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.
Former Track Star Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Firearms OffensesRead the Press Release
MIAMI – A felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition was sentenced to 240 months in prison, for attempting to shoot a victim on his front porch and confronting a tow truck driver with a second firearm a week later.
On Jan. 3, U.S. District Court Judge David S. Leibowitz imposed an upward variance of 105 months and sentenced Olivier Ricardy Alexandre, 28, to 240 months in prison. Alexandre previously pled guilty to the two-count indictment, charging him with possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon.
On Feb. 15, 2023, Alexandre, formerly a track and field athlete, was sentenced to probation in Warren County, Ky., on felony charges related to the trafficking of marijuana. Less than a month later, in Miami-Dade County, on March 13, 2023, Alexandre ran up to a victim, who was entering his home after work, and fired at least 18 rounds of ammunition at the victim without reloading. The Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD) Forensic Services Division linked the shell casings from that shooting to three prior shootings in Miami-Dade County, including an incident on Oct. 9, 2022, when the same victim was shot with the same gun.
On March 21, 2023, officers with the Plantation Police Department conducted surveillance on Alexandre’s home in anticipation of executing a search warrant, when Alexandre ran outside and retrieved a handgun with an extended drum magazine to confront a tow truck driver who was repossessing a vehicle. Alexandre was promptly arrested.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, Acting Inspector in Charge Steven Hodges of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Miami Division and Director Stephanie V. Daniels of MDPD made the announcement.
ATF, USPIS and MDPD investigated this case with the assistance of the Plantation Police Department and Broward Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce gun violence and other violent crime, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-20354.
###
El Departamento de Justicia llega a un tercer acuerdo con una empresa hipotecaria no depositaria para resolver las reclamaciones de exclusión financiera en MiamiRead the Press Release
El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que The Mortgage Firm, Inc. (The Mortgage Firm) acordó pagar $1.75 millones para resolver las alegaciones de que mantuvo un patrón o una práctica de discriminación en la concesión de préstamos mediante la exclusión financiera de vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos en el Área Estadística Metropolitana de Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Florida (Miami MSA, por sus siglas en inglés).
La exclusión financiera es una práctica ilegal mediante la cual los prestamistas evitan prestar servicios de crédito a personas que viven en comunidades de color debido a la raza, el color o el origen nacional de los residentes en esas comunidades.
“Las instituciones no depositarias, incluidas las compañías hipotecarias, ahora están originando una mayor proporción de préstamos a compradores de viviendas que los bancos y las cooperativas de crédito. Con esta tendencia surge la obligación de garantizar el pleno cumplimiento de nuestras leyes federales que prohíben la segregación residencial. Al negar a los vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos en el área metropolitana de Miami el acceso al crédito, The Mortgage Firm violó la ley, negó a las comunidades el acceso igualitario al crédito y exacerbó la brecha racial de riqueza”, dijo la Fiscal General Adjunta Kristen Clarke de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia. “Este acuerdo brindará a las comunidades afectadas en Miami mejor acceso a la propiedad de viviendas y deja en claro que, sin importar el tipo de institución financiera (banco, cooperativa de crédito o compañía hipotecaria), el Departamento está comprometido a erradicar la segregación residencial en todo el país”.
“Nuestros esfuerzos por proteger los derechos civiles de todos son incesantes. La práctica ilegal de discriminación en los préstamos no es solo una cosa del pasado, sino que persiste en este país, incluso en el Distrito Sur de la Florida”, dijo el fiscal federal Markenzy Lapointe. “Nuestra oficina está totalmente comprometida a garantizar que todas las personas que viven en el Distrito Sur de la Florida, incluidos los residentes de vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos, puedan lograr el sueño americano de generar riqueza a través ser dueños de una vivienda. Seguiremos trabajando con la División de Derechos Civiles para exigir responsabilidades a los prestamistas que participan en prácticas discriminatorias ilegales en nuestro diverso distrito”.
The Mortgage Firm es una empresa hipotecaria no depositaria con sede en Altamonte Springs, Florida. La demanda, presentada hoy en el Distrito Sur de la Florida, alega que The Mortgage Firm violó la ley de Vivienda Justa y la ley de Igualdad de Oportunidades de Crédito al no proporcionar igualdad de acceso a los servicios de préstamos hipotecarios en los vecindarios de mayoría y principalmente negros e hispanos en el área metropolitana de Miami y al disuadir a las personas que buscaban crédito en esas comunidades de obtener préstamos hipotecarios. The Mortgage Firm ubicó sus oficinas en vecindarios predominantemente blancos y tomó medidas inadecuadas para comercializar y desarrollar redes de referencia dentro de los vecindarios negros e hispanos. Como resultado, The Mortgage Firm generó solicitudes de préstamos hipotecarios en vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos en el área metropolitana de Miami en proporciones muy por debajo de las instituciones pares.
La orden de consentimiento propuesta, que espera la aprobación del tribunal, obligaría a The Mortgage Firm a:
- Llevar a cabo una evaluación de las necesidades de crédito de la comunidad para identificar las necesidades de crédito de los residentes de los vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos del área metropolitana de Miami y tener en cuenta los resultados de dicha evaluación para desarrollar futuros programas de préstamos, campañas de marketing y esfuerzos de divulgación.
- Proporcionar $1.75 millones para un programa de subsidio de préstamos para ofrecer préstamos asequibles para la compra, refinanciación y mejora de viviendas en vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos en el área metropolitana de Miami. El programa puede ofrecer tasas de interés más bajas, ayuda para el pago inicial, ayuda para los costos de cierre o pago de las primas iniciales del seguro hipotecario.
- Llevar a cabo una evaluación detallada de su programa de préstamos justos en el área metropolitana de Miami, específicamente en lo que se refiere a las obligaciones de préstamos justos y préstamos en vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos.
- Mejorar su capacitación y dotación de personal en materia de préstamos justos para garantizar la igualdad de acceso al crédito en toda el área de mercado de The Mortgage Firm, incluyendo el mantenimiento de un director de préstamos comunitarios.
- Ampliar sus esfuerzos de divulgación y publicidad manteniendo una oficina en un vecindario de mayoría negra e hispana en el condado de Miami-Dade, traduciendo su sitio web al español y exigiendo a todos sus agentes de crédito en el área metropolitana de Miami que realicen actividades de marketing en los vecindarios de mayoría negra e hispana.
- Reforzar las conexiones con la comunidad y crear fuentes de referencia en los vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos ofreciendo cuatro eventos de divulgación al año, seis seminarios de educación financiera al año y asociándose con uno o más socios comunitarios para aumentar el acceso al crédito en los vecindarios predominantemente negros e hispanos del área metropolitana de Miami.
El Departamento de Justicia inició esta investigación sobre las prácticas crediticias de The Mortgage Firm después de recibir una remisión de la Oficina para la Protección Financiera del Consumidor. Este acuerdo es el decimosexto acuerdo de exclusión financiera del Departamento de Justicia en el marco de la Iniciativa contra la Exclusión Financiera, y la tercera institución no depositaria que llega a un acuerdo con el Departamento al respecto. Los prestamistas no depositarios, que no son bancos tradicionales y no prestan servicios bancarios típicos, se dedican a los préstamos hipotecarios y actualmente conceden la mayoría de las hipotecas en este país. En el marco de la Iniciativa contra la Exclusión Financiera, el Departamento ha conseguido más de $153 millones en compensación para las comunidades de color que han sido víctimas de discriminación en la concesión de préstamos. Se espera que este monto histórico de compensación genere más de $1 billón en inversiones para hacer frente a la desigualdad de acceso al crédito en las comunidades de color de todo el país.
Puede encontrar una copia de la demanda y de la orden de consentimiento propuesta, así como información sobre la aplicación de las leyes de préstamos justos del Departamento de Justicia en www.justice.gov/fairhousing. Las personas pueden denunciar la discriminación en materia de préstamos llamando a la línea informativa del Departamento de Justicia para discriminación en la vivienda al 1-833-591-0291, o entregando un informe en línea.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe Announces ResignationRead the Press Release
For the past two years, I have served as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. After much reflection, I write to announce my resignation from this position, effective January 17, 2025, at 11:59 p.m.
It has been an honor and privilege to serve as United States Attorney. I have strived to meet the responsibilities of this position with vigor, determination, commitment, thoughtfulness, and humility.
Those familiar with my personal history may recall that I am a native of Haiti, a country whose government struggles to perform basic functions, and where the rule of law has yet to build reliable traction. When I immigrated to this country in my teens, I lived in Miami’s Liberty City neighborhood, then an urban area with high crime and associated problems. Given where I started, it has been uniquely meaningful to hold a role so central to the Department of Justice’s mission of supporting our collective well-being through the exercise of the rule of law.
Also meaningful has been working alongside the talented lawyers and professional staff of the United States Attorney’s Office, as well as with the agents and employees of our partner federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies. These honorable public servants meet the challenges of safeguarding our homeland, local communities, and government institutions selflessly and without fanfare, at times at significant personal costs. I have never stopped being inspired by them and always will cherish my time as part of this deeply noble undertaking. To them, I extend my utmost gratitude and admiration.
I would not have had this life-changing experience without the support of President Joseph R. Biden, Congresswoman Frederica Wilson, Senator Marco Rubio, Senator Rick Scott, and countless leaders from our community. To all of them, thank you for trusting me to fulfill the duties of United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.
With gratitude,
Markenzy Lapointe
###
Port St. Lucie Firearms Dealer Pleads Guilty to Failing to Keep Proper Records of SalesRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Dec. 18, Michael John Pellicione, 76, the owner of a Port St. Lucie, Fla., gun shop, who operated out of his residence, pleaded guilty to the five-count indictment for selling several firearms “off the books” in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(b)(5), which penalizes the failure of a firearms dealer to keep a proper record of sales.
Pellicione, a federal firearms licensee (FFL), failed to enter the sale of five firearms into his acquisition and disposition (A&D) record. Federal law requires an FFL to record, in the A&D book, all of the firearms that the FFL receives or makes, and then indicate where each of those firearms are – whether they are still in the FFL’s inventory or where they went if they were sold or transferred. Additionally, the A&D book must include the type of firearm, the make, model, caliber, and serial number, the date and from whom the firearm was received and that person's address, as well as the name, date, and address of the person to whom the firearm was sold or transferred.
A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled in this matter. At sentencing, Pellicione faces up to five years’ imprisonment. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Markenzy Lapointe, U. S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami, and Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, made the announcement.
HSI Fort Pierce and ATF Fort Pierce investigated this case. Managing Assistant U.S. Attorney Carmen Lineberger is prosecuting this matter.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-14055.
###
Miami Duo Found Guilty of Kidnapping and MurderRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Dec. 17., James Edward Daniels, 59, and Frederick Eugene Rudolph, 69, of Miami, Fla., were found guilty of conspiracy to commit kidnapping resulting in death, multiple counts of kidnapping resulting in death, and kidnapping, at trial before U.S. District Court Judge Roy K. Altman.
On Dec. 5, 2020, Daniels, Rudolph, and other co-conspirators kidnapped three victims from a truck yard in Opa Locka, Fla. They bound and tortured the victims, duct-taped their eyes, and threw them into the back of a rented van after stealing the victims’ drugs. They drove around the city for hours before taking the victims to an abandoned house in Opa-Locka and attempting to execute them by shooting the three victims. Two of the victims died, while one miraculously survived.
Daniels stole jewelry from one of the murdered victims, and all the defendants benefitted by receiving drugs, money, or both, in exchange for their participation in the conspiracy.
A third defendant, Herbert Barr, 56, pled guilty to kidnapping on Nov. 26.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, Director Stephanie V. Daniels of the Miami-Dade Police Department, and Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, made the announcement.
FBI Miami Division Homestead Resident Agency, Miami-Dade Police Department Homicide Bureau, and DEA Homestead Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Yara Dodin, Nardia Haye, and Katie Guthrie are prosecuting the case.
Sentencing is scheduled for March 10, 2025, before Judge Altman. Daniels and Rudolph face up to life in prison, criminal fines of up to $250,000 as to each count, and up to a lifetime on supervised release.
This investigation was carried out by members of the South Florida High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force. The South Florida HIDTA, established in 1990, is made up of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies who, cooperatively, target the region’s drug-trafficking and money laundering organizations. The South Florida HIDTA is funded by the Office of National Drug Control Policy, which sponsors a variety of initiatives focused the nation’s illicit drug trafficking threats. For more information regarding HIDTA visit https://www.dea.gov/operations/hidta.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 23-cr-20431.
###
Former Miami-Dade Correctional Officer Indicted for Service in a Continuing Criminal EnterpriseRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Dec. 18, Vernell Syrethia Lawson, 33, a former Miami-Dade Correctional Officer, and Gabrielle Nicole Bess-Mills, 35, made their initial appearance in court on a previously sealed indictment containing charges related to a continuing criminal enterprise led by co-defendant Terrance Carter, 31.
According to the indictment, Carter led a drug trafficking organization which relied on the corruption of Lawson and other Miami-Dade Correctional Officers, along with drug trafficking associates, to introduce narcotics and other contraband for sale into Miami-Dade County jail facilities.
Lawson and Bess-Mills are charged with possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, participating in a conspiracy to possess controlled substances with intent to distribute, and racketeering promotion through bribery and drug trafficking. Lawson is also charged with Hobbs Act extortion under color of official right conspiracy. The indictment also charges Carter with operating the continuing criminal enterprise and use of interstate facilities to commit violence in furtherance of racketeering.
The defendants are residents of Miami-Dade County.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Stephanie Daniels, Director of the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD), Sherea Green, Director of the Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department, Special Agent in Charge Jefferey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Division, Deanne L. Reuter, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, and Dr. Judith Bernier, Chair of the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust made the announcement.
This case was investigated by a Task Force formed by the Miami-Dade Police and Corrections Departments, with the support of federal, state, and local partners, to combat drug trafficking organizations operating in the Miami-Dade correctional facilities with the assistance of corrupt public officials. The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office and the Florida Department of Corrections provided significant assistance.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Ignacio J. Vázquez, Jr. and Trial Attorney Melanie G. Wegner are prosecuting this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Annika Miranda is handling asset forfeiture.
This investigation was part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/ocdetf.
An indictment contains mere allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Individuals with information about corruption should contact the FBI Miami Area’s Task Force at https://tips.fbi.gov/. Anyone with information related to possible ethics violations is asked to contact the Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics and Public Trust at 786-314-9560 or [email protected].
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-20543.
###
Defendants Charged with Robbery in Design DistrictRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Dec. 6, three of five defendants appeared in federal court on an indictment charging conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery, and brandishing and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
According to the indictment, on Dec. 15, 2023, Ildemar Jose Chirinos-Torres, Briann Ricardo Hernandez-Castillo, Larry Junior Mendez-Ruiz, Alejandro Moises, and Raynner Jorland Pacheco-Sandoval, all from Venezuela, drove in three separate vehicles throughout the Miami Design District searching for wealthy victims to rob. Alejandro Moises drove the getaway vehicle occupied by co-defendants Chirinos-Torres and Hernandez-Castillo. According to the allegations, Chirinos-Torres and Hernandez-Castillo were seen on surveillance video exiting the vehicle, walking to a valet stand, and then robbing at gunpoint a tourist wearing a high-end watch valued at up to $100,000. When the defendants fled, undercover detectives investigating a separate matter followed behind in their unmarked vehicles. While following them, Chirinos-Torres shot multiple rounds at one undercover detective. Fortunately, the detective was not struck by gunfire. Pacheco-Sandoval served as the look-out to identify victims wearing high end jewelry. Mendez-Ruiz picked up Chirinos-Torres and Hernandez-Castillo after they abandoned the getaway vehicle driven by Moises. Some of the defendants drove to and out of Florida to commit the robbery.
Mendez-Ruiz, Moises, and Pacheco-Sandoval were ordered detained pending trial. Their co-defendants Chirinos-Torres and Hernandez-Castillo have yet to be brought in for their initial appearances.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, Chief of Police Manuel A. Morales of the Miami Police Department, and Director Stephanie V. Daniels of the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD) made the announcement.
ATF and City of Miami Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Altanese Phenelus is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is a merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce gun violence and other violent crime, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-20405.
###
Local Tennis Coach Charged with Enticement and Production of Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Today, Daniel James Riggs, 31, had his initial appearance in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on a complaint charging him with enticement of a minor and production of child pornography.
According to the complaint, Daniel Riggs, of Fort Lauderdale, while a tennis coach for the minor victim, engaged in sexual conversations with the minor victim through a social media application. In addition, Riggs is alleged to have sexually abused the minor victim while they traveled internationally, and domestically for tennis training and tournaments. The abuse continued locally within the Southern District of Florida. In addition to physical abuse, Riggs requested child sexual abuse material (CSAM) from the minor victim through a social media application. To mask his identity, Riggs created multiple anonymous profiles and at times advised the minor victim to delete their communications.
Social media records revealed a possible additional victim. Anyone with information relating to additional victims of child sexual exploitation or abuse by Riggs is encouraged to call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
A pretrial detention hearing is scheduled for Dec. 23 at 11:00 a.m.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of FBI, Miami Field Office, and Sheriff Gregory Tony of the Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) announced the charges.
FBI Miami and BSO investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Camille Smith is prosecuting it.
A complaint is a merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-mj-6603.
###
Kentucky Man Sentenced for Distributing Child Sexual Abuse Material to South FloridaRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Dec. 12, James Ray Nichols, 32, from Louisville, Ky., was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment, followed by 25 years of supervised release, and ordered to register as a sex offender after pleading guilty to the charge of distribution of child pornography.
According to the court record, beginning in January 2024, Nichols, who lived at his parents’ home in Kentucky, used a social networking application on his phone to discuss having sex with an 8-year-old and 3-year-old in conversations with an undercover Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Task Force Officer and Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO) Detective posing as the children’s mother in the Southern District of Florida. Between January and July 2024, Nichols distributed multiple videos of child sexual abuse material to the undercover officer.
On July 17, HSI agents executed a search warrant at Nichols’ Kentucky residence where he was found with a phone that held a cache of child sexual exploitation material. After his arrest, Nichols was transferred to the Southern District of Florida.
At sentencing, Nichols agreed to pay $10,000 restitution to victims of the material he distributed.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of HSI Miami, and Sheriff Rick Bradshaw of PBSO made the announcement.
HSI West Palm Beach and PBSO investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Schiller is prosecuting it.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov or https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/project-safe-childhood.
To report an incident involving the possession, distribution, receipt or production of child pornography call (877) 4-HSI-TIP [(877) 447-4847]. Child sexual abuse material – referred to in legal terms as "child pornography" – captures the sexual abuse and exploitation of children. These images document victims’ exploitation and abuse, and they suffer revictimization every time the images are viewed. In 2023, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) received 36 million reports of the possession, manufacture, or distribution of child sexual abuse materials. To file a report with NCMEC, go to https://report.cybertip.org or call 1-800-843-5678.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-80093.
###
Illinois Man who Transported Child Sexual Abuse Material Sentenced to 15 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
MIAMI – An Illinois man, who is a registered sex offender and was convicted of transporting numerous images and videos depicting the sexual exploitation of three minor children, was sentenced on Dec. 13, to 180 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge William P. Dimitrouleas, who sits in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
According to court record, William Ahart, 42, of Ill., arrived into the Port Everglades cruise ship terminal in Fort Lauderdale from the U.S. Virgin Islands on June 15. Due to Ahart being a registered sex offender, United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers conducted an examination of Ahart’s smartphone and discovered numerous images of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Special Agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Fort Lauderdale responded and further reviewed Ahart’s smartphone and discovered the CSAM images were sent to Ahart on messaging applications by three minor females who Ahart had been communicating with over several months. HSI Fort Lauderdale agents arrested Ahart, who admitted to communicating with minor females and receiving and viewing the CSAM images. Further investigation by HSI revealed that during sexually charged conversations between Ahart and one of the minor victims, Ahart encouraged the minor victim to engage in self-harm. Evidence was also uncovered during the investigation that Ahart mailed the minor victim a “fun package” containing knives, candles for hot wax, thumb tacks, and a shock collar so that the victim could continue to engage in self-harm.
On Sept. 20, Ahart pled guilty to transportation of child sexual abuse material.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of HSI Miami made the announcement.
HSI Miami and the South Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force investigated the case with the assistance from CBP and HSI Albany, N.Y. Field Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney M. Catherine Koontz prosecuted it.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about the PSC initiative and for information regarding Internet safety, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-60118.
###
Port St. Lucie Man Sentenced to 15 years in Prison for Third Bank Robbery ConvictionRead the Press Release
MIAMI – A Port St. Lucie man was sentenced to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to bank robbery, which is his third such conviction.
David Abram Ziesel, 45, previously pled guilty to robbing a bank in Fellsmere, Fla. According to court records, in January of 2024, Ziesel entered the bank with his face and head covered, and immediately began shouting, “This is a robbery!” Ziesel demanded bank employees put cash in his pillowcase, and then Ziesel fled the bank. Law enforcement officers quickly located Ziesel’s vehicle as it traveled at speeds of over 100 m.p.h. Ziesel then led officers on a high-speed chase down I-95 and into the City of Fort Pierce, weaving in and out of cars, driving down the wrong side of the road, and running red lights. The pursuit ended when Ziesel crashed his car into another vehicle, and it came to rest against a power pole.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, and Jeffrey B. Veltri, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
FBI Miami investigated this case with assistance from the Fellsmere Police Department, Florida Highway Patrol, and Indian River County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Hoover is prosecuting the case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-14009.
###
Fort Pierce Duo Sentenced to Prison for Cocaine Trafficking and Illegal Firearms PossessionRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Dec. 4, two Fort Pierce men were sentenced to prison by Senior U.S. District Judge Donald L. Graham following convictions on gun and drug charges.
Joseph Acevedo, 40, was sentenced to 101 months in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release.
Stanley Rumowski, 49, was sentenced to 96 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Rumowski was also ordered to pay a fine of approximately $20,000.
On July 18, a jury sitting in Fort Pierce, convicted both men of trafficking cocaine and Rumowski was convicted of possessing a firearm during the drug trafficking offense. According to evidence presented during the trial, Acevedo and Rumowski were business partners in a failing marijuana cultivation business. When the two men were driving back to Fort Pierce, from Miami, they were pulled over in Martin County, Florida by Martin County Sheriff’s Deputies. Following a canine sniff of their vehicle, law enforcement discovered a loaded firearm and approximately half a kilogram of cocaine. During the trial, text messages between the two men were introduced to prove their knowledge and intent to possess and distribute the cocaine.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Anthony Salisbury, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami Field Office, and Sheriff William D. Snyder of the Martin County Sheriff’s Office made the announcement.
HSI Fort Pierce investigated this matter with significant assistance from the Martin County Sheriff’s Office. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Breezye Telfair.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-14010.
###
Hartford Man Sentenced to Nearly 4 Years’ Imprisonment and Ordered to Pay $5M for Operating a Fraudulent Ticket Re-Selling SchemeRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Jeffrey Thurn was sentenced yesterday by Senior U.S. District Judge Federico A. Moreno to 46 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Thurn was also ordered to pay approximately $5.1 million in restitution after previously pleading guilty to running a fraudulent ticket re-selling scheme.
According to court record, to include the factual proffer in support of the defendant’s guilty plea, Thurn, 39, of Hartford, South Dakota, enticed victims to send him more than $5,000,000 for a purported ticket re-selling business he operated through the fictitious business name Backstage Tickets. Thurn promised to buy tickets using victim funds and then re-sell the tickets for a profit. Thurn made certain representations, including a guarantee that a certain amount of profit needed to be generated before he could earn any fee, and a representation that investor funds would be refunded to the investor in the event that an event was cancelled or changed to a different date. To legitimize prior sales completed by Thurn on behalf of investors, and to entice investors to send additional funds for new events, once a set of event tickets were purportedly re-sold by Thurn, he provided his investors fake and fraudulent receipts from various third-party ticket re-selling outlets as proof that he completed ticket sales. In truth, Thurn fabricated the receipts and the ticket sales never happened.
As agreed to by Thurn in his factual proffer, the $5,000,000 he raised from investors was used for his personal benefit.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, and Jeffrey B. Veltri, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
FBI Miami Field Office investigated this matter. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Roger Cruz.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 23-cr-20481.
###
Colombian National Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Kidnap and Assault U.S. Army Soldiers in ColombiaRead the Press Release
MIAMI - A Colombian national pleaded guilty today to his role in kidnapping and assaulting two members of the U.S. military who were on temporary duty in Bogotá, Colombia.
According to court documents, Pedro Jose Silva Ochoa, 47, of Bogotá, and his co-defendants targeted, incapacitated, and kidnapped two U.S. soldiers in Bogotá. The two victims, who were serving on orders in Colombia, went to an entertainment district in Bogotá to watch a soccer game on the evening of March 5, 2020. They went to a pub, where one of Silva Ochoa’s co-conspirators incapacitated the victims by putting drugs, including benzodiazepines, in their drinks. Silva Ochoa’s co-conspirators then escorted the victims into a waiting car driven by Silva Ochoa, kidnapped them, and took their wallets, debit cards, credit cards, and cell phones. Silva Ochoa and his co-conspirators used one victim’s credit card and the other victim’s debit card to make purchases and withdraw money. The two victims lost consciousness until the following day, by which point they had been separated.
Pursuant to a plea agreement, Silva Ochoa pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to kidnap an internationally protected person. A sentencing date has not yet been set. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Silva Ochoa was extradited in May from Chile to the United States, and he is the second co-defendant to plead guilty in this criminal scheme. Co-defendant Arango Castellanos was extradited in May 2023 from Colombia to the United States, pleaded guilty in January to the charges in the indictment, and was sentenced in May to 48 years and nine months in prison. Co-defendant Uribe Chiran was extradited in September from Colombia to the United States; she is currently scheduled for trial in February 2025.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole A. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Miami Field Office’s Extraterritorial Squad investigated the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Office of the Judicial Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá, and FBI’s Office of the Legal Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Santiago, Chile, provided significant assistance. The Justice Department also thanks Colombian and Chilean law enforcement authorities for their valuable assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertila Fernandez for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorneys Clayton O’Connor and Elizabeth Nielsen of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section are prosecuting the case.
###
Colombian National Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Kidnap and Assault U.S. Army Soldiers in ColombiaRead the Press Release
A Colombian national pleaded guilty today to his role in kidnapping and assaulting two members of the U.S. military who were on temporary duty in Bogotá, Colombia.
According to court documents, Pedro Jose Silva Ochoa, 47, of Bogotá, and his co-defendants targeted, incapacitated, and kidnapped two U.S. soldiers in Bogotá. The two victims, who were serving on orders in Colombia, went to an entertainment district in Bogotá to watch a soccer game on the evening of March 5, 2020. They went to a pub, where one of Silva Ochoa’s co-conspirators incapacitated the victims by putting drugs, including benzodiazepines, in their drinks. Silva Ochoa’s co-conspirators then escorted the victims into a waiting car driven by Silva Ochoa, kidnapped them, and took their wallets, debit cards, credit cards, and cell phones. Silva Ochoa and his co-conspirators used one victim’s credit card and the other victim’s debit card to make purchases and withdraw money. The two victims lost consciousness until the following day, by which point they had been separated.
Pursuant to a plea agreement, Silva Ochoa pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to kidnap an internationally protected person. A sentencing date has not yet been set. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Silva Ochoa was extradited in May from Chile to the United States, and he is the second co-defendant to plead guilty in this criminal scheme. Co-defendant Arango Castellanos was extradited in May 2023 from Colombia to the United States, pleaded guilty in January to the charges in the indictment, and was sentenced in May to 48 years and nine months in prison. Co-defendant Uribe Chiran was extradited in September from Colombia to the United States; she is currently scheduled for trial in February 2025.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole A. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Miami Field Office’s Extraterritorial Squad investigated the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Office of the Judicial Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá, and FBI’s Office of the Legal Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Santiago, Chile, provided significant assistance. The Justice Department also thanks Colombian and Chilean law enforcement authorities for their valuable assistance.
Trial Attorneys Clayton O’Connor and Elizabeth Nielsen of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertila Fernandez for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.
Broward Tax Preparer Sentenced to Prison for Preparing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Jean Volvick Moise was sentenced today in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to 36 months in prison for orchestrating a scheme to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by filing false income tax returns.
According to court record, to include the factual proffer in support of the defendant’s guilty plea, Moise, 39, of Fort Lauderdale, prepared false tax returns on behalf of his clients, causing his clients to get larger refunds than the refunds to which they were entitled. Moise accomplished this goal by preparing tax returns which included, among other false statements, false dependents, false Form 1099 withholdings, false educational credits, and false Schedules C business expenses, often for businesses which did not exist. Moise’s fee for his service was larger than the typical fee charged by a tax preparer. All told, Moise filed hundreds of false returns which caused the IRS to issue over $574,000 in fraudulent refunds to which the individuals were not entitled.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Acting Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Hipkins of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS CI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
The IRS CI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bertha R. Mitrani prosecuted this case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-60057.
###
Key West Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Resisting Coast Guard Officers Near South BeachRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Dec. 4, Jeremie Calo, of Key West, Fla., was sentenced to federal prison for resisting and evading the U.S. Coast Guard’s rescue attempts for several hours.
According to the court filings in support of Calo’s plea, the Coast Guard approached a small vessel with six persons onboard, including Calo, just south of South Beach in Biscayne Bay, Fla, in August of 2022. None of the vessel occupants were wearing life jackets. Due to the small boat’s location and the occupants’ failure to wear life jackets, the Coast Guard officers ordered the passengers to disembark and board a Coast Guard vessel to be taken back to a sailboat for everyone’s safety. Calo was the sole occupant who refused to comply with the Coast Guard officers’ rescue attempts. As a result, the Coast Guard officers had to forcibly remove Calo from the small boat and put him onto the Coast Guard boat for safety. Shortly thereafter, Calo jumped off the Coast Guard boat and into the bay. Calo then spent more than two hours swimming around in the bay, evading and resisting rescue attempts from the Coast Guard and other law enforcement agencies. For example, Calo physically resisted being assisted back into the Coast Guard boat by slapping away the hands of an assisting officer.
Chief U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga sentenced Calo to three months in prison, to be followed by one year of supervised release, including seven months of home detention, and a $2,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Matt Margelot for the Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS), Miami Office, made the announcement.
CGIS investigated this matter. Coral Gables Police Department, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, Miami Beach Police Department, and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission assisted. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosenfeld prosecuted the case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-20263.
###
Telemarketer Sentenced for $67M Health Care Fraud and Money Laundering SchemeRead the Press Release
MIAMI — A Florida man was sentenced today to 15 years in prison for his role in a wide-ranging conspiracy to defraud Medicare by billing over $67 million for medically unnecessary genetic testing.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Jose Goyos, 38, of West Palm Beach, was employed at a call center that engaged in deceptive telemarketing calls targeting thousands of Medicare beneficiaries and their physicians. Goyos managed the so-called “doctor chase” division of the call center, which contacted the primary care physicians of targeted Medicare beneficiaries and tricked these medical providers into ordering medically unnecessary genetic tests based on medical paperwork that the call center created. For example, Goyos directed call center employees to falsely represent to providers that the Medicare beneficiaries were “mutual patients” who had requested these genetic tests and that the beneficiaries had medical conditions justifying genetic testing, when neither statement was true.
Goyos and his co-conspirators then used those doctors’ orders to submit claims to Medicare for expensive and medically unnecessary genetic tests. The results of these tests often were not sent to the Medicare beneficiaries’ primary care physicians and were not used in the treatment of the beneficiaries.
In total, between May 2020 and July 2021, Goyos and his co-conspirators submitted over $67 million in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare, of which Medicare paid over $53 million.
In October 2023, a jury convicted Goyos of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Nine additional Florida residents were previously sentenced for their roles in the conspiracy:
Daniel M. Carver, 38, of Boca Raton, was sentenced to 16 years and eight months in prison.
Thomas Dougherty, 42, of Palm Beach, was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
John Paul Gosney Jr., 42, of Parkland, was sentenced to seven years and 11 months in prison.
Galina Rozenberg, 42, of Hollywood, was sentenced to four years in prison.
Michael Rozenberg, 61, of Hollywood, was sentenced to four years in prison.
Ethan Macier, 25, of Boynton Beach, was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison.
Louis “Gino” Carver, 33, of Boca Raton, was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison.
Ashley Cigarroa, 32, of North Lauderdale, was sentenced to two years and six months in prison.
Timothy Richardson, 31, of Lantana, was sentenced to two years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Stephen Mahmood of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Miami Regional Office made the announcement.
The FBI and HHS-OIG investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara Klco, Marx Calderon, and Sandra Dermici for the Southern District of Florida are handling asset forfeiture. Trial Attorneys Reginald Cuyler Jr. and Andrew Tamayo, along with former Trial Attorney Patrick J. Queenan, of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,400 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $27 billion. HHS-OIG and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services work collaboratively as Strike Force partners to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
###
Miami Jury Finds Federal Detention Center Inmate Guilty of Assaulting Bureau of Prisons GuardRead the Press Release
MIAMI – On Nov. 26, a federal jury found Orel Valdespino Fernandez, 41, guilty of assaulting a corrections officer working for the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) and causing bodily injury.
On May 5, Valdespino was an inmate at the Federal Detention Center (FDC) in Miami, being held pre-trial for a crime he ultimately pled guilty to committing. That afternoon, the victim, who was a BOP lieutenant, was doing rounds in Valdespino’s unit to ensure rule compliance. The victim noticed that Valdespino was not complying with a rule, so he instructed Valdespino to follow the rule from outside Valdespino’s cell. When Valdespino refused to do so, the victim entered Valdespino’s cell to verbally counsel him about the rule.
While inside Valdespino’s cell, the victim held out his arm to establish a safe distance from Valdespino while turning his head to have a prison orderly standing behind him translate the reason for the instruction to Valdespino. As the victim did so, Valdespino struck the victim’s arm and then repeatedly struck the victim in the face. A struggle ensued that only ended after one officer pepper sprayed Valdespino and another officer entered the cell to help the victim secure Valdespino. As a result of this assault, the victim sustained a facial injury that left his jaw misaligned as well as a torn pectoral muscle that required surgery and has prevented him from working since.
U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman is scheduled to sentence Valdespino on Feb. 14, 2025, after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
FBI Miami Field Office investigated the case with assistance from BOP. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zachary A. Keller and Ilana Malkin prosecuted the case.
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20318.
###
Miami Importer Pleads Guilty to Scheme to Evade U.S. Tariffs on Chinese-Made Truck TiresRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Today, Hector Samuel Esquijerosa, 52, a resident of Miami, pled guilty for his participation in a conspiracy to smuggle merchandise into the United States by means of false and fraudulent invoices presented to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the agency in charge of collecting import duties.
According to court documents, between September 2018 and January 2023, Esquijerosa owned and operated two Miami-based companies in the business of importing tractor-trailer truck tires into the United States, Production Tire Company and Premier Trade Corporation. In court, Esquijerosa admitted that he conspired with others, including brokers, suppliers and wholesalers of truck tires located in China, Canada and the United Kingdom to evade anti-dumping and countervailing duties, or tariffs, applicable to truck tires manufactured in China that his companies illegally imported into the United States and sold to customers in the Southern District of Florida and elsewhere.
In order to conceal the true origin of the imported truck tires, Esquijerosa and his co-conspirators caused the Chinese-origin truck tires to be transshipped to the United States through third countries, including Canada and Malaysia. Esquijerosa and his co-conspirators would then file, or cause to filed with CBP, documents that falsely and fraudulently represented that the Chinese truck tires originated in countries other than China. In many instances, Esquijerosa and his co-conspirators created two sets of invoices—one that falsely and fraudulently undervalued the truck tires and was presented to CBP for calculation of the appropriate duty, and the second that reflected the actual value of the truck tires. The scheme resulted in a loss of revenue to the United States in excess of $1.9 million.
Esquijerosa pled guilty to an information charging him with conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States. A sentencing hearing is set for Feb. 24, 2025. Esquijerosa faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
HSI Miami investigated the case with assistance from CBP’s Automotive and Aerospace Center of Excellence and Expertise. Assistant U.S. Attorney Aimee Jimenez is prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney G. Raemy Charest-Turken is handling the forfeiture of assets in the case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20436.
###
Colorado Dentist Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Solicit a Minor Online and Transporting Child PornographyRead the Press Release
MIAMI – Jason James Atha, 51, a dentist from Broomfield, Colo., pleaded guilty yesterday in the Southern District of Florida to charges of attempted enticement of a minor and transportation of child pornography.
According to the court record, beginning on Oct. 3, 2023, Atha, who lived in Colorado, used a social networking application on his phone to solicit sex with an 8-year-old child through conversations with the child’s mother in the Southern District of Florida. The child’s purported “mother” was in fact an undercover Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent. Atha’s communications detailed the sexual acts he wanted to engage in with the child. On Aug. 9, Atha flew to Palm Beach International Airport, in the Southern District of Florida, to consummate the sexual act and was arrested at the airport. A search of Atha’s devices revealed child pornography videos.
At sentencing, currently scheduled for March 11, 2025, in Ft. Pierce, Fla., before U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon, Atha faces a statutory maximum sentence of life in prison for attempted enticement of a minor and 20 years in prison for transportation of child pornography.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of HSI Miami made the announcement.
HSI West Palm Beach investigated the case. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office provided invaluable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Schiller is prosecuting it.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), 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 to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov or https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/project-safe-childhood.
Anyone with information regarding child sexual exploitation and abuse is encouraged to call (877) 4-HSI-TIP [(877) 447-4847].
You may find a copy of this press release (and any updates) on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case number 24-cr-80102.
###
Owner of Med Spa Charged with Covid-19 Relief Fraud, Using Funds for a Bentley and Luxury PurchasesRead the Press Release
MIAMI — Cassandra Yolanda Clarke, 45 of Miramar, Fla., had her initial appearance yesterday before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in Fort Lauderdale and was charged with fraudulently obtaining COVID-19 relief loans and grants under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
According to allegations in the indictment, Clarke submitted fraudulent applications on behalf of Narotique Med Spa LLC and Narotique Beauty Bar Inc., seeking COVID-19 relief funds from the Small Business Administration (SBA) and PPP participating lenders. Clarke is alleged to have created and submitted fraudulent IRS tax forms with the applications. Clarke is charged with having received approximately $851,894 in COVID-19 relief funds from the fraudulent scheme. The indictment charges Clarke used the fraudulently obtained funds to lease a Bentley Bentayga and make luxury purchases at the Bal Harbour Shops.
The indictment charges Clarke with three counts of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering. If convicted, Clarke faces up to 10 years in prison for money laundering, and 20 years in prison for wire fraud. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.
FBI Miami’s Palm Beach Resident Agency investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Bailyn is prosecuting it.
An indictment is a merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
On Sept. 15, 2022, the Attorney General selected the Southern District of Florida’s U.S. Attorney’s Office to head one of three national COVID-19 Fraud Strike Force Teams. The Department of Justice established the Strike Force to enhance existing efforts to combat and prevent COVID-19 related financial fraud. The Strike Force combines law enforcement and prosecutorial resources and focuses on large-scale, multistate pandemic relief fraud perpetrated by criminal organizations and transnational actors, as well as those who committed multiple instances of pandemic relief fraud. The Strike Force uses prosecutor-led and data analyst-driven teams to identify and bring to justice those who stole pandemic relief funds. Additional information regarding the Strike Force may be found at https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-covid-19-fraud-strike-force-teams.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case no. 24-cr-60227.
###