Southern District of Florida

Miami, Fl. – Rewards are being offered for information leading to the arrest or conviction of three former Venezuelan officials who for years have failed to personally  appear in the Southern District of Florida to face publicly-filed federal drug trafficking charges.

U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan for the Southern District of Florida, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Keith Weis of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

Pedro Luis Martin-Olivares, 53, the former Chief of Economic Intelligence of the Venezuelan Intelligence Service (Servicio Bolivariano de Inteligencia Nacional (SEBIN)), was indicted in April 2015 by a federal grand jury sitting in Miami.  Martin-Olivares is charged with distributing more than five kilograms of cocaine knowing that it would be unlawfully imported into the United States, possessing with the intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine on board an aircraft registered in the United States, and conspiring with others to import more than five kilograms of cocaine.  (Case No. 15-cr-20299). 

Rodolfo McTurk-Mora, 58, the former head of Interpol in Venezuela, was indicted in April 2013, by a Miami federal grand jury. McTurk-Mora is charged with conspiring to import more than five kilograms of cocaine into the United States and with conspiring with others to corrupt and impede the South Florida federal prosecution of (now-convicted) narcotics trafficker Jaime Alberto Marin Zamora by delaying and preventing Marin Zamora’s extradition from Venezuela to the United States.  According to allegations in court records, through his official position as the head of Interpol, McTurk-Mora solicited bribes from traffickers arrested in Venezuela to prevent their extradition to the United States.   (Case No. 13-cr-20930).

Jesus Alfredo Itriago, 62, the former Chief of Counter-narcotics of a main criminal investigative agency in Venezuela (Cuerpo de Investigaciones Científicas, Penales y Criminálisticas (CICPC)), was indicted on January 31, 2013, by a federal grand jury sitting in Miami on a charge of conspiring with others to import more than five kilograms of cocaine into the United States. (Case No. 13-cr-20050).

The U.S. Department of State, through its Narcotics Rewards Program, is offering rewards for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of each defendant as follows: up to $10 million for Martin-Olivares, up to $5 million for McTurk-Mora, and up to $5 million for Itriago.

“Corrupt Venezuelan officials who lined their pockets by protecting drug traffickers from detection and arrest enabled the entry of enormous amounts of dangerous drugs into the U.S., threatening the well-being of our nation,” said U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan.  “Whether they are former or current Venezuelan officials, whether they committed their crimes years ago or yesterday, whether we catch them tomorrow, months, or years from now, I promise one thing: The Department of Justice and its law enforcement partners will not rest until these criminals are brought to justice in the U.S.”

“The walls are closing in for Martin-Olivares, McTurk-Mora, and Itriago, all of whom face significant drug trafficking charges in the Southern District of Florida.” said DEA Miami Field Division Acting Special Agent in Charge Keith Weis.  “The rewards for information leading to their whereabouts and capture will add another significant level of pressure used by our investigators and prosecutors tasked with bringing them to justice.”

DEA Miami investigated these cases. The International Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida is prosecuting them.  

These were Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigations.  The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, and other priority transnational criminal organizations that threaten the citizens of the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence driven, multi-agency approach to combat transnational organized crime.  The OCDETF program facilitates complex, joint operations by focusing its partner agencies on priority targets, by managing and coordinating multi-agency efforts, and by leveraging intelligence across multiple investigative platforms.

In March of this year, the Department of Justice announced drug trafficking, corruption, narco-terrorism, and other criminal charges against Nicolas Maduro Moros and 14 Current and Former Venezuelan Officials, including charges filed by prosecutors in the Southern District of Florida. See press release: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/nicol-s-maduro-moros-and-14-current-and-former-venezuelan-officials-charged-narco

Anyone with information that may lead to the arrest and/or conviction of these fugitives can email the DEA at [email protected], or message the DEA at 1-202-681-8187 using text messages, WhatsApp, or Signal.  Government officials and employees are not eligible for rewards. 

An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until found guilty.

You may find related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Miami, Fl. – Recompensas están siendo ofrecidas por información que lleve al arresto o convicción de tres ex-funcionarios Venezolanos quienes durante años no han cumplido con asistir en persona a sus comparecencias iniciales en el Distrito Sur de Florida para enfrentar los cargos federales de narcotráfico presentados públicamente.

La Fiscal Federal Ariana Fajardo Orshan del Distrito Sur de Florida, y el Agente Especial a Cargo Interino Keith Weis de la Sucursal de Miami de la Administración para el Control de Drogas (DEA, por sus siglas en Inglés), hicieron el anuncio.

Pedro Luis Martin-Olivares, 53, el ex-Jefe de la Inteligencia Económica del Servicio de Inteligencia de Venezuela (Servicio Bolivariano de Inteligencia Nacional (SEBIN)), fue enjuiciado en Abril de 2015 por un gran jurado federal en Miami.  Martin-Olivares fue acusado de distribuir más de cinco kilogramos de cocaína sabiendo que iban a ser importados ilegalmente a los Estados Unidos, poseer con la intención de distribuir más de cinco kilogramos de cocaína a bordo de un avión registrado en los Estados Unidos, y conspirar con otros para importar más de cinco kilogramos de cocaína.  (Número de caso 15-cr-20299). 

Rodolfo McTurk-Mora, 58, el ex-Jefe de la Interpol en Venezuela, fue enjuiciado en Abril de 2013, por un gran jurado federal en Miami.  McTurk-Mora es acusado de conspirar para importar más de cinco kilogramos de cocaína en los Estados Unidos y de conspirar con otros para corromper e impedir el enjuiciamiento federal en el Sur de Florida del (ahora convicto) narcotraficante Jaime Alberto Marín Zamora retrasando e impidiendo la extradición de Marín Zamora de Venezuela a los Estados Unidos.  Conforme con las alegaciones en los registros de la corte, haciendo uso de su posición como jefe de la Interpol, McTurk-Mora solicitó sobornos de traficantes arrestados en Venezuela para impedir su extradición a los Estados Unidos.  (Número de caso 13-cr-20930).

Jesús Alfredo Itriago, 62, el ex-Jefe de Antinarcóticos de la agencia principal de investigación criminal en Venezuela (Cuerpo de Investigaciones Científicas, Penales y Criminálisticas (CICPC)), fue enjuiciado el 31 de Enero de 2013, por un gran jurado federal en Miami por cargos de conspirar con otros para importar más de cinco kilogramos de cocaína a los Estados Unidos.  (Número de caso 13-cr-20050).

El Departamento de Estado de los Estados Unidos, a través del Programa de Recompensas de Narcóticos, está ofreciendo recompensas por información que lleve al arresto y/o la convicción de cada uno de los acusados del siguiente modo:  hasta $10 millones por Martin-Olivares, hasta $5 millones por McTurk-Mora, y hasta $5 millones por Itriago.

“Codiciosos y corruptos funcionarios venezolanos quienes han aceptado sobornos por proteger narcotraficantes de ser descubiertos y arrestados, han permitido la entrada de enormes cantidades de peligrosas drogas a los Estados Unidos, amenazando el bienestar de nuestra nación,” dijo la Fiscal Federal Fajardo Orshan.  “Ya sean ex-funcionarios o funcionarios Venezolanos actuales, ya sea que hayan cometido los crímenes años atrás o el día de ayer, ya sea que los arrestemos mañana, en meses, o en años, yo les prometo una cosa: El Departamento de Justicia y sus agencias asociadas no descansarán hasta que la justicia Americana recaiga en estos criminales.”

“Las paredes se están cerrando para Marin-Olivares, McTurk-Mora, y Itriago, quienes enfrentan cargos de narcotráfico significativos en el Distrito Federal del Sur,” dijo el Agente Especial a Cargo Interino Keith Weis de la Sucursal de Miami de la Administración para el Control de Drogas.  “Las recompensas por información que lleve a su paradero y captura agregará otro nivel de presión significativo usado por nuestros investigadores y abogados fiscales encargados de que la justicia recaiga en ellos.”

DEA Miami investigó el caso.  La Unidad Internacional de Narcóticos y Lavado de Dinero de la Oficina del Fiscal Federal del Distrito Sur de Florida está enjuiciandolo.

En Marzo de este año, el Departamento de Justicia anunció narcotráfico, corrupción, narcoterrorismo, y otros cargos criminals en contra de Nicolás Maduro Moros y de 14 Ex-funcionarios y funcionarios actuales Venezolanos, incluyendo cargos presentados por abogados fiscales en el Distrito Sur de Florida.  Véase el comunicado de prensa: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/nicol-s-maduro-moros-and-14-current-and-former-venezuelan-officials-charged-narco

Cualquier persona que tenga información que lleve al arresto y/o convicción de estos fugivitivos pueden enviar un correo electrónico a [email protected], o enviar un mensaje a la DEA a 1-202-681-8187 via mensaje de texto, WhatsApp, o Signal.  Funcionarios y empleados del gobierno no son elegibles para recibir recompensas.

Una denuncia criminal contiene alegaciones. Todo acusado es considerado inocente hasta que se demuestre su culpabilidad. 

Usted puede encontrar información y documentos legales relacionados a este comunicado de prensa en la página web del Tribunal Federal del Distrito Sur de Florida, www.flsd.uscourts.gov o en http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov

Miami, Fl. – Two men have made their initial appearances in the Southern District of Florida on charges that they participated in an alien smuggling ring that involved   kidnapping and torturing Cuban nationals and extorting victims’ family members for money.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI’s Miami Field Office, and Anthony Salisbury, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s, Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Miami Field Office, made the announcement. 

The criminal complaint affidavits filed in the Southern District of Florida against Reynaldo Marquez Crespo, 41, and Jancer Sergio Ramos Valdes, 33, allege the following: Defendants tricked their victims into believing that they were going to smuggle them from Cuba into the United States. Instead, Crespo, Valdes, and their co-conspirators transported the victims by boat to Merida, Mexico, locked them in a house, and held them captive for ransom. Crespo, Valdes, and others commanded each victim to provide contact information for a family member who could pay a $10,000 ransom. The men contacted the victims’ relatives, some of whom were located in Miami, and threatened to torture, starve, and kill the victims if the relatives refused to pay.  If a victim’s relative was able to pay the ransom, Crespo, Valdes, and others released the victim and sent that person by bus to the Mexican-United States border with instructions to seek political asylum. When victims’ relatives could not pay, those migrants were beaten, threatened with knives and firearms, and shocked with stun guns, according to the complaint affidavits.

Valdes was arrested in Connecticut, where a federal magistrate judge ordered him detained pending trial. Crespo was arrested in Texas. Both defendants were brought to Miami to face their charges. Yesterday, they made their initial appearances in the Southern District of Florida before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman. Crespo’s pretrial detention hearing is set for September 28, 2020, at 1:00 p.m., in federal magistrate court in Miami.

These charges are the result of ongoing efforts of the Operation Sisyphus Task Force, a multi-agency partnership established by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Priority Transnational Organized Crime Program.  The Operation Sisyphus Task Force was formed to combat Caribbean based organized crime and includes the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, FBI Miami and HSI Miami.  In recent years, the Operation Sisyphus Task Force has targeted organizations utilizing coercion and extortion to compel migrants and their families to make payments for the release of loved ones. 

Operation Sisyphus is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, and other priority transnational criminal organizations that threaten the citizens of the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence driven, multi-agency approach to combat transnational organized crime.  The OCDETF program facilitates complex, joint operations by focusing its partner agencies on priority targets, by managing and coordinating multi-agency efforts, and by leveraging intelligence across multiple investigative platforms.

FBI Miami and HSI Miami investigated this matter.  Assistant United States Attorney Quinshawna Landon is prosecuting the case. Assistant United States Attorneys Adrienne Rosen and Annika Miranda are handling asset forfeiture. 

If you believe you are a victim of migrant coercion or extortion or know someone who is, you are encouraged to call 1-800-CALLFBI (225-5324). You may also call 1-866-347-2423 or visit https://www.ice.gov/tipline. Help is available in English, Spanish, and additional languages.

A criminal complaint is an accusation and the statements it contains and referred to here are allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until found guilty.

You may find related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case nos. 20-mj-3346 and 20-mj-3347.

Miami, Fl. – U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal has sentenced 61-year-old Michael Jerome Atkins, a former Florida resident, to five years in federal prison for defrauding a now 68-year-old former schoolteacher out of $425,447.14 -- all of her retirement money. The judge also ordered Atkins to pay that amount back to his victim, as restitution.  

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

According to court records, Atkins and his victim met while the victim was working as a schoolteacher. Atkins convinced her to retire, drain from her retirement account all of the money she had saved during years of work, and invest that money into Atkins’ Fort Lauderdale-based company -- All Points Aviation and Associates. Atkins promised the victim that he would use the money for his business and that he would repay her within two months. The victim agreed. In 2015, she directed her retirement account management company to disburse the money, which it did in three checks. Each check was made to the joint order of the victim and All Points Aviation and Associates. Without the victim’s authorization, Atkins had the largest check endorsed with the victim’s signature.  All three checks were deposited into a bank account that he controlled.  Atkins used the victim’s retirement money to pay for his own personal expenses and never repaid her. The retired schoolteacher had not heard from Atkins since 2016, when he left South Florida.  

In March 2019, Atkins pled guilty to fraud and identity theft charges, admitting that he devised a scheme to defraud the victim of her entire retirement savings, over $400,000.

FBI Miami investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Lois Foster-Steers prosecuted it. 

Combatting elder abuse and financial fraud targeted at seniors is a key priority of the Department of Justice. The mission of the Department’s Elder Justice Initiative is to support and coordinate the Department’s enforcement and programmatic efforts to combat elder abuse, neglect and financial fraud and scams that target our nation’s seniors. To learn more visit https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice.  The public is encouraged to report victimization and suspected fraud schemes by calling the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD 11 (1-833- 372-8311).  

You may find related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case no. 18-cr-60207.

Miami, Fl. – Dos hombres hicieron su comparecencia inicial en el Distrito Sur de Florida por cargos de tráfico de inmigrantes, los cuales implican secuestro y tortura de Cubanos y extorsión de dinero a los familiares de las víctimas.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, Fiscal Federal del Distrito Sur de Florida, George L. Piro, Agente Especial a Cargo, Oficina Federal de Investigaciones (FBI, por sus siglas en Inglés), Sucursal de Miami, y Anthony Salisbury, Agente Especial a Cargo, Agencia de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas de los Estados Unidos, Agencia de Investigaciones de Seguridad Nacional (ICE-HSI, por sus siglas en Inglés), Sucursal de Miami, hicieron el anuncio.

La declaración jurada de la denuncia criminal presentada en el Distrito Sur de Florida contra Reynaldo Marquez Crespo, 41, y Jancer Sergio Ramos Valdés, 33, alega lo siguiente: Los acusados hicieron creer a sus víctimas que iban a hacerlos entrar clandestinamente a los Estados Unidos provenientes de Cuba.  En lugar de eso, Crespo, Valdés, y sus cómplices transportaron a las víctimas en bote a Mérida, México, los encerraron en una casa, y los mantuvieron cautivos para exigir rescate.  Crespo, Valdés, y otros ordenaron a cada víctima a dar los datos de algún familiar que pudiera pagar un rescate de $10,000.  Los hombres contactaron a los familiares de las víctimas, algunos de los cuales estaban localizados en Miami, y amenazaron con torturar, privar de comida, y matar a las víctimas si los familiares se rehusaban a pagar.  Si uno de los familiares de las víctimas podía pagar el rescate, Crespo, Valdés, y los otros liberaban a la víctima y la mandaban en bus a la frontera entre México y los Estados Unidos con instrucciones para buscar asilo político.  Cuando los familiares no podían pagar el rescate, los inmigrantes eran golpeados, amenazados con cuchillos y pistolas, y electrocutados con pistolas paralizantes hasta que las autoridades Mexicanas los rescataron, conforme con la declaración jurada de la denuncia criminal.

Valdés fue arrestado en Connecticut, donde un juez magistrado federal ordenó su detención en espera del juicio.  Crespo fue arrestado en Texas.  Los dos acusados fueron trasladados a Miami para enfrentar sus cargos. Esta semana, los acusados hicieron su comparecencia inicial en el Distrito Sur de Florida ante el Juez Magistrado Federal Jonathan Goodman.  La audiencia de detención preventiva de Crespo ha sido fijada el 28 de Septiembre de 2020 a la 1:00 p.m., en el tribunal federal magistrado de Miami.

Estos cargos son el resultado del continuo esfuerzo de la Operación “Grupo Operativo Sisyphus”, una asociación de múltiples agencias establecida por el Grupo Operativo de Control del Delito de Drogas (OCDETF, por sus siglas en Inglés) Programa de Prioridad del Delito Transnacional Organizado. La Operación “Grupo Operativo Sisyphus” fue formada para combatir crímenes organizados en el Caribe, la cual incluye a la Oficina del Fiscal Federal del Distrito Sur de Florida, a la Sucursal de Miami de la Oficina Federal de Investigaciones (FBI) y a la Sucursal de Miami de la agencia de Investigaciones de Seguridad Nacional (HSI).  En los últimos años, la Operación “Grupo Operativo Sisyphus” se ha enfocado en organizaciones que utilizan coerción para obligar a inmigrantes y a sus familias a pagar sumas de rescate por la liberación de sus seres queridos.

La Operación Sisyphus es parte de una investigación del Grupo Operativo de Control del Delito de Drogas (OCDETF). La misión principal del programa OCDETF es identificar, interrumpir, y desmantelar a los narcotraficantes de alto nivel, lavadores de dinero, y otras organizaciones de criminales transnacionales de prioridad que amenazan a los ciudadanos de los Estados Unidos utilizando un enfoque guiado por fiscales, conducido con inteligencia, y constituido de múltiples agencias para combatir el crímen transnacional organizado.  El programa OCDETF facilita operaciones conjuntas y complejas enfocando a sus agencias asociadas en sus objetivos prioritarios, manejando y coordinando el esfuerzo de múltiples agencias, y potenciando inteligencia a través de múltiples plataformas de investigación.

FBI Miami y HSI Miami investigaron este caso.  La abogada fiscal Quinshawna Landon es la abogada acusadora en el caso.  Las abogadas fiscales Adrienne Rosen y Annika Miranda están encargadas del decomiso de los bienes. 

Si usted cree que es una víctima de coerción o extorsión de inmigrantes o conoce a alguien que lo es, le sugerimos llamar al 1-800-CALLFBI (225-5324).  Usted también puede llamar al 1-866-347-2423 o visitar https://www.ice.gov/tipline.  Se ofrece ayuda en Inglés, Español, y en otros idiomas.

Una denuncia criminal contiene alegaciones. Todo acusado es considerado inocente hasta que se demuestre su culpabilidad. 

Usted puede encontrar información y documentos legales relacionados a este comunicado de prensa en la página web del Tribunal Federal del Distrito Sur de Florida, www.flsd.uscourts.gov o en http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, bajo los números de casos 20-mj-3346 y 20-mj-3347.

Miami, Florida – U.S. District Judge Rodolfo Ruiz, who sits in Ft. Lauderdale, sentenced 50-year-old Richard Allen Ellis, Jr., of Hollywood, Florida, to 20 months in prison for accepting bribes from a contractor. Ellis worked as a supervisor for the Physical Plant Operations Division of the Broward County School Board when he committed the crimes.        

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

According to court records, one of Ellis’ job duties at the School Board was to process work orders for repairs to the grounds of public schools in Broward County.  Ellis assigned projects to contractors, ensured that they adequately performed the work, and authorized payment when the work was done. In May 2018, Ellis accepted four bribe payments totaling more than $6,000 from the representative of a contractor who had done repair work for the School Board. In exchange for the bribes, Ellis agreed to keep the repair work flowing to the contractor and to fast-track payments of the contractor’s invoices.  In 2018, part of the School Board’s operating budget came from federal funds.       

On July 13, 2020, Ellis pled guilty to four counts of bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds.

FBI Miami investigated the case and received substantial cooperation from the School Board of Broward County. Assistant U.S. Attorney Cynthia R. Wood 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 19-cr-60369.

Miami, Fl. – Federal prosecutors have charged 23-year-old twin brothers Devon Cooke and Donavan Cooke, of Miami Gardens, with carjacking and kidnapping after they allegedly abducted and assaulted a man in an attempt to collect ransom money.    

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

According to the criminal complaint affidavit unsealed today, the Cooke brothers’ victim drove to the twins’ home in Miami Gardens on September 15, 2020, to collect money.  When the victim arrived, the Cooke brothers -- already on house arrest for murder and attempted murder charges -- are alleged to have assaulted the victim, snatched his car keys, and dragged him out of the car and into their house. According to the complaint, the brothers bound the victim to a chair, wrapping his arms and legs with duct tape. The complaint states that the brothers beat the victim, used a knife to cut his face and toes, and wrapped a dog leash around the victim’s neck, choking him to the point of unconsciousness.

The complaint also alleges that the Cooke brothers threatened to kill the victim if he did not come up with ransom money and that a witness heard the victim plead for his life. With one of the brothers alleged to have been holding a gun to the victim’s head, the victim made a phone call. He instructed the person who answered to collect cash, a Rolex, and other jewelry from the victim’s room, place it in a bag, and drive to a location the Cooke brothers selected. While that person did as the victim asked, an armed accomplice of the Cooke brothers arrived at the defendants’ home, loaded the victim into his car, and transported the victim to the exchange spot, according to the complaint. Once there, the victim fled the car and the Cooke brothers’ accomplice drove off with the ransom.  

An investigation led law enforcement officers to the Cooke twins.  Inside their home, FBI agents found duct tape, a dog collar, ammunition, and other items. 

The Cooke brothers are in federal custody.  They made their initial appearance today in Miami federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Becerra, who detained them for a future hearing.  Each brother faces up to 15 years in federal prison on the carjacking charge, and life in prison on the kidnapping charge.

FBI Miami and its FBI Miami Violent Crime Task Force investigated the case, in collaboration with the Miami Gardens Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dayron Silverio and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Gilfarb.

A criminal complaint contains allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until found guilty.

You may find related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case no. 20-mj-03653.

Miami, Fl. -- South Florida federal prosecutors have charged a 41-year-old Georgia woman with fraud and identity theft crimes for allegedly leading a scam that tricked over 250 elderly South Floridians into turning over their credit cards, debit cards, and related personal identification numbers.  According to the charges, defendant and her co-conspirators used the cards and PINs to steal over $1 million.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Brian Swain, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, and Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (PBSO), made the announcement.

According to the allegations in the criminal complaint affidavit, over approximately four years starting in 2016, Edtronda Simon, of Fayette County, Georgia, ran an elder fraud scheme that generally operated as follows: Simon would cold-call elderly victims in South Florida, pretend to be from the fraud department of each senior’s bank, and convince the seniors that their accounts had been compromised, which was false. Once a senior seemed convinced, Simon would offer to send a “bank representative” to the elderly victim’s home to exchange any compromised credit or debit card with a new one, says the complaint. Usually with Simon still on the call trying to persuade the senior to verify a PIN number, a co-conspirator would arrive at the victim’s home, take the victim’s credit or debit card, and promise to return with a new one (which, of course, never happened), according to the complaint affidavit. The co-conspirators allegedly would use the seniors’ credit cards, debit cards, and PINs to withdraw cash from ATMs, purchase money orders, and otherwise drain money from the accounts as quickly as possible – before real bank fraud representatives caught on to the illegal activity.

The complaint charges that through this scheme, Simon and her co-conspirators duped over 250 seniors from Broward, Palm Beach, St. Lucie, Indian River and other South Florida counties into turning over debit cards, credit cards, and related information.  They defrauded banks of over $1 million, says the complaint affidavit.   

In a separate case filed earlier this year in the Southern District of Florida (case no. 20-cr-80037), prosecutors charged six of Simon’s co-conspirators for their involvement in this elder fraud scheme: Shaumbrica Stubbs, Luclesse Vernesse, Samuel Charles, Ian Felder, Diedre Dixon, and Shaquille Robinson, all Florida residents.  Stubbs and Charles have pleaded guilty.  

Simon had her initial appearance on September 17, 2020, before a federal magistrate judge in Georgia, where law enforcement officers arrested her. Other proceedings will take place in federal court in West Palm Beach, Florida, where the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed the charges of access device fraud, bank fraud, and aggravated identity theft against Simon.

“Elder fraud targets some of the most vulnerable members of our community,” said U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan. “People who steal from seniors while pretending to help them are the worst kind of criminal because they exploit human trust. We will vigorously prosecute such cases in order to protect the integrity of our financial systems, and to prevent financial and emotional losses to those who can least afford them.”

USSS Miami and PBSO are handling the investigation, along with federal task force officers from the Coral Springs Police Department, Pembroke Pines Police Department, and Plantation Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan Rhee Osborne of the Southern District of Florida is prosecuting the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chris Huber, Russell Phillips, Jolee Porter, and Alex Sistla of the Northern District of Georgia provided substantial assistance.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan explained that this was a team effort not just for law enforcement, but for prosecutors as well. “We could not have located and arrested Edtronda Simon without the exceptional assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia,” she said.

Combatting elder abuse and financial fraud targeted at seniors is a key priority of the Department of Justice. The mission of the Department’s Elder Justice Initiative is to support and coordinate the Department’s enforcement and programmatic efforts to combat elder abuse, neglect and financial fraud and scams that target our nation’s seniors. To learn more visit https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice.  The public is encouraged to report victimization and suspected fraud schemes by calling the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD 11 (1-833- 372-8311).  

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Related court documents and information appear 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 20-mj-8241.

Attachments:

Complaint against Simon

Charges against co-conspirators

MIAMI – Texas resident Uzoamaka Leonard Ohaebosim, 46, has been charged in the Southern District of Florida with federal bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution after allegedly lying about his movie company’s payroll expenses and obtaining $1.2 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds.  

Ohaebosim was arrested in Texas and made his initial appearance in federal court there today. Authorities have seized the money.     

U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Kyle Myles of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Office of Inspector General (OIG), Office of Investigation’s Atlanta Regional Office, Eastern Regional Office, Gary Smith, Special-Agent-in-Charge, Southern Field Division, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), Special Agent in Charge Michael J. De Palma of the IRS-Criminal Investigation (CI) Miami Office, and Special Agent in Charge Kevin A. Kupperbusch of the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA)-OIG, Investigations Division made the announcement.

The criminal complaint alleges that Ohaebosim sought approximately $1.2 million in PPP loans through applications to an insured financial institution.  The complaint alleges that Ohaebosim submitted a PPP loan application that made numerous false and misleading statements regarding his company’s payroll expenses.  Specifically, as part of the loan application,  Ohaebosim allegedly provided a false IRS payroll tax form indicating that his company, Spite the Movie, LLC (“STM”), had over 100 employees who had received wages of approximately $983,000 with taxes withheld of approximately $122,000 in the first quarter of 2020.  In truth, and in fact, STM had not paid these employees and had not filed this form with the IRS.  Relying on this false IRS form, the financial institution in South Florida approved and funded approximately $1.2 million in PPP loans.  Law enforcement has seized these funds.   

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal law enacted March 29.  It is designed to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act is the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  Businesses must use PPP loan proceeds for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spend the proceeds on these expenses within a set time period and use at least a certain percentage of the loan towards payroll expenses.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a  court of law. 

This case was investigated by the FDIC-OIG, TIGTA, IRS-CI, and the SBA-OIG.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Berger of the Southern District of Florida is prosecuting the case. 

Related court documents and information appear 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. 20-cr-03573.

MIAMI -- South Florida federal prosecutors have charged 51-year-old Jose Angel Aman, of Washington D.C., with wire fraud, for allegedly operating a fraudulent diamond investment scheme.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

According to the allegations of a criminal information, from May 2014 through May 2019, Aman and his partners solicited people throughout the United States and Canada to invest in diamond contracts.  It is alleged that Aman and his partners promised investors that they would use their money to purchase rough colored diamonds, which Aman would cut, polish and resell at a profit. They reassured investors that their money was safe because it was secured by Aman’s inventory of diamonds (purportedly valued at $25 million). Aman and his partners presented the investment as a high return, no risk deal.

These promises and statements were  false.  According to the information, Aman rarely used investors’ money to purchase rough diamonds. He never cut, polished and resold rough diamonds. Nor did Aman have a $25 million diamond  inventory. To conceal the fraud from investors, Aman allegedly made purported interest payments to investors by using new investors’ money to pay earlier ones.  According to the charging document, at the end of the investment period, Aman and the partners would convince the investors to roll over their money by falsely claiming that the investors had the full value of their investments to put into new deals.  They allegedly provided sham “Reinvestment Contracts” to the investors,  a tactic they  used to buy time until Aman could locate new investors and additional money. 

It is alleged that when this scheme was about to collapse, Aman set up a new business, Argyle Coin, LLC, which was purportedly in the business of developing a cryptocurrency token backed by diamonds.  Aman solicited new investors for Argyle, promising high rates of return with no risk.  Aman allegedly used only a fraction of the money received from Argyle investors to develop a cryptocurrency token, instead using most of it to pay purported interest payments to the earlier investors and to benefit himself and his partners, according to the charging document.  

During the course of the Ponzi scheme, Aman and his partners collected over $25 million from hundreds of investors. Aman allegedly used the money to make purported interest payments to investors, to pay business expenses, to pay commissions to the partners, and to support his own lavish lifestyle.

Aman made his initial appearance this week before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart, who sits in West Palm Beach.  This matter was investigated by FBI West Palm Beach, with assistance from the Florida Office of Financial Regulation.  AUSA Adrienne Rabinowitz is prosecuting this case.

A criminal information is a charging document that makes allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until found guilty.

Related court documents and information appear 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. 20-cr-80062.

Complaint Charges Defendant with Fraudulently Obtaining $1.2 Million in Relief Funds and Spending Money at South Florida Hotel and Casino and on Dior, Gucci, and other Designer Items  

MIAMI – Federal prosecutors have charged NFL player Joshua J. Bellamy for his alleged participation in a scheme to file fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $24 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

 U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Michael J. De Palma of the IRS-Criminal Investigation (CI) Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of FBI’s Miami Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Kevin A. Kupperbusch of the U.S. SBA-Office of Inspector General (OIG), Investigations Division, Eastern Regional Office, made the announcement.

 Bellamy, 31, of St. Petersburg, Florida, a player in the National Football League (NFL), was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.  Bellamy was arrested this morning and appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher Tuite of the Middle District of Florida.

 The complaint alleges that Bellamy conspired with others to obtain millions of dollars in fraudulent PPP loans.  Early in the scheme, Phillip J. Augustin allegedly obtained a fraudulent PPP loan for his talent management company using falsified documents.  After submitting that application, Augustin then began to work with other co-conspirators, including Bellamy, on a scheme to submit numerous fraudulent PPP loan applications for confederate loan applicants, in order to receive kickbacks for obtaining the forgivable loans for them. 

 Bellamy is alleged to have obtained a PPP loan of $1,246,565 for his own company, Drip Entertainment LLC.  Bellamy allegedly purchased over $104,000 in luxury goods using proceeds of his PPP loan, including purchases at Dior, Gucci, and jewelers.  He is also alleged to have spent approximately $62,774 in PPP loan proceeds at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, and to have withdrawn over $302,000.  Bellamy also allegedly sought PPP loans on behalf of his family members and close associates.

 The complaint alleges that the scheme involved the preparation of at least 90 fraudulent applications, most of which were submitted.  Augustin, Bellamy, and other conspirators in the scheme are alleged to have applied for PPP loans that are together worth more than $24 million dollars.  Many of those loan applications were approved and funded by financial institutions, paying out at least $17.4 million.

 This case was investigated by the IRS-CI Miami and Cincinnati Field Offices, the FBI’s Miami and Cleveland Field Offices, and the SBA-OIG.  Assistant U.S. Attorney David Turken of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Philip Trout of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.  AUSA Nicole Grosnoff is handling asset forfeiture. The Justice Department also acknowledges and thanks the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General for their assistance investigating this matter.

 Charges against ten other defendants allegedly involved in this scheme have been made public, including the following charges filed in the Southern District of Florida:   

• Tiara Walker, 37, of Miami Gardens, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on September 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida, with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. AUSA David Snider and Trial Attorney Philip Trout are prosecuting the case.  
• Damion O. Mckenzie, 38, of Miami Gardens, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.  AUSA David Turken and Trial Attorney Philip Trout are prosecuting the case.  
• Andre M. Clark, 46, of Miramar, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. AUSA David Turken and Trial Attorney Philip Trout are prosecuting the case.  
• Keyaira Bostic, 31, of Pembroke Pines, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.  AUSA David Turken and Trial Attorney Philip Trout are prosecuting the case.

The CARES Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be entirely forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated period of time after receiving the proceeds and uses a certain amount of the PPP loan proceeds on payroll expenses. 

 A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

 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 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 related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov. 

A National Football League (NFL) player has been charged for his alleged participation in a scheme to file fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $24 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Michael J. De Palma of the IRS-Criminal Investigation (CI) Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of FBI’s Miami Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Kevin A. Kupperbusch of the U.S. SBA-Office of Inspector General (OIG), Investigations Division, Eastern Regional Office, made the announcement.

Joshua J. Bellamy, 31, of St. Petersburg, Florida, a player in the NFL, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.  Bellamy was arrested this morning and will appear today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher Tuite of the Middle District of Florida.

The complaint alleges that Bellamy conspired with others to obtain millions of dollars in fraudulent PPP loans.  Early in the scheme, Phillip J. Augustin allegedly obtained a fraudulent PPP loan for his talent management company using falsified documents.  After submitting that application, Augustin then began to work with other co-conspirators, including Bellamy, on a scheme to submit numerous fraudulent PPP loan applications for confederate loan applicants, in order to receive kickbacks for obtaining the forgivable loans for them. 

Bellamy is alleged to have obtained a PPP loan of $1,246,565 for his own company, Drip Entertainment LLC.  Bellamy allegedly purchased over $104,000 in luxury goods using proceeds of his PPP loan, including purchases at Dior, Gucci, and jewelers.  He is also alleged to have spent approximately $62,774 in PPP loan proceeds at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, and to have withdrawn over $302,000.  Bellamy also allegedly sought PPP loans on behalf of his family members and close associates.

The complaint alleges that the scheme involved the preparation of at least 90 fraudulent applications, most of which were submitted.  Augustin, Bellamy, and other conspirators in the scheme are alleged to have applied for PPP loans that are together worth more than $24 million dollars.  Many of those loan applications were approved and funded by financial institutions, paying out at least $17.4 million.

The other 10 defendants allegedly involved in this scheme whose complaints were previously unsealed are the following:

• Tiara Walker, 37, of Miami Gardens, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Sept. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida, with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud; 
   
• Damion O. Mckenzie, 38, of Miami Gardens, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud;
   
• Andre M. Clark, 46, of Miramar, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud;
   
• Keyaira Bostic, 31, of Pembroke Pines, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud;
   
• Phillip J. Augustin, 51, of Coral Springs, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on July 28, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, and obstruction;
   
• Wyleia Nashon Williams, 44, of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on July 28, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud;
   
• James R. Stote, 54, of Hollywood, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on June 24, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud;
   
• Ross Charno, 46, of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on June 24, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud;
   
• Deon D. Levy, 50, of Bedford, Ohio, was charged in a federal complaint filed on June 8, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud; and
   
• Abdul-Azeem Levy, 22, of Cleveland, Ohio was charged in a federal complaint filed on June 8, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The CARES Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be entirely forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated period of time after receiving the proceeds and uses a certain amount of the PPP loan proceeds on payroll expenses. 

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case was investigated by the IRS-CI Miami and Cincinnati Field Offices, the FBI’s Miami and Cleveland Field Offices, and the SBA-OIG.  Trial Attorney Philip Trout of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Turken for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.  The Justice Department also acknowledges and thanks the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General for their assistance investigating this matter.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Miami, Fl. -- South Florida federal prosecutors have charged 28-year-old Brandon Kevin Campbell with cyberstalking after he allegedly made repeated threats by telephone call and text message to injure or kill his victims, including a former girlfriend.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

From April 1, 2019 through mid-May 2020, Campbell allegedly called his former girlfriend’s cellular telephone over 850 times, her workplace approximately 2,000 times, and her sister’s workplace approximately 1,700 times. At the start of many of these calls, Campbell used a telephone number blocking technique (*67) to try to conceal his identity, according to the complaint. 

During telephone calls and in text messages, Campbell allegedly threatened his former girlfriend with statements such as: “Ima kill you you f***ing smut,” “I can’t wait till you die,” “I can’t wait to watch your soul leave your body,” and “Before your bday on my momma ima watch the blood leave your body, b***h.” The criminal complaint alleges that Campbell also harassed and threatened persons close to his former girlfriend, including her sister, her friend, and her co-workers. In one text message to the sister, Campbell allegedly wrote: “I’m at your house I swear to god ima kill [your sister] …Watch she dead.”  During a telephone conversation with a friend of his former girlfriend, Campbell allegedly threatened the following: “Police cannot save you. Promise. You going to die. Promise.” Finally, during phone calls to his former girlfriend’s workplace, Campbell threatened to show up, shoot everyone inside, then kill himself, according to the criminal complaint. The FBI learned about the threats and began investigating Campbell after receiving a tip through the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center. 

Campbell appeared today in Miami federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lauren Fleischer Louis, who detained him pending trial.  Campbell faces up to five years in federal prison.

FBI Miami investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Yara Klukas is prosecuting it.

You may find related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case no. 20-mj-03509.

Miami, Fl. -- Federal prosecutors have charged two Florida residents with bank fraud conspiracy for allegedly using synthetic identities to commit crimes, including defrauding banks and stealing over $3 million from Covid-19 relief programs.  

Synthetic identities combine real (albeit stolen) identity information, such as stolen social security numbers, with fraudulent identity information, such as fake names and dates of birth. Criminals create these synthetic identities and use them to open fraudulent bank and credit card accounts, and to make fraudulent purchases.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Kyle A. Myles, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General – Investigations (FDIC-OIG), Atlanta Region, Brian Swain, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, Kevin A. Kupperbusch, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General (SBA-OIG), Investigations Division, Eastern Region, Rod Owens, Special Agent in Charge, Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General, Antonio J. Gomez, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Miami Division, and James S. Jackson, Deputy Inspector General for Investigations, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) made the announcement.

According to the criminal complaint affidavit, beginning around 2017, Jean Fleuridor, 41, of Broward County, Florida and Hasan Brown, 44, of Miami-Dade County, Florida, and their co-conspirators were involved in a scheme to defraud a bank located in San Antonio, Texas. They used approximately 700 synthetic identities, in addition to stolen identities, to create bank accounts and shell companies. According to the criminal complaint, fraudulent payments were made from accounts registered to synthetic identities to accounts registered to defendants Brown and Fleuridor.

From about April through July of 2020, members of the conspiracy allegedly utilized the already-established synthetic identities and associated shell companies to fraudulently apply for assistance under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a program established under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act to help small businesses financially survive the pandemic. According to the complaint, the defendants fraudulently sought and received over $3 million dollars in PPP relief.  This money was paid to companies registered to the synthetic identities.

Defendant Fleuridor had his initial appearance on August 26, 2020, and defendant Brown had his initial appearance on August 28, 2020, both before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alicia M. Otazo-Reyes. A copy of the criminal complaint and affidavit is attached to this release.

FDIC-OIG, USSS Miami, SBA-OIG, SSA-OIG, USPIS, and TIGTA are handling the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke Watson, of the Southern District of Florida, is prosecuting the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole S. Grosnof, also of the Southern District of Florida, is handling asset forfeiture. Trial Attorney Louis Manzo, from the Department of Justice, Criminal Division, Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Elbert, of the Eastern District of New York, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Trenton Reichling, of the Middle District of Florida, provided assistance.

In March 2020, the CARES Act was enacted. It was designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP. In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be entirely forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated time after receiving the proceeds and uses a certain amount of the PPP loan proceeds on payroll expenses.  

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Related court documents and information appear 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. 20-mj-03472-AOR.

Attachment

Criminal complaint and affidavit

Miami, Fl. -- Two Florida neighbors were charged in a complaint unsealed today with wire fraud and false statements for their alleged participation in a scheme to file fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $1.1 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. 

U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) J. Russell George, Inspector General Hannibal “Mike” Ware of the SBA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), and Inspector in Charge Antonio Gomez of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Miami Division made the announcement.

Latoya Stanley, 38, and Johnny Philus, 33, both of Miami, Florida, were charged in a complaint filed in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud and false statements. Both individuals were arrested this morning and appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alicia M. Otazo-Reyes in Miami. 

The complaint alleges that Stanley and Philus submitted four fraudulent applications for over $1.1 million.  In her PPP application, Stanley claimed to employ 18 individuals from her company, Dream Gurl Beauty Supply LLC.  In the EIDL application, Stanley claimed to generate over $800,000 in income and employed five individuals from a farm based in the yard of her Miami home.  Philus, meanwhile, stated that he employed 29 individuals at his company, Elegance Auto Boutique LLC.  In his EIDL application, Philus claimed to generate $400,000 in income and employed ten individuals from a farm located in the yard of a small residential home.

In actuality, the complaint alleges that Stanley and Philus employed no one and the farms did not exist. Stanley and Philus, who are neighbors, allegedly worked together to effectuate the fraud and ultimately received over $1 million in fraudulent funds before their schemes were uncovered.

The CARES Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small-businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of 1 percent.  PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal on the PPP loan to be forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated period of time after receiving the proceeds and uses at least a certain percentage of the PPP loan proceeds on payroll expenses. 

The EIDL program is designed to provide economic relief to small businesses that are currently experiencing a temporary loss of revenue.  EIDL proceeds can be used to cover a wide array of working capital and normal operating expenses, such as continuation of health care benefits, rent, utilities and fixed debt payments.  If an applicant also obtains a loan under the PPP, the EIDL funds cannot be used as the same purpose as the PPP funds.    

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case was investigated by the SBA-OIG, USPIS, and TITGA.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke Watson for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Louis Manzo of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and are prosecuting the case.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

 

Two Florida neighbors were charged in a complaint unsealed today with wire fraud and false statements for their alleged participation in a scheme to file fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $1.1 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. 

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) J. Russell George, Inspector General Hannibal “Mike” Ware of the SBA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), and Inspector in Charge Antonio Gomez of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Miami Division made the announcement.

Latoya Stanley, 38, and Johnny Philus, 33, both of Miami, Florida, were charged in a complaint filed in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud and false statements. Both individuals were arrested this morning and appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alicia M. Otazo-Reyes in the Southern District of Florida. 

The complaint alleges that Stanley and Philus submitted four fraudulent applications for over $1.1 million.  In her PPP application, Stanley claimed to employ 18 individuals from her company, Dream Gurl Beauty Supply LLC.  In the EIDL application, Stanley claimed to generate over $800,000 in income and employed five individuals from a farm based in the yard of her Miami home.  Philus, meanwhile, stated that he employed 29 individuals at his company, Elegance Auto Boutique LLC.  In his EIDL application, Philus claimed to generate $400,000 in income and employed ten individuals from a farm located in the yard of a small residential home.

In actuality, the complaint alleges that Stanley and Philus employed no one and the farms did not exist. Stanley and Philus, who are neighbors, worked together to effectuate the fraud and ultimately received over $1 million in fraudulent funds before their schemes were uncovered.

The CARES Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small-businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of 1 percent.  PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal on the PPP loan to be forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated period of time after receiving the proceeds and uses at least a certain percentage of the PPP loan proceeds on payroll expenses. 

The EIDL program is designed to provide economic relief to small businesses that are currently experiencing a temporary loss of revenue.  EIDL proceeds can be used to cover a wide array of working capital and normal operating expenses, such as continuation of health care benefits, rent, utilities and fixed debt payments.  If an applicant also obtains a loan under the PPP, the EIDL funds cannot be used as the same purpose as the PPP funds.    

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case was investigated by the SBA-OIG, USPIS, and TITGA.  Trial Attorney Louis Manzo of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke Watson for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Miami, Fl. – A federal judge in Miami sentenced Roberto Murillo, 44, of North Port, Florida, to 105 months in prison for his role in a massive health care fraud and wire fraud scheme involving fraudulent physical therapy claims. Senior U.S. District Judge Patricia A. Seitz imposed the sentence, which came after a Miami jury found Murillo guilty in January 2020 of all counts charged, including conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, and several counts of health care fraud.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

The evidence at trial revealed that during the illegal scheme, Murillo had a legitimate job at a Miami telecommunications call center, and he received private insurance coverage through that job. As part of the fraud, Murillo used his position to recruit dozens of his colleagues, many of whom who he knew were suffering various financial and personal hardships, to Friv MD, PLLC, a fraudulent Miami physical therapy clinic in exchange for cash bribes.  Murillo also forced family members living under his roof to allow Murillo and his co-conspirators to use their insurance information to submit additional fraudulent claims.  The clinic, in turn, submitted over $16 million in claims to United Healthcare for services that were not performed or not medically necessary. 

Trial evidence established that Murillo’s role in the lengthy scheme did not stop at recruiting others to Friv MD.  Murillo also instructed the recruited “patients” to fill out paperwork for dates they did not receive services, to describe ailments they did not have to the therapists at the clinic, and to lie when questioned by investigators about the illegal scheme.  In some instances, Murillo also failed to pay the cash that he had promised to give recruited “patients” in exchange for their signatures, keeping it instead for himself.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anne P. McNamara and Fraud Section Trial Attorney Drew Bradylyons.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrienne E. Rosen handled 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 No. 19-CR-20436-PAS.

Cooperation efforts between United States and Turks and Caicos Islands law enforcement authorities culminated in today’s extradition to the United States of a Canadian national who has been charged with alien smuggling offenses.

Sri Kajamukam Chelliah, aka “Mohan,” 55, is charged in a criminal complaint, unsealed today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, with conspiracy to bring aliens to the United States and to encourage and induce aliens to come to, enter, or reside in the United States for commercial advantage and private financial gain, and attempting to bring aliens to the United States for commercial advantage and private financial gain. 

“The defendant allegedly facilitated a smuggling operation by attempting to transport aliens through various countries, including the United States, for financial gain,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.  “This case demonstrates the department’s commitment to working with our foreign law enforcement partners to prosecute human smugglers who seek to thwart our system of legal immigration, jeopardize our national security, and risk the lives of people who face the dangers of maritime smuggling.”

“Human smugglers not only violate our country’s immigration laws and threaten our national security, they also put in jeopardy the very lives of the people they transport,” said U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan for the Southern District of Florida.  “Alongside its local, national, and foreign partners, my office is firmly committed to prosecuting members of international criminal organizations and others who try to profit from this callous activity.”

“Transnational Criminal Organizations use human smuggling as a means for profit while at the same time threatening the security of the United States” said Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami.  “HSI will continue to work with our international law enforcement partners to target criminal organizations who conspire to undermine our nation’s laws for their own profit.”

According to the complaint, Chelliah is alleged to have attempted to facilitate the travel of aliens from Sri Lanka through Haiti, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the Bahamas to the United States from on or about July 1, 2019 to Oct. 10, 2019.  On Oct. 10, 2019, Turks and Caicos Island authorities interdicted a Haitian sloop sailboat carrying Chelliah and 154 aliens, including 28 Sri Lankan nationals.  Chelliah was arrested on local immigration charges and later sentenced.  Following the completion of his prison sentence, he was placed in immigration detention in Turks and Caicos.  U.S. law enforcement determined Chelliah and others allegedly made arrangements to smuggle numerous Sri Lankan aliens to Canada through the United States for monetary payments.

Chelliah was arrested on July 28, 2020, by Turks and Caicos authorities, based on a provisional arrest request submitted by the United States. He consented to extradition and, on Aug. 15, 2020, the Governor of Turks and Caicos issued an order allowing the extradition to the United States. 

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

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Rami S. Badawy and John Alex-Romano of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section (HRSP), and Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Dobbins of the Southern District of Florida.  HRSP Trial Attorney Jim Hepburn provided substantial assistance during the investigation.  The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in the investigation and in securing the defendant’s extradition to the United States.  The Department of Justice gratefully acknowledges the government of Turks and Caicos Islands for their valuable assistance.

The charges contained in the Chelliah complaint are merely allegations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

MIAMI – Alvaro Y. Cortes, 62, Olga L. Aya Rodriguez, 53, both of Doral, Florida, and Planet Express Cargo & Courier Corp., a Miami company, were sentenced today in federal district court in Miami for their involvement in a conspiracy to knowingly export fish and wildlife knowing that the fish and wildlife were transported and sold in violation of federal law.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, David G. Pharo, Resident Agent in Charge, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Manny Antonaras, Deputy Special Agent-in-Charge, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, Office of Law Enforcement (NOAA/OLE), Southeast Division, Anthony Salisbury, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami, Daniel Alonso, Acting Director of Field Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Miami/Tampa, made the announcement.

U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles, who previously accepted guilty pleas from each of defendant, sentenced Cortes and Aya Rodriguez each to a term of six months’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release of one year, and a criminal fine of $7,500.00.  Judge Gayles placed PECC on probation for four years.

According to court documents, the parties’ joint factual proffer, and in-court statements, Cortes and Aya Rodriguez conducted business as Planet Express Cargo & Courier Corp., which principally engaged in business as a freight forwarder, consolidating cargo freight for international shipment, primarily to Colombia, South America. From May 2014 through July 2015, the defendants provided international shipping manifests to United Parcel Service that falsely identified shipments of fish and corals that had been delivered to PECC’s business premises by its customers as “Accesorios de Acuario” (“aquarium accessories”). As part of the conspiracy, PECC and its principals failed to acquire permits required for the export of certain of the species in the shipments and failed to declare to the Fish & Wildlife Service and CBP that they were exporting wildlife. Based on the fraudulent documents, the fish and wildlife was exported from the United States to Colombia.

All fish and wildlife exported from the United States, must first be made available for inspection and properly declared to FWS and CBP, pursuant to Title 50, Code of Federal Regulations, Sections 14.52 and 14.63. The regulations require the exporter or exporter’s agent to provide specific documentation and information to the FWS in order to have a shipment of merchandise cleared for export, prior to the physical loading of the merchandise on a vehicle or aircraft, and prior to the palletization of the shipment for export. The required notice must include all shipping documents, permits, and licenses, and a listing of the fish and wildlife being exported. Additionally, the exporter or exporter’s agent is required to present an executed Declaration for Importation or Exportation of Fish or Wildlife (Form 3-177) to the FWS prior to the exportation, which Form requires identification of the merchandise by scientific name, common name, quantity, and value. Further, Form 3-177 requires proper identification of the shipper and the consignee, and an attestation that all the information being provided is true and correct. Title 50, Code of Federal Regulations, Sections 14.52 and 14.63.

In addition to the false manifests generated at PECC, employees of PECC, at the direction of its principals, obscured markings on the boxes of wildlife which identified them as containing live fish, by taping over the labeling and wrapping everything in black plastic. They did this so that  United Parcel Service employees and government authorities would not realize the shipments contained un-inspected wildlife. The government also presented evidence at sentencing that, in  addition to the number of shipments identified in the count of conviction, the defendants had been involved in the export of almost 1,000 such shipments to Colombia.

Ms. Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the Special Agents and Wildlife Inspectors of the Fish & Wildlife Service, and the Special Agents of NOAA/OLE and HSI, and Officers of the Customs and Border Protection who participated in the investigation This matter is being prosecuted by Deputy Chief Thomas Watts-FitzGerald of the Economic & Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Cheek.

A copy of this press release may be found 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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.   

MIAMI -- Judlex Jean Louis, 32, of Lauderhill, Florida, was arrested and charged with bank fraud, making false statements to a financial institution, and aggravated identity theft after receiving fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans intended to help small businesses keep employees paid during the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time of his arrest, Louis was awaiting trial on theft, money laundering, and fraud charges related to a separate series of crimes occurring in 2014 and 2015.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; Brian Swain, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service’s (USSS) Miami Field Office; and Michael J. De Palma, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI), Miami Office, made the announcement.

The federal government enacted the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act on March 27, 2020 to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans suffering economic harm from the COVID-19 pandemic. One source of relief the government established through the CARES Act was the authorization of government-backed and potentially forgivable PPP loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses.

According to the allegations in the criminal complaint, Louis received proceeds from three fraudulent PPP loans in early June 2020. Each loan application hid Louis’s identity as the true loan recipient. On a loan application that Louis submitted for his own claimed business using a social security number that did not belong to him, Louis allegedly falsely certified that he was not subject to any pending criminal charges.  On another loan application that Louis submitted in the name of an accomplice’s purported business, he allegedly used a doctored bank statement. Finally, on a third loan application, Louis allegedly made up a business and used the name and social security number of a victim to whom he had no connection.  According to the criminal complaint affidavit, Louis had PPP loan money deposited into accounts that he controlled. Surveillance cameras caught Louis withdrawing cash from one of these accounts soon after the loan money was deposited.

Louis is scheduled to appear for a detention hearing and preliminary hearing on August 14, 2020, at 11:00 a.m., before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lurana S. Snow, who sits in Ft. Lauderdale.

USSS Miami and IRS-CI Miami handled the investigation, with assistance from the Coral Springs Police Department: Economic Crimes Unit, the Broward County State Attorney’s Office, and the Broward County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kiran N. Bhat is prosecuting this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole S. Grosnof is handling asset forfeiture.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

A criminal complaint is a charging instrument containing allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

You may find related court documents and information 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 20-6328-mj-Hunt.

MIAMI – Federal prosecutors have charged one Florida man and two Massachusetts men for their alleged participation in a fraud and money laundering-ring established in 2019 to carry out business email compromise-schemes and that defendants used, most recently, to steal close to $2 million from Covid-19 relief programs.  

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, Brian Swain, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, Kyle A. Myles, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG), Office of Investigation’s, Atlanta Regional Office, Kevin A. Kupperbusch, U.S. Small Business Administration, Investigations Division (SBA-OIG), Eastern Regional Office, and Dale Forrester, Special Agent in Charge, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), Cybercrimes Division, made the announcement. 

The criminal complaint charges Jimpcy One, of Broward County, Gousman Lemy, of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, and Frantz Guillaume, Jr. a/k/a Sandro Saintfloeur, of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with conspiracy to commit money laundering, bank fraud, and money laundering. The complaint charges One and Guillaume with additional counts of aggravated identity theft and making false statements to a financial institution.

According to the complaint affidavit, unknown co-conspirators of the defendants initiated the scheme around 2019, when they hacked and took control of a business email account. Through false emails that co-conspirators allegedly sent from the hacked account, co-conspirators tricked a separate business, a victim, into wiring over $900,000 into an account that defendants allegedly controlled. Defendants then sought to conceal the origin of this fraudulently obtained money by transferring it among the bank accounts of various shell companies that defendants controlled, according to the affidavit. 

When the coronavirus pandemic hit the United States in 2020, defendants allegedly initiated a new fraud scheme using existing shell companies from the email compromise scheme, as well as newly created and reactivated shell companies. Defendants allegedly submitted false and fraudulent loan applications under two U.S. government relief programs authorized by the CARES Act to help small businesses and their employees survive the Covid-19 economic crisis: the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (“EIDL”).  In June and July 2020, through false submissions in the names of their shell companies, defendants fraudulently applied for and received close to $2 million in PPP and EIDL funds, according to the affidavit.    

Defendants One and Lemy are in custody and had their initial appearances yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick M. Hunt, who sits in Ft. Lauderdale. Defendant Guillaume remains at large. A copy of the criminal complaint and affidavit is attached to this release.

The CARES Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be entirely forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated time after receiving the proceeds and uses a certain amount of the PPP loan proceeds on payroll expenses.  

The EIDL is a U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”) program that provides low-interest financing to small businesses, renters, and homeowners in regions affected by declared disasters. The CARES Act authorized the SBA to provide EIDL loans of up to $2 million to eligible small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Similar to PPP loans, applicants must certify that they meet certain requirements. Companies may use EIDL funds for payroll expenses, sick leave, production costs, and business obligations, such as debts, rent, and mortgage payments. PPP and EIDL loans may not be used for the same expenses.

FBI Miami, USSS Miami, FDIC-OIG, SBA-OIG, SBA-OIG, and TIGTA are handling the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke Watson is prosecuting the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole S. Grosnof is handling asset forfeiture.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Related court documents and information appear 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. 20-mj-06325.

Attachment

Criminal complaint and affidavit

 

MIAMI – Michael Anthony Roundtree Jr., 37,  and Daren Bernard Razz III, 40 both of Riviera Beach, Florida, have been arrested and charged with robbery affecting interstate or foreign commerce.  It is alleged that, from August 2019 through August 2020, they committed or attempted twelve armed robberies.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, and Ric L. Bradshaw, Sheriff, Palm Beach County Sherriff’s Office, made the announcement.

According to allegations in the criminal complaint, starting in August 12, 2019, Roundtree and Razz committed ten armed robberies and unsuccessfully attempted to commit two more armed robberies. The victims were auto supply and “dollar” stores in Palm Beach County. The defendants ordinarily worked together. In three instances, one of the defendants acted alone. The defendants entered the stores at night and demanded money and, in some cases, goods at gunpoint. In one instance, one of the defendants pistol-whipped an employee. The most recent robbery occurred on August 4, 2020.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the FBI and the Palm Beach County Sherriff’s Office for its work on this investigation.

Assistant United States Attorney Marc Osborne is prosecuting this case.

A criminal complaint is a charging instrument containing allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

You may find related court documents and information 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 20-8277-DLB.

MIAMI – Federal prosecutors have filed charges in the Southern District of Florida against three local residents for their alleged participation in a scheme to file fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $24 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. 

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Brian C. Rabbitt, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Michael J. De Palma, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation (CI), Miami Field Office, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, and Hannibal “Mike” Ware, Inspector General, SBA Office of Inspector General (OIG) made the announcement.

Damion O. McKenzie, 38, of Miami Gardens, Andre M. Clark, 46, of Miramar, and Keyaira Bostic, 31, of Pembroke Pines, were each charged in separate criminal complaints with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud. According to their criminal complaint affidavits, McKenzie, Clark, and Bostic, with the assistance of other co-conspirators, submitted fraudulent PPP loan applications for their respective companies.  The fraudulent loan applications were supported by falsified documents, including fake bank statements and payroll tax forms.

After submitting fraudulent loan applications for their own companies, McKenzie, Clark, and Bostic allegedly became recruiters and referred other business owners to their co-conspirators for the purpose of creating and submitting additional fraudulent PPP loan applications.  McKenzie, Clark, and Bostic allegedly would receive a kickback for any loan approved and funded for any client they referred to their co-conspirators.  

The alleged scheme that McKenzie, Clark, and Bostic participated in with their co-conspirators, which included other recruiters and loan applicants (some of whom face related charges in the Northern District of Ohio), involved the planning or preparation of at least 90 fraudulent PPP loan applications, worth more than $24 million dollars. Many of the loan applications were approved and funded by financial institutions, paying out at least $17.4 million. 

“The United States made funds available to small business owners through the Paycheck Protection Program to ensure that our communities’ local businesses and their employees financially survive this pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan. “Those who defraud the program with no regard for the effect that their actions of greed will have on the small business owners and employees who legitimately need the money will be vigorously prosecuted by my office.”  

“The defendants allegedly participated in an extensive nationwide scheme to file at least 90 fraudulent applications for millions of dollars in PPP loans in exchange for illegal kickbacks of portions of the loan proceeds,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.  “These allegations reflect an organized effort by defendants to defraud the SBA’s PPP program on a large scale by stealing funds intended for legitimate small businesses suffering from economic hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The department and our law enforcement partners will continue to aggressively pursue those who would seek to illegally exploit the ongoing national emergency for their own benefit.”

“During these difficult times, while hardworking American citizens are facing a pandemic and struggling to take care of their families, crimes like these literally rob the coffers of critically needed relief funds,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael J. De Palma of the IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) Miami Field Office.  “We will continue to tirelessly pursue the culprits behind these heinous schemes and bring them to justice.  Any fraud of COVID-19 financial relief programs will never be tolerated.”

“The Paycheck Protection Program was designed to help hardworking small business owners who are suffering economically due to the COVID-19 shutdowns,” said George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Miami.  “The FBI will not tolerate anyone who fraudulently misuses federal funds designed to assist Florida businesses.  In the current climate, we are committed to diligently investigate those who illegally take advantage of these critical funds.”

“The reprehensible alleged actions of the defendants sought personal gain at the expense of taxpayers,” said Inspector General Hannibal “Mike” Ware of the SBA Office of Inspector General (OIG).  “OIG will aggressively pursue fraud in the PPP and other SBA programs aimed at assisting the nation’s small businesses during the pandemic.  I want to thank the Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners for their pursuit of justice.”

Defendants McKenzie, Clark, and Bostic had their initial appearances yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick M. Hunt, who sits in Ft. Lauderdale. For information on other co-conspirators charged for their involvement in this fraud scheme, click here.

The CARES Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be entirely forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated period of time after receiving the proceeds and uses a certain amount of the PPP loan proceeds on payroll expenses.  

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commends IRS-CI Miami, FBI Miami, and SBA-OIG for investigating these cases. She also thanks IRS-CI Cleveland and FBI Cleveland for their work and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General for its assistance. David Turken, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Philip Trout, Trial Attorney with the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and are prosecuting these South Florida cases.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is 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 nos. 20-mj-6316, 20-mj-6317, and 20-mj-6318.   

The owner of a Florida talent management company and four others were charged in complaints unsealed yesterday for their alleged participation in a scheme to file fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $24 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. 

The five charged defendants allegedly involved in this scheme whose complaints were unsealed yesterday are the following:

• Damion O. Mckenzie, 38, of Miami Gardens, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud; 
   
• Andre M. Clark, 46, of Miramar, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud; 
   
• Keyaira Bostic, 31, of Pembroke Pines, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on Aug. 3, 2020, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud; 
   
• Phillip J. Augustin, 51, of Coral Springs, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on July 28, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud, bank fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, and obstruction; 
   
• Wyleia Nashon Williams, 44, of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on July 28, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.

The four defendants allegedly involved in this scheme who were previously charged are the following: 

• James R. Stote, 54, of Hollywood, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on June 24, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud; 
   
• Ross Charno, 46, of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, was charged in a federal criminal complaint filed on June 24, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud; 
   
• Deon D. Levy, 50, of Bedford, Ohio, was charged in a federal complaint filed on June 8, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and 
   
• Abdul-Azeem Levy, 22, of Cleveland, Ohio was charged in a federal complaint filed on June 8, 2020, in the Northern District of Ohio with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. 

Mckenzie, Clark, and Bostic appeared yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Patrick M. Hunt of the Southern District of Florida. 

“The defendants allegedly participated in an extensive nationwide scheme to file at least 90 fraudulent applications for millions of dollars in PPP loans in exchange for illegal kickbacks of portions of the loan proceeds,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.  “These allegations reflect an organized effort by defendants to defraud the SBA’s PPP program on a large scale by stealing funds intended for legitimate small businesses suffering from economic hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The department and our law enforcement partners will continue to aggressively pursue those who would seek to illegally exploit the ongoing national emergency for their own benefit.”

“As many of our family, friends and neighbors suffered adverse economic consequences from our nation’s response to a global pandemic, these defendants were allegedly looking for ways to profit off of our collective troubles and fears,” said U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman for the Northern District of Ohio.  “The Justice Department will continue to work long hours with our federal, state, and local partners to finding and prosecuting those who may have defrauded the public of funds meant to help the American economy recover from this once-in-a-century catastrophe.”

“The United States made funds available to small business owners through the Paycheck Protection Program to ensure that our communities’ local businesses and their employees financially survive this pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan for the Southern District of Florida. “Those who defraud the program with no regard for the effect that their actions of greed will have on the small business owners and employees who legitimately need the money will be vigorously prosecuted by my office.”  

“During these difficult times, while hardworking American citizens are facing a pandemic and struggling to take care of their families, crimes like these literally rob the coffers of critically needed relief funds,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael J. De Palma of the IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) Miami Field Office.  “We will continue to tirelessly pursue the culprits behind these heinous schemes and bring them to justice.  Any fraud of COVID-19 financial relief programs will never be tolerated.”

“As stewards of the taxpayers' funds, the FBI and our law enforcement partners are steadfast in our efforts to ensure fraud of appropriated monies provided by the CARES Act is detected, investigated, and prosecuted,” said Assistant Director Calvin Shivers of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division.

“The reprehensible alleged actions of the defendants sought personal gain at the expense of taxpayers,” said Inspector General Hannibal “Mike” Ware of the SBA Office of Inspector General (OIG).  “OIG will aggressively pursue fraud in the PPP and other SBA programs aimed at assisting the nation’s small businesses during the pandemic.  I want to thank the Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners for their pursuit of justice.”

The complaints allege that Augustin, Stote, Charno, Williams, Mckenzie, Clark, and Bostic conspired with others to obtain millions of dollars in fraudulent PPP loans.  Early in the scheme, Augustin allegedly obtained a fraudulent PPP loan for his company, Clear Vision Music Group LLC, using falsified documents.  After submitting that application, Augustin and Williams allegedly then began to work with other co-conspirators on a scheme to submit numerous fraudulent PPP loan applications for confederate loan applicants, in order to receive kickbacks for obtaining the forgivable loans for them. 

Augustin is alleged to have recruited numerous confederate PPP loan applicants using his network of business contacts from his work as a manager for professional football players, and to have monitored the progress of applications, and of the kickback wires he was expecting.  Mckenzie, Clark, and Bostic are alleged to have sought PPP loans for their own companies and to have recruited other confederate PPP loan applicants in exchange for a share of the loan proceeds.  Williams also allegedly assisted in the scheme, including by obtaining falsified documents to include in PPP applications and coordinating communications among participants in the scheme to facilitate the fraudulent PPP applications. 

The complaints allege that scheme involved the preparation of at least 90 fraudulent applications, most of which were submitted.  Augustin, Williams, Mckenzie, Clark, Bostic, and other conspirators in the scheme are alleged to have applied for PPP loans that are together worth more than $24 million dollars.  Many of those loan applications were approved and funded by financial institutions, paying out at least $17.4 million. 

The CARES Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020, designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act was the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses, through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  PPP loan proceeds must be used by businesses on payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be entirely forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated period of time after receiving the proceeds and uses a certain amount of the PPP loan proceeds on payroll expenses.  

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case was investigated by the IRS-CI Cincinnati and Miami Field Offices, the FBI’s Cleveland and Miami Field Offices, and the SBA-OIG.  Trial Attorney Philip Trout of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elliot Morrison for the Northern District of Ohio and David Turken for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the cases.  The Justice Department also acknowledges and thanks the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General for its assistance investigating this matter.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Both Properties Worth a Combined $70 Million

MIAMI – The United States filed two civil forfeiture complaints today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida alleging that commercial real estate properties in Louisville, Kentucky, and Dallas, Texas, both acquired using funds misappropriated from PrivatBank in Ukraine, are subject to forfeiture based on violations of federal money laundering statutes.

U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan for the Southern District of Florida, Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman for the Northern District of Ohio, and Special Agent in Charge Eric B. Smith of the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office made the announcement.

The complaints allege that Ihor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Boholiubov, who owned PrivatBank, one of the largest banks in Ukraine, embezzled and defrauded the bank of billions of dollars.  The two obtained fraudulent loans and lines of credit from approximately 2008 through 2016, when the scheme was uncovered, and the bank was nationalized by the National Bank of Ukraine.  The complaints allege that they laundered a portion of the criminal proceeds using an array of shell companies’ bank accounts, primarily at PrivatBank’s Cyprus branch, before they transferred the funds to the United States.  As alleged in the complaint, the loans were rarely repaid except with more fraudulently obtained loan proceeds.

As alleged in the Complaints, in the United States, associates of Kolomoisky and Bogoliubov, Mordechai Korf and Uriel Laber, operating out of offices in Miami, created a web of entities, usually under some variation of the name “Optima,” to further launder the misappropriated funds and invest them.  They purchased hundreds of millions of dollars in real estate and businesses across the country, including the properties subject to forfeiture: the Louisville office tower known as PNC Plaza, and the Dallas office park known as the former CompuCom Headquarters.  The buildings have a combined value of approximately $70 million.

A complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

FBI’s Cleveland Division is investigating the case with support from FBI’s International Corruption Unit, IRS Criminal Investigation, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrienne Rosen of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida,  International Unit Chief Mary K. Butler, Senior Trial Attorney Michael C. Olmsted, Trial Attorneys Shai D. Bronshtein and Peter Steciuk, and Law Clerk Robert Blaney of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section are prosecuting the cases.  The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs has provided substantial assistance in the investigation.

The Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative is led by a team of dedicated prosecutors in the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, in partnership with federal law enforcement agencies, and often with U.S. Attorney’s Offices, to forfeit the proceeds of foreign official corruption and, where appropriate, to use those recovered assets to benefit the people harmed by these acts of corruption and abuse of office.  In 2015, the FBI formed International Corruption Squads across the country to address national and international implications of foreign corruption.  Individuals with information about possible proceeds of foreign corruption located in or laundered through the United States should contact federal law enforcement or send an email to [email protected] (link sends e-mail) or https://tips.fbi.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 nos. 20-cv-23278 and 20-cv-23279.   

The United States filed two civil forfeiture complaints today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida alleging that commercial real estate in Louisville, Kentucky, and Dallas, Texas, both acquired using funds misappropriated from PrivatBank in Ukraine, are subject to forfeiture based on violations of federal money laundering statutes.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan for the Southern District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman for the Northern District of Ohio, and Special Agent in Charge Eric B. Smith of the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office made the announcement.

The complaints allege that Ihor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Boholiubov, who owned PrivatBank, one of the largest banks in Ukraine, embezzled and defrauded the bank of billions of dollars.  The two obtained fraudulent loans and lines of credit from approximately 2008 through 2016, when the scheme was uncovered, and the bank was nationalized by the National Bank of Ukraine.  The complaints allege that they laundered a portion of the criminal proceeds using an array of shell companies’ bank accounts, primarily at PrivatBank’s Cyprus branch, before they transferred the funds to the United States.  As alleged in the complaint, the loans were rarely repaid except with more fraudulently obtained loan proceeds.

As alleged in the Complaints, in the United States, associates of Kolomoisky and Bogoliubov, Mordechai Korf and Uriel Laber, operating out of offices in Miami, created a web of entities, usually under some variation of the name “Optima,” to further launder the misappropriated funds and invest them.  They purchased hundreds of millions of dollars in real estate and businesses across the country, including the properties subject to forfeiture: the Louisville office tower known as PNC Plaza, and the Dallas office park known as the former CompuCom Headquarters.  The buildings have a combined value of approximately $70 million.

A complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

FBI’s Cleveland Division is investigating the case with support from FBI’s International Corruption Unit, IRS Criminal Investigation, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.  International Unit Chief Mary K. Butler, Senior Trial Attorney Michael C. Olmsted, Trial Attorneys Shai D. Bronshtein and Peter Steciuk, and Law Clerk Robert Blaney of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrienne Rosen of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the cases.  The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs has provided substantial assistance in the investigation.

The Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative is led by a team of dedicated prosecutors in the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, in partnership with federal law enforcement agencies, and often with U.S. Attorney’s Offices, to forfeit the proceeds of foreign official corruption and, where appropriate, to use those recovered assets to benefit the people harmed by these acts of corruption and abuse of office.  In 2015, the FBI formed International Corruption Squads across the country to address national and international implications of foreign corruption.  Individuals with information about possible proceeds of foreign corruption located in or laundered through the United States should contact federal law enforcement or send an email to [email protected] (link sends e-mail) or https://tips.fbi.gov/.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

MIAMI -- Elizabeth Peters Young, 55, of Ball Ground Georgia, was sentenced to 57 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, in connection with her role in a lengthy conspiracy to pay and receive illegal kickbacks in exchange for the referral of expensive pain cream prescriptions to a Federal Worker’s Compensation program designed to provide benefits to federal employees injured while on the job.  In addition, Young was ordered to pay a special assessment, forfeiture, and restitution, with the amounts to be determined at a future hearing.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Rafiq Ahmad, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG), and Scott Pierce, Special Agent in Charge, United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS-OIG) made the announcement.

District Court Judge Rodolfo A. Ruiz imposed the sentence, which came after a Fort Lauderdale jury found Young guilty on December 19, 2019 of conspiracy to pay and receive healthcare kickbacks and four counts of paying kickbacks in connection with a federal healthcare program (Case No. 19-CR-60157-RAR).  During the ten-day trial, the evidence showed that in 2015, Young, a wealthy medical device sales rep and business owner who had been in the industry for decades, learned that the trust-based Federal Worker’s Compensation would reimburse thousands of dollars for certain “prescription” pain creams and patches called Terocin and Lidopro.  In reality, these pain creams and patches were nearly identical to widely available over the counter items like Icy Hot. 

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, from March 2015 through April 2018, Young capitalized on her knowledge of these reimbursement rates by creating and executing an illegal kickback scheme. First, she made a deal with two pharmacies, including a small pharmacy in a strip mall to split 50% of illegal profits for the sale of these high-priced creams and patches.  Young then used her friend who was a medical assistant to a spinal surgeon to prescribe these creams and patches to Federal Worker’s Compensation patients and then send those prescriptions to the two pharmacies.  By simply connecting the prescriptions to the pharmacies, Young received over $1.5 million in fraudulently obtained federal funds. 

The problem was that the medical assistant writing the scripts for Young during the scheme was not doing so for free, and as Young knew, it is illegal to pay someone in a doctor’s office to refer prescriptions.  Therefore, to conceal the scheme, Young hired the medical assistant’s boyfriend as her “rep” to supposedly pitch the patches and creams to the very spinal surgeon that his girlfriend worked for in exchange for “commissions.” The evidence at trial proved that in reality, the boyfriend, who worked at Home Depot and had recently suffered brain injuries from a car accident, was expected to just “sit back and collect.”  Young then proceeded to pay the boyfriend over $300,000 in illegal kickbacks to do just that.

Evidence at trial showed that during the scheme, Young was keenly aware of the nature of her unlawful conduct, and went to great lengths to disguise such conduct from authorities.  For example, Young not only repeatedly googled articles about topics such as fraud and kickbacks at pharmacies, the FBI, and doctors being arrested, she also emailed them to co-conspirators with subject lines such as “FBI, Scary.” She also instructed co-conspirators to open shell companies, remove names from bank accounts, and not discuss patches and creams with others in the industry.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the DOL-OIG and USPS-OIG.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anne P. McNamara and David Turken.  AUSA Adrienne Rosen handled 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.

West Palm Beach, Fl. – Jamie Jakia Cofer, a/k/a “Anna Bell,” 24, of Lake Worth, Florida, was arrested and charged with aggravated identity theft and fraudulent use of unauthorized access devices after using the social security numbers, dates of birth, and other identity and financial information of victims to steal money from their bank accounts, make unauthorized credit card purchases, and engage in other fraudulent transactions.  During the alleged crimes, Cofer worked as a home health aide. Four of Cofer’s five known victims were elderly clients of Cofer’s, whose homes she entered with the supposed purpose of helping them with their home health needs.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office and Brian Smith, Chief, Juno Beach Police Department made the announcement.

According to allegations in the criminal complaint, for over a year starting in January 2019, Cofer worked as a home health aide servicing senior citizens in the South Florida community. During that time, Cofer gained access to her elderly clients’ social security numbers, dates of birth, bank accounts, credit cards, and other information.  Without the knowledge or consent of these elderly clients, Cofer allegedly used the information to steal money from bank accounts, make herself an authorized user on credit accounts, make unauthorized purchases of items such as a mannequin head and wig stand, pay her mobile phone, insurance, and other bills, and send money to a prison inmate, among other things.

For example, Cofer allegedly used one elderly client’s bank account information to set up auto pay on one of Cofer’s utility accounts. Cofer allegedly used her own phone number and email to set up paperless account notifications to prevent this victim from receiving alerts.

Cofer had her initial appearance today in West Palm Beach federal court. Cofer is scheduled for a pre-trial detention hearing on Monday, August 10, 2020, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dave Lee Brannon. 

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the FBI and Juno Beach Police Department for its work on this investigation. She also thanked the Lantana Police Department for its assistance.

Assistant United States Attorney Sarah J. Schall is prosecuting this case.

Anyone with information about allegations of elder fraud can report it by calling the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-FRAUD-11 or 833–372–8311.

More information about the Department’s efforts to help American seniors is available at its Elder Justice Initiative at https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice. For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Department of Justice provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, which can be reached at https://www.ovc.gov.

A criminal complaint is a charging instrument containing allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

You may find related court documents and information 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 20-MJ-8273.  

Miami, Fl. -- South Florida federal prosecutors have charged a former Economics Minister of Guatemala, Asisclo Valladares Urruela, 44, with helping to launder close to $10 million of illegal drug proceeds and other ill-gotten money. Prosecutors allege that during a four-year conspiracy, Valladares Urruela enabled the illegal drug trade by creating a demand for untraceable cash, cash that Valladares Urruela used to bribe corrupt Guatemalan politicians.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Robert E. Bornstein, Acting Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Washington Field Office Criminal Division, and Kevin W. Carter, Special Agent in Charge, DEA, Miami Field Division, made the announcement.

According to the criminal complaint affidavit, former Minister Valladares Urruela’s co-conspirators included a major drug trafficker, a corrupt Guatemalan politician, and a crooked Guatemalan bank employee. The bank employee was the conduit between those with the dirty cash (the drug trafficker and the corrupt politician) and the person who needed it (Valladares Urruela). Maximizing on the employee’s access to and familiarity with banking mechanisms, the co-conspirators executed a sophisticated money laundering scheme that allegedly involved, among other activities, unlawful money exchanges between parties in different countries through “mirror transactions” that left no paper trails, development of fraudulent investment opportunities that yielded false financial gains, creation of sham documents to make ill-gotten gains appear legitimate, and steady hand-to-hand deliveries of large amounts of cash.   

This money laundering conspiracy lasted from 2014 to 2018 and benefitted each co-conspirator. The bank employee got a cut of the various financial transactions. The drug trafficker and corrupt politician were able to exchange their dirty cash for what appeared to be legitimate earnings, complete with papers trails. This allowed the criminals to enjoy their money openly and publicly, as well as to move money to other locations secretly, including to different locations in South America. Valladares Urruela regularly received backpacks, duffel bags, and brief cases full of dirty, untraceable cash that he knew came from drug trafficking and corruption and used it to bribe Guatemalan politicians, according to the complaint affidavit. Valladares Urruela’s demand for bribe cash was allegedly so great, he allegedly once remarked to a co-conspirator that politicians must think money grows on trees. 

Some of the money from Valladares Urruela’s alleged scheme with his co-conspirators passed through U.S. bank accounts. At least two Miami companies allegedly helped the co-conspirators move money to South America.

“This case demonstrates the unfortunate links that sometimes exist in Central and South American countries among drug traffickers, business people, and corrupt politicians,” said U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan.  “Although Miami serves as a bridge between the United States and our neighbors to the south, drug traffickers, corrupt officials, and their dirty money are not welcome in our district. The U.S. Department of Justice stands with its law enforcement partners in neighboring countries in the fight against money laundering and narcotics trafficking.”

“This investigation demonstrates that the FBI and our partners will not stop at the borders to identify and locate criminals,” said Robert E. Bornstein, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office Criminal Division. “The FBI will continue to work with our foreign and domestic partners to bring to justice Asisclo Valladares Urruela and others like him who perpetuate the unfortunate link of drug trafficking and political corruption that sometimes exists."

“No one is ever above the law,” said DEA Miami Field Division Special Agent in Charge Kevin W. Carter.  “Government officials, both foreign and domestic, are expected to obey laws.  When corruption exists, it poisons the welfare of nations and almost always involves other types of crimes.  The DEA Miami Field Division will always support its law enforcement partners, both national and international, to combat drug trafficking and all other criminal activities that go along with it.”   

The prosecution was part of Operation Black Mass, which is a result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.  The OCDETF mission is to identify, investigate, and prosecute high level members of drug trafficking and money laundering enterprises, bringing together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan thanked the following entities and agencies for their collaboration, investigative work and assistance with this case: the Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, FBI’s Miami Field Office, FBI’s Office in Guatemala, DEA’s Office in Guatemala, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations in Miami and San Diego, and Customs and Border Protection in Miami.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Walter M. Norkin is prosecuting this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daren Grove is handling asset forfeiture.

The criminal complaint charges Valladares Urruela with conspiring to commit money laundering. The charges in a criminal complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty 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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under Case No. 20-MJ-03308.    

signed_complaint_valladares.pdf

Miami, Florida. — Los fiscales federales del sur de Florida han acusado al exministro de Economía de Guatemala, Asisclo Valladares Urruela, de 44 años, de ayudar a lavar cerca de $ 10 millones de ganancias ilegales de drogas y otro dinero mal habido.  Los fiscales alegan que, durante una conspiración de cuatro años, Valladares Urruela permitió el comercio ilegal de drogas al crear una demanda de efectivo sin rastro, que Valladares Urruela solía usar para sobornar a políticos guatemaltecos corruptos. 

El anuncio fue hecho por Ariana Fajardo Orshan, Fiscal Federal de EE. UU. para el Distrito Sur de Florida; Robert E. Bornstein, Agente Especial Interino a cargo de la División Criminal de la Oficina de Campo de Washington del FBI; y Kevin W. Carter, Agente Especial a cargo de la División de Campo de Miami de la DEA. 

Según la declaración jurada de la denuncia penal, los cómplices del exministro Valladares Urruela incluían a un importante traficante de drogas, un político guatemalteco corrupto y un empleado bancario guatemalteco tramposo.  El empleado del banco era el enlace entre los que tenían el dinero sucio (el traficante de drogas y el político corrupto) y la persona que lo necesitaba (Valladares Urruela).  Usando al máximo el acceso del empleado a los mecanismos bancarios y su familiaridad con ellos, los cómplices ejecutaron un sofisticado plan de lavado de dinero que supuestamente involucraba, entre otras actividades, intercambios ilegales de dinero entre partes en diferentes países a través de “transacciones espejo” que no dejaban rastros en papel, el desarrollo de oportunidades de inversión fraudulentas que produjeron ganancias financieras falsas, la creación de documentos falsos para hacer que las ganancias mal habidas parecieran legítimas, y la entrega personal constante de grandes cantidades de efectivo. 

Esta conspiración de lavado de dinero duró de 2014 a 2018 y benefició a cada uno de los cómplices.  El empleado del banco obtuvo una tajada de las diversas transacciones financieras.  El traficante de drogas y el político corrupto pudieron cambiar su dinero sucio por lo que parecía ser ganancias legítimas, con todo y rastros en papel.  Esto permitió que los criminales disfrutaran su dinero de manera abierta y pública, así como mover el dinero a otros lugares en secreto, incluyendo a diferentes lugares en Sudamérica.  Valladares Urruela recibió con regularidad mochilas, bolsas de viaje y portafolios llenos de efectivo sucio y no trazable que él sabía que provenían del narcotráfico y la corrupción y lo utilizó para sobornar a políticos guatemaltecos, según la declaración jurada de la denuncia.  Supuestamente, la demanda de dinero en efectivo para sobornos de Valladares Urruela fue tan grande, que se supuestamente le dijo una vez a un cómplice que los políticos han de pensar que el dinero crece en los árboles. 

Parte del dinero del presunto esquema de Valladares Urruela con sus cómplices pasó por cuentas bancarias estadounidenses.  Al menos dos compañías de Miami supuestamente ayudaron a los cómplices a mover el dinero a Sudamérica. 

“Este caso muestra los desafortunados vínculos que a veces existen entre los traficantes de drogas, los empresarios y los políticos corruptos en los países de Centroamérica y Suramérica,” dijo la Fiscal Federal Ariana Fajardo Orshan.  “Aunque Miami sirve como un puente entre los Estados Unidos y nuestros vecinos del sur, los traficantes de drogas, los funcionarios corruptos y su dinero sucio no son bienvenidos en nuestro distrito.  El Departamento de Justicia de los Estados Unidos apoya a sus socios de aplicación de la ley en los países vecinos en la lucha contra el lavado de dinero y el tráfico de narcóticos.”

“Esta investigación demuestra que el FBI y nuestros socios no se detendrán en las fronteras para identificar y localizar a los criminales,” dijo Robert E. Bornstein, Agente Especial Interino a cargo de la División Criminal de la Oficina de Campo de Washington del FBI.  “El FBI continuará trabajando con nuestros socios extranjeros y nacionales para llevar ante la justicia a Asisclo Valladares Urruela y otros como él que perpetúan el desafortunado vínculo del narcotráfico y la corrupción política que existe a veces.”

“Nadie es superior a la ley,” dijo el Agente Especial a cargo de la División de Campo de Miami de la DEA, Kevin W. Carter.  “Se espera que los funcionarios gubernamentales, tanto extranjeros como nacionales, obedezcan las leyes.  Cuando existe la corrupción, envenena el bienestar de las naciones y casi siempre involucra otros tipos de crímenes.  La División de Campo de Miami de la DEA siempre apoyará a sus socios de aplicación de la ley, tanto nacionales como internacionales, para combatir el tráfico de drogas y todas las demás actividades criminales asociadas.”

La acusación fue parte de la Operación Black Mass, que es el resultado de los esfuerzos continuos de la Fuerza de Tarea contra el Crimen Organizado y la Droga (OCDETF), una alianza entre las autoridades federales, estatales y locales de aplicación de la ley.  La misión de la OCDETF es identificar, investigar y enjuiciar a miembros de alto nivel del tráfico de drogas y las iniciativas de lavado de dinero, reuniendo la experiencia combinada y las habilidades únicas de las fuerzas de aplicación de la ley federales, estatales y locales. 

La Fiscal de Estados Unidos Fajardo Orshan agradeció a las siguientes entidades y agencias por su colaboración, trabajo de investigación y ayuda en este caso:  la Sección de Narcóticos y Drogas Peligrosas de la División Criminal del Departamento de Justicia, la Oficina para el Distrito Sur de California del Fiscal de Estados Unidos, la Oficina de Asuntos Internacionales del Departamento de Justicia de EE. UU., la Oficina de Campo del FBI en Miami, la oficina del FBI en Guatemala, la oficina de la DEA en Guatemala, la Oficina de Investigaciones de Seguridad Nacional en Miami y San Diego del Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas de EE. UU., y la Oficina de Aduanas y Protección Fronteriza en Miami. 

El Fiscal Federal Auxiliar Walter M. Norkin está procesando este caso.  El Fiscal Federal Auxiliar Daren Grove está manejando los decomisos. 

La denuncia penal acusa a Valladares Urruela de conspirar para cometer lavado de dinero.  Las acusaciones contenidas en la denuncia penal son meramente acusaciones, y el acusado se presume inocente a menos que se demuestre su culpabilidad en un tribunal de justicia. 

Los documentos de la corte y la información relacionada se pueden encontrar en el sitio web de la Corte del Distrito Sur de Florida en www.flsd.uscourts.gov o en http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, bajo el No. de Caso 20-MJ-03308. 

signed_complaint_valladares.pdf

Miami, Fl. -- Joel Bellegarde, 30, of Doral, Florida, was arrested and charged with wire fraud, mail fraud, and aggravated identity theft, for submitting fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits to the State of Oklahoma, benefits which were intended for Oklahoma residents who had lost their jobs due to the economic impact of COVID-19.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, passed by Congress and signed into law on March 27, 2020, provided protections to the American people from the public health and economic impacts of COVID-19.  44.  Among other things, the CARES Act expanded unemployment benefits to people affected by COVID-19 by expanding eligibility for unemployment benefits, and increasing the dollar amount of unemployment benefit payments.

According to allegations in the criminal complaint, Joel Bellegarde used the stolen identities of numerous Oklahoma residents to submit fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits with the State of Oklahoma. The complaint alleges that that from April 23 through June 23, 2020, Bellegarde accessed the Oklahoma unemployment website over 100 times to submit fraudulent claims.  Oklahoma distributed these unemployment benefit funds in the form of direct deposits onto prepaid debit cards, which were subsequently mailed to Bellegarde in Florida. 

The complaint alleges that this CARES Act unemployment fraud was one of several fraudulent schemes perpetrated by Bellegarde. The complaint also alleges that Bellegarde used stolen identifies and social engineering to gain access to victims’ retirement savings accounts, and that Bellegarde then fraudulently withdrew funds from those accounts.  Specifically, Bellegarde allegedly impersonated victims by providing victims’ names, social security numbers, mailing addresses, and mothers’ maiden names, in order to successfully pass security protocols and request withdrawals of the victims’ retirement funds.  Bellegarde’s actions allegedly caused significant losses to the retirement accounts of numerous victims, with some account holders suffering complete depletions of their retirement funds.  The complaint further alleges that Bellegarde used stolen identities to submit fraudulent credit card applications in the names of his victims.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the FBI for its work on this investigation. She also thanked the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, and the United States Postal Inspection Service for their assistance.

Assistant United States Attorneys Michael B. Homer and Alejandra Lopez are prosecuting this case.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

A criminal complaint is a charging instrument containing allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

You may find related court documents and information 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 20-mj-03251.

A Palm Beach County, Florida doctor was arrested and charged with conspiring to commit health care fraud and wire fraud for his alleged participation in a massive years-long health care fraud scheme throughout Palm Beach County, billing for fraudulent tests and treatments for vulnerable patients seeking treatment for drug and/or alcohol addiction.

In a criminal complaint unsealed Thursday, Michael J. Ligotti, D.O, 46, of Delray Beach, Florida, was charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud.  Ligotti made his initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce E. Reinhart in the Southern District of Florida.

The complaint alleges that from approximately May 2011 through March 2020, private insurance companies and Medicare were fraudulently billed approximately $681 million for laboratory testing claims and other services as part of this fraudulent scheme, for which they paid approximately $121 million. 

“This massive, multi-year alleged fraudulent billing scheme by a trusted medical professional generated millions of dollars by preying on patients seeking substance abuse treatment,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.  “The charges announced today demonstrate the Department of Justice’s continued resolve to dismantle substance abuse treatment fraud schemes and prosecute those who exploit vulnerable patients seeking help for their substance abuse problems.”  

“The substance abuse treatment fraud allegedly perpetrated by the defendant sacrificed the genuine care of vulnerable patients at a time when they urgently needed a trusted health care provider,” said U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan for the Southern District of Florida.  “Health care providers who allow greed to take precedence over their Hippocratic Oath and participate in these schemes are criminals and will be held accountable for their unscrupulous conduct.”

“The FBI and its partners are working tirelessly every day to detect and combat health care schemes like substance abuse treatment fraud,” said Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI's Miami Field Office.  “The FBI will not relent in our efforts to dismantle scams that take advantage of vulnerable patients.  If anyone suspects they are a victim of health care fraud please call your local FBI office.”

“The treatment of addiction helps restore an individual’s independence from drugs and good health, so they can go back to their families and be productive members in our society,” said Special Agent in Charge Kevin W. Carter of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Miami Field Division.  “Physicians and other medical professionals who hold positions of trust within our communities, will absolutely be held accountable for violations of that trust.  The DEA Miami Field Division remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners to safeguard our local communities against those who engage in fraudulent practices that endanger both the health and lives of Floridians.”

According to the complaint, Ligotti owned and operated Whole Health in Delray Beach, Florida.  Whole Health was a private clinic, which offered, among other things, addiction treatment, family care, and urgent care. 

The allegations in the complaint detail Ligotti’s central role in the fraud scheme.  Specifically, the complaint alleges that Liggoti: (1) agreed to become the purported “Medical Director” for an addiction treatment facility or sober home for a nominal fee; (2) authorized “standing orders” for hundreds of millions of dollars in medically unnecessary urinalysis tests (UAs), which were billed by testing laboratories that sometimes paid kickbacks to the sober homes or addiction treatment facilities; and (3) in exchange for his signature on these standing orders,  required the facilities to have their patients treated by Whole Health and his staff, allowing him to bill hundreds of millions of dollars in additional fraudulent treatments, including unnecessary and expensive UAs, costly blood tests, non-existent therapy sessions, office visits, and other unnecessary services, regardless of whether such treatment and testing were medically necessary and/or actually provided.  Ligotti allegedly did not meaningfully review the results of the tests he ordered or use the results of the tests to treat these patients, either at his clinic or at the addiction treatment facilities.

Over the course of the scheme, Ligotti allegedly served as “Medical Director” for more than 50 addiction treatment facilities, and signed over 136 standing orders authorizing such fraudulent tests.  According to the complaint, patients at these addiction treatment centers and sober homes were brought to Whole Health and required to submit to testing and treatments authorized by Ligotti, including UA tests at the facilities and at Whole Health.  The complaint alleges that the facilities and testing laboratories were also able to bill these patients’ insurers for bogus UA tests authorized by Ligotti.  In this way, all parties benefited: (1) the laboratories could bill for these medically unnecessary tests; (2) the addiction treatment facilities and sober homes could bill for such unnecessary testing as well, and sometimes received a kickback from the laboratories for each sample they could provide for testing; and (3) Ligotti could bill millions of dollars’ worth of medically unnecessary, excessive and duplicative treatments for the patients who were delivered to his office as the condition for him signing the standing orders that fueled the entire scheme in the first place.

The complaint further alleges that Ligotti authorized and conducted UAs and blood tests for revenue-generation and did not use these tests in patient treatment.  Ligotti allegedly billed for psychiatric services and therapy sessions that never happened, and that he and his staff were not qualified to conduct.  Some patients allegedly were billed between $10,000 and $20,000 by Ligotti and Whole Health for a single day’s visit.  As charged, Ligotti also utilized multiple nurse practitioners/medical extenders under his practice to fraudulently bill patients’ private insurance.  Finally, the complaint also alleges that Ligotti improperly prescribed controlled substances, including large quantities of buprenorphine/Suboxone, frequently exceeding the number of patients he was legally authorized to treat.  He provided these drugs to patients who did not need it and ignored evidence of possible diversion.      

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Palm Beach County RA, with assistance from the IRS-Criminal Investigation Florida Division of Investigative and Forensic Service, Amtrak Office of Inspector General, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office.

Senior Litigation Counsel James V. Hayes and Trial Attorney Ligia M. Markman of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra Chase of the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.

Potential victims and those with information related to Dr. Michael Ligotti or Whole Health should e-mail [email protected].  and use the title “Ligotti Whole Health” in the title of the email when submitting complaints and/or other information regarding this case.

The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force.  Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for nearly $19 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Miami, Fl. -- A Palm Beach County, Florida doctor was arrested and charged with conspiring to commit health care fraud and wire fraud for his alleged participation in a massive years-long health care fraud scheme throughout Palm Beach County, billing for fraudulent tests and treatments for vulnerable patients seeking treatment for drug and/or alcohol addiction.

In a criminal complaint unsealed Thursday, Michael J. Ligotti, D.O, 46, of Delray Beach, Florida, was charged with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud. 

The complaint alleges that from approximately May 2011 through March 2020, private insurance companies and Medicare were fraudulently billed approximately $681 million for laboratory testing claims and other services as part of this fraudulent scheme, for which they paid approximately $121 million. 

“The substance abuse treatment fraud allegedly perpetrated by the defendant sacrificed the genuine care of vulnerable patients at a time when they urgently needed a trusted health care provider,” said U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan for the Southern District of Florida.  “Health care providers who allow greed to take precedence over their Hippocratic Oath and participate in these schemes are criminals and will be held accountable for their unscrupulous conduct.”

“This massive, multi-year alleged fraudulent billing scheme by a trusted medical professional generated millions of dollars by preying on patients seeking substance abuse treatment,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.  “The charges announced today demonstrate the Department of Justice’s continued resolve to dismantle substance abuse treatment fraud schemes and prosecute those who exploit vulnerable patients seeking help for their substance abuse problems.”  

“The FBI and its partners are working tirelessly every day to detect and combat health care schemes like substance abuse treatment fraud,” said George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Miami.  “The FBI will not relent in our efforts to dismantle scams that take advantage of vulnerable patients.  If anyone suspects they are a victim of health care fraud please call your local FBI office.”

“The treatment of addiction helps restore an individual’s independence from drugs and good health, so they can go back to their families and be productive members in our society.” said Special Agent in Charge Kevin W. Carter of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Miami Field Division.  “Physicians and other medical professionals who hold positions of trust within our communities, will absolutely be held accountable for violations of that trust.  The DEA Miami Field Division remains committed to working with our law enforcement partners to safeguard our local communities against those who engage in fraudulent practices that endanger both the health and lives of Floridians.”

According to the complaint, Ligotti owned and operated Whole Health in Delray Beach, Florida.  Whole Health was a private clinic, which offered, among other things, addiction treatment, family care, and urgent care. 

The allegations in the complaint detail Ligotti’s central role in the fraud scheme.  Specifically, the complaint alleges that Liggoti: (1) agreed to become the purported “Medical Director” for an addiction treatment facility or sober home for a nominal fee; (2) authorized “standing orders” for hundreds of millions of dollars in medically unnecessary urinalysis tests (UAs), which were billed by testing laboratories that sometimes paid kickbacks to the sober homes or addiction treatment facilities; and (3) in exchange for his signature on these standing orders,  required the facilities to have their patients treated by Whole Health and his staff, allowing him to bill hundreds of millions of dollars in additional fraudulent treatments, including unnecessary and expensive UAs, costly blood tests, non-existent therapy sessions, office visits, and other unnecessary services, regardless of whether such treatment and testing were medically necessary and/or actually provided.  Ligotti allegedly did not meaningfully review the results of the tests he ordered or use the results of the tests to treat these patients, either at his clinic or at the addiction treatment facilities.

Over the course of the scheme, Ligotti allegedly served as “Medical Director” for more than 50 addiction treatment facilities, and signed over 136 standing orders authorizing such fraudulent tests.  According to the complaint, patients at these addiction treatment centers and sober homes were brought to Whole Health and required to submit to testing and treatments authorized by Ligotti, including UA tests at the facilities and at Whole Health.  The complaint alleges that the facilities and testing laboratories were also able to bill these patients’ insurers for bogus UA tests authorized by Ligotti.  In this way, all parties benefited: (1) the laboratories could bill for these medically unnecessary tests; (2) the addiction treatment facilities and sober homes could bill for such unnecessary testing as well, and sometimes received a kickback from the laboratories for each sample they could provide for testing; and (3) Ligotti could bill millions of dollars’ worth of medically unnecessary, excessive and duplicative treatments for the patients who were delivered to his office as the condition for him signing the standing orders that fueled the entire scheme in the first place.

The complaint further alleges that Ligotti authorized and conducted UAs and blood tests for revenue-generation and did not use these tests in patient treatment.  Ligotti allegedly billed for psychiatric services and therapy sessions that never happened, and that he and his staff were not qualified to conduct.  Some patients allegedly were billed between $10,000 and $20,000 by Ligotti and Whole Health for a single day’s visit. 

As charged, Ligotti also utilized multiple nurse practitioners/medical extenders under his practice to fraudulently bill patients’ private insurance.  Finally, the complaint also alleges that Ligotti improperly prescribed controlled substances, including large quantities of buprenorphine/Suboxone, frequently exceeding the number of patients he was legally authorized to treat.  He provided these drugs to patients who did not need it and ignored evidence of possible diversion.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Palm Beach County RA, with assistance from the IRS-Criminal Investigation Florida Division of Investigative and Forensic Service, Amtrak Office of Inspector General, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra Chase of the Southern District of Florida and Senior Litigation Counsel James V. Hayes and Trial Attorney Ligia M. Markman of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

Potential victims and those with information related to Dr. Michael Ligotti or Whole Health should e-mail [email protected].  and use the title “Ligotti Whole Health” in the title of the email when submitting complaints and/or other information regarding this case.

The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force.  Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for nearly $19 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

A Florida man has been charged regarding allegations that he fraudulently obtained a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan and an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), and that he orchestrated a conspiracy to submit false and fraudulent claims for reimbursement to Medicare and CareCredit, and to defraud his own patients by charging them thousands of dollars for chiropractic services under false pretenses.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, Omar Perez Aybar of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG), and Special Agent in Charge Kevin Kupperbuschof the Small Business Administration’s Office of the Inspector General (SBA-OIG) made the announcement.

Dennis Nobbe, 63, of Miami, Florida, was charged by criminal complaint, unsealed today upon his arrest, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud; health care fraud; conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud; making false statements to a financial institution; money laundering; and conspiracy to commit money laundering.  He is expected to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge John O’Sullivan at 1 p.m. EST today.

The complaint alleges that Nobbe, a chiropractor, orchestrated a scheme to exploit his patients for financial gain through a credit card program intended to help patients pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses.  To conceal his role in the scheme, Nobbe paid bribes to other physicians to open credit card merchant accounts in their names.  Nobbe then encouraged patients at his chiropractic business, Dynamic Medical Services Inc., many of whom were low-income and did not speak English, to apply for the credit cards. 

According to the complaint, Nobbe charged thousands of dollars to these credit cards for services that he never, or only partially, rendered, leaving patients saddled with debt.  In addition, Nobbe bribed a physician to submit claims to Medicare on Nobbe’s behalf because Nobbe, as a chiropractor, was ineligible to submit the claims himself, and would not have been able to receive reimbursement for the claimed services.  Nobbe and other physicians also allegedly conspired to launder the proceeds from these schemes. 

As stated in the complaint, Nobbe instructed the physicians to conceal Nobbe’s involvement in the scheme, and sought to conceal the purpose of large wire transfers he received, through the use of shell companies and sham contracts. 

The complaint further alleges that Nobbe obtained over $200,000 in PPP and EIDL loans intended to provide COVID relief, and that Nobbe transferred portions of the proceeds to shell companies under his control and to pay personal expenses.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal law enacted March 29.  It is designed to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act is the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.  The CARES Act also authorizes the SBA to provide Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) of up to $2 million to eligible small businesses experiencing financial disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  Businesses must use PPP loan proceeds for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spend the proceeds on these expenses within a set time period and use at least a certain percentage of the loan towards payroll expenses. 

The EIDL program is designed to provide economic relief to small businesses that are currently experiencing a temporary loss of revenue.  EIDL proceeds can be used to cover a wide array of working capital and normal operating expenses, such as continuation of health care benefits, rent, utilities and fixed debt payments.  If an applicant also obtains a loan under the PPP, the EIDL funds cannot be used as the same purpose as the PPP funds.   

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

This case was investigated by SBA-OIG, the FBI’s Miami Field Office, and HHS-OIG.  The Department of Justice also thanks the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, and the Florida Department of Revenue for assistance they provided.  Trial Attorney Sara Clingan of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is prosecuting the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Laserna is handling the forfeiture aspects of the case. 

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force.  Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for nearly $19 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Miami, Fl. -- A Florida man was arrested and charged with fraudulently obtaining $3.9 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and using those funds, in part, to purchase a sports car for himself. Authorities seized a $318,000 Lamborghini Huracan and $3.4 million from bank accounts at the time of arrest.

U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Kyle A. Myles of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Office of Inspector General (OIG), Office of Investigation’s Atlanta Regional Office, Inspector in Charge Antonio Gomez of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s (USPIS) Miami Division, Special Agent in Charge Kevin A. Kupperbusch of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)-OIG, Investigations Division, Eastern Regional Office, Special Agent in Charge Michael J. De Palma of the IRS-Criminal Investigation (CI) Miami Office, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Stephen Donnelly of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection-OIG, Eastern Region, made the announcement.

David T. Hines, 29, of Miami, Florida, was charged by criminal complaint in the Southern District of Florida with one count of bank fraud, one count of making false statements to a financial institution and one count of engaging in transactions in unlawful proceeds.

The complaint alleges that Hines sought approximately $13.5 million in PPP loans through applications to an insured financial institution on behalf of different companies.  The complaint alleges that Hines caused to be submitted fraudulent loan applications that made numerous false and misleading statements about the companies’ respective payroll expenses. The financial institution approved and funded approximately $3.9 million in loans.

The complaint further alleges that within days of receiving the PPP funds, Hines purchased a 2020 Lamborghini Huracan sports car for approximately $318,000, which he registered jointly in his name and the name of one of his companies.  In the days and weeks following the disbursement of PPP funds, the complaint alleges that Hines did not make payroll payments that he claimed on his loan applications.  He did, however, make purchases at luxury retailers and resorts in Miami Beach.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal law enacted March 29.  It is designed to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act is the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  Businesses must use PPP loan proceeds for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spend the proceeds on these expenses within a set time period and use at least a certain percentage of the loan towards payroll expenses.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commends FDIC-OIG, USPIS, IRS-CI, the SBA-OIG, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection-OIG for their work on this investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Berger of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Emily Scruggs of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

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 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 related court documents and information 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 20-mj-03237-JB.

Fort Lauderdale, FL. – Today, a federal district judge sentenced prior felon Jeremy Juwan Rosello, 22, of Lauderdale Lakes, to nine years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for illegally possessing stolen firearms that later ended up in the hands of alleged international firearms traffickers.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Robert Cekada, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Miami Field Division, and Gregory Tony, Sheriff, Broward County Sheriff’s Office (BSO), made the announcement.

According to court documents, on September 22, 2018, officials in Lacolle, Canada seized 19 firearms and a silencer hidden inside a vehicle that was crossing from the United States to Canada. Two of the firearms seized in Canada, a Glock handgun and Sig Sauer handgun, along with the silencer, had been reported stolen in Broward County. ATF, in conjunction with BSO, determined that Rosello, a convicted felon, obtained the two handguns and silencer unlawfully in Broward County and sold them, through another convicted felon, to others alleged to be engaged in firearms trafficking. Investigation also determined that Rosello possessed several additional firearms unlawfully and was engaged in drug dealing at the time of the offense.

On July 23, 2019, Rosello pled guilty in federal court to one charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the efforts by ATF and BSO for their joint investigative and prosecutorial efforts.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam C. McMichael.

This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. 

You may find related court documents and information 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 19-cr-60122-RKA

A Florida man was arrested and charged with fraudulently obtaining $3.9 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and using those funds, in part, to purchase a sports car for himself.  Authorities seized a $318,000 sports car and $3.4 million from bank accounts at the time of arrest.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Kyle A. Myles of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Office of Inspector General (OIG), Office of Investigation’s Atlanta Regional Office, Inspector in Charge Antonio Gomez of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s (USPIS) Miami Division, Special Agent in Charge Kevin A. Kupperbusch of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)-OIG, Investigations Division, Eastern Regional Office, Special Agent in Charge Michael J. De Palma of the IRS-Criminal Investigation (CI) Miami Office, and Acting Special Agent in Charge Stephen Donnelly of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection-OIG, Eastern Region, made the announcement.

David T. Hines, 29, of Miami, Florida, was charged by criminal complaint, unsealed today upon his initial appearance before U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge John J. O’Sullivan in the Southern District of Florida, with one count of bank fraud, one count of making false statements to a financial institution and one count of engaging in transactions in unlawful proceeds.

The complaint alleges that Hines sought approximately $13.5 million in PPP loans through applications to an insured financial institution on behalf of different companies.  The complaint alleges that Hines caused to be submitted fraudulent loan applications that made numerous false and misleading statements about the companies’ respective payroll expenses.  The financial institution approved and funded approximately $3.9 million in loans.

The complaint further alleges that within days of receiving the PPP funds, Hines purchased a 2020 Lamborghini Huracan sports car for approximately $318,000, which he registered jointly in his name and the name of one of his companies.  In the days and weeks following the disbursement of PPP funds, the complaint alleges that Hines did not make payroll payments that he claimed on his loan applications.  He did, however, make purchases at luxury retailers and resorts in Miami Beach.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal law enacted March 29.  It is designed to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act is the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  Businesses must use PPP loan proceeds for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spend the proceeds on these expenses within a set time period and use at least a certain percentage of the loan towards payroll expenses.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

This case was investigated by the FDIC-OIG, USPIS, IRS-CI, the SBA-OIG, and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection-OIG.  Trial Attorney Emily Scruggs of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Berger of the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Miami, Fl. – South Florida federal prosecutors have charged Hialeah residents Alberico Ahias Crespo, 45, and Jorge Diaz Gutierrez, 65, with conspiring to distribute Oxycodone, obstruct justice, and make false statements to the FBI. Crespo is a Special Agent with the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), who, during the time of the alleged crimes, worked as part of the South Florida Health Care Fraud Strike Force. Crespo allegedly used his position as an agent to both advance the drug distribution crimes and impede related federal health care fraud investigations, including investigations on which Crespo himself worked.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, and Derrick L. Franklin, Special Agent in Charge, HHS-OIG, Special Investigations Branch, made the announcement.

According to the complaint affidavit charging criminal conduct from September 2019 to June 2020, Diaz was part of an illegal Oxycodone distribution system involving patients, pharmacies, and medical clinics. Diaz allegedly recruited patients and sent them to particular medical clinics to obtain Oxycodone prescriptions that the patients did not need.  Once the patients obtained the prescriptions, they would give them to Diaz in exchange for money.  Diaz allegedly would fill the prescriptions at certain pharmacies and sell the Oxycodone pills (at a mark-up) to third party street dealers.     

According to the affidavit, Diaz and Crespo were associates. Crespo allegedly used his position as an HHS-OIG Special Agent working on health care fraud cases to protect Diaz’s Oxycodone operation. According to the affidavit, Crespo did this by monitoring Strike Force investigations involving Diaz, accessing and disclosing sensitive law enforcement information to Diaz, updating Diaz on the progress of health care fraud investigations, and coaching Diaz on how to lie to investigators and tamper with evidence.

The narcotics and obstruction charges each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment. The materially false statements charge carries a maximum sentence of five years’ imprisonment.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of FBI and HHS-OIG, Special Investigations Branch.  Assistant United States Attorneys Sean T. McLaughlin and Christopher Clark are prosecuting this case.

A criminal complaint is a charging instrument containing allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

You may find related court documents and information 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 20-mj-03211-JB.

Miami, Fl. - Today, U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles, sentenced 44-year-old Lester Lavin to 51 months in federal prison for his role in a computer fraud scheme that he and his co-workers created and used to steal over $5 million from their casino employer, Miccosukee Indian Gaming.  Judge Gayles also sentenced Lavin’s girlfriend, Anisleydi Vergel Hermida, 31, of Miami Beach, to six months’ imprisonment for helping Lavin launder his cut of the stolen money.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, and Roland D. Pandolfi, Chief of Police, Miccosukee Police Department, made the announcement. 

Lavin worked for Miccosukee Indian Gaming, at its casino, for 12 years -- from 2003 to 2015.  For the first six years, Lavin worked as a video technician at the casino, servicing the casino’s electronic gaming machines such as video slot machines.  In 2009, Miccosukee Indian Gaming promoted Lavin to Video Supervisor.  Two years into his new job, in 2011, Lavin began conspiring with his own supervisor, Michel Aleu, two of his video technicians, Yohander Jorrin Melhen, and Leonardo Betancourt, and others, to steal money from the casino.  To accomplish their theft, Lavin and his co-conspirators tampered with the gaming machines’ computers, causing the machines to generate credit vouchers or tickets falsely showing that they had won money. Other members of the conspiracy, who did not work at the casino, would then exchange the credit vouchers for cash at ATMs located on the casino floor and at floor cashiers.  Lavin and his co-conspirators perpetrated their fraud and embezzlement scheme for more than four years. From January 2011 through May 2015, they stole about $5.3 million from the Miccosukee Indian Gaming casino.

Among other things, Lavin used his share of the stolen money to purchase a condominium in Miami Beach, to pay down various debts, including mortgages on properties in Miami-Dade County, and to purchase Florida Prepaid College Plans for two of his children.  Lavin laundered at least $654,150 of fraud proceeds, on his own, and with help from others, including his co-defendant, Vergel Hermida. Lavin and Vergel Hermida lived together in the Miami Beach condominium that Lavin purchased with fraud money.

On December 19, 2019, Lavin pleaded guilty to three counts in the indictment charging him with conspiracy to steal funds in excess of $1,000 from Miccosukee  Indian Gaming, conspiracy to commit computer fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.  On January 9, 2020, Vergel Hermida pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering.  As part of their pleas, Lavin and Vergel Hermida agreed to forfeit Lavin’s Miami Beach condominium, another residential property in Miami, and the Florida Prepaid College Plans.

Six other defendants have pleaded guilty, and are awaiting sentencing later this month and in August 2020. Michel Aleu, Yohander Jorrin Melhen, and Leonardo Betancourt, all former employees and licensees of Miccosukee Indian Gaming, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal funds in excess of $1,000 from Miccosukee Indian Gaming, conspiracy to commit computer fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering offenses. Their respective spouses and co-defendants, Maria Del Pilar Aleu, Milagros Marile Acosta Torres, and Yusmary Shirley Duran pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering offenses.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo-Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and the Miccosukee Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Dwayne E. Williams prosecuted this case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Grosnoff is handling asset forfeiture.

You may find a copy of this press release on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls.

You may find related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under Case No. 19-20435-Cr-Gayles.

 

 

Miami – Today, a federal judge in Miami sentenced 43-year-old Philip Righter, of California, to five years in prison for running a scheme in which he tried to dupe prominent art businesses, including one South Florida gallery, into spending millions of dollars on forgeries of works by renowned contemporary artists like Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat.   

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, made the announcement.

Righter’s scheme was this:  He would buy art forgeries at online marketplaces and auction sites.  Once he had the forgeries, Righter tried to make them appear legitimate by creating letters that falsely certified their authenticity.  For example, he created letters that appeared to be from “The Estate of Keith Haring” and the “Authentication Committee of the Estate of Jean-Michel Basquiat.” In fact, they were not. Righter designed and purchased embossers bearing the names of the estate and foundation for Haring and Basquiat. He stamped the forged letters with the custom embossers, trying to enhance the look of legitimacy. Righter forged the signatures of representatives of the estate and foundation on the letters.

Righter also created elaborate backstories to establish the “provenance” of the forged artworks. He forged documents to show links between the artworks, Righter’s family, a Wisconsin art museum, and a prominent New York City gallery. Righter told one prospective buyer that he had donated a number of his artworks to his Ivy League alma mater, which was a lie.

Once Righter had the forged artworks, forged documents, and false stories in place, he offered, directly and through brokers, to sell the forged works to galleries, auction houses, and others. In one instance, after a Miami gallery owner showed interest in some work, Righter (who was in Los Angeles) shipped a number of the forgeries to South Florida, where the FBI ultimately seized them. Righter’s asking price for these forgeries: $1,056,000. He directed the gallery owner to wire the money to Righter’s bank account. 

Agents with FBI’s Art Crime Team uncovered Righter’s coast-to-coast scheme, which resulted in the filing of two federal cases against him -- one in the Southern District of Florida (the “Miami case”) and one in the Central District of California (the “Los Angeles case”). The Los Angeles case was transferred to Miami, where the two prosecutions were consolidated for plea and sentencing proceedings.  

On March 11, 2020, Righter pled guilty to two counts in the Miami case: mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. (Case No. 19-20370-CR-Cooke). Today, Righter pled guilty in Miami federal court to three counts in the Los Angeles case: wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and tax fraud. (Case No. 20-20164-CR-Cooke). United States District Court Judge Marcia G. Cooke sentenced Righter to five years’ imprisonment in each case. The sentences will run concurrently. A consolidated restitution hearing is set for September 30, 2020, at 10 a.m. 

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the FBI’s Art Crime Team. Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Browne prosecuted the Miami case.  

You may find a copy of this press release on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls.

You may find related court documents and information on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

West Palm Beach, Fl. – Federal prosecutors in West Palm Beach have charged two Florida residents with felony crimes for allegedly poaching protected sea turtle eggs to later sell them. The accused poachers allegedly stole 93 eggs from their nest on Florida’s Singer Island Beach in May of this year.        

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, David Pharo, Resident Agent in Charge, Florida, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS); and Major Olin Rondeau, South A Regional Commander, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) made the announcement.

The criminal complaint charges Carl Lawrence Cobb, 63, and Bruce Wayne Bivins, 63, both of Riviera Beach, Florida, with violating the Lacey Act and with criminal conspiracy. The Endangered Species Act protects sea turtle eggs. Under the Lacey Act, it is a crime to transport endangered species of fish and wildlife, including sea turtle eggs, if the purpose is to sell them. If convicted, Cobb and Bivins face up to five years in prison on each charge.

According to the criminal complaint affidavit, Cobb used his green pick-up truck to drive Bivins to the Singer Island Beach on May 24. At about 9:45 p.m., Cobb allegedly dropped Bivins off on the beach and drove away. The affidavit alleges that Bivins located a sea turtle nest, started digging, removed 93 eggs from that nest, put the eggs in a black bag, and then called Cobb for pick-up. Officers with Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) saw the alleged drop-off, digging, and stealing of the protected eggs from their nest. They also saw Cobb on his return trip for Bivins. This time, Cobb drove a white pick-up truck because Cobb allegedly believed that a “game warden” had spotted him earlier in his green truck. 

FWC officers stopped the white truck. They found Cobb in the driver’s seat, Bivins in the passenger’s seat, and 93 sand-dusted sea turtle eggs inside a black bag in the bed of the truck. Officers arrested Cobb and Bivins.

Marine biologists relocated the recovered eggs. The hope is that some of them will yield sea turtle hatchlings.

U. S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Assistant United States Attorneys Lauren Jorgensen and John McMillan are prosecuting this case.

A criminal complaint is a charging instrument containing allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

You may find related court documents and information 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 20-8242-WM.

For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.

A Florida man was arrested today on allegations that he fraudulently sought several Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, and that he participated in a scheme to defraud Medicare of at least $5.6 million.  It is further alleged that a portion of the PPP loan proceeds were potentially used in furtherance of the Medicare fraud scheme.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan of the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge George L. Piro of the FBI’s Miami Field Office, Omar Perez Aybar of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG), and Special Agent in Charge Kevin Kupperbusch of the Small Business Administration’s Office of the Inspector General (SBA-OIG) made the announcement.

Carlos Belone, 37, of Coconut Creek, Florida, was charged by criminal complaint, unsealed today upon his arrest, in the Southern District of Florida with wire fraud; conspiracy to commit health care fraud; payment of health care kickbacks; and making false statements to a financial institution.  He made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lurana S. Snow.

The complaint alleges that Belone submitted several fraudulent PPP loan applications to federally insured financial institutions, other SBA-approved lenders, and the SBA in the name of R&S Pharmacy Inc. (R&S Pharmacy), a durable medical equipment company that allegedly submitted false and fraudulent claims to Medicare for orthotic braces that were medically unnecessary, ineligible for Medicare reimbursement and/or not provided as represented.  Belone was an owner of R&S Pharmacy.  Patients interviewed as part of the investigation stated that they did not want or need orthotic braces; had not authorized their Medicare number to be used to submit claims for orthotic braces; and/or that they did not receive orthotic braces as represented by R&S Pharmacy in the claims that Belone and his co-conspirators submitted to Medicare. 

The complaint alleges that, to support the fraudulent PPP loan applications, Belone submitted fake tax documents and doctored profit and loss statements for R&S Pharmacy.  The complaint additionally alleges that Belone succeeded in fraudulently obtaining over $22,000 in PPP loan proceeds, and shortly thereafter, made payments, or caused payments to be made, to a company suspected of furthering the Medicare fraud scheme, and directed approximately $12,000 of the PPP loan money to a personal account under his control.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal law enacted March 29.  It is designed to provide emergency financial assistance to millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.  One source of relief provided by the CARES Act is the authorization of up to $349 billion in forgivable loans to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses through the PPP.  In April 2020, Congress authorized over $300 billion in additional PPP funding.

The PPP allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive loans with a maturity of two years and an interest rate of one percent.  Businesses must use PPP loan proceeds for payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent and utilities.  The PPP allows the interest and principal to be forgiven if businesses spend the proceeds on these expenses within a set time period and use at least a certain percentage of the loan towards payroll expenses.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. 

This case was investigated by SBA-OIG, the FBI’s Miami Field Office, and HHS-OIG.  The Department of Justice also thanks the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, the Florida Department of Revenue, IRS-Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General for assistance they provided.  Trial Attorney Sara Clingan of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is prosecuting the case.

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 Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force.  Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for nearly $19 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

Defendants Allegedly Attempted to Avoid Government Regulation by Selling Products Through a Company They Deceptively Named Genesis II Church  

Miami, Fl. – Federal prosecutors in Miami have charged four Florida residents who allegedly marketed “Miracle Mineral Solution,” a toxic bleach, as a cure for COVID-19, with conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to violate the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, and criminal contempt. 

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Catherine Hermsen, Assistant Commissioner of the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations, made the announcement. 

According to the criminal complaint affidavit, Mark Grenon, 62, and his sons, Jonathan Grenon, 34, Jordan Grenon, 26, and Joseph Grenon, 32, all of Bradenton, Florida, manufacture, promote, and sell Miracle Mineral Solution (“MMS”), a chemical solution containing sodium chlorite and water. The Grenons allegedly directed their customers to ingest MMS orally, which causes the solution to become chlorine dioxide, a powerful bleach, typically used for industrial water treatment or bleaching textiles, pulp, and paper.  FDA has received reports of people requiring hospitalizations, developing life-threatening conditions, and dying after drinking MMS.

According to the affidavit, the Grenons claim that MMS can treat, prevent, and cure COVID-19.  The FDA, however, has not approved MMS for treatment of COVID-19, or for any other use.  Rather, in prior official warning statements, the FDA has strongly urged consumers not to purchase or use MMS, explaining that drinking MMS is the same as drinking bleach and can cause dangerous side effects, including severe vomiting, diarrhea, and life-threatening low blood pressure. See https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/danger-dont-drink-miracle-mineral-solution-or-similar-products.

The affidavit also alleges that, before marketing MMS as a cure for COVID-19, the Grenons marketed MMS as a miracle cure-all for dozens of other serious diseases and disorders, including cancer, Alzheimer’s, autism, multiple sclerosis, and HIV/AIDS, even though the FDA had not approved MMS for any use. The Grenons allegedly sold tens of thousands of bottles of MMS nationwide, including to consumers throughout South Florida. They sold this dangerous product under the guise of Genesis II Church of Health and Healing (“Genesis”), an entity they allegedly created in an attempt to avoid government regulation of MMS. According to the charging documents, Genesis’ own websites describe Genesis as a “non-religious church,” and Defendant Mark Grenon, the co-founder of Genesis, has repeatedly acknowledged that Genesis “has nothing to do with religion,” and that he founded Genesis to “legalize the use of MMS” and avoid “going [ ] to jail.”

In addition to charging these defendants with federal conspiracy, the complaint also charges the Grenons with criminal contempt. The United States previously filed a civil case against the defendants and Genesis II Church of Health and Healing. See United States v. Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, et al., Case No. 20-21601-CV-WILLIAMS. In that civil case, the United States obtained court orders halting the Grenons’ distribution of MMS. The criminal charges against the Grenons allege that they willfully violated these court orders. According to the complaint affidavit, the Grenons sent letters to the judge presiding over the civil case saying that they would not comply with the Court’s orders. The Grenons also threatened violence in the letters. The criminal complaint affidavit quotes from these letters.

“We continue to protect the public from criminal conduct that takes advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “Not only is this MMS product toxic, but its distribution and use may prevent those who are sick from receiving the legitimate healthcare they need. A United States District Court already has ordered the defendants to stop distributing this product; we will not sit idly by as individuals purposefully violate Court orders and put the public in danger.”

“Making claims that unproven drugs, especially potentially dangerous and unapproved chlorine dioxide products, can cure or prevent COVID-19 or any other disease is unacceptable. The Genesis II Church of Health and Healing has actively and deliberately placed consumers at risk with their fraudulent Miracle Mineral Solution and Americans expect and deserve medical treatments that have been scientifically proven to be safe and effective,” said Catherine Hermsen, Assistant Commissioner of the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations. “We commend the efforts of our law enforcement partners for vigorously investigating this matter. The FDA will continue our efforts to make sure these and other like-minded sellers do not jeopardize the health of Americans during this pandemic and in the future.”

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the efforts of the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations, particularly its Miami Field Office. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael B. Homer and John Shipley are prosecuting this case.

A criminal complaint is a charging instrument containing allegations.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty 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 20-MJ-03050.

West Palm Beach, Fl. – Today, federal district judge Kenneth A. Marra committed a man who fired gunshots inside a West Palm Beach VA Medical Center to the custody of the U.S. Attorney General for 25 years of mental health care and treatment at a suitable medical facility. The commitment is a provisional sentence for sixty-year old defendant Larry Ray Bon, a former West Palm Beach resident. If during Bon’s commitment, it is determined that he no longer needs treatment, Bon will reappear in federal court, where a judge will sentence him to a federal prison term of between 12.5 and 25 years. Lawyers for the U.S. and Bon jointly recommended this provisional sentence arrangement for the defendant.    

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI’s Miami Field Office, and David Spilker, Special Agent in Charge, Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, made the announcement.

According to court records, Bon brought the firearm and ammunition to the emergency room of the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. When he became frustrated with medical staff, Bon retrieved the firearm from his wheelchair, and fired several shots. He placed VA Medical Center employees in fear for their lives, including two employees who were near Bon. An emergency room doctor attempted to disarm Bon, who fired the gun again, hitting the doctor in the neck. Despite being injured, the doctor was still able to disarm Bon. VA Medical Center staff then subdued Bon. The doctor survived the gunshot wound.

On March 13, 2020, Bon pleaded guilty to three counts of Assaulting, Resisting, or Impeding Federal Employees, and one count of Possession of a Firearm in a Federal Facility with Intent to Commit a Crime. Federal law allows for a provisional sentence that commits a defendant to the custody of the Attorney General for treatment where a judge “finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant is presently suffering from a mental disease or defect and that he should, in lieu of being sentenced to imprisonment, be committed to a suitable facility...” 18 U.S.C. §4244 (d).  

“When U.S. military veterans walk through the doors of a VA medical clinic for healing, they should feel comfort and hope, not fear of violence,” said Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. “We are committed to protecting our cherished veterans and the dedicated employees of the South Florida VA medical clinics who treat them.”  

“As detailed in the plea agreement and subsequent sentence, Bon’s dangerous actions injured VA employees and risked the safety and well-being of veterans.  VA OIG is committed to holding accountable anyone who commits an act of violence at a VA facility and ensuring that both veterans and employees have a safe environment to obtain quality healthcare," said David Spilker, Special Agent in Charge, Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and VA OIG.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Susan Osborne and Rinku Tribuiani prosecuted this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Croke is handling the asset forfeiture aspects of 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.

For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl

Ft. Lauderdale, FL. – U.S. District Judge James I. Cohn sentenced Adrian Fierros, 22, from California, to 30 years in federal prison, followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for coercing young girls into taking and sending him sexually explicit photographs and videos of themselves. Making good on a threat to one of his victims, Fierros shared nude photographs of the 11-year-old girl with six of her school friends, one of whom was nine-years-old.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, make the announcement.  

According to court records, Fierros contacted his victims on social media. Most of the children were under 14-years-old. Fierros’ tactic with the young girls was to “friend” them on social media, tell them they were pretty, and have the girls send him suggestive photographs of themselves. Then, Fierros would extort the minors into taking and sending him nude photographs, in poses that he selected. Defendant threatened the minors with sharing their nude pictures with their family and friends if the minors stopped sending him increasingly explicit sexual images. When one of his 11-year-old victims stopped communicating with Fierros, he did just that. He sent nude pictures of the minor to her school friends, whom he identified through the victim’s social media contacts.

One of Fierros’ victims told her parents about Fierros’ demands. This prompted a South Florida law enforcement investigation. Officers located Fierros in California and arrested him. On January 8, 2020, Fierros pled guilty in South Florida federal court to producing child pornography, distributing child pornography, and on-line extortion. 

U.S. Attorney Fajardo-Orshan commends the investigative efforts of FBI, and, in particular, FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force who worked in partnership with the Coral Springs Police Department on the matter. The U.S. Attorney also thanks FBI Los Angeles, and FBI Headquarters, Operation Rescue Me for their assistance. Special Assistant United States Attorney M. Katherine Koontz prosecuted this case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

A copy of this press release may be found 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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

MIAMI – Today, a federal judge in South Florida sentenced an inmate to three years in federal prison for mailing threatening communications to a Miami federal courthouse. Freddy Velazquez, 47, mailed the threats from a state prison in Monticello, Florida, where he was serving a sentence on a prior conviction.      

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.  

According to court documents, Velasquez, while in state prison, wrote and mailed a letter to the Wilkie D. Ferguson Federal Courthouse in downtown Miami. Among other things, the letter said that, “[i]nside this letter, you [will] find ‘chemicals’ that are going to kill many of you…I hate all of you pigs and hope you all die. I fight you all till you all die.” Along with the letter, Velasquez put a powdery white substance inside the mailing envelope that he addressed to the courthouse.  Velazquez put his name and prison location on the return address section of the envelope.      

On February 15, 2019, a federal courthouse employee opened Velasquez’s envelope.  When the employee saw the white powder -- a possible biological substance -- the employee triggered the emergency protocols that are in place to handle such situations. Occupants of the courthouse evacuated the building.  Four federal law enforcement agencies and a City of Miami Police Department Hazardous Materials (Hazmat) Unit responded to the potential biological threat. For about eight hours, law enforcement shut down traffic on several blocks around the downtown Miami courthouse. The courthouse employee who opened the envelope and discovered the powder underwent a decontamination process inside a biohazard tent, followed by a visit to a local hospital.

Testing showed that the white powder was not hazardous or a biological material.  Additional  testing found that the powder was consistent  with detergent.  When asked about the mailing, Velazquez admitted that he wrote the letter and addressed the envelope, that the letter correctly described his feelings, and that he put white powder in the envelope to trigger an emergency response from law enforcement. 

On February 4, 2020, Velazquez pled guilty to mailing a threatening communication, a violation of federal law. 

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the efforts of the FBI, United States Marshals Service, Department of Homeland Security, Federal Protective Service, and City of Miami Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bertila Fernandez and Andrea Goldbarg 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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

MIAMI – Today, a federal judge in South Florida sentenced Eric Lin, 35, of Clarksburg, Maryland, to five years in prison, plus three years of supervised release after prison, for making repeated on-line threatening communications that targeted Hispanics.  The judge imposed the maximum sentence under the statute.

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida and George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Miami Field Office, made the announcement.  

According to court documents, between May 30, 2019, and August 14, 2019, Lin made multiple threatening communications via Facebook to injure and kill a South Florida resident and to kill all Hispanics in Miami and other places.  These included messages like “I’m coming to Rape and kill you” and “I will stop at Nothing until you, your family, your friends, your entire WORTHLESS LATIN RACE IS RACIALLY EXTERMINATED!” In Lin’s messages, he also   discussed mass shootings of Hispanics and the idolization of Adolf Hitler. 

On January 14, 2020, Lin pled guilty to the felony charge of knowingly and intentionally transmitting a threatening communication in interstate commerce. (Case No. 19cr20551).

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the FBI and the City of Miami Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maria Medetis and Jonathan Kobrinski.

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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

Miami, Fl. -- Today, U.S. Attorney Ariana Fajardo Orshan joined Attorney General William P. Barr and the entire Department of Justice in observing the 15th Annual World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. The Department echoes voices around the world condemning elder abuse, neglect and exploitation.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented challenges for our country and the world, but among those most severely affected by the threat of the novel virus are our senior citizens. During this time when seniors are most vulnerable and isolated from their families and loved ones by social distancing and quarantine restrictions, bad actors have immediately exploited this international tragedy to prey on the elderly through a whole host of scam and fraud schemes. As the world takes this day to remember the elderly during these uncertain times, the Department of Justice remains relentlessly committed, through its department-wide Elder Justice Initiative, to prevent and prosecute fraud on America’s seniors.

The Department will aggressively prosecute fraudsters exploiting the Covid-19 pandemic and targeting seniors offering them fake testing kits and fake help obtaining stimulus and Paycheck Protection Program Funds. On this day dedicated to recognizing our seniors, the Department of Justice sends a strong message that we continue the fight to keep seniors safe a top priority.

Earlier this year Attorney General Barr declared “Prevention and Disruption of Transnational Elder Fraud” to be an Agency Priority Goal, making it one of the Department’s four top priorities. Major strides have already been made to that end:

National Elder Fraud Hotline: 833-FRAUD-11

Earlier this year Attorney General Barr launched a National Elder Fraud Hotline. Staffed by experienced case managers who provide personalized support to callers, the hotline serves to assist elders and caretakers who believe they have been a victim of fraud by reporting and providing appropriate services.

Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force

Established in June 2019 to combat foreign elder fraud schemes, the Strike Force is composed of the Department’s Consumer Protection Branch and six U.S. Attorneys’ Offices along with FBI special agents, Postal Inspectors, and numerous other law enforcement personnel.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida is one of these six districts. Since its inception, prosecutors in Strike Force districts brought cases against more than 140 sweep defendants.

Annual Elder Justice Sweep

In March of this year, the Attorney General announced the largest coordinated sweep of elder fraud cases in department history. The Department, together with every U.S. Attorney’s office, charged more than 400 defendants, causing over $1 billion in loss through fraud schemes that largely affected seniors.  From January 2019 through March 2020, the Southern District of Florida charged over 25 defendants in elder fraud cases.

Money Mule Initiative

Since October 2018, the Department and its law enforcement partners began a concentrated effort across the country and around the world to disrupt, investigate, and prosecute money mule activity used to facilitate fraud schemes, especially those victimizing senior citizens. In 2019, actions were taken to halt the conduct of more than 600 domestic money mules, exceeding a similar effort against approximately 400 mules in the previous year. Since the initiative’s inception, the Southern District of Florida has brought money-mule related charges against more than 10 defendants.  

Accountability of foreign-based perpetrators and those that flee U.S.

Transnational criminal organizations are targeting our elder population in schemes including mass mailing fraud, grandparent scams, romance scams, lottery and sweepstakes scams, IRS and Social Security Administration imposter scams, and technical-support scams.

For more information on enforcement actions, training and resources, research, and victim services, please visit www.justice.gov/elderjustice.

For more information on the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl.

Key West, Fl. – Ariana Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Matthew J. DeSarno, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Dallas Field Office, announced that Donald Howard Conkright, 63, a resident of the Florida Keys, was sentenced to 71 months in prison for laundering about $2,000,000 of a school district’s money.

Conkright was sentenced after a Key West jury found him guilty on March 4, 2020, of conspiring to commit money laundering and money laundering. At trial, the government proved that through an elaborate business email compromise, the defendant obtained about $2,000,000 from a Texas School District intended for the ongoing construction of a new elementary school.  Based on the fraudulent emails, the victim sent the $2,000,000 to the Defendant’s bank account.  As soon as the victim’s money hit the Defendant’s bank account, the Defendant began to spend and conceal the money. He purchased Rolex watches, Apple products, and even a $128,000 BMW, among other transactions. The Defendant also withdrew tens of thousands of dollars from the account and wired hundreds of thousands of dollars out of the country. In addition, he sent $70,000 worth of computers to Nigeria. The evidence at trial also demonstrated that the Defendant had laundered and attempted to launder other victims’ money as part of the same conspiracy between 2017 and 2019.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lindsey Lazopoulos Friedman and Yisel Valdes prosecuted the case.  AUSA Nicole Grosnoff handled 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.

Miami, Florida – Two Louisiana residents, Jeremy Steven Coleman, 43, and Jennifer Lynn Freeman, 35, appeared in federal court on charges that they participated in a string of armed robberies throughout Florida. 

Ariana Fajardo Orshan, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George L. Piro, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Alfredo Ramirez III, Director, Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD) made the announcement. 

According to the criminal complaint, between June 3 through June 5, 2020, Coleman and Freeman committed five of the armed robberies at gas stations and convenience stores in South Florida.

On June 3, law enforcement responded to an armed robbery at a Shell Gas Station located at 18600 South Dixie Highway, Miami, Florida. A white male in his 30s-40s, allegedly entered the gas station and pointed what appeared to be a black pistol at the victims.  The robber allegedly left with about $600.

On June 4, law enforcement responded to an armed robbery at a 7-Eleven store located at 9500 NW 7th Ave, Miami, Florida. In that robbery, a white male, matching the description of the man from the robbery of the day before, allegedly entered the 7-Eleven and walked behind the counter where the two victims were standing. The robber allegedly pointed an unknown type of rifle at the victims and left the store with $200. 

On June 5, law enforcement responded to three more armed robberies. In all three, the robber matched the description of the person who had committed the robberies on June 3 and 4. One robbery occurred at a 7-Eleven store, located at 533 NW 103rd Street, Miami, Florida. The robber allegedly brandished what appeared to be a black pistol at the victims in the store and stole about $200. The second robbery that day occurred at a Chevron gas station at 17800 Collins Avenue in Sunny Isles, Florida. The robber allegedly pushed a black gun into the victim’s side, demanded that the victim open the cash register, and left the gas station with out $600.   The third robbery on June 5 occurred at a Shell Gas Station, located at 13701 SW 26th St., Miami, Florida. The robber allegedly entered the gas station and approached the victim armed with what appeared to be a black pistol and pointed the firearm at the victim’s head. The robber stole about $400.

Investigation led law enforcement to a room in a South Florida hotel that appeared to be occupied by Coleman and Freeman.  Officers executed a federal search warrant inside the hotel room. They found clothes that matched clothes worn by the robbers, as seen in  surveillance video. Law enforcement also found what appeared to be bb-gun replicas of semi-automatic firearms, including a black replica Beretta firearm, a black replica Glock firearm, a black replica Sig Sauer firearm, and two replica .357 caliber revolvers.

The defendants had their initial appearances in federal court.  Coleman was detained without  bond pending trial.  Freeman’s detention hearing is scheduled for Friday, June 12, before a federal magistrate judge.

U.S. Attorney Fajardo Orshan commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, including FBI’s South Florida Violent Crime Task Force, and the Miami-Dade Police Department’s Robbery Bureau. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Cary O. Aronovitz and Maria Catala are prosecuting this 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 violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing to address when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

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 on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.