Southern District of Florida

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. 

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.

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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.

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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.  

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MIAMI – On Dec. 3, Miguel Alejandro Pastran Hernandez, 24, pled guilty to kidnapping a rideshare driver at gunpoint and forcing the victim to drive the defendant from Texas to South Florida.

On or about Aug. 16, at around 10:30 p.m., Victim 1 was working as a driver for a ride sharing application near Arlington, Texas, when Victim 1 picked up Pastran Hernandez. Victim 1 drove Pastran Hernandez to his destination, which was a gas station that appeared to be closed. After a short time, Victim 1 heard the click of a gun being chambered and saw Pastran Hernandez holding what appeared to be a firearm.  Victim 1 offered to give Pastran Hernandez the victim’s possessions and leave the vehicle, but Pastran Hernandez told Victim 1 that he was going to tie the victim up and put the victim in the back of the vehicle.

Instead of tying up Victim 1, Pastran Hernandez ordered Victim 1 to drive to Florida. Pastran Hernandez used a mobile application on his cellphone to see where law enforcement was located along the drive and instructed Victim 1 to avoid those areas. Pastran Hernandez told Victim 1 that he had other guns in the car, inside his luggage. While driving from Texas to Florida, Pastran Hernandez discovered that Victim 1 had a blue handgun in the vehicle. The firearm was unloaded, with the ammunition stored separately in the vehicle. Pastran Hernandez loaded the ammunition into the firearm and kept it on his person for the duration of the kidnapping. During the journey, Pastran Hernandez brandished that firearm at Victim 1 so that Victim 1 would follow his commands.

On or about Aug. 18, Pastran Hernandez and Victim 1 arrived in Miami Beach, Fla., where Pastran Hernandez surveilled the residence of another potential victim (Victim 2). Pastran Hernandez told Victim 1 that Victim 2 was a social media influencer and that Pastran Hernandez intended to kidnap Victim 2 or someone in Victim 2’s family for a $3,000,000 ransom.

On or about Aug. 19, Pastran Hernandez made Victim 1 drive to a store in Hialeah, Fla., to buy supplies for the kidnapping of Victim 2. Pastran Hernandez held onto Victim 1’s car keys, while Victim 1 used the restroom. Around that time, police officers arrived at the store and Pastran Hernandez fled the area on foot.

Law enforcement located Pastran Hernandez at a park in Hollywood, Fla. a few hours later. On Pastran Hernandez’s person, inside a cross-body bag, was Victim 1’s blue handgun. The firearm was loaded and had a bullet in the chamber.

Inside Pastran Hernandez’s backpack, which was in Victim 1’s car, law enforcement later discovered multiple Airsoft or BB guns, knives, a black mask, hat, sunglasses, binoculars, walkie-talkies, zip-ties, and other items.

Pastran Hernandez is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 20, 2025, before Chief Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga. He faces up to life in prison, following his guilty plea to charges of kidnapping, carjacking, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. 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, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, announced the charges.

FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Hannah is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that brings 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-20380.

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MIAMI — U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida is delighted to share Attorney General Merrick B. Garland’s announcement today regarding the recipients of the Seventh Annual Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service in Community Policing. This prestigious award recognizes law enforcement officers who demonstrate exceptional dedication to strengthening trust, promoting community engagement, and enhancing public safety. The award recipients include deputies who protect and serve communities in the Southern District of Florida.

“All 21 of today’s awardees have demonstrated what community-oriented policing looks like in practice,” said Attorney General Garland. “They come from all different parts of the country. They represent communities of all shapes and sizes.  Their typical days might not all look the same. But they are united by a deep commitment to protecting their communities.”

The Attorney General’s Award recognizes individual state, local, and Tribal sworn officers, deputies, and troopers for exceptional efforts in community policing. The awarded individuals have demonstrated active engagement with the community in one of three areas: criminal investigations, field operations, or innovations in community policing.

“Today, we stand in the presence of extraordinary individuals who exemplify the very best of what it means to protect and serve,” said Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer. “We celebrate a remarkable truth: the profound and positive impact that law enforcement officers and deputies have on the communities they serve every single day. These awards honor those who exemplify the very best of the profession and showcases these individuals as pillars of trust, empathy, and unity.”

The 2024 award recipients are:

Category: Criminal Investigations

• Detective Matthew Newbold of the Polk County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office;

• Detective Liz Grant of the Kennewick, Washington, Police Department;

• Detective Tyler Norman of the Salt Lake City, Utah, Police Department; and

• Police Officer Reece Walno of the Spearfish, South Dakota, Police Department.

Category: Field Operations

• Deputy Sheriff Jahmar Robinson of the Palm Beach County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office;

• Lance Corporal Justin Boyd of the Columbia, South Carolina, Police Department; and

• Detective/Community Policing Officer Stephen Leacroy of the La Marque, Texas, Police Department.

Category: Innovations in Community Policing

• Corporal Adrian Maldonado, Deputy James Mackey, Deputy Jason Coker, Deputy Tammy Fox, and Deputy Yanick Exceus of the Palm Beach County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office;

• Detective Edwin Hugh and Police Officer Thomas Joy of the Suffolk County, New York, Police Department;

• Officer Stephen Malandro, Officer Trevor Stamper, and Specialist Todd Nutbrown of the Largo, Florida, Police Department;

• Officer Wesley Griffith and Officer Bill Koehn of the Overland Park, Kansas, Police Department;

• Master Police Officer Thomas Rodriquez of the Manassas City, Virginia, Police Department; and

• Master Officer Shauna Moller of the Manassas City Police Department.

“It is an honor to share the stage with these recipients,” said Director Hugh T. Clements of the Justice Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS). “I am inspired by their actions and service.”

The awardees were selected from a nationwide pool of nominees for their outstanding achievements in fostering safer, more inclusive communities.

The Justice Department commends these officers for their service, leadership, and unwavering commitment to their communities. For more information about the awards, visit www.justice.gov.

The COPS Office is the federal component of the Justice Department responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. The only Justice Department agency with policing in its name, the COPS Office was established in 1994 and has been the cornerstone of the nation’s crime fighting strategy with grants, a variety of knowledge resource products, and training and technical assistance. Through the years, the COPS Office has become the go-to organization for law enforcement agencies across the country and continues to listen to the field and provide the resources that are needed to reduce crime and build trust between law enforcement and the communities served. The COPS Office has been appropriated more than $20 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local, territorial, and Tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of approximately 138,000 officers.

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Note: View the Spanish translation here.

MIAMI — A resident of Lima, Peru, was extradited to the United States and was arraigned today in a federal court in Miami, where he stands accused of facilitating fraud schemes perpetrated by numerous Peruvian call centers that defrauded victims across the United States, the Justice Department and U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) announced today.

David Cornejo Fernandez, 36, will face federal wire fraud, extortion and conspiracy charges. Cornejo was arrested on May 17, by Peruvian authorities pursuant to a U.S. extradition request. He has remained incarcerated since that time.

According to the indictment, the defendant provided Internet-based telephone lines, caller-ID spoofing services, and recording capabilities to fraudulent call centers from November 2012 through June 2019. Cornejo provided his co-conspirators in Peru with the technology to place fraudulent and extortionate calls to vulnerable Spanish-speaking individuals in the United States. Cornejo’s co-conspirators falsely told victims that they had been selected to receive a prize, such as a tablet containing an English language course. Many victims expressed interest in receiving the prizes. In later calls, victims were told that they were required to make large payments to receive the prizes. When victims objected, the callers falsely claimed that victims would face severe consequences — including court proceedings, arrest or harm to their immigration status — if they did not pay. The callers impersonated attorneys, court officials, federal agents and police officers to threaten and intimidate victims into making payments.

Cornejo provided his co-conspirators with the software — and at times, the training — to convincingly impersonate government officials and extort payments from victims. Cornejo provided his co-conspirators with the technology to manipulate the phone numbers on victims’ caller IDs, which enabled them to place threatening calls that appeared to be coming from U.S. federal agencies, court officials or law enforcement agencies. Cornejo also placed recordings on his co-conspirators’ inbound phone lines that appeared to be recordings from actual U.S. courts, police departments and federal agencies, including the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). These recordings enhanced the apparent legitimacy of the threatening calls and were used to extort payments from vulnerable consumers in the Southern District of Florida and across the United States.   

“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 and recent immigrants,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “We will not allow transnational criminals to use fear tactics and intimidation 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 pursue and prosecute transnational criminals who seek to take advantage of vulnerable U.S. consumers,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Justice Department and U.S. law enforcement will continue to work closely with law enforcement partners across the globe to thwart criminals who defraud and extort U.S. victims from outside the United States. I thank the Republic of Peru, including the Peruvian National Police, for its assistance extraditing this individual to face charges here in the United States.”

“Today’s initial appearance of David Cornejo Fernandez is strong evidence of the dedication between the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida who will stop at nothing to bring those who victimize our citizens to justice,” said Inspector in Charge Juan A. Vargas of the USPIS Miami Division. “I want to thank the Republic of Peru and all our law enforcement partners who work tirelessly to combat these transnational schemes that defraud U.S. consumers. Together, we continue to send a strong message, that justice has no borders and this collaboration between countries demonstrates those efforts to preserve the rule of law.”

A six-count federal indictment was filed against the defendant in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in February 2023 and was unsealed upon the defendant’s extradition to the United States. The defendant has been charged with conspiracy, wire fraud, and extortion.

If convicted, Cornejo 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.

USPIS investigated the case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Florida, the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Peruvian National Police and the Peruvian Attorney General’s Office provided critical assistance.

Senior Trial Attorney and Transnational Criminal Litigation Coordinator Phil Toomajian and Trial Attorney Carolyn Rice of the Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch prosecuted the case.

The Justice Department continues to investigate and bring charges in other similar matters involving threats against Spanish-speaking residents of the United States. If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has experienced financial fraud, experienced professionals are 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, can 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 its website at www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Consumer complaints may 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.

For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its fraud enforcement efforts, visit www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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MIAMI – Johanna Michely Garcia, the former Chief Executive Officer of MJ Capital Funding, LLC was sentenced to 240 months in prison today.

On July 16, Garcia, 41, from Broward County, Fla., pled guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. The conspiracy involved Garcia leading others, including Pavel Ramon Ruiz Hernandez, in an investment Ponzi fraud scheme totaling approximately $190,700,000.

According to court records, Garcia’s MJ Capital Funding was purportedly engaged in providing merchant cash advances, or MCAs, a type of short-term financing typically used by small businesses. Beginning in October 2020, and continuing through August 2021, Garcia conspired with others to fraudulently solicit money from investors to fund MJ Capital Funding’s MCAs. Garcia and her co-conspirators recruited other people to solicit investors for MJ Capital Funding’s investment offering and paid those recruiters commissions.

Court records state that Garcia and her co-conspirators, directly and indirectly, made false statements and fraudulent representations to investors concerning the nature of the MJ Capital Funding investment and the use of investor funds. Garcia and others falsely told investors that their money would be used to fund MCAs and that investor returns would be paid from the profits of MJ Capital Funding’s MCA business. However, the company made few loans and failed to earn anywhere near the profits it needed to pay the investors the promised returns. As a result, Garcia paid investors by running a large Ponzi fraud scheme, paying existing investors using new investor funds while misappropriating millions of dollars for her own personal benefit. Of the nearly $200 million raised, investors lost nearly $90 million.

According to Court records, after the FBI and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) effectively shut down MJ Capital Funding, in the fall of 2021, Garcia, Ruiz Hernandez, and others began operating a new Ponzi scheme that was comparable to the MJ Capital Funding criminal enterprise. Garcia led this new scheme from its inception, up until her arrest, and after, while in Bureau of Prisons custody. The entities utilized by Garcia and her co-conspirators for the new fraud scheme included New Beginning Global Funding LLC, New Beginning Capital Funding LLC, Lion Heart Capital Group L.L.C., GMR Remodeling LLC, and Group Management LLC. Similar to the MJ Capital Funding fraud, Garcia and her partners told victims that their money would be used to fund commercial loans. In truth, the money raised was used to pay off previous investors, and fund Garcia and her coconspirators' lifestyles.

Ruiz Hernandez was charged in August 2022, pled guilty in April 2023, and was sentenced in September 2023 to 110 months’ imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri, FBI Miami, and Russell C. Weigel, III, Commissioner, Florida Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) made the announcement.

FBI Miami and OFR investigated this case. SEC’s Miami Regional Office and Florida’s Office of Financial Regulation provided invaluable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Roger Cruz prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Marx Calderon is handling asset forfeiture.

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-20350.

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MIAMI – On Nov. 20, a federal jury convicted Gabriel Donato-Mendez, 48, of Port St. Lucie, Fla., of conspiracy to export United States defense articles and of attempted smuggling of defense articles. 

Over a six-month span in 2018 and 2019, Donato-Mendez bought over 150 AR-15 “kits” which consisted of the pieces required to make AR-15 firearms after minor drilling and assembly. On March 4, 2019, Donato-Mendez transported at least 84 AR-15 kits from a store in Daytona, Fla., to a freight forwarder where the kits were destined to be exported to Costa Rica. In 2019, AR-15s and their parts were on the United States Munitions List as “defense articles” and required a license from the Department of State’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls to be exported. Neither Donato-Mendez nor any of his known conspirators possessed a license to export AR-15 kits from the United States. 

Donato-Mendez is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 7, 2025 before Chief U.S. District Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga.  Donato-Mendez faces up to ten years on the attempted smuggling count and five years on the conspiracy count.  The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Markenzy Lapointe 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 Miami, HSI Fort Pierce, and ATF Fort Pierce investigated the case. The Costa Rican Organismo de Investigación Judicial (National Judicial Police) and U.S. Department of State Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) provided invaluable assistance.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel Rosenfeld and Stefan Diaz Espinosa are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Annika Miranda is handling asset forfeiture.

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-20075.

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MIAMI – Julian Flores, 25, and his mother, Lourdes Diaz, 56, of Naples, Fla., each pled guilty to charges stemming from a brazen armed robbery of $750,000 worth of gold jewelry from a business owner in Hialeah, Fla.

On Sept. 16, 2023, the victim-business owner began to load a suitcase of jewelry into a vehicle in a commercial parking lot in Hialeah when Diaz backed up a white SUV rental from a nearby parking spot, and Flores hopped out of the back seat, garbed in black clothing and a ski mask. While brandishing a revolver in his gloved hand, Flores rushed at the victim, grabbed the suitcase full of jewelry and attempted to rip it away from the victim. When the victim held onto the suitcase, Flores struck the victim’s body multiple times with revolver. The victim continued to grasp the suitcase and yell out for help, at which point Flores fired off a shot from the revolver towards the ground, gained control of the suitcase, and hopped back into the white SUV rental. Diaz drove herself and Flores away from the scene.

On Oct. 2, 2023, law enforcement located Flores and took him into custody. At the time of his arrest, Flores was wearing gold jewelry from the victim’s collection.

After Flores was arrested, Diaz concealed a black safe containing the victim’s jewelry inside the residence of one of Flores’s close associates. On Oct. 3, 2023, law enforcement arrested Diaz near that residence. Law enforcement executed a search warrant and recovered the black safe which contained the remainder of the gold jewelry stolen from the victim.     

On Nov. 22, 2024, U.S. District Judge Melissa Damian accepted Diaz’s guilty plea to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery, and brandishing a firearm during and in furtherance of a crime of violence. On Nov. 26, 2024, Flores entered his guilty plea as to conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act robbery, and discharging a firearm during and in furtherance of a crime of violence. Each defendant faces a maximum term of imprisonment up to life. Judge Damian will sentence each defendant after a review of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing hearings have not yet been scheduled in this matter.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, and Chief George Fuente of the Hialeah Police Department announced the guilty pleas.

ATF and the Hialeah Police Department investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sterling M. Paulson is prosecuting 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 23-cr- 20472.

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MIAMI - Yesterday, Celestine “Skip” Aniekwu, 65, of Sunrise, Fla., who had been a fugitive for 15 years and surrendered earlier this year, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith to the top of the guidelines, 16 months in prison, for participating in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud.  

According to the court filings in support of Aniekwu’s plea in September of this year, undercover FBI agents posed as asset managers who offered to help Aniekwu obtain construction contracts with local governments entities in 2008. Aniekwu told the undercover FBI agents that he needed to pay a total of $150,000 in cash to public officials with the City of Miramar for supporting the bid of Gulf Building Corporation on two projects, the Ansin Sports Complex and the Miramar Regional Service Center, in Miramar, Fla. The money was to come from a sub-contractor as part of a pre-arranged deal.  The subcontractor was a subsidiary of a publicly traded company and would have difficulty drawing out the amount of cash to finance the bribe payments. Aniekwu went to the undercover FBI agents requesting their assistance with a scheme for the subcontractor to provide false invoices for work that was never performed in order to obtain cash to allegedly pay the Miramar public officials. Aniekwu and an officer of the subcontractor conspired to prepare the fraudulent invoices and submit them and thereby obtained authorization to issue two checks totaling $50,000 which were provided to the undercover FBI agents. At the request of Aniekwu, the undercover FBI agents cashed the checks and provided the cash to Aniekwu, who was to use the funds to pay the public officials in Miramar.                      

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri for the FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

The FBI investigated this matter. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey N. Kaplan.

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 09-cr-60317.

MIAMI - Efrain Betancourt, Jr., 36, a Colombian citizen, was arrested on Nov. 14, upon entering the United States and charged in South Florida federal court with leading a $66 million Ponzi scheme disguised as a payday loan company, Sky Group USA, LLC (Sky Group).

Betancourt, Jr. was charged by indictment with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and wire fraud on Sept. 12. The indictment was unsealed in federal court on Nov. 18.

According to allegations in the investment fraud indictment, Betancourt, Jr. offered promissory notes to Sky Group investors with yearly returns ranging from 24 to 120 percent. Betancourt, Jr. and others told promissory note investors their funds would be used to disburse payday loans to Sky Group clients. Interest from payday loans clients would then purportedly be used to repay promissory note investors. However, millions of dollars from promissory note investors were used to pay previous promissory note investors as part of the Ponzi scheme. Betancourt, Jr. also used over $7.5 million of investor funds for personal use, including a luxury chateau wedding in France, expensive jewelry, a Miami condominium, and family vacations. Over 600 investors invested in Sky Group, many of whom were Venezuelan.

If convicted of all charges in the indictment, Betancourt, Jr. faces a maximum total penalty of 140 years’ imprisonment. A federal district court judge will determine any 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 Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office; and Russell C. Weigel, III, Commissioner, Florida Office of Financial Regulation (OFR), made the announcement.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had a parallel proceeding against Betancourt, Jr. related to the same investment fraud scheme alleged in the indictment. The SEC’s proceeding was resolved in July 2022.

The FBI, OFR, and the FBI’s South Florida Fraud Task Force investigated this matter. SEC’s Miami Regional Office provided assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Roger Cruz is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an accusation. 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 24-cr-20399. 

MIAMI - Harun Abdul-Malik Yener, 30, of Coral Springs, Fla., was arrested today based on a criminal complaint charging him with attempt to use an explosive device to damage or destroy a building used in interstate commerce.

Markenzy Lapointe, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; Matthew G. Olsen, Assistant Attorney General for National Security; and Jeffrey Veltri, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement. 

According to court documents, the FBI initiated an investigation into Yener in February after receiving a tip that he was storing bombmaking schematics in an unlocked storage unit. The FBI searched the unit and found bombmaking sketches, numerous watches with timers, electronic circuit boards, and other electronics that could be used for constructing explosive devices. The FBI also uncovered multiple internet searches from Yener’s Google account for aspects of bombmaking since as early as 2017. 

In June, Yener told an FBI confidential source of his desire to join an anti-government militia and to construct an explosive device. After meeting an FBI undercover employee, whom Yener believed to be part of a militia, Yener indicated he wanted to target a U.S. business located in New York City the week before Thanksgiving. His stated motivation for bombing the business was to attain a “reboot” and/or “reset” of the United States government. Yener constructed a remote-trigger for the explosive device and conducted research on where to plant the bomb. Yener tasked FBI undercover employees with procuring the explosive element for the device, conducting surveillance of the business, and obtaining photos of the building to identify the precise location for detonating the explosive device. Yener planned on wearing a disguise when planting the explosive device outside the business and recorded a message to be delivered to the press about his reasons for the attack. Yener anticipated the impact of the explosion would be “like a small nuke went off” and that “[a]nything outside” the building “will be wiped out” and “anything inside there would be killed.”

Yener had his initial appearance this afternoon and stipulated to pretrial detention with the right to request a hearing at a later date.

The FBI investigated the case with assistance from the Coral Springs Police Department and the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Thakur and Abbie D. Waxman of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Elisa Poteat of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case.

A criminal complaint contains allegations. 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 24-mj-04432.

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MIAMI – A federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida returned a superseding indictment yesterday charging nine individuals for conspiring to launder U.S. currency into cryptocurrency on behalf of drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia and for the operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business.

These recent charges are the result of a law enforcement operation that uncovered a network of black market cryptocurrency launderers and unlicensed money transmitters. The same investigation has resulted in the conviction of three individuals and charges against an additional three individuals. 

According to the superseding indictment, between 2020 and mid-2023, nine defendants and their co-conspirators worked together to pick up bulk cash, derived from drug sales in various cities throughout the United States. They would then coordinate to exchange the cash for cryptocurrency that was sent to wallets controlled by the defendants or their co-conspirators. The cryptocurrency would then be converted into cash and delivered to cartel leaders in Mexico and Colombia.

As alleged in court documents, Nilson Sneyder Vasquez Duarte, a/k/a “Sobri,” a/k/a “Sobrino,” (Duarte), 34, and co-conspirators coordinated the delivery of cash and cryptocurrency to black market cryptocurrency exchangers, including to Hernan Horacio Richard Samper (Samper), 59, Maria Eugenia Landeros Rosas, a/k/a “Yeni,” (Landeros), 52, Raimundo Carlos Rodriguez Huter (Huter), 40, Mayccol Hejeile Morales (Morales), 36, and Hernan Julian Calvo Bueno (Calvo Bueno), 34. Sergio Fernando Vargas Alvarez (Alvarez), 37, Juan Carlos Riano Muentes (Riano), 36, Jesus Ivan Rincon Martinez (Rincon), 45, Morales, and Calvo Bueno also acted as couriers, physically transporting the cash between U.S. cities.

All nine defendants are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of the operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business. Duarte, Landeros, Huter, Rincon, Morales, Calvo Bueno, and Alvarez are also charged with substantive money laundering counts. 

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami, Acting Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Hipkins of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS CI), Miami Field Office, and Sheriff Gregory Tony of the Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) made the announcement.

HSI, IRS CI, and BSO are investigating the case under the El Dorado Task Force.

Senior Litigation Counsel Michael N. Berger and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nalina Sombuntham for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul Schwartz and Jeffrey Kaplan prosecuted prior related cases. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jorge R. Delgado is handling asset forfeiture.

An indictment is 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 an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

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-20367.

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MIAMI – On Nov. 15, Conrad Brandon Bernard, 24, pled guilty in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to committing bank fraud and identity theft during a scheme to fraudulently obtain over $1 million in Covid-19 relief loans and unemployment compensation payments. 

During the COVID-19 outbreak, the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program was utilized to provide loan assistance to small businesses and other eligible entities in need. The U.S. Department of Labor's unemployment insurance programs were created to provide unemployment benefits to eligible workers who become unemployed through no fault of their own and meet certain other eligibility requirements.

Beginning as early as in or around May 2020 and continuing through on or about December 2022, Bernard carried out a scheme to defraud the EIDL and unemployment insurance programs. Bernard fraudulently applied for fourteen EIDLs using the name and personal identifying information (PII) of other individuals without their knowledge or consent. Once the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) approved the fraudulent loan applications, the SBA transferred the EIDL funds to various bank accounts at Bernard’s direction. Bernard opened and operated these accounts with the name and PII of other individuals without those individuals’ knowledge or consent. Bernard then transferred those funds from the bank accounts to other accounts under his control including various accounts he created using the name and PII of other individuals without their knowledge or consent. 

Bernard also transferred or withdrew fraudulently obtained unemployment benefit funds from bank accounts he opened and operated using the name and PII of other individuals without their knowledge or consent. These unemployment benefits were paid from several states, including West Virginia and Arizona. The unemployment benefit funds were fraudulently obtained because the name and PII of other individuals were used to apply for the unemployment benefits without those individuals’ knowledge or consent. In all, Bernard fraudulently obtained $1,083,340 in EIDL funds and unemployment benefits.

During the investigation, law enforcement also discovered that Bernard possessed numerous false identifications including counterfeit passport cards, false Florida driver’s licenses and identification cards, the means to create false identification, and the PII of several thousand individuals including their names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers. 

Bernard is scheduled to be sentenced on February 5, , 2025, before U.S. District Judge William P. Dimitrouleas in Fort Lauderdale. He faces up to 30 years in prison for the bank fraud convictions, to be followed by a mandatory consecutive term of 2 years in prison for the aggravated identity theft conviction. 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, U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg for the Middle District of Florida, Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Conklin of the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Miami Field Office, and Sheriff Gregory Tony of the Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) made the announcement.

The DSS Miami Field Office and BSO investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Deric Zacca from the Southern District of Florida and Assistant U.S. Attorney Suzanne Nebesky from the Middle District of Florida are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mitchell Hyman is handling asset forfeiture.

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.

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-60168.

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MIAMI – On Nov. 8, a federal jury convicted Lazaro Verdecia Hernandez, 37, and Yadier Rodriguez Arteaga, 41, both of Miami, of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and money laundering, in connection with a scheme to obtain fraudulent loans under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Verdecia was also convicted of wire fraud.

Verdecia and co-conspirator Heidi Cid submitted over 63 fraudulent PPP loan applications. In the loan paperwork, they made the applicants appear eligible for pandemic relief by falsifying the number of the companies’ employees and included forged documents. As a result of the fraudulent submissions, lenders disbursed over 14.5 million dollars to bank accounts controlled by the individuals, who then withdraw the money and gave Verdecia, Cid, and Hernandez their cut. Co-conspirator Cid previously pled guilty for her involvement in the scheme and is pending sentencing.

Verdecia and Arteaga are scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 3, 2025, before U.S. Senior District Judge Robert N. Scola. Verdecia and Arteaga face up to 20 years in prison on the conspiracy and fraud counts and ten years on the money laundering counts. Verdecia faces up to 20 years in prison on the substantive wire fraud count of conviction. 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, Special Agent in Charge Rafael Barros for the U. S. Secret Service (USSS), Special Agent in Charge Edwin S. Bonano for the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General (FHFA OIG), and Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General (SBA OIG), Eastern Region, made the announcement.

USSS Miami and FHFA OIG investigated the case with the assistance of SBA OIG. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Haggerty and Eli Rubin are prosecuting the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Klco is handling asset forfeiture.

The following cases were previously charged in relation to the fraud scheme:

• U.S. v. Roberto Lopez, Kenia Carrillo, Lester Hedman Safont, Oreste Ruiz Linares, Honolio Navarro Caballero, Barbara Alvarez, Javier Pico, Alfredo Contrera, and Erisbel Gonzalez Gomez, Case No. 22-cr-20368; 

• U.S. v. Nancy Bahos Serna, Case No. 23-cr-20310 (This case is being prosecuted by AUSA Daniel Bernstein.);

• U.S. v. Jorge Trueba Lopez, Case No. 21-cr-20382;

• U.S. v. Nancy Saavedra Torres, Case No. 21-cr-20225;

• U.S. v. Giraldo Caraballo, Case No. 21-cr-20264;

• U.S. v. Felix Martinez and Yailin Perez, Case No. 21-cr-20276;

• U.S. v. Yoliesse Sarmiento Carrion, Case No. 22-cr-20530;

• U.S. v. Osiel Rodriguez Furgel, Case No. 21-cr-20251; and

• U.S. v. Leonardo Gonzalez Lopez, Case No. 23-cr-20113.

Each of the aforementioned defendants pled guilty, except for Javier Pico and Erisbel Gonzalez Gomez who are fugitives.

In March 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was enacted. It was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Among other sources of relief, the CARES Act authorized and provided funding to the SBA to provide Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) to eligible small businesses, including sole proprietorships and independent contractors, experiencing substantial financial disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic to allow them to meet financial obligations and operating expenses that could otherwise have been met had the disaster not occurred.  EIDL applications were submitted directly to the SBA via the SBA’s online application website, and the applications were processed and the loans funded for qualifying applicants directly by the SBA.

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 Sep. 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. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please click here.

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 number 23-cr-20421.

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MIAMI — George Semerene Quintero (Semerene), 61, of Venezuela, was sentenced today to 30 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and for his role in a scheme to evade U.S. sanctions imposed on Petróleos de Venezuela S.A. (PdVSA), a Venezuelan state-owned oil company.

“Today, George Semerene Quintero was held accountable in a U.S. court of law for conspiring to circumvent economic sanctions and export controls to aid Nicolás Maduro’s regime in Venezuela in obtaining critical aircraft parts from America,” said U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida. “The prosecution of Semerene reflects our steadfast commitment to holding those who violate sanctions accountable and to vigorously enforcing export controls to protect our nation’s security. Together, with the Bureau of Industry and Security and our law enforcement partners, the U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to ensure that the integrity and intent of U.S. sanctions are preserved.”

“Today, the defendant George Semerene Quintero, is being held accountable for his role in a brazen scheme to illegally funnel American aircraft parts to service planes used by Maduro and his cronies,” said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “The Justice Department is committed to enforcing the sanctions imposed on the Maduro regime and will not tolerate those who violate the law and undermine our national security.”

“Semerene conspired to illegally procure critical parts from U.S. companies to supply the PdVSA aircraft fleet and tried to hide the transactions through third parties in other countries like Spain and Costa Rica,” said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). “Now, the only procurement he’ll be doing is at the prison commissary.”

According to court documents, between January 2019 and December 2021, after learning of the sanctions imposed on PdVSA, Semerene and his co-conspirators devised a scheme to illegally procure aircraft parts, including bearings, rudder parts, joint slide flexes and actuators, from the United States to service PdVSA’s aircraft fleet in Venezuela, in violation of U.S. sanctions and export controls. Semerene, who was an employee in PdVSA’s procurement department, and his co-conspirators concealed from U.S. companies that the requested parts were destined for Venezuela and PdVSA by utilizing third parties in other countries, including a company in Costa Rica, Novax Group SA, and a company in Spain, Aerofalcon SL, to serve as the purported purchasers and end users for the aircraft parts. Semerene and his co-conspirators carried out this scheme by causing the third-party companies to (1) lie to U.S. parts suppliers; (2) make false declarations on customs forms and shipping documents; (3) fabricate supplier invoices; and (4) provide false end-user certificates. Semerene and his co-conspirators utilized freight forwarders and shipping companies located in the Southern District of Florida to move the parts.

The indictment charging Semerene and nine co-defendants, including three other individuals associated with PdVSA, was unsealed in April, following Semerene’s arrest upon his arrival in the United States. Semerene pleaded guilty on Aug. 20.

BIS investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Stratton for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Ahmed Almudallal of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section (CES) prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria Medetis, Chief of the National Security Section for the Southern District of Florida, and CES Deputy Chief Matthew McKenzie provided valuable assistance during the investigation.

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 21-cr-20589.

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MIAMI – On Nov. 7, Joseph Christopher Copeland, 57, was sentenced to 264 months in federal prison, to be followed by ten years’ supervised release, by U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon, for possessing with the intent to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine.

Copeland imported 8.9929 kilograms of fentanyl from Mexico to his residence in Sebring, Fla., using a vehicle with hidden compartments. The Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Highlands County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant on Copeland’s residence, and discovered the fentanyl partially unloaded from the vehicle, along with 111.6 grams of methamphetamine, and two firearms.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida; Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of the HSI, Miami Field Office, and Highlands County Sheriff Paul Blackman made the announcement.

HSI Fort Pierce and Highlands County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Hudock 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-14017.

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MIAMI — A Miami man pleaded guilty yesterday for his role in a multimillion-dollar international bribery and money laundering scheme.

According to court documents, John Christopher Polit, 43, a former banker, laundered the bribe proceeds paid for the benefit of his father, Carlos Ramon Polit Faggioni, the former Comptroller General of Ecuador, through the U.S. financial system and into various investments in South Florida. From approximately 2010 to 2015, Carlos Polit solicited and received bribe payments from Odebrecht S.A., the Brazil-based construction conglomerate, in exchange for using his official position to remove fines and not impose fines in order to benefit Odebrecht and its business in Ecuador. Additionally, Carlos Polit received a bribe from an Ecuadorian businessman in or around 2015 in exchange for assisting the businessman and his company in connection with certain contracts from the state-owned insurance company of Ecuador.

Between approximately 2010 and 2018, John Polit helped his father launder these bribe proceeds. John Polit caused the bribe proceeds to “disappear” by layering transactions through Panamanian accounts of intermediary companies and using Florida companies registered in the names of certain associates. John Polit used the laundered funds from his father’s bribery scheme to purchase and renovate real estate in South Florida and elsewhere and to purchase restaurants, a dry cleaner, and other businesses.

John Polit pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 30, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

On Oct. 1, Carlos Polit was sentenced to 10 years in prison following his April trial conviction.

Odebrecht S.A. pleaded guilty in December 2016 to conspiring to violate the anti-bribery provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in connection with a broader scheme to pay nearly $800 million in bribes to public officials in 12 countries, including Ecuador.

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; and Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami made the announcement.

The HSI Miami Field Office’s El Dorado Task Force is investigating this case. The FBI’s International Corruption Squad investigated the Odebrecht case and provided substantial assistance in this case.

The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also provided substantial assistance. The Justice Department thanks Ecuadorian law enforcement authorities for their assistance with the investigation.

Senior Litigation Counsel Michael N. Berger for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Jil Simon and Assistant Chief Alexander Kramer of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting FCPA and Foreign Extortion Prevention Act matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.

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-20390.

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A Miami man pleaded guilty yesterday for his role in a multimillion-dollar international bribery and money laundering scheme.

According to court documents, John Christopher Polit, 43, a former banker, laundered the bribe proceeds paid for the benefit of his father, Carlos Ramon Polit Faggioni, the former Comptroller General of Ecuador, through the U.S. financial system and into various investments in South Florida. From approximately 2010 to 2015, Carlos Polit solicited and received bribe payments from Odebrecht S.A., the Brazil-based construction conglomerate, in exchange for using his official position to remove fines and not impose fines in order to benefit Odebrecht and its business in Ecuador. Additionally, Carlos Polit received a bribe from an Ecuadorian businessman in or around 2015 in exchange for assisting the businessman and his company in connection with certain contracts from the state-owned insurance company of Ecuador.

Between approximately 2010 and 2018, John Polit helped his father launder these bribe proceeds. John Polit caused the bribe proceeds to “disappear” by layering transactions through Panamanian accounts of intermediary companies and using Florida companies registered in the names of certain associates. John Polit used the laundered funds from his father’s bribery scheme to purchase and renovate real estate in South Florida and elsewhere and to purchase restaurants, a dry cleaner, and other businesses.

John Polit pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 30, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

On Oct. 1, Carlos Polit was sentenced to 10 years in prison following his April trial conviction.

Odebrecht S.A. pleaded guilty in December 2016 to conspiring to violate the anti-bribery provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in connection with a broader scheme to pay nearly $800 million in bribes to public officials in 12 countries, including Ecuador.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. 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 Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami made the announcement.

The HSI Miami Field Office’s El Dorado Task Force is investigating this case. The FBI’s International Corruption Squad investigated the Odebrecht case and provided substantial assistance in this case.

The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also provided substantial assistance. The Justice Department thanks Ecuadorian law enforcement authorities for their assistance with the investigation.

Trial Attorney Jil Simon and Assistant Chief Alexander Kramer of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Senior Litigation Counsel Michael N. Berger for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section is responsible for investigating and prosecuting FCPA and Foreign Extortion Prevention Act matters. Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.

MIAMI – A Florida man pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme that generated over $7 million in fraudulent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) renewable fuels credits and sought over $6 million in fraudulent tax credits connected to the purported production of biodiesel.

According to court documents, Royce Gillham was the general manager of a biofuel company based in Fort Pierce, Fla., that produced and sold renewable fuel and fuel credits and claimed to turn various feedstocks into biodiesel. When reporting the number of gallons produced to the IRS and EPA, Gillham and his employer vastly overstated their production volume in an effort to generate more credits. When auditors sought more information from the company, Gillham and his co-conspirators provided false information about their fuel production and customers.

Gillham pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud and to filing false claims. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy count. A federal district court judge will determine whether to accept the plea agreement after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Hipkins of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Leslie Carroll of the EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID) made the announcement.

IRS-CI and EPA-CID investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Funk for the Southern District of Florida and Senior Trial Attorney Adam Cullman of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section are 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-14046.

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MIAMI – On Nov. 1, Michael John Pellicione, 76, the owner of a Port St. Lucie gun shop who operated out of his residence, was arraigned on a federal indictment charging him with 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.

According to allegations contained in court documents filed in this matter, 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.

If convicted of the charged offense, Pellicione faces up to five years’ imprisonment.

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.

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 http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-14055.

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Defendant Caused a Tax Loss to the United States of more than $9.5M

MIAMI – A Ukrainian national pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

According to the court documents and statements made in court, between April 2008 and July 2021, Oleksandr Yurchyk and others owned and operated a series of labor-staffing companies in southern Florida, including Paradise Choice LLC, Paradise Choice Cleaning LLC, Tropical City Services LLC and Tropical City Group LLC. Through these staffing companies, Yurchyk and others 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 federal income and employment taxes. Yurchyk and his co-defendants also laundered more than $11 million of proceeds from their scheme.

Yurchyk is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 27, 2025. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the conspiracy to commit money laundering and five years in prison for the conspiracy to defraud the United States. 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 Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

Homeland Security Investigations and IRS Criminal Investigation are investigating the case.

Senior Litigation Counsel Christopher J. Clark for the Southern District of Florida and Sean Beaty and Trial Attorneys Matthew B. Hicks and Wilson R. Stamm of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.

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United States Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida announced today that the Justice Department will monitor compliance with federal voting rights laws in Broward County and Miami-Dade County for the Nov. 5 general election.

The Justice Department enforces federal voting rights laws that protect the rights of all eligible citizens to access the ballot. The department regularly deploys its staff to monitor for compliance with federal civil rights laws in elections in communities all across the country.

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will coordinate the effort. Monitors will include Justice Department personnel, who will contact state and local election officials as needed throughout Election Day.

The Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section enforces the civil provisions of federal statutes that protect the right to vote, including the Voting Rights Act, National Voter Registration Act, Help America Vote Act, Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act and Civil Rights Acts. The division’s Disability Rights Section enforces the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to ensure that persons with disabilities have a full and equal opportunity to vote. The division’s Criminal Section enforces federal criminal statutes that prohibit voter intimidation and voter suppression based on race, color, national origin or religion.

On Election Day, Civil Rights Division personnel will be available all day to receive questions and complaints from the public related to possible violations of federal voting rights laws. Reports may be made through the department’s website www.civilrights.justice.gov or by calling toll-free at 800-253-3931.

Individuals with questions or complaints related to the ADA may call the department’s toll-free ADA information hotline at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY) or submit a complaint through a link on the department’s ADA website at www.ada.gov.

Complaints related to any disruptions at a polling place should always be reported to local election officials (including officials based in the polling place). Complaints related to violence, threats of violence or intimidation at a polling place should be reported immediately to local police authorities by calling 911. These complaints should also be reported to the department after local authorities have been contacted.

More information about voting and elections, including guidance documents and other resources, is available at www.justice.gov/voting. Learn more about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws at www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.

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MIAMI – During an initial hearing in Miami on Oct. 30, an Illinois resident was ordered detained on charges that he threatened a federal judge in the Southern District of Florida. 

According to allegations in the six-count indictment, Eric James Rennert, 55, of Champaign, Illinois, transmitted threats to kidnap and injure a U.S. judge and the family of the federal judge, and threatened to assault, kidnap and murder a U.S. judge, with the intent to impede, intimidate, and interfere with the judge’s ability to perform official duties and with the intent to retaliate against the federal judge. 

If convicted of interstate transmission of threats, Rennert faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison on each count. If convicted of threatening to assault, kidnap and murder a U.S. judge, Rennert faces up to 10 years in prison on each count. If Rennert is convicted, 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 investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elena Smukler and U.S. Capitol Police Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Wheeler III are prosecuting this matter. 

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 no. 24-cr-20425.

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MIAMI – Yesterday, Daniel Fleureme, 56, of Miami-Dade County, a former Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department (MDCRD) Corrections Officer, pled guilty to wire fraud for defrauding a COVID-19 relief program by fraudulently obtaining an Economic Injury Disaster Loan from the U. S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who were suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. One source of relief provided by the CARES Act were Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) to eligible small businesses experiencing substantial financial disruptions. These EIDLs were provided directly to borrowers by the SBA.

On July 27, 2020, Fleureme, while he was employed full-time by MDCRD as a Corrections Officer, submitted to the SBA a false and fraudulent EIDL application claiming to be the 100% owner of a sole proprietorship operating under the company legal and DBA names of “Daniel Fleureme.” In this fraudulent application, Fleureme claimed that he had owned the business since its creation on Feb. 15, 2017, and stated that the business had three employees as of Jan. 31, 2020. Fleureme’s EIDL application also falsely certified that for the 12-month period prior to Jan. 31, 2020, his sole proprietorship had gross revenues of $450,000 and a cost of goods sold of only $97,000. As a result of this fraudulent EIDL application, Fleureme received approximately $150,000 in EIDL proceeds from the SBA.

He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 7, 2025, at 11:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez in Miami. Fleureme faces up to 20 years in prison for the wire fraud conviction. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Markenzy Lapointe and Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, Inspector General Felix Jimenez of the Miami-Dade County Office of Inspector General (M-DC OIG), and Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General (SBA OIG), Eastern Region, made the announcement.

The FBI’s Miami Area Corruption Task Force, which includes task force officers from the M-DC OIG, working in conjunction with SBA OIG, investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward N. Stamm is prosecuting the case.

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 number 24-cr-20407.

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MIAMI – Yesterday afternoon, Darnell Mendez, 36, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, by U. S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg. Mendez and his girlfriend, Samantha Yi, previously pled guilty to federal offenses resulting from a long-term joint investigation by the Boynton Beach Police Department (BBPD), the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) following the death of a 10-month-old infant in Boynton Beach, Fla. who had ingested fentanyl. Yi is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 9, 2025, and faces a minimum mandatory sentence of at least twenty years in prison.

On March 31, 2022, PBSO responded to a 911 call of an infant in distress. The infant was transported to Bethesda Hospital East in Boynton Beach with her mother. On April 1, 2022, the baby was transferred to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood, Fla. On April 5, 2022, the baby died. An autopsy conducted by the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner determined that the baby’s death was caused by fentanyl intoxication and that her manner of death was a homicide.

The BBPD conducted a homicide investigation during which law enforcement recovered fentanyl at the baby’s home. The investigation determined that the baby’s mother and father were addicts and had been abusing fentanyl regularly in the kitchen of their apartment. The investigation also determined that the baby was teething and ingested fentanyl on March 31, 2022, while in the care of her mother, and while her father was at work. The mother was arrested by the BBPD and charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child by culpable negligence.

DEA joined the investigation to identify the drug dealers that were responsible for the distribution of the fentanyl that killed the baby. Through data and information retrieved from the mother’s cellphone, law enforcement was able to identify Yi as the drug dealer. The investigation uncovered months of electronic communications exchanged between Yi and the mother involving drug transactions in which the mother was the customer. The investigation further determined that Yi’s boyfriend, Mendez was also involved in the distribution of fentanyl. Investigators were able to determine that on March 30, 2022, the mother met with Yi in Boynton Beach to purchase fentanyl, and that fentanyl was ingested by the baby resulting in her death.

As part of the joint investigation, DEA, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), BBPD, and PBSO conducted an operation involving two undercover officers who purchased fentanyl from Yi and Mendez. The undercover operation culminated in the arrests of Yi and Mendez on March 6, at their residence in Lake Worth, where law enforcement discovered 14 firearms. As part of their pleas, Yi and Mendez admitted being felons unlawfully in possession of firearms.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter of the DEA, Miami Field Division, Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the ATF, Miami Field Division, Chief Joe DeGiulio of BBPD, and Sheriff Ric Bradshaw of PBSO announced the sentencing.

The Office of State Attorney Dave Aronberg for the 15th Judicial Circuit – Palm Beach County provided invaluable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam McMichael and Shannon O’Shea Darsch 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 24-cr-80041.

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MIAMI – On Oct. 29, five men, Carlos Manuel Velazquez Gomez, 43, David Martinez, 53, Juan Antonio Rivera Velasquez, 45, Onasis Lisandro Garcia, 49, and Richard John Sydney-Smith, 62, had their initial appearances on their respective federal criminal complaints which charge the defendants with conspiring to possess with intent to distribute over 150 kilograms of cocaine.

On Oct. 27, Sydney-Smith and Garcia were traveling on a boat 2 miles east of Port Everglades, when they were intercepted by the U.S. Coast Guard and found to be transporting over 150 kilograms of cocaine. The investigation further yielded the arrests of Rivera Velasquez, Velazquez Gomez, and Martinez on Oct. 28, who were waiting in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. for the cocaine delivery.

Pre-trial detention hearings have been scheduled in these matters for Nov. 1 and Nov. 4.

U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Markenzy Lapointe and Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami, made the announcement.

HSI Miami investigated this case with invaluable assistance from the U.S. Coast Guard and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) Air and Marine Units. Assistant U.S. Attorney Latoya C. Brown is prosecuting it. 

A criminal complaint contains allegations. 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 numbers 24-mj-6500, 24-mj-6501, 24-mj-6502, 24-mj-6504, and 24-mj-6505.

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MIAMI – A felon in possession of a firearm was sentenced to 144 months in prison, following a shooting at the Palm Beach Gardens Mall (The Gardens Mall) on Valentine’s Day.

Yesterday, U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon imposed an upward variance in sentencing Devon Jamal Graham, 29, to 144 months in prison. Graham previously pled guilty to possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon, possession with the intent to distribute a controlled substance containing fentanyl and cocaine, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

Kamarcio Mitchell, 29, a second man who was arrested following the shooting at The Gardens Mall, is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 21 at 9:30 a.m. before Judge Cannon in Fort Pierce, Fla. Mitchell previously pled guilty to possession of a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon, and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

On Feb. 14, both Mitchell and Graham were at The Gardens Mall, both separately in possession of a firearm. Mitchell was on the second level of The Gardens Mall near a retail store. Mitchell followed Graham onto the escalator and was manipulating an object under his shirt. Mitchell was then fired upon by Graham and shot. Mitchell fled the mall to the parking lot, leaving a trail of blood. A loaded firearm that had been disassembled was found in the parking lot by police, near the blood trail. Mitchell was later treated for his injury at a local hospital. Upon his later arrest on a federal warrant, authorities discovered Mitchell in possession of a distribution quantity of fentanyl after he unsuccessfully tried to toss the drugs.

Two firearms were recovered from the vehicle Graham used to travel to the mall, along with a bag containing 35 capsules with a mixture containing fentanyl and a pill bottle with approximately 16 grams of cocaine.

The recovered firearms had previously travelled in interstate commerce.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Christopher A. Robinson of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, U.S. Marshal Gadyaces S. Serralta of the U.S. Marshals Service, Chief Dominick Pape of the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department, and Sheriff Ric Bradshaw of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office announced the sentencing.

The Office of State Attorney Dave Aronberg for the 15th Judicial Circuit – Palm Beach County provided invaluable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorneys John McMillan and Shannon O’Shea Darsch are prosecuting 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-80022.

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MIAMI – Today, Miami resident Gustavo Alfonso Castano Restrepo, 55, appeared before a U.S. Magistrate Judge on an indictment charging him with kidnapping resulting in death. 

According to the unsealed indictment, on or about May 30, 2016, in Miami-Dade County, in the Southern District of Florida, and elsewhere, Restrepo, did willfully and unlawfully seize, confine, inveigle, decoy, kidnap, abduct, and carry away and hold a person, that is, Liliana Moreno, for reward and otherwise, and did use a means, facility, and instrumentality of interstate commerce, that is, a cellular telephone, the internet, a motor vehicle, and the Homestead Extension of Florida's Turnpike, in the commission and in furtherance of the offense. The kidnapping resulted in the deaths of Liliana Moreno and Daniella Moreno.

Restrepo is currently being detained, following today’s hearing in Miami. A pre-trial detention hearing in Miami Magistrate Court is scheduled for Nov. 1.

If Restrepo is convicted of the charged offense, the mandatory minimum sentence is life in prison and the maximum penalty is death.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, Chief Edwin Lopez of the Doral Police Department, and Director Stephanie V. Daniels of the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD) made the announcement.

FBI Miami, the Doral Police Department, MDPD, and FBI’s South Florida Violent Crime/Fugitive Task Force are investigating this matter.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Dwayne Williams is prosecuting the case.

Anyone with information about this matter or any other federal crime is urged to contact the FBI by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or filing a report at tips.fbi.gov.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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-20463

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MIAMI - Today, Martinez Builders Supply, LLC, d/b/a East Coast Truss (ECT), a Florida limited liability company, pled guilty in federal court in Fort Pierce to conspiring to harbor aliens by means of employment. On Aug. 29, Kelly Yanira Del Valle (Del Valle), a former employee of ECT, also pled guilty to conspiring to harbor aliens by means of employment, as well as filing false tax returns and aiding the filing of false tax returns. As part of their guilty pleas, ECT agreed to a forfeiture judgment in the amount $450,000, and Del Valle agreed to a forfeiture judgment in the amount $100,000 and to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the amount of $100,146.   

As part of the plea documents filed with the Court, ECT and Del Valle admitted that several of ECT’s officers and employees, including Del Valle, conspired to harbor aliens by means of employment from June 1, 2018, through Aug. 6, 2021. Specifically, in June 2018, Del Valle, who was employed by ECT at the time, the president and managing member of ECT, and an officer manager at ECT, met at ECT and agreed to “transfer” certain aliens employed by ECT, who were not authorized to work in the United States, to Hollys Services, a company set up by Del Valle, so that they would no longer appear on ECT’s payroll. ECT agreed to pay Del Valle a fee for each alien on Hollys Services’ payroll that worked at ECT. Del Valle agreed to recruit and hire additional aliens to work for ECT, who were not authorized to work in the United States, under the guise of Hollys Services, and later Quality Control. Hollys Services and Quality Control were formed by Del Valle for the express purpose of concealing, harboring, and shielding aliens who worked at ECT from detection by law enforcement. These actions were in response to an Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9 audit conducted by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in May 2018 that identified dozens of ECT employees that were aliens not authorized to work in the United States. Specifically, on or about June 18, 2018, several of the employees HSI identified during its Form I-9 audit, a mechanism used to verify the identity and legal authorization to work of all paid employees in the U.S., were transferred from ECT’s payroll yet continued to work for ECT, while purportedly being employed and paid by Hollys Services, and later Quality Control.

During the conspiracy, ECT, through its agents acting within the scope of their employment, transferred over $1,150,000 to a bank account set up by Del Valle in the name of Hollys Services, and $2,200,000 to a bank account Del Valle set up in the name of Quality Control.  Some of the transferred funds were earmarked for the express purpose of paying the aliens who worked at ECT.

On Aug. 6, 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at ECT’s headquarters in Saint Lucie County, Fla., and discovered 28 of the 58 employees present to be aliens who were not authorized to work in the United States.

On a date to be determined, U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon will sentence ECT and Del Valle in Fort Pierce.  Del Valle faces a possible maximum sentence of 16 years in federal prison.  ECT faces up to five years of probation, and a maximum fine of $500,000, or twice the gross loss or twice the gross gain caused by the offense, whichever is greater. Judge Cannon will determine ECT and Del Valle’s sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami, and Special Agent in Charge Matthew D. Line of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS CI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement. 

The HSI Fort Pierce and IRS CI Miami Field Office investigated the case. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael D. Porter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Klco 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 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 https://www.flsd.uscourts.gov/ or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov under case numbers 24-cr-14019 and 24-cr-14035.

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