Northern District of Georgia
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Florida man charged with stealing over $12 million in funds intended to be used to buy Personal Protective EquipmentRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Brian Sperber has been indicted for defrauding personal protective equipment (“PPE”) purchasers out of more than $12 million during the COVID-19 pandemic, money which Sperber then allegedly used to fund his own lifestyle, including by purchasing a multi-million-dollar waterfront mansion.
“While others were marshalling limited medical resources to confront the COVID-19 pandemic, Sperber allegedly lined his pockets with stolen money that was intended to purchase lifesaving PPE for hospitals and medical institutions,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “As the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continue, this office will aggressively pursue those individuals who steal funds intended to be used to purchase critical medical equipment.”
“Sperber allegedly took advantage of companies trying to direct personal protective equipment to those protecting themselves against a deadly virus,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Profiting from others’ hardships is something the FBI is determined to stop and will be a priority for our investigators during this pandemic.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: Brian Sperber, who was a distributor of PPE, allegedly embezzled over $12 million from customers seeking to purchase PPE during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sperber and a co-conspirator are alleged to have repeatedly sent customers falsified invoices, emails, and other documents to make them believe that their orders were on the way when in fact Sperber and his co-conspirator had misappropriated the funds.
Even though he was aware hospital and medical institutions needed this PPE as the pandemic worsened in early 2020, Sperber allegedly used millions of dollars’ of his victims’ funds for his own personal use, which included purchasing a multi-million dollar waterfront mansion in Boca Raton, Florida.
Brian Sperber, 44, of Boca Raton, Florida was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, four counts of wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and four counts of money laundering. Sperber will be arraigned at a later date in the Northern District of Georgia.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas J. Krepp is prosecuting the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sekret T. Sneed, Chief of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, is handling the forfeiture associated with this case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Brookhaven man indicted for extorting criminal defendant with false claim that prosecutor demanded bribeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Jamal Harrison has been charged with wire fraud in a six-count federal indictment for extorting a criminal defendant who had been charged in a federal case in Atlanta. During the scheme, Harrison falsely claimed that the federal prosecutor would dismiss the charges in the defendant's case for $15,000.
“Harrison allegedly promised a favorable outcome in the victim’s federal case when instead it was just a scam,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “If a member of the public is asked to pay a bribe, don’t pay it and call the FBI immediately.”
“Every American citizen has rights under our Constitution and should report anyone who attempts to bribe them,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “No matter who the victim is, the FBI will fully investigate any allegations of a crime.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the indictment, and other information presented in court: In July 2020, “Person 1,” an Atlanta resident, was arrested on a criminal indictment filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. Upon conviction for one or more of the crimes charged in the federal case, Person 1 was subject to a term of imprisonment, a term of supervised release, and other penalties and fines.
In August 2020, Harrison learned about the arrest and met with Person 1. During this meeting, Harrison saw a copy of the criminal indictment in Person 1’s case. Harrison then allegedly claimed that he was a part-time employee of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and knew the federal prosecutor in Person 1’s case. Harrison allegedly asserted that he could get the charges against Person 1 dismissed for $15,000, which he would give to the federal prosecutor. Person 1 refused.
Days later, Harrison met with Person 1 again. This time, Harrison threatened that if Person 1 still refused to pay the $15,000, the federal prosecutor would file additional charges against Person 1 and seek a longer term of imprisonment upon conviction. Person 1, fearing Harrison’s threat, agreed to pay and did pay Harrison $12,000 in cash. After making the payment, Harrison falsely claimed that he gave the money to the federal prosecutor, who would dismiss the charges against Person 1. In truth, however, Harrison allegedly kept the payment for himself. Harrison also stated that the federal case might be dismissed faster if Person 1 could provide more money.
By January 2021, the federal case against Person 1 remained active. Around this time, Person 1 and their attorney met with the prosecutor and agents in the federal case, and Person 1 realized that Harrison had deceived and extorted them. In early February 2021, Person 1 entered a guilty plea in the federal case. Later that month, however, Harrison continued to claim that he could get the charges dismissed if he received more money from Person 1. In March 2021, Person 1 recorded a meeting at which Person 1 gave Harrison $3,000 in cash, at which time Harrison allegedly guaranteed a speedy dismissal of the federal case.
On August 24, 2021, a grand jury returned an indictment against Jamal Harrison, 33, of Brookhaven, Georgia, on six counts of wire fraud. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Trevor C. Wilmot is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
New York man pleads guilty to unlawfully dealing more than 100 firearmsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Randolph Anthony Scott, Jr., a prolific gun dealer, has pleaded guilty to charges of unlawfully dealing firearms, making a false statement to a federally licensed firearms dealer, and interstate travel and purchase of firearms with intent to deal without a license.
“Unlicensed firearm dealers put the public at risk each time they sell a firearm to a potential criminal,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Removing guns from the hands of criminals remains a top priority as we continue to focus on identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the most significant drivers of gun violence and other violent crime.”
“Mr. Scott’s criminal actions are one of the main avenues used by prohibited individuals to acquire firearms. By Mr. Scott not being a licensed firearms dealer and using proper background checking procedures, he could have put guns in the hands of potential criminals,” said L.C. Cheeks Jr., ATF Atlanta Acting Special Agent in Charge. “ATF will continue to focus its attention on individuals that will unlawfully acquire and sell firearms.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: From May 2019 until March 2020, Scott purchased over 100 firearms from federally licensed firearms dealers in Georgia. Scott traveled from New York to Georgia multiple times to purchase large quantities of firearms that he would then unlawfully sell to others. Each time he purchased a firearm, he filled out an Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Form 4473 and falsely indicated that he was the actual buyer of the firearm. Scott then sold the firearms on the streets of New York, where he was able to sell the guns for double what he had paid.
Sentencing for Randolph Anthony Scott, Jr., 36, of Bronx, New York, is scheduled for December 17, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Steven D. Grimberg.
This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin N. Spritzer is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Georgia psychotherapy services provider to pay $2 million to resolve false claims allegationsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Carenow Services, LLC, a Roswell-based psychotherapy services provider, as well as its CEO Leena Karun (collectively “Carenow”), have agreed to pay $2 million to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by billing Medicare and Medicaid for psychotherapy sessions at nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities that were medically unnecessary, improperly documented, or billed at higher intensity levels than justified (a practice known as upcoding).
“Indiscriminately billing the government for psychotherapy services without regard to medical need or intensity of treatment deprives taxpayers of precious federal healthcare resources,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “We remain committed to investigating healthcare fraud, particularly those schemes that target the most vulnerable in our communities. Those who commit healthcare fraud should know that they risk significant fines, penalties and even federal prison time.”
“Hopefully, the False Claims Act settlement in this case will be a deterrent to anyone thinking about abusing federal healthcare programs for their own benefit,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI is determined to protect taxpaying citizens and those who need federal help for their healthcare needs.”
“Carenow Services allegedly exploited not only its access to Federal health care dollars, but also its relationship with nursing facility residents in need of psychological services,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge with the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. “Fraudulently billing Medicare and Medicaid for personal gain cheats millions of people who fund the programs or depend on their services. With our law enforcement partners, HHS-OIG unceasingly carries out our mission to protect these programs, in part, by bringing to justice those who bilk them.”
“Our Medicaid Fraud Division, in cooperation with our state and federal enforcement agencies, will remain vigilant in maintaining the integrity of public programs and prosecuting those who steal from taxpayers,” said Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr.
The settlement resolves False Claims Act allegations that between 2012 and 2018, Carenow billed Medicare and Medicaid for psychotherapy sessions at nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities that did not have any documented medical necessity. Additionally, in those situations where the psychotherapy sessions were medically necessary, Carenow allegedly upcoded its services and billed Medicare and Medicaid at higher reimbursing procedural codes. Consistent with the Justice Manual, the settlement includes credit to Carenow for immediately cooperating with the government in this investigation and for promptly taking steps to remediate the conduct described above.
This settlement resolves a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia styled United States and Georgia ex rel. Whitaker v. Carenow Services, LLC, No. 1:17-CV-1314-ELR (N.D. Ga.) by a former Carenow employee under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private citizens to bring lawsuits on behalf the United States and obtain a portion of the government’s recovery. The whistleblower in this case will receive a share of the government’s recovery.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the Georgia Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and Health and Human Services—Office of the Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigations.
The civil settlement was reached by Assistant U.S. Attorney Armen Adzhemyan, who is the civil Elder Justice Coordinator, and Georgia Assistant Attorney General Sara Vann. The claims resolved by this settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
For further information, please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Former bookkeeper sentenced to prison for embezzlementRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Alice Sue Smith has been sentenced for stealing from her employer while working as the bookkeeper and for filing false tax returns.
“When employees take advantage of their positions of trust to steal from small, family-owned businesses, real victims suffer serious financial harm,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “As in this case, there are real and significant consequences for employees who are caught stealing from their employers.”
“Smith let her greed blind her to responsibilities her company entrusted her with,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “For that she will be held accountable.”
“This sentencing sends a clear message that stealing from your employer is not okay,” said Demetrius Hardeman, Assistant Special Agent in Charge, IRS CI Atlanta Field Office. “No one should ever feel they have the right to take what is not theirs. IRS-CI will continue to work diligently, in concert with the FBI and US Attorney’s Office, to ensure everyone pays their fair share.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the criminal information, and other information presented in court: Alice Sue Smith was the bookkeeper and office manager at Chattanooga Coin, Inc. (“CCI”) from 2004 to 2018. From 2009 to 2018, Smith forged the signatures of CCI’s owners on approximately 1,400 checks that she then cashed. Smith also created fictitious check stubs in CCI’s financial records to cover up her fraud. In total, she stole approximately $1.24 million from CCI over nearly a decade. Smith also failed to report the embezzled funds and other legitimate income on her income tax returns.
Alice Sue Smith, 63, of Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, has been sentenced to three years, seven months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. The Court also ordered her to pay restitution to CCI and the United States of approximately $1.48 million. She was convicted of wire fraud and filing a false tax return on February 11, 2021, after pleading guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, with assistance from the Rossville, Georgia Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Qin and Russell Phillips prosecuted this case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Atlanta man sentenced for sextorting nine teenage boysRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Myles Frazier has been sentenced to 24 years in prison for the offenses of cyberstalking, enticement of a minor to engage in prostitution, and child pornography production.
“Frazier coerced numerous teenage boys online to engage in sex acts and send him photos and videos of that activity,” said Acting United States Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “He then threatened to expose the boys to their families and classmates when they refused to comply with his demands. This defendant is the online sexual predator that so many parents fear. His 24-year sentence is a critical step in achieving a measure of justice for the victims and their families.”
“Frazier will spend the next 24-years of his life in prison, which should send a strong message to anyone who even contemplates harming and extorting a vulnerable youth,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI takes sextortion very seriously. We would like to remind the community to be aware that people can pretend to be anyone online and to be extremely selective on what you share on the internet.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: Between December 2017 and July 2019, Myles Frazier targeted nine high school boys on social media using fraud and deceit to coerce the teens to meet him for sex and to create and send him sexually explicit images and videos. Frazier met most of the teens using an Instagram account where he was posing as an older attractive woman.
Three of the boys he targeted (Victim 1, Victim 2, and Victim 3) attended the same high school. Frazier, posing as a woman named “Liv,” pressured and paid Victim 1 to let a man (who was Frazier) come to Victim 1’s house and engage in sex acts with Victim 1 on two occasions. Both times, Victim 1 asked Frazier to stop mid-sex act, and on the second occasion, Victim 1 had to use physical force to stop Frazier. Frazier attempted to arrange similar in-person meetings for paid sex with Victim 2 and Victim 3.
Frazier also threatened to expose Victim 1 to Victim 1’s family and school, to sue Victim 1, and to come to Victim 1’s home. Over the course of a week, Frazier sent Victim 1 more than 100 threatening messages. Frazier made similar threats to Victim 2 Frazier even threatened to expose Victim 2 to cause Victim 2 to lose a college athletic scholarship.
The other six teens Frazier targeted lived outside the State of Georgia. Frazier coerced these boys to create and send him sexually explicit images and videos by paying them and sending them pornographic videos of a woman who Frazier claimed to be. When the minors stopped complying with his demands for sexual content, Frazier tried to extort several of them, threatening to publicly post their sexual content and expose them to their school principal, superintendent, and parents.
Myles Frazier, 29, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones to 24 years in federal prison, to be followed by 20 years of supervised release. He must also register as a sex offender as a condition of his supervised release. Frazier was sentenced on August 11, 2021 and pleaded guilty on February 12, 2021.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Annalise K. Peters and Laurel Boatright Milam prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Childhood. In February 2006, the Attorney General launched Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices around the country, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Roswell businesswoman pleads guilty to bank fraud in connection with the Paycheck Protection ProgramRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Hunter VanPelt, a/k/a Hunter Lauren VanPelt, a/k/a Ellen Corkrum, a/k/a Ellen Yabba Kwame Corkrum, who defrauded the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) of more than $6 million, has pleaded guilty to a charge of bank fraud.
“The Paycheck Protection Program helps businesses keep their workforces employed during the COVID-19 crisis,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine. “When these funds are diverted by fraud, such as in this case, workers and the businesses that employ them unfortunately suffer.”
“VanPelt brazenly exploited this devastating national emergency for personal gain, and she is now being held accountable for her fraudulent conduct,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr., of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “PPP funds should be reserved for legitimate businesses and their hard-working employees who have suffered economically as a result of the pandemic. The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that anyone who takes advantage of COVID-19 relief programs will be brought to justice.”
“The Paycheck Protection Program is key to survival for many small businesses during the COVID-19 crisis,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “It is particularly disturbing that anyone would try to capitalize off a federal program at those businesses’ expense. The FBI will persist in its efforts to stop such fraud.”
“To support small and community banks, the Federal Home Loan banks can accept Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans as collateral when making loans to their members,” said Special Agent in Charge Edwin S. Bonano of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General. “The Office of Inspector General is proud to work with our partners in law enforcement to prevent, detect, and deter attempts to perpetrate fraud in the Federal Home Loan Bank System and steal the assistance intended for small business owners and employees under this important part of the CARES Act.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charge and other information presented in court: VanPelt submitted six false and fraudulent PPP loans between April 27, 2020 and June 17, 2020. The amounts requested in the six loans totaled $7,943,591.50, of which $6,017,066.50 was disbursed.
VanPelt owned or controlled the six entities that sought these PPP loans:
- Georgia Nephrology Physician Associated,
- United Healthcare Group & Co.,
- Nephrology Network Group LLC,
- First Corporate International,
- Corkrum Consolidated Inc.,
- Kiwi International Inc.
The defendant, who legally changed her name from Ellen Corkrum to Hunter VanPelt in July 2016, submitted the PPP loan applications under both names.
In each of the PPP loan applications, VanPelt falsely represented the average monthly payroll and the number of employees working for the relevant company. She also submitted false IRS records, false bank statements, and false payroll reports in connection with those applications.
Federal agents were able to seize approximately $2.1 million of the fraudulent proceeds.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a federal law enacted on March 29, 2020. It is 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. Additional funding was authorized by Congress in December 2020.
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 forgiven if businesses spend the proceeds on these expenses within eight weeks of receipt and use at least 75 percent of the forgiven amount for payroll.
Sentencing for Hunter VanPelt, 49, of Roswell, Georgia, is scheduled for January 4, 2022, at 10:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber, Deputy Chief of the Complex Frauds Section, and Department of Justice Trial Attorney Chris A. Wenger are prosecuting the case.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Veterans Affairs employee pleads guilty to theft of medical equipmentRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Kevin Rumph, Jr., has pleaded guilty to a charge of theft of medical products. Rumph used his U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) issued credit card to buy over $1.9 million worth of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) equipment, which he stole and then sold.
“As a VA employee, Rumph’s job was to serve those who served and protected our nation,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “His greed was a betrayal of trust that deprived veterans of the scarce resources needed by them to live productive lives.”
“The defendant’s deceitful actions breached the public trust, undermined the integrity of VA’s healthcare operations, and tarnished the important work that honest VA employees do every day in support of our nation’s veterans,” said David Spilker, Special Agent in Charge at the VA OIG. “The VA OIG thanks the VA medical center for referring this matter and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its partnership in holding the defendant accountable for his unlawful conduct.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: Kevin Rumph, Jr., was a purchasing agent employed by the VA. He had been employed there since 2012. He worked in the VA’s Prosthetic Department at its Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) located in Fort McPherson, Atlanta, Georgia.
Rumph’s job duties included receiving prosthetic request forms and prescriptions from physicians, therapists, patients, and patient representatives, and reviewing those forms for proper documentation and justification of the items, services, and durable medical equipment being requested. Rumph prepared purchase orders for a wide variety of prosthetic and sensory aids devices, medical supplies, and durable medical equipment and coordinated the delivery of medical equipment and supplies through contracted providers utilizing his VA-issued purchase card.
In addition to his legitimate purchases for veterans’ health care needs, Rumph used his government-issued purchase card to make unauthorized purchases of CPAP supplies from a supplier in Alabama. He then stole and sold the CPAP supplies to a vendor located in Ohio. CPAP supplies are medical products used to treat obstructive sleep apnea.
Between 2013 to 2021, Rumph made hundreds of unauthorized CPAP supply purchases costing the VA in excess of $1.9 million.
Kevin Rumph, Jr., 41, of Fairburn, Georgia, pleaded guilty to theft of medical products. Sentencing is scheduled for November 17, 2021, at 10:00 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Michael L. Brown.
This case is being investigated by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber, Deputy Chief of the Complex Frauds Section, is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Atlanta CEO sentenced to prison for securities fraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Richard J. Randolph, III has been sentenced for securities fraud he committed while CEO of Randolph Acquisitions, Inc.
“Corporate executives, like Randolph, are expected to defend investors’ money, not take advantage of their position in a company to defraud them,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Instead, this defendant let his greed get the better of him and now he faces significant federal prison time.”
“Fraud is fraud, no matter how complicated,” said Special Agent in Charge Steven R. Baisel, U.S. Secret Service - Atlanta Field Office. “The defendant in this case employed multiple machinations in an effort to hide his criminal acts. Ultimately, his efforts failed under the scrutiny of the law enforcement professionals tasked with unraveling his schemes.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: Richard Randolph was the CEO, Chairman of the Board of Directors, and majority shareholder of Randolph Acquisitions, Inc., a company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, that publicly filed its financials with the Securities and Exchange Commission. He also controlled Gallagher Management Group and other related entities. In 2017 and 2018, Randolph sold over $1 million in Randolph Acquisition stock to various investors.
In 2017, Randolph began preparing to merge Gallagher Management Group into Randolph Acquisitions and sold Randolph Acquisitions shares to multiple investors. Gallagher Management also engaged an accounting firm to audit its 2016 financial statements. In connection with this audit, Randolph provided false and fraudulent information regarding Gallagher Management Group’s assets which were then reflected on the balance sheet of the 2016 financial statements:
- Randolph falsely valued property at $10.5 million with no associated liability. In reality, Gallagher Management Group purchased the property in September 2016 for $1.1 million with a $1.1 million mortgage loan secured by the property. It was sold in August 2017 for $1.2 million.
- Randolph falsely claimed that Gallagher Management Group owned two buildings valued at a claimed $10 million combined. In reality, neither Gallagher Management Group nor Randolph ever owned these properties.
- Randolph falsely valued yet another property at $4.5 million that was acquired in January 2016 for $425,000 by an entity controlled by Randolph and was transferred to Gallagher Management Group in March 2017. In April 2018, the property was sold at auction for $687,500 after Gallagher Management Group defaulted on a $500,000 loan.
- Randolph provided a false bank statement showing a balance of over $2.5 million. The actual balance in this account was $58,198.78.
The audited financials included other misrepresentations:
- They falsely stated that Gallagher Management Group “has consistently maintained over $50 million dollars in assets, under management, annually.”
- They falsely stated that Gallagher Management Group “provides a broad range of investment banking services to a diverse group of corporations, financial institutions, investment funds, and governments.”
- They falsely stated that Gallagher Management Group “provides investment management services and offer[s] investment products (primarily through separately managed accounts, such as mutual funds and private investment funds) across all major asset classes to a diverse set of institutional and individual clients.”
Gallagher Management Group engaged a consultant to prepare a business valuation for the merger which relied upon Gallagher Management Group’s 2016 audited financial statements, additional false property valuation information provided by Randolph, and false projections provided by Randolph. The report valued Gallagher Management Group at $31.3 million on an enterprise value basis and $33.8 million on an equity value basis.
In connection with the proposed merger between Randolph Acquisitions and Gallagher Management Group, Randolph Acquisitions made multiple filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that attached the false and fraudulent 2016 audited financial statements of Gallagher Management Group. Randolph directed investors to these filings.
In addition to these documents, Randolph made other false and fraudulent misrepresentations to prospective investors:
- Randolph falsely claimed that Randolph Acquisitions was close to securing a variety of large public and private contracts in the U.S. Virgin Islands, including hurricane remediation contracts and an agreement to manage the U.S. Virgin Islands public retirement fund. Randolph Acquisitions never obtained any of these contracts.
- Randolph falsely claimed that Randolph Acquisitions owned EF Block. To the contrary, Randolph Acquisitions did not own EF Block.
- Randolph falsely claimed that Randolph Acquisitions was publicly traded on the pink sheets. Randolph Acquisitions was never listed on any exchange.
Using these misrepresentations, Randolph induced 14 victims to invest over $1.6 million in Randolph Acquisitions.
Richard J. Randolph, III, 40, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to six years, six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,602,200 to his victims. Randolph was convicted on these charges on April 9, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, with assistance from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. In a related civil matter, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint charging Randolph and he consented to entry of a judgment against him.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber, Deputy Chief of the Complex Frauds Section, prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Stonecrest man sentenced to jail for defrauding the USDA COVID-19 relief programRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Christopher Hayes has been sentenced for defrauding the USDA’s Coronavirus Food Relief Program and attempting to defraud the IRS's COVID-19 relief program.
“The government has provided significant relief for Americans as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Unfortunately, there are those who take advantage of this to defraud these programs. Our office has placed the highest priority on prosecuting those that do so.”
“IRS-Criminal Investigation is committed to investigating fraud against COVID-19 relief programs,” said IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge James E. Dorsey. “Our financial expertise is a key asset to the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force. We will continue to use our financial expertise to identify fraud, trace the funds, and bring the criminals to justice.”
“The USDA COVID-19 food assistance programs were meant to keep food on American family’s tables during this unprecedented time,” said Jason Williams, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Agriculture-Office of Inspector General. “This prosecution should send a strong zero-tolerance message to those opportunistic fraudsters who would take advantage of a national emergency to enrich themselves.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: Hayes submitted a false claim to the USDA's Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) for the claimed loss of livestock at his commercial farming operation. CFAP provided direct relief to producers who faced price declines and additional marketing costs due to COVID-19. Hayes did not own or operate a commercial farming operation and did not have losses associated with any livestock when he made a claim under CFAP.
In addition, Hayes submitted a fraudulent IRS Form 7200, which, when used legitimately, allows an employer to request an advance payment of employer credits under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). The FFCRA provides small and midsize employers refundable tax credits that reimburse them, dollar-for-dollar, for the cost of providing paid sick and family leave wages to their employees for leave related to COVID-19. In total, Hayes attempted to obtain over $1.5 million in COVID-19 relief funding.
This is the first completed prosecution for fraud on these two COVID-19 relief programs in the country.
Christopher Hayes, 35, of Stonecrest, Georgia, has been sentenced to two years, six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $248,739. Hayes was convicted on these charges on May 3, 2021, after he pleaded guilty.
This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Klapman and Christopher J. Huber, Deputy Chief of the Complex Frauds Section, are prosecuting the case.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
North Georgia Health Clinic and its CEO agree to pay $130,000.00 to settle False Claims Act allegations that they issued medically unnecessary opioid prescriptionsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – North Georgia Healthcare Center, Inc. (“NGHC”), a Ringgold, Georgia, based nonprofit corporation and healthcare provider, as well as its CEO, Delaine Hunter, have agreed to pay $130,000.00 dollars to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by causing the submission – between January 1, 2012 and September 10, 2018 – of medically unnecessary claims for Schedule II controlled substances to the United States and State of Georgia. Specifically, the Complaint alleges that Dr. Gary Smith, a former NGHC physician, improperly prescribed opioids without appropriate medical review and judgment of medical necessity.
“Medical professionals are trusted to prescribe controlled substances in compliance with the law and in a manner that protects the health and safety of their patients,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “We will continue to vigorously pursue those who breach that trust using every tool at our disposal.”
“Healthcare fraud is not a victimless crime, with fraudsters often preying on beneficiaries across the country. Especially insidious is the fraud committed by heath care practitioners who are trusted to prescribe only medically necessary, quality services to patients,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. “Working closely with our law enforcement partners, our agency will continue to protect the public by holding those responsible for such schemes responsible for their actions.”
“We are fighting the opioid epidemic on many fronts, including holding those accountable who improperly prescribe without appropriate medical review and judgment,” said Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr. “These types of allegations will receive our full attention because of the potential harm to Georgians and the improper use of taxpayer dollars.”
“The opioid addiction crisis in this country affects everyone to include the military and their families,” stated Special Agent in Charge Cynthia A. Bruce, Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Southeast Field Office. “This settlement is another step forward in striking at the heart of physician assisted addiction and holding those medical professionals accountable for unethical service.”
To be reimbursable under Government insurance programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare, drugs prescribed by a physician must be (1) rendered pursuant to the prescriber’s medical judgment, and (2) reasonable and medically necessary. Additionally, under Georgia law, only physicians – and not mid-level practitioners such as physician assistants – can write prescriptions for Schedule II drugs, which includes, but is not limited to, opioids such as oxycodone and hydrocodone. Where a physician assistant interacts with a patient and concludes that the patient requires a Schedule II drug, the doctor that supervises the physician assistant must concur that the pertinent Schedule II drug is medically necessity and must sign the associated prescription.
The Government alleges that physician assistants – and not Dr. Smith –saw most of the patients at NGHC. Dr. Smith only visited NGHC one afternoon per week, and rarely saw patients or reviewed their charts. The Government further alleges that Dr. Smith routinely signed stacks of prescriptions (which included, but were not limited to, prescriptions for Schedule II drugs) for patients that he had neither seen nor otherwise evaluated. Finally, the Government alleges that NGHC’s CEO failed to promptly address this behavior once alerted to it by several NGHC employees.
Dr. Smith, in a separate settlement agreement with the United States Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, has agreed to a voluntary 10 year exclusion from participation in all federal healthcare programs. As result, both Dr. Smith and any provider using Dr. Smith’s services will be unable to obtain reimbursement for care provided to any patients insured under a government healthcare program, such as Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare.
The settlement resolves a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia by a former NGHC employee under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private citizens to bring lawsuits on behalf of the United States and obtain a portion of the government’s recovery. The case is captioned United States and Georgia ex rel. Krysta Mangrum v. LabCorp, et al. (Civil Action No. 1-18-cv-312). The claims resolved by this settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the Georgia Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service of the U.S. Department of Defense – Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Paris A. Wynn and Assistant Attorney General Sara Vann handled this matter.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/.
Felon indicted following roadway shootingRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Rico Laprince Southall has been charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Southall fired shots at the victim, who happened also to be a family member.
“A key factor in reducing gun violence is to remove firearms from the hands of individuals prohibited from possessing them,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “We will pursue those who illegally possess firearms and undermine the safety of our community through continued collaboration with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners.”
“There is no question about the level of violence displayed by Southall,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Arthur Peralta. “He indiscriminately fired the gun he illegally possessed without any concern about who might be hurt. The arrest and indictment of Southall is part of our commitment to make our communities safer each and every day.”
“The Cobb County Police Department continues to proudly coordinate investigations across jurisdictional boundaries in order to ensure justice is served for all victims. Law enforcement agencies must continue to share information in cases like this in order to maintain the safety of all those living and working within our communities,” said Cobb County Police Chief Tim Cox.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: On April 1, 2021, Rico Laprince Southall targeted a victim, a member of his family, as the victim drove in the area of Powder Springs, Georgia. Southall pursued the victim’s vehicle through the residential area and fired multiple rounds at her vehicle from a semi-automatic pistol equipped with a high-capacity magazine. Several rounds entered the passenger compartment of the victim’s vehicle, with at least one round striking an unoccupied infant safety seat. One of the rounds also struck another car in the vicinity.
The Cobb County Police Department responded to the scene and saw Southall leaving the area in his vehicle in which his girlfriend and minor child were passengers. The responding officers arrested Southall and recovered the semi-automatic pistol he had fired, as well as a second gun, a revolver. The officers noted that Southall had reloaded the semi-automatic weapon during the shooting. Both firearms had been reported stolen.
Southall was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher C. Bly on July 30, 2021, and detained pending trial. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Cobb County Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney D’Juan B. Jones is prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). In keeping with the Attorney General’s mission to reduce violent crime, the Northern District of Georgia’s PSN program focuses on prosecuting those individuals who most significantly drive violence in our communities, and supports and fosters partnerships between law enforcement and schools, the faith community, and local community leaders to prevent and deter future criminal conduct.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
U.S. Attorney issues update on action taken to prevent Paycheck Protection Program fraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine issued an update on his office’s efforts to combat fraud related to schemes targeting the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a loan program created by Congress to help small businesses pay payroll, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Along with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners, we continue to remain focused on investigating and prosecuting crimes involving PPP fraud,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Unfortunately, when criminals steal these funds, they take them out of the hands of those suffering financial hardship. Criminals should understand that the diversion of taxpayer money meant to help small businesses survive this crisis will be fully investigated and prosecuted.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia has charged dozens of people with federal crimes related to PPP fraud, including bank fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering. The cases involve a variety of criminal conduct, including business owners who inflated their payroll expenses to obtain larger loans than they otherwise would have qualified for, serial fraudsters who used shell companies to apply for loans, and organized criminal networks that submitted identical loan applications and supporting documents on behalf of more than one company. Most charged defendants not only obtained the loan proceeds under false pretenses, but they also used the loan proceeds for prohibited purposes, such as the purchase of houses, cars, jewelry, and other luxury items.
The PPP fraud cases prosecuted by The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia include the following:
- United States v. Darrell Thomas, et al.: Twenty-two defendants were charged in an $11.1 million PPP loan fraud scheme orchestrated by Duluth, Georgia resident Darrell Thomas. Thomas and his team applied for fraudulent PPP loans on behalf of 14 businesses located in seven different states. Each loan application claimed that the businesses had between 59 and 69 employees and attached forged IRS tax forms and either a fake bank statement or payroll expense spreadsheet, many of which were substantively identical in multiple fraudulent applications. In reality, none of the businesses had employees or payroll expenses. After the PPP loan proceeds were deposited into the businesses’ accounts, the business owners transferred more than $5.5 million to accounts controlled by Thomas, and the funds were used to purchase luxury vehicles, jewelry, and to pay for other personal expenses. As a result of the investigation, the United States seized nearly $4 million in PPP funds, and six participants in the scheme, including Thomas, have pleaded guilty.
- U.S. v. Rodericque Jarmaine Thompson, et al.: Nine individuals, including the ringleader, Rodericque Jarmaine Thompson, have pleaded guilty to various federal charges arising from multiple bank-fraud conspiracies designed to obtain PPP loans under false pretenses. Each of the loan applications contained identical false information. For example, each loan application falsely claimed that the business had 16 employees and a monthly payroll of $120,000. Each application was supported by fraudulent quarterly tax returns that claimed the business owner had paid $358,819 in wages per quarter. In the application, the business owner swore that the loan proceeds would be used for payroll, utilities, lease payments, consistent with the PPP rules. The business owners agreed to kickback up to 50 percent of the loan amount to Thompson, as a fee for helping them obtain the loans. After receiving the loans, the business owners wrote multiple checks for $8,333.33 to individuals selected by Thompson, or to their friends and family members. All of the checks claimed to be for “payroll,” even though the individuals who received the checks were not employed by the businesses.
- U.S. v. Alicia Quarterman, et al.: The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Drug Enforcement Administration executed a search warrant at the home of Alicia Quarterman in Fayetteville, Georgia in connection with an ongoing narcotics trafficking investigation. A package containing methamphetamine hidden in dog food containers had been mailed to Quarterman’s home. As part of the search, law enforcement seized Quarterman’s cell phones and discovered a handwritten ledger with the personal and banking information of several individuals. That ledger and a subsequent search of Quarterman’s cell phone revealed an alleged Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) and PPP loan fraud scheme devised by Quarterman and Katrina Lawson of Houston, Texas, a former deputy sheriff for Fulton County. The scheme involved the submission of fraudulent business loan applications on behalf of their friends and family who did not actually own businesses. In total, the scheme involved 50 different individuals, including India Middleton of Accokeek, Maryland (a deputy sheriff in Arlington County, Virginia); James McFarland, Tranesha Quarterman (a former Army military policeman), Darryl Washington, Adarin Jones, and Katie Quarterman of Atlanta, Georgia; Nikia Wakefield of Rockville, Maryland; and Victor Montgomery of Washington, D.C. The ten defendants were indicted on March 16, 2021 on charges of wire fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud for attempting to steal over $774,000. The defendants used the loan proceeds to purchase luxury vehicles, a motorcycle, and an all-terrain four-wheeler.
- U.S. v. Maurice Fayne: Maurice Fayne, who starred in the reality TV show Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta, pleaded guilty to bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution in connection with a fraudulent $3.7 million PPP loan application. Fayne falsely claimed that his trucking business had 107 employees and an average monthly payroll of $1,490,200. Fayne certified that the PPP loan proceeds would be used to “retain workers and maintain payroll or make mortgage interest payments, lease payments, and utility payments, as specified under the Paycheck Protection Program Rule.” Instead, Fayne used the PPP loan proceeds to pay his past-due child support, pay restitution owed in a previous fraud case, make payments to associates who helped him run a Ponzi scheme, start a new business, purchase jewelry, and lease a Rolls-Royce. In addition, Fayne pleaded guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy in connection with a Ponzi scheme that caused approximately 20 people to invest over $5 million in Fayne’s fictitious trucking business. Fayne promised that he would use the investors’ money to operate the business. Instead, Fayne used the investors’ money to pay his personal debts and expenses, and to fund his extravagant lifestyle.
Indictments and other criminal charges referenced above are merely allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Twenty-two defendants charged in connection with alleged $11.1 million Paycheck Protection Program fraud schemeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Seventeen more individuals have been charged in connection with a fraudulent scheme to obtain approximately $11.1 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and to use those funds to purchase luxury vehicles, jewelry, and other personal items. To date, a total of 22 individuals have been charged in connection with the fraudulent scheme. Six individuals, including the scheme’s mastermind, Darrell Thomas, have pleaded guilty.
“The defendants allegedly took advantage of emergency financial assistance intended for business owners suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The charges reinforce our resolve to prosecute anyone who used pandemic relief funds for personal gain.”
“So many businesses needed federal emergency assistance to stay afloat during a pandemic, and these defendants allegedly misdirected millions of dollars of that assistance money to their own pockets for luxury items,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Their alleged greed affects every American taxpayer, and the FBI is making every effort possible to stop it and make sure PPP funds are used as intended.”
“When tragedy strikes and citizens find themselves in a vulnerable situation to no fault of their own, the influx of government assistance unfortunately also attracts criminals,” said IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge James E. Dorsey. “While the government is helping those in need, law enforcement is swiftly addressing these vulnerabilities. IRS-CI will continue to help illuminate these criminal deeds with our financial expertise.”
“The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration aggressively pursues those who endeavor to defraud programs afforded to the American people under the CARES Act,” said J. Russell George, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. “We appreciate the efforts of the Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners in this effort.”
“Scheming to fraudulently obtain federal funds that are meant to provide assistance to nation’s small businesses is unacceptable,” said SBA OIG’s Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite. “Our Office will remain relentless in the pursuit of fraudsters who seek to exploit SBA’s vital economic programs. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their dedication and commitment to seeing justice served.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the first superseding indictment, and other information presented in court: From April 2020 through August 2020, the conspirators in the scheme allegedly submitted, or assisted in the submission of, PPP loan applications on behalf of fourteen businesses, seeking loans of approximately $700,000 - $850,000 for each company:
Business Name
PPP Loan Amount
Bellator Phront Group Inc.
$799,955.35
Impact Creations LLC
$830,000
Gaines Reservation and Travel
$806,710
Transportation Management Services
$830,417
Lee Operations LLC
$805,813
RK Painting Co.
$775,000
D Parker Holdings Inc.
$818,102
Continuing Success Inc.
$727,000
All Star Room & Board Services of Michigan Inc.
$737,965
Infinite Education Services Inc.
$854,805
ML Exotic Customs Inc.
$797,275
Bellevie Corp.
$823,585
Advertising and Then Some Inc.
$760,207
Mickies Auto and Tires LLC
$787,160
Total
$11,153,994
In the loan applications, the defendants certified that each applicant business was in operation on February 15, 2020 and had employees for whom it paid salaries and payroll taxes or paid independent contractors; that the funds would be used to retain workers and maintain payroll or make mortgage interest payments, lease payments, and utility payments; and that the information provided in the application and in all supporting documents and forms was true and accurate in all material respects.
The PPP loan applications reported that each business had between 59 and 69 employees and approximately $295,000 to $342,000 in average monthly payroll expenses. To support these payroll figures, each business’s loan application was accompanied by an Internal Revenue Service Form 941, which employers use to report payroll taxes, for each quarter of 2019 and by a bank statement or a spreadsheet reflecting payroll expenses. In reality, however, none of the businesses had employees or payroll expenses. The Form 941s, bank statements, and W2 payroll spreadsheets had all been fabricated. Indeed, some of the supporting documents the businesses submitted were substantively identical, including identical Form 941s, identical bank statements, and W2 payroll spreadsheets where the reported figures were identical but purported employee names had been changed.
After the PPP loan proceeds were deposited into the businesses’ accounts, the businesses transferred more than $5.5 million of the PPP loan proceeds into accounts controlled by Darrell Thomas, purportedly for rental payments and payroll. However, none of the businesses had any legitimate business with any of the businesses or accounts to which they sent the proceeds. Based on the investigation, none of the companies allegedly engaged in any business-related transactions or used the PPP loan proceeds for any authorized purposes. Instead, the businesses used the funds for various personal expenses. In connection with the investigation, the United States seized nearly $4 million in PPP loan proceeds, four luxury vehicles, and several jewelry items.
Fourteen additional defendants were charged in a First Superseding Indictment unsealed on Wednesday, July 14, 2021:
- Ricky Dixon, 52, of Warren, Michigan, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering in connection with his involvement in the loan obtained by his business, RK Painting Co., and several other businesses’ loans.
- Meghan Thomas, 32, of Alpharetta, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, and false statements to a federally insured financial institution in connection with her involvement in several businesses’ loans.
- Jesika Blakely, 34, of Atlanta, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with her involvement in several businesses’ loans.
- Amanda Christian, 33, of Blythewood, South Carolina, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, and false statements to a federally insured financial institution in connection with her involvement in the loan obtained by her business, Advertising and Then Some Inc., and several other businesses’ loans.
- Dwan Ashong a/k/a Dwan Gilpin, 40, of Jacksonville, Florida, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with her involvement in several businesses’ loans.
- John Gaines a/k/a Marty Gaines, 56, of Marietta, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by Gaines Reservation and Travel.
- Charles Petty a/k/a Charles Knight, 48, of Atlanta, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by Transportation Management Services Inc.
- Jerry Baptiste, 43, of College Park, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by Transportation Management Services Inc.
- Derek Parker, 56, of Rochester Hills, Michigan, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, D Parker Holdings Inc.
- David Belgrave II, 49, of Lexington, South Carolina, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Continuing Success Inc.
- Charles Hill IV, 45, of Norcross, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Infinite Education Services Inc.
- Ryan Whittley, 35, of South Holland, Illinois, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, ML Exotic Customs Inc.
- El Hadj Sall, 39, of Jacksonville, Florida, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Bellevie Corp.
- Rick McDuffie, 50, of Little Rock, South Carolina, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Mickies Auto and Tire LLC.
Three additional defendants have been charged by Criminal Information:
- Teldrin Foster, 39, of Decatur, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by Bellator Phront Group Inc.
- Denesseria Slaton, 52, of Stockbridge, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by Transportation Management Services Inc.
- Charmaine Redding, 27, of Macomb, Michigan, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by her business, All Star Room and Board Services of Michigan Inc.
- Another defendant, Carla Jackson, 53, of Tucker, Georgia, was previously charged by indictment on August 4, 2020 with money laundering in connection with laundering the proceeds of Gaines Reservation and Travel’s PPP loan.
Six defendants have pleaded guilty based on their roles in the fraudulent scheme since the original indictment was returned on August 4, 2020, including the mastermind, Darrell Thomas, and one defendant has been sentenced to date:
- Darrell Thomas, 35, of Duluth, Georgia, pleaded guilty on June 16, 2021 to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud and one count of money laundering. As part of his guilty plea, Darrell Thomas admitted his participation in fraudulent conduct totaling more than $14.7 million, including more than $11.1 million in fraudulent PPP loans, more than $1.15 million in fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loans, and more than $2.4 million in fraudulent automobile loans. He also agreed to forfeit various assets, including more than $2.1 million in seized funds, three luxury vehicles – a 2018 Mercedes-Benz S-Class S65AMG, a 2018 Land Rover Range Rover, and a 2017 Acura NSX – and several items of jewelry, including a gold Rolex. Darrell Thomas’s sentencing is set for September 15, 2021 before Judge J.P. Boulee.
- Denesseria Slaton, pleaded guilty on June 16, 2021 to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by Transportation Management Services Inc. Slaton’s sentencing is set for October 6, 2021.
- Khalil Gibran Green, Sr., 47, of Cleveland, Ohio, pleaded guilty on September 1, 2020, to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Impact Creations LLC. On January 14, 2021, Judge J.P. Boulee sentenced Green to three years and five months’ imprisonment and five years of supervised release, and Judge Boulee ordered him to pay $830,000 in restitution, forfeiture of $157,035.71, and a special assessment of $100.
- Bern Benoit, 45, of Burbank, California, pleaded guilty on March 11, 2021 to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Transportation Management Services Inc. Benoit’s sentencing is set for September 8, 2021 before Judge J.P. Boulee.
- Charmaine Redding, pleaded guilty on July 14, 2021 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by her business, All Star Room and Board Services of Michigan Inc. Redding’s sentencing is set for October 21, 2021 before Judge J.P. Boulee.
- Andre Lee Gaines, 67, of Dallas, Georgia, pleaded guilty on June 17, 2021 to one count of making false statements to the FBI in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Gaines Reservation and Travel. Andre Gaines’s sentencing is set for October 6, 2021 before Judge J.P. Boulee.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment contains only charges.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and the Small Business Administration-Office of the Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tal Chaiken and Nathan Kitchens of the Northern District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Siji Moore of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts, For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Twenty-Two Charged in Connection with a More than $11-Million Paycheck Protection Program Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
Seventeen more individuals have been charged in connection with a fraudulent scheme to obtain approximately $11.1 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and to use those funds to purchase luxury vehicles, jewelry and other personal items.
According to court documents and statements made in court, between May and August 2020, the defendants submitted, or assisted in the submission of, PPP loan applications on behalf of 14 businesses seeking loans of approximately $800,000 for each company. In the loan applications, the defendants certified that each applicant business was in operation on Feb. 15, 2020, and had employees for whom it paid salaries and payroll taxes or that it paid independent contractors; that the funds would be used to retain workers and maintain payroll or to make mortgage interest payments, lease payments and utility payments; and that the information provided in the application and in all supporting documents was true and accurate in all material respects.
In the PPP loan applications, each business reported that it had approximately 60 employees and approximately $300,000 in average monthly payroll expenses. To support these payroll figures, each business’s loan application was accompanied by an IRS Form 941, which employers use to report payroll taxes. But, in reality, each Form 941 was fraudulent.
After the PPP loan proceeds were deposited into the businesses’ accounts, the funds were distributed to conspirators through a series of transactions that were devised to disguise the origins of the funds and how the funds were spent. The defendants and co-conspirators used the PPP loan proceeds to purchase luxury goods, including two Range Rovers, an Acura NSX, and a Mercedes Benz S-Class S65 AMG.
Seventeen Additional Defendants Charged
Fourteen defendants were charged in a first superseding indictment unsealed on July 14, including:
Ricky Dixon, 52, of Warren, Michigan, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering in connection with his involvement in the loan obtained by his business, RK Painting Co., and several other businesses’ loans.
Meghan Thomas, 32, of Alpharetta, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, and false statements to a federally insured financial institution in connection with her involvement in several businesses’ loans.
Jesika Blakely, 34, of Atlanta, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with her involvement in several businesses’ loans.
Amanda Christian, 33, of Blythewood, South Carolina, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, and false statements to a federally insured financial institution in connection with her involvement in the loan obtained by her business, Advertising and Then Some Inc., and several other businesses’ loans.
Dwan Ashong, aka Dwan Gilpin, 40, of Jacksonville, Florida, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with her involvement in several businesses’ loans.
John Gaines, aka Marty Gaines, 56, of Marietta, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by Gaines Reservation and Travel.
Charles Petty, aka Charles Knight, 48, of Atlanta, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by Transportation Management Services Inc.
Jerry Baptiste, 43, of College Park, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by Transportation Management Services Inc.
Derek Parker, 56, of Rochester Hills, Michigan, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, D Parker Holdings Inc.
David Belgrave II, 49, of Lexington, South Carolina, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, bank fraud, wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured financial institution, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Continuing Success Inc.
Charles Hill IV, 45, of Norcross, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Infinite Education Services Inc.
Ryan Whittley, 35, of South Holland, Illinois, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, ML Exotic Customs Inc.
El Hadj Sall, 39, of Jacksonville, Florida, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Bellevie Corp.
Rick McDuffie, 50, of Little Rock, South Carolina, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Mickies Auto and Tire LLC.
Three additional defendants have been charged by criminal information:
Teldrin Foster, 39, of Decatur, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by Bellator Phront Group Inc.
Denesseria Slaton, 52, of Stockbridge, Georgia, is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by Transportation Management Services Inc.
Charmaine Redding, 27, of Macomb, Michigan, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by her business, All Star Room and Board Services of Michigan Inc.
Another defendant, Carla Jackson, 53, of Tucker, Georgia, was previously charged by indictment on Aug. 4, 2020, with money laundering in connection with laundering the proceeds of Gaines Reservation and Travel’s PPP loan.
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the wire fraud and money laundering charges and a maximum of 30 years on the bank fraud and false statement to a federally insured bank charge. Dixon also faces an additional two-year sentence on the aggravated identity theft charge. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Six Plead Guilty, Including Mastermind
Six defendants have pleaded guilty based on their roles in the fraudulent scheme since the original indictment was returned on August 4, 2020, including the mastermind, Darrell Thomas, and one defendant has been sentenced to date:
Darrell Thomas, 35, of Duluth, Georgia, pleaded guilty on June 16, to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud and one count of money laundering. As part of his guilty plea, Darrell Thomas admitted his participation in fraudulent conduct totaling more than $14.7 million, including approximately $11.2 million in fraudulent PPP loans, more than $1.15 million in fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loans, and more than $2.4 million in fraudulent automobile loans. He also agreed to forfeit various assets, including more than $2.1 million in seized funds, three luxury vehicles – a 2018 Mercedes-Benz S-Class S65AMG, a 2018 Land Rover Range Rover, and a 2017 Acura NSX – and several items of jewelry, including a gold Rolex. Darrell Thomas’s sentencing is set for Sept. 15, before Judge J.P. Boulee.
Denesseria Slaton, pleaded guilty on June 16, to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by Transportation Management Services Inc. Slaton’s sentencing is set for Oct. 6.
Khalil Gibran Green Sr., 47, of Cleveland, Ohio, pleaded guilty on Sept. 1, 2020, to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Impact Creations LLC. On Jan. 14, Judge J.P. Boulee sentenced Green to three years and five months in prison and five years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay $830,000 in restitution and forfeiture of $157,035.71.
Bern Benoit, 45, of Burbank, California, pleaded guilty on March 11, to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Transportation Management Services Inc. Benoit’s sentencing is set for Sept. 8, before Judge J.P. Boulee.
Charmaine Redding, pleaded guilty on July 14, to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with the loan obtained by her business, All Star Room and Board Services of Michigan Inc. Redding’s sentencing is set for Oct. 21, before Judge J.P. Boulee.
Andre Lee Gaines, 67, of Dallas, Georgia, pleaded guilty on June 17, to one count of making false statements to the FBI in connection with the loan obtained by his business, Gaines Reservation and Travel. Andre Gaines’s sentencing is set for Oct. 6, before Judge J.P. Boulee.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine of the Northern District of Georgia made the announcement.
This case is being investigated by the FBI, the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and the Small Business Administration-Office of the Inspector General.
Trial Attorney Siji Moore of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tal Chaiken and Nathan Kitchens of the Northern District of Georgia are prosecuting the case.
On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Atlanta man sentenced for submitting fraudulent COVID-19 test to employer and for a separate bank fraud chargeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Santwon Antonio Davis has been sentenced for wire fraud related to a scheme to defraud his employer, and on a bank fraud charge related to a scheme to defraud a mortgage company.
“Davis defrauded his employer twice by requesting and receiving paid time off from work for the alleged death of his child, and then claiming that he had tested positive for COVID-19,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Both of those claims were false. After he was arrested for defrauding his employer, and while he was under court supervision, he committed yet another crime, by filing a fraudulent mortgage application. Davis’ actions show he had little regard for the law.”
“Davis’ history of lies caught up to him when he took advantage of a pandemic and caused undue harm to the company he worked for and their employees,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “While receiving numerous complaints of wrongdoing during this pandemic, the FBI and our federal partners remain determined to detect, investigate and prosecute any fraud related to this crisis.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: Davis, who was employed by a Fortune 500 company with a facility located in the Atlanta, Georgia area, falsely claimed to have contracted COVID-19 and submitted a fake medical record to his employer. In concern for its employees, the corporation closed its facility for cleaning and paid its employees during the shutdown. This caused a significant financial loss to the corporation and the unnecessary quarantine of the defendant’s coworkers.
During the COVID-19 fraud investigation, agents uncovered a previous incident in which Davis had submitted fraudulent documentation to obtain benefits from his employer. Specifically, in late 2019, Davis created and submitted false documentation to support a claim for bereavement leave for the alleged death of his child. That child never existed., Davis fabricated the claim so that he could obtain benefits to which he was not entitled.
Finally, while on pretrial release in this case, Davis submitted a mortgage application with numerous fraudulent statements, including a falsified earnings and employment history. The mortgage company discovered the fraud, in part, after seeing news stories related to his original COVID-19 charge.
Santwon Antonio Davis, 35, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William M. Ray, II to serve three years in prison and ordered to pay $187.550 in restitution to his former employer. When he is released from prison, Davis will be required to serve five years on supervised release.
This case is part of Georgia’s Coronavirus (COVID-19) Fraud Task Force, aimed at better protecting the citizens of Georgia from criminal fraud arising from the pandemic. Formed by Georgia’s leading state and federal prosecutors, the task force serves to open channels of communication between partner agencies and more rapidly share information about COVID-19 fraud, while ensuring each fraud complaint is reported to the appropriate prosecuting agency. The task force member agencies include the Office of the Governor of Georgia, the Office of the Attorney General of Georgia, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia. Georgia’s three U.S. Attorneys, the Attorney General of Georgia, and the Executive Counsel for the Governor’s Office serve on the task force. If you think you are a victim of a scam or attempted fraud involving COVID-19, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via email at www.justice.gov/DisasterComplaintForm.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Inspector General provided valuable assistance in the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Klapman and Russell Phillips prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Mexican National pleads guilty to employing and exploiting illegal aliens in the U.S.Read the Press Release
ROME, Ga. – Juan Antonio Perez has pleaded guilty to the offense of harboring illegal aliens for financial gain. Perez illegally encouraged and induced aliens illegally present in the United States to reside in the United States where they worked for him illegally for his own commercial advantage and private financial gain.
“Perez endangered the livelihood of those who follow the laws governing employment, as well as the lives of those who attempt to illegally enter the United States seeking jobs like those he provided,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Perez used illegal workers for his own personal financial gain without regard for the laws of this country.”
“The old saying that crime doesn’t pay couldn’t be truer than in this instance. Perez thought his scheme to exploit desperate people looking for work and a better life would go unnoticed, but he was wrong and will now be held accountable,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “Preventing the exploitation of people and protecting the integrity of the US immigration system are hallmarks of HSI’s mission and I’m proud of the work done in this case.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charge, and other information presented in court: Juan Antonio Perez allegedly came to the United States illegally in 1992. He has lived in Bartow County, Georgia and has operated Aztec Framing at least since 2009. Aztec Framing has offices in Cartersville and Rossville, Georgia, and Hixon, Tennessee.
Perez employed illegal aliens at below-market rates, provided no benefits or insurance, and did not pay payroll taxes or Social Security. Perez built a 7,500-square-foot house, bought other houses where he allowed some of his employees to live, and purchased more than 30 sports cars and heavily customized trucks for his own personal collection. Yet, the Georgia Department of Labor has no record of Perez reporting any income. Perez also collected firearms, and agents located 14 firearms when his home was searched on April 30, 2019.
On July 7, 2021, Juan Antonio Perez, age 48, of Rydal, Georgia, pleaded guilty to knowingly encouraging and inducing aliens to come to, enter, and reside in the United States for the purpose of commercial advantage and private financial gain, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such coming to, entry, and residence in the United States was in violation of law. Sentencing for Perez is scheduled for October 5, 2021 at 10:00 a.m.
This case is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Bartow-Cartersville Drug Task Force, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine Operations, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Cherokee Multi-Agency Narcotics Squad, and the Polk County Drug Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Radics is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Tax defier found guilty on all counts of filing false liens and obstructing or impeding the administration of the IRSRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - A federal jury found Hakim Amal Archible guilty of three counts of filing or attempting to file false liens against federal officials and one count of obstructing or impeding the due administration of the Internal Revenue Service on July 2, 2021.
“In this case, the defendant filed false liens against current and former public officials to bully and harass them,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Archible learned that our office will vigorously pursue individuals who improperly weaponize the lien system in Georgia.”
“TIGTA’s statutory mission includes investigating individuals who are alleged to pose a threat to IRS employees engaged in the lawful collection of taxes,” said J. Russell George, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. “Attempts to intimidate or retaliate against IRS employees engaged in the performance of their official duties will be aggressively pursued. We appreciate the efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in working with TIGTA to protect the integrity of Federal tax administration.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: The evidence at trial showed that in October of 2014, Archible received an IRS tax penalty letter for $5,000 for filing frivolous tax returns. In retaliation, Archible filed false liens against the former Secretary of the U.S. Treasury and the former IRS Commissioner with the Fayette County Clerk of Court in 2014 and 2015. The liens were in amounts ranging from $5,000 to $100 billion and named the federal officials as debtors, and responsible parties for Archible's financial liabilities.
Archible also filed false liens against Georgia State officials. Archible targeted Henry County, Georgia officials, including the Clerk of Court, District Attorney, and Superior Court Judge, because he was being prosecuted there on unrelated charges. Archible's conduct demonstrated a pattern of harassment and retaliation.
Sentencing for Hakim Amal Archible, 29, of Hampton, Georgia, is scheduled for October 1, 2021, at 10:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Thomas W. Thrash.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Angela Adams and Erin N. Spritzer are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Three years after victim's overdose death, drug trafficker pleads guilty to distributing the heroin that killed herRead the Press Release
ROME, Ga. - Shane Terhune, who sold heroin to a young couple just hours before the woman’s July 2018 overdose death, pleaded guilty to a charge of distributing that heroin, and admitted to causing the victim’s death.
“Terhune’s act of trafficking narcotics tragically ended the life of a young woman,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Opioid overdoses will be investigated as a federal priority and those who sell this poison will be held accountable for the death and serious injury that it causes.”
“The life of a young lady abruptly ended when Shane Terhune provided her with a deadly dose of heroin. DEA and its law enforcement partners are committing to bringing to justice, defendants like Mr. Terhune who pollute our streets with dangerous and deadly substances which cause immeasurable damage to our communities,” said Robert J. Murphy, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: On July 6, 2018, officers of the Floyd County Police Department responded to a 911 call seeking medical attention for 25-year-old G.L. She died of a heroin overdose that night. The investigation revealed that earlier that afternoon, Terhune met G.L. and her fiancé at a location in Rome, Georgia, and gave them a plastic bag containing heroin in exchange for cash. G.L. subsequently injected the heroin Terhune sold, causing her death.
With this guilty plea, Terhune, who has a history of drug trafficking offenses, admitted to trafficking in heroin and acknowledged that the heroin he sold caused the victim’s death.
Sentencing for Shane Terhune, 41, of Rome, Georgia, is scheduled for October 19, 2021, at 10:00 a.m., before U.S. District Court Judge Steve C. Jones.
This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Irina Dutcher is prosecuting the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Man sentenced for procuring firearms used in Atlanta-area crimesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Ben’Andre Javon Goolsby has been sentenced to prison for unlawfully acquiring dozens of firearms, several of which were later recovered by police at various crime scenes in the metro-Atlanta area and beyond.
“Goolsby’s illegal purchases of firearms helped fuel the violence in our community,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Those who illegally receive, possess, and peddle weapons face prosecution and significant federal prison terms for their actions.”
“By putting guns in the hands of criminals, Mr. Goolsby has violated the trust of his community, the trust of those he should care about and has contributed to the unnecessary violence in our communities,” said Arthur Peralta, ATF Special Agent in Charge. “It is not okay to buy guns for people who cannot legally own them and doing so has consequences.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: From October 2017 through the date of his arrest in May 2020, Ben’Andre Javon Goolsby purchased 33 pistols from a federally licensed firearms dealer in Jonesboro, Georgia. Most of the firearms were 9mm and .40 caliber pistols. On several occasions, Goolsby purchased multiple guns of identical make, model, and caliber within a single week.
During each transaction, Goolsby falsely stated to the firearms dealer that he was not under indictment for a felony offense. In fact, Goolsby knew at the time of each of his many purchases that he had been indicted in Rockdale County, Georgia, for a smash-and-grab burglary and other crimes. Those charges related to a 2014 break-in at a pawn shop from which Goolsby and others stole numerous firearms. Because federal law prohibits any person under indictment from receiving firearms, each of Goolsby’s purchases was unlawful.
Several of the guns that Goolsby purchased found their way into the hands of people who sought to—and did—use them unlawfully. For example, in September 2018, police officers in Forest Park, Georgia, pulled over a car in which one of the 9mm pistols Goolsby bought was found alongside two other guns, pepper spray, walkie-talkies, and a taser. The vehicle’s occupants were dressed entirely in black and had black masks and gloves.
In June 2019, sheriff’s deputies in Decatur, Georgia, found another of Goolsby’s 9mm pistols in the possession of a fugitive who was wanted on aggravated assault charges. A month later, also in Decatur, police confiscated a Goolsby-purchased .40 caliber pistol from a 19-year-old suspected of robbing a jewelry store and burglarizing a dollar store and gas station.
Ben’Andre Javon Goolsby, 25, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced on June 25, 2021, by U.S. District Judge Michael L. Brown, to three years, four months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Goolsby was convicted of making false statements to a federally licensed firearms dealer and unlawful receipt of a firearm, after he pleaded guilty on January 11, 2021.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). In keeping with the Attorney General’s mission to reduce violent crime, the Northern District of Georgia’s PSN program focuses on prosecuting those individuals who most significantly drive violence in our communities, and supports and fosters partnerships between law enforcement and schools, the faith community, and local community leaders to prevent and deter future criminal conduct.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
U.S. Attorney's Office and Fulton County District Attorney launch Summer Initiative to support youth as part of violence-prevention strategyRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – The Atlanta Police Foundation’s At Promise Center hosted the inaugural event for the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Credible Messenger Youth Summer Violence Intervention (the “Summer Intervention”), a joint project of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia and the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office.
“We know from experience that intensive mentoring, such as that provided by our PSN Credible Messenger partners, decreases recidivism and bolsters community safety,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The enthusiasm for this project highlights the recognition among our partners, as well as the law enforcement leaders who support these youth, that prevention and violence interruption must play a central role in making Atlanta safer.”
“Our partnership with the At Promise Youth Center is an important part of our effort to provide young people in Fulton County with a better path forward. We are thrilled that the U.S. Attorney's Office and the Atlanta Police Foundation are working with us this summer to prevent violence through intensive engagement with at risk young people. This program will help the participants live better lives and make our community safer and stronger,” said Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
The Summer Intervention will engage up to 20 youth between the ages of 13 and 17 who are on juvenile or adult probation, in a 10-week intensive mentorship initiative. Through 10 hours of mentor engagement per week, youth will participate in support forums, career readiness training, community engagement and an evidenced-based, cognitive-behavioral, life-skills session utilizing the Forward Thinking and Project EGRESS Curriculum. Youth who satisfy the program’s requirements will receive a weekly stipend, made possible by a generous donation from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation.
This initiative is being implemented by a team of Southeast Credible Messengers, in connection with the PSN Prevention and Reentry strategy of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Southeast Credible Messengers are a Community-Based Collaboration between organizations and individuals working together to achieve common goals: positive youth and young adult mentorship, recidivism reduction, public safety, and family & community engagement. The Southeast Credible Messenger team for this initiative, led by the Offender Alumni Association (OAA), includes Freedom is a Choice, Inc., EGRESS Consultants & Services, LLC., Mothers Against Gang Violence, Inc., Jump Forward, Inc., and Offender Alumni Association, Inc.
We would also like to thank leadership from the Atlanta field offices of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Atlanta Police Department for their attendance and support of this inaugural event to provide encouragement to the invited youth.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Two men sentenced for trafficking over 400 kilograms of methamphetamineRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Juan Carlos Torres-Carranza and Luis Pineda-Soto have been sentenced for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 418.95 kilograms of methamphetamine.
"The trafficking of large amounts of methamphetamine into and through the Northern District of Georgia continues to be a problem," said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. "We and our law enforcement partners are using every tool available to combat this scourge, which breeds violent crime, and presents a major public health risk."
"This is a significant amount of poison that thankfully won’t reach the streets of our communities and continue to destroy lives," said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “Cases like this are only possible because of the hard work and dedication of our agents, officers and law enforcement partners, and I am proud of their efforts.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: On June 1, 2020, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents began conducting visual surveillance at a warehouse located in McDonough, Georgia. The following day, as HSI agents continued their surveillance, they saw a semi-tractor trailer arrive at the warehouse. The trailer was then unhooked and the semi-tractor that was pulling the trailer drove off. According to Homeland Security databases, the trailer was taken across the border into the United States from Mexico on May 20, 2020.
Agents continued to perform surveillance on the warehouse and the trailer into the late evening and early morning hours of June 3, 2020. At approximately 11:30 p.m., Pineda-Soto and Torres-Carranza, driving a pickup truck, and another individual driving a car arrived at the warehouse. Shortly after arriving, all three individuals began working on the trailer over the next several hours, climbing on the top of the trailer, using power tools to remove panels from the top of the trailer, and dropping bundles of drugs from the top of the trailer to the ground. This process continued until 4:45 a.m. on June 3, 2020.
Before sunrise, the three individuals left the warehouse. Agents followed both vehicles until they split up and went in different directions. Agents following the pickup truck requested the assistance of the Clayton County Police Department who conducted a traffic stop. During a search of the truck, law enforcement found multiple black trash bags in the truck bed containing a total of 77 bundles of narcotics consistent with the bundles agents witnessed being removed from the trailer. Several of the bundles had cords attached to them, consistent with narcotics that are hidden in hard to reach voids found in semi-trailers, which are used as a method to retrieve the narcotics. In total, the bundles weighed 52 kilograms.
Simultaneously, agents followed the individual in the car to a house located in Ellenwood, Georgia. Once that individual arrived at the house, agents watched as he pulled into the garage, staying at the house for approximately ten minutes, long enough to unload anything stored in the trunk of the vehicle. HSI subsequently obtained a federal search warrant for the house and searched it on the afternoon of June 3, 2020. It was unoccupied and contained no furniture. However, in a closet near the front door, law enforcement found 66 black bundles of methamphetamine similar to the bundles found during the stop of the pickup truck. The bundles weighed approximately 51.45 kilograms.
HSI also obtained a federal search warrant for the trailer located at the warehouse. It was searched on June 4, 2020. Inside hidden compartments in the roof, law enforcement found 446 bundles of methamphetamine similar to those previously seized, weighing 315.5 kilograms. In all, between the three searches, HSI seized 418.95 kilograms of methamphetamine
Juan Carlos Torres-Carranza, 28, and Luis Pineda-Soto, 26, both of Michoacan, Mexico, who were both present in the United States illegally at the time of their crimes, were convicted of conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with the intent to distribute on March 22, 2021 after pleading guilty. U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones sentenced each of them on June 22, 2021, to five years, three months in prison for their role in the conspiracy, followed by five years of supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Miguel R. Acosta prosecuted the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
ATLANTA - Juan Carlos Torres-Carranza and Luis Pineda-Soto have been sentenced for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 418.95 kilograms of methamphetamine.
“The trafficking of large amounts of methamphetamine into and through the Northern District of Georgia continues to be a problem,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “We and our law enforcement partners are using every tool available to combat this scourge, which breeds violent crime, and presents a major public health risk.”
“This is a significant amount of poison that thankfully won’t reach the streets of our communities and continue to destroy lives,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “Cases like this are only possible because of the hard work and dedication of our agents, officers and law enforcement partners, and I am proud of their efforts.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: On June 1, 2020, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents began conducting visual surveillance at a warehouse located in McDonough, Georgia. The following day, as HSI agents continued their surveillance, they saw a semi-tractor trailer arrive at the warehouse. The trailer was then unhooked and the semi-tractor that was pulling the trailer drove off. According to Homeland Security databases, the trailer was taken across the border into the United States from Mexico on May 20, 2020.
Agents continued to perform surveillance on the warehouse and the trailer into the late evening and early morning hours of June 3, 2020. At approximately 11:30 p.m., Pineda-Soto and Torres-Carranza, driving a pickup truck, and another individual driving a car arrived at the warehouse. Shortly after arriving, all three individuals began working on the trailer over the next several hours, climbing on the top of the trailer, using power tools to remove panels from the top of the trailer, and dropping bundles of drugs from the top of the trailer to the ground. This process continued until 4:45 a.m. on June 3, 2020.
Before sunrise, the three individuals left the warehouse. Agents followed both vehicles until they split up and went in different directions. Agents following the pickup truck requested the assistance of the Clayton County Police Department who conducted a traffic stop. During a search of the truck, law enforcement found multiple black trash bags in the truck bed containing a total of 77 bundles of narcotics consistent with the bundles agents witnessed being removed from the trailer. Several of the bundles had cords attached to them, consistent with narcotics that are hidden in hard to reach voids found in semi-trailers, which are used as a method to retrieve the narcotics. In total, the bundles weighed 52 kilograms.
Simultaneously, agents followed the individual in the car to a house located in Ellenwood, Georgia. Once that individual arrived at the house, agents watched as he pulled into the garage, staying at the house for approximately ten minutes, long enough to unload anything stored in the trunk of the vehicle. HSI subsequently obtained a federal search warrant for the house and searched it on the afternoon of June 3, 2020. It was unoccupied and contained no furniture. However, in a closet near the front door, law enforcement found 66 black bundles of methamphetamine similar to the bundles found during the stop of the pickup truck. The bundles weighed approximately 51.45 kilograms.
HSI also obtained a federal search warrant for the trailer located at the warehouse. It was searched on June 4, 2020. Inside hidden compartments in the roof, law enforcement found 446 bundles of methamphetamine similar to those previously seized, weighing 315.5 kilograms. In all, between the three searches, HSI seized 418.95 kilograms of methamphetamine
Juan Carlos Torres-Carranza, 28, and Luis Pineda-Soto, 26, both of Michoacan, Mexico, who were both present in the United States illegally at the time of their crimes, were convicted of conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with the intent to distribute on March 22, 2021 after pleading guilty. U.S. District Judge Steve C. Jones sentenced each of them on June 22, 2021, to five years, three months in prison for their role in the conspiracy, followed by five years of supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Miguel R. Acosta prosecuted the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Justice Department files lawsuit against the State of Georgia to stop racially discriminatory provisions of new voting lawRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - The U.S. Justice Department announced today that it filed a lawsuit against the State of Georgia, the Georgia Secretary of State, and the Georgia State Election Board over recent voting procedures adopted by Georgia Senate Bill 202, which was signed into law in March 2021. The United States' complaint challenges provisions of Senate Bill 202 under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
"The right of all eligible citizens to vote is the central pillar of our democracy, the right from which all other rights ultimately flow," said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. "This lawsuit is the first step of many we are taking to ensure that all eligible voters can cast a vote; that all lawful votes are counted; and that every voter has access to accurate information."
"The right to vote is one of the most central rights in our democracy and protecting the right to vote for all Americans is at the core of the Civil Rights Division’s mission," said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. "The Department of Justice will use all the tools it has available to ensure that each eligible citizen can register, cast a ballot, and have that ballot counted free from racial discrimination. Laws adopted with a racially motivated purpose, like Georgia Senate Bill 202, simply have no place in democracy today."
"One of the fundamental rights of our democracy is the right to vote. That right should be protected for every citizen of our district, regardless of race," said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine for the Northern District of Georgia. "The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is committed to protecting the rights of all Americans to vote."
The United States' complaint contends that several provisions of Senate Bill 202 were adopted with the purpose of denying or abridging the right to vote on account of race. The Justice Department's lawsuit alleges that the cumulative and discriminatory effect of these laws—particularly on Black voters—was known to lawmakers and that lawmakers adopted the law despite this.
The United States' complaint challenges several provisions of Senate Bill 202, including a provision banning government entities from distributing unsolicited absentee ballot applications; the imposition of costly and onerous fines on civic organizations, churches and advocacy groups that distribute follow-up absentee ballot applications; the shortening of the deadline to request absentee ballots to 11 days before Election Day; the requirement that voters who do not have identification issued by the Georgia Department of Driver Services photocopy another form of identification in order to request an absentee ballot without allowing for use of the last four digits of a social security number for such applications; significant limitations on counties’ use of absentee ballot drop boxes; the prohibition on efforts by churches and civic groups to provide food or water to persons waiting in long lines to vote; and the prohibition on counting out-of-precinct provisional ballots cast before 5 p.m. on Election Day. The complaint asks the court to prohibit Georgia from enforcing these requirements.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco also issued a memo to United States Attorneys and FBI Field Offices today on investigating and prosecuting threats to election officials. To assist with this important effort the department will also establish an intra-Departmental task force to address the rising threats.
Today’s announcements follow Attorney General Garland’s recent commitment to expand the Justice Department’s efforts to safeguard voting rights.
More information about the Voting Rights Act and other federal voting laws is available on the Department of Justice’s website at www.justice.gov/crt/about/vot. Complaints about discriminatory voting practices may be reported to the Voting Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division at 1-800-253-3931.
Snellville man arrested for fraudulently obtaining U.S. citizenshipRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Mezemr Abebe Belayneh has been arraigned on criminal charges related to his alleged lies to obtain U.S. citizenship. The defendant allegedly concealed his involvement in the late 1970s Red Terror period in Ethiopia, where he served as a civilian interrogator at a makeshift prison.
“The laws of the United States are designed to provide refuge for the victims of human rights violation and to exclude those who commit them,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The defendant’s alleged lies through his immigration and naturalization process subverted this system. We commend our law enforcement partners at the Department of Homeland Security and the dedicated team at the Department of Justice who work tirelessly to assure that individuals such as the defendant do not have a safe haven in our communities.”
“Human rights violators have no home in the United States,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “No matter how much time has passed, the Department of Justice will find and prosecute individuals who committed atrocities in their home countries and covered them up to gain entry to the United States.”
“Abebe’s lies and horrible past deeds have thankfully come back to haunt him. Now he will be held accountable,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “Thanks to some great work from the agents and officers involved in this case as well as our law enforcement partners, justice will be served.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Mezemr Abebe Belayneh served as a civilian interrogator at a makeshift prison in Dilla, Ethiopia, during a period in the late 1970s known as the Red Terror. At the prison, Abebe ordered and participated in the severe physical abuse and interrogation of prisoners held on the basis of their political beliefs.
The indictment alleges that Abebe unlawfully procured U.S. citizenship, to which he was not entitled, by concealing his involvement in the Red Terror when he falsely claimed that he had not persecuted anyone because of their political opinions and had never committed a crime for which he had not been arrested.
Mezemr Abebe Belayneh, 65, of Snellville, Georgia, was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 26, 2021 and is charged with two counts of unlawful procurement of naturalization. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial. A conviction would also result in automatic revocation of Abebe’s U.S. citizenship.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and coordination in the case was provided by the Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center (HRVWCC). Established in 2009, the HRVWCC furthers the government’s efforts to identify, locate, and prosecute human rights abusers in the United States, including those who are known or suspected to have participated in persecution, war crimes, genocide, torture, extrajudicial killings, female genital mutilation, and the use or recruitment of child soldiers.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Morris of the Northern District of Georgia, and Trial Attorneys Jamie Perry and Patrick Jasperse of the Justice Department’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section (HRSP) are prosecuting the case, with assistance from HRSP Senior Historian Dr. Christopher Hayden.
Members of the public who have information about former human rights violators in the United States are urged to contact U.S. law enforcement through the HSI tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE (1-866-347-2423) or its online tip form at www.ice.gov/tips.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia celebrates 16th annual World Elder Abuse Awareness DayRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine joins the entire Department of Justice to observe the 16th Annual World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. The Department echoes voices around the world condemning elder abuse, neglect and exploitation.
"One of the Department of Justice’s top priorities is investigating and prosecuting elder abuse, as well as helping to educate the public on these issues.” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Financial exploitation is the most common form of elder abuse and is estimated to cost older adults up to $36 billion annually.”
Combatting elder abuse and financial fraud targeted at seniors is a key priority of the Department of Justice. Elder abuse — an intentional or negligent act that causes harm or a serious risk of harm to an older adult — is a serious crime that affects at least 10 percent of older Americans every year. The Department of Justice is steadfastly committed to combatting all forms of elder abuse and financial exploitation through enhancement actions; training and resources; research; victim services; and public awareness.
Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine is joining forces with the U.S. Postal Service, the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council of Georgia, and the American Bankers Association today to discuss financial fraud scams targeting the elderly and how we can protect ourselves and our loved ones from falling victim. The virtual townhall will be held from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. Access information is available at https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga/WEAAD.
As the world takes this day to honor our seniors, the Department of Justice remains committed — through its Department-wide Elder Justice Initiative — to preventing and prosecuting elder abuse.
Regarding prevention, our team routinely engages in community outreach to educate the public on current fraud scams, including by speaking at senior citizen centers, on the radio, and on television. In addition, our office regularly collaborates with our state and local law enforcement partners in the fight against elder abuse.
Our office also is one of seven around the country participating in the Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force, which focuses on investigating and prosecuting individuals and entities associated with foreign-based fraud schemes affecting American seniors. For example, this past year, our office prosecuted the following:
- On April 29, 2021, in United States v. Mehulkumar Manubhai Patel and Chaitali Dave, the defendants were sentenced for laundering over $500,000 on behalf of India-based phone scammers. The India-based callers posed as federal agents so as to mislead victims into believing that their Social Security numbers were involved in crimes. The callers threatened to arrest the victim if they did not send money. The callers directed victims to mail cash to aliases used by other members of the fraud network, including Patel and Dave.
- On March 15, 2021, in United States v. Louis Beria, the defendant was sentenced to prison for defrauding a company and its elderly owner. The victim was an elderly, German investor who hired Beria to manage an apartment complex that the victim owned in Atlanta. Beria himself owned a separate apartment complex in Atlanta. Beria hired a company to do construction work on the complex that he owned but used the victim’s money to pay for it and lied to the victim about what he did. In total, Beria stole $1,621,979 from the elderly man.
- On February 3, 2021, in United States v. Karla Suzanne Spiker, the defendant was sentenced for her role in laundering money for an international telephone scam. Spiker worked with scammers in India, who sent out robocalls claiming to have an urgent message for the victim. When the victim — mostly elderly or otherwise vulnerable — returned the call, the scammers threatened or cajoled the victims into sending money. Specifically, the scammers told the victims that their Social Security number was used in a crime and that the victim would be arrested unless they paid money, or the scammers offered the victim a reduced mortgage if the victim first paid a fee. Once the victim agreed to make the payments, the scammers directed them to wire or send money to individuals in the United States — including Spiker — who worked for the India-based callers.
- On November 17, 2020, in United States v. Guarav Gupta and E Sampark, the defendants were charged in a first-of-its-kind indictment. Gupta directed and operated E Sampark, a Voice Over IP (VoIP) company that pushed out tens of millions of scam calls from criminal India-based call centers to victims in the United States. Gupta and his company thus provided the technological infrastructure for the India-based scammers to get their fraud calls into the United States, and financially profited from doing so. The callers defrauded the victims by, for example, claiming to be government agents and stating that the victim owed money and would be arrested if they did not pay (either by wiring money or buying gift cards), and by claiming to be from a bank and that the victim was eligible for fictious loans, thus convincing them to provide their bank account information.
On the civil side, this office obtained an injunction under 18 U.S.C. § 1345, shuttering foreign scammers’ access to a server farm in Florida. The first-ever Section 1345 injunction in this District shut down the robocall scammers’ VoIP technology, halting their ability to forward fraudulent calls to U.S. residents. Additionally, this office continues to investigate nursing homes and skilled nursing facilities as part of the Department of Justice Nursing Home Initiative for potential violations of the False Claims Act.
For more information on enforcement actions, training and resources, research, and victim services, please visit www.justice.gov/elderjustice.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Chief Operating Officer of network security company charged with cyberattack on Gwinnett Medical CenterRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Vikas Singla has been arraigned on charges arising out of a cyberattack conducted on Gwinnett Medical Center in 2018. Singla was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 8, 2021.
“Cyberattacks that target important infrastructure, like healthcare, pose a serious threat to public health and safety,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “In this case, Singla allegedly compromised Gwinnett Medical Center’s operations in part for his own personal gain.”
“Criminal disruptions of hospital computer networks can have tragic consequences,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The department is committed to holding accountable those who endanger the lives of patients by damaging computers that are essential in the operation of our healthcare system.”
“This cyberattack on a hospital not only could have had disastrous consequences, but patient’s personal information was also compromised,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners are determined to hold accountable, those who allegedly put peoples health and safety at risk while driven by greed.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Vikas Singla, the Chief Operating Officer of a metro-Atlanta network security company that served the healthcare industry, allegedly conducted a cyberattack on Gwinnett Medical Center that involved:
- Disrupting phone service,
- Obtaining information from a digitizing device, and
- Disrupting network printer service.
The indictment further alleges that the cyberattack was conducted, in part, for financial gain.
Vikas Singla, 45, of Marietta, Georgia, made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Linda T. Walker. Singla was charged with 17 counts of intentional damage to a protected computer and one count of obtaining information from a protected computer. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Samir Kaushal and Trial Attorney Brian Mund of the U.S. Department of Justice, Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Chief Operating Officer of Network Security Company Charged with Cyberattack on Medical CenterRead the Press Release
A Georgia man was arraigned today on charges arising out of a cyberattack conducted on Gwinnett Medical Center in 2018.
According to the indictment, Vikas Singla, 45, of Marietta, the chief operating officer of a metro-Atlanta network security company that served the health care industry, allegedly conducted a cyberattack on Gwinnett Medical Center that involved (i) disrupting phone service, (ii) obtaining information from a digitizing device, and (iii) disrupting network printer service. The indictment further alleges that the cyberattack was conducted, in part, for financial gain.
“Criminal disruptions of hospital computer networks can have tragic consequences,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The department is committed to holding accountable those who endanger the lives of patients by damaging computers that are essential in the operation of our health care system.”
“Cyberattacks that target important infrastructure, like health care, pose a serious threat to public health and safety,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine for the Northern District of Georgia. “In this case, Singla allegedly compromised Gwinnett Medical Center’s operations in part for his own personal gain.”
“This cyberattack on a hospital not only could have had disastrous consequences, but patients' personal information was also compromised,” said Special Agent in Charge Chris Hacker of the FBI’s Atlanta Field Office. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners are determined to hold accountable, those who allegedly put people’s health and safety at risk while driven by greed.”
Singla was indicted by a federal grand jury Tuesday and made his initial court appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Linda T. Walker of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. The defendant is charged with 17 counts of intentional damage to a protected computer, each of which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment, and one count of obtaining information by computer from a protected computer, which carries a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FBI is investigating this case.
Trial Attorney Brian Mund of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Samir Kaushal for the Northern District of Georgia and are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Atlanta man sentenced for laundering over $247,000 from business email compromise schemesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Anthony Dwayne King has been sentenced for laundering over $247,000, generated from business email compromise (BEC) schemes committed against Minnesota and Oregon homebuyers, a Delaware law firm, and a New Jersey company.
“King and his conspirators opened bank accounts, using fictitious identities and sham companies, for the purpose of laundering funds stolen from victims across the country through business email compromise schemes,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Now, he is headed to federal prison and must pay full restitution to the victims. Our office will continue to work with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to bring those who facilitate these cyber-fraud crimes to justice.”
“These cyber scams can be devastating to businesses and individuals who fall prey to them,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “It is a big reason why the Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force was formed; to educate businesses and the community on how to avoid them. Arrests and convictions, like this one, will make it less lucrative and less appealing for those who contemplate committing these crimes.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: From October 2 through 12, 2018, King opened accounts at three banks in the Atlanta area, each time using a false identity and sham company name. Shortly thereafter, on October 17, 2018, a homebuyer, located in Oregon, received a phone call from an impersonator posing as her realtor. The impersonator asked the victim homebuyer for an amount that she was able to wire that day to facilitate the closing of a home. The impersonator provided the victim with wiring instructions. Following the instructions, the victim wired $45,000 to one of King’s Atlanta bank accounts.
On November 1, 2018, another homebuyer, located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, received an email from an impersonator posing as his realtor. The impersonator similarly provided this victim with wiring instructions to facilitate the closing of the property. The same day, the victim followed the impersonator’s instructions and wired $83,460.87 to an Atlanta bank account controlled by King.
On November 16, 2018, an impersonator provided a Delaware law firm with wiring instructions to send payoff funds to a mortgager. Following the impersonator’s instructions, the law firm wired $68,403.16 to another Atlanta bank account controlled by King. The next day, King made an in-person cash withdrawal of $3,800 from the account.
On February 27, 2019, a New Jersey company received an email from an impersonator posing as its landlord, instructing the company to wire $51,040.99 to the landlord for rent. The company followed the impersonator’s instructions and wired $51,040.99 to an Atlanta-based account. The next day, King deposited a check from this account, in the amount of $9,572, into his personal credit union account.
Anthony Dwayne King, 39, of Atlanta, Georgia, has been sentenced to two years, six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $124,190.63. King was convicted of money laundering conspiracy on December 16, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Herskowitz, Chief of the Cyber and Intellectual Property Crimes Section, prosecuted the case.
By making a coordinated and concerted effort to focus on suspects moving fraud proceeds in the metro-Atlanta area, the Cyber Fraud Task Force, comprised of federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, seeks to disrupt the financial structure that makes BEC fraud schemes so lucrative for criminals. Additionally, the task force aims to partner with community leaders and organizers to educate the public about avoiding these scams.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Atlanta couple indicted for millions in Economic Impact Disaster Loan Program fraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Paul Kwak and Michelle Kwak have been indicted on charges arising out of a scheme to defraud the U.S. Small Business Administration by filing fraudulent applications in the Economic Impact Disaster Loan (“EIDL”) Program. Congress created EIDL as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act to help businesses weather the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Fraudulent applications divert the limited pool of funds Congress allocated for pandemic relief from legitimate businesses in need of assistance,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “By defrauding the Small Business Administration, the defendants harmed hardworking business owners whom the CARES Act was intended to help.”
“This alleged fraud is especially concerning because it takes advantage of a federal program set up to assist legitimate small businesses who need assistance to survive during a pandemic,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI is especially vigilant of such abuse and are making it a priority to make sure government assistance goes only to those who deserve it.”
“Lying to gain access to economic stimulus funds will be met with justice,” SBA OIG’s Eastern Region Special Agent in Charge Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite. “SBA OIG will relentlessly pursue evidence of fraud against SBA’s programs aimed at assisting the nation’s small businesses struggling with the pandemic challenges. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for its leadership and dedication to pursuing justice.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Paul Kwak and Michelle Kwak conspired to submit fraudulent EIDL applications in the names of shell companies that had no employees and conducted no business activities, to the tune of millions of dollars. An EIDL application must provide, among other information, the amount of revenue the business generated in the 12 months prior to the application and the number of employees. The applicant must certify, under penalty of perjury, that the information is correct and that he or she is legally eligible to apply for an EIDL. The Kwaks are allegedly connected to over 70 fraudulent EIDL applications, of which about half were successful, resulting in over $4 million in fraudulent loans.
Further, Paul Kwak has posted related videos on his YouTube channel. In a May 2020 video titled “EIDL, disaster assistance you don’t have to pay back” in Korean, Kwak explained that applicants can receive tens of thousands of dollars in assistance without collateral or a co-signor, using only the applicant’s electronic signature. One of his clients, according to Kwak, had recently received $150,000 in EIDL proceeds.
Paul Kwak, 63, and Michelle Kwak, 60, both of Braselton, Georgia, were indicted by a federal grand jury on May 18, 2021. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Qin is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
California man arraigned for his role in a phone trade-in schemeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - David Shemtov has been arraigned after being charged with eight counts of wire fraud for his role in a scheme to fraudulently inflate the reimbursement value of more than 1,400 electronic devices that he submitted for trade-in.
“The ability to trade in electronic devices for cash value or gift cards allows users to recover some value for devices they no longer need,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Shemtov allegedly found a way to exploit this process to recover many times the value of the actual devices he traded in.”
“This alleged fraud scheme not only hurt the victim company, but potentially hurt consumers,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The courts will now decide Shemtov’s fate for allegedly choosing his own self-interest and greed over legitimate business transactions.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the indictment, and other information presented in court: From approximately October 2019 through January 2020, Shemtov allegedly participated in a scheme to submit more than 1,400 fraudulent electronic device trade-in requests online. On Internet trade-in request forms, the trade-in requests purported to have newer, higher-valued devices, typically an iPhone XS Max, to trade in. The trade-in requests provided multiple different post office box locations as the addresses where the shipping boxes should be sent and used more than a dozen fictitious names. In reality, Shemtov never intended to trade in the higher-valued devices identified in the trade-in requests. Instead, substantially less valuable devices–typically iPhone 6s and 7s–were sent in.
The device trade-in process was handled by a third-party provider (the victim company) that oversaw the mailing and receipt of the devices, and the reimbursement payments, typically in the form of Apple gift cards. The victim company paid substantially more than the true value for the devices sent in as part of the scheme. For instance, more than 900 of the trade-in requests claimed to have iPhone XS Max with 64 gigabyte capacity, for a value of $545, but the devices mailed in were various versions of iPhone 6’s, with a trade-in value of $30.
After the victim company detected the scheme, from about March 2020 through December 2020, Shemtov submitted more than 1,000 additional trade-in requests using more than 100 fictious names. The victim company flagged these requests and did not complete the trades.
David Shemtov, 28, of Los Angeles, California, was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher C. Bly. Shemtov was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 6, 2021. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison B. Prout is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine recognizes Police WeekRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – In honor of National Police Week, Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine recognizes the service and sacrifice of federal, state, local, and Tribal law enforcement. This year, the week is observed Sunday, May 9 through Saturday, May 15, 2021.
“This week is a time to honor our law enforcement officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our nation,” said Attorney General Garland. “I am constantly inspired by the extraordinary courage and dedication with which members of law enforcement act each day, putting their lives on the line to make our communities safer. To members of law enforcement and your families: we know that not a single day, nor a single week, is enough to recognize your service and sacrifice. On behalf of the entire Department of Justice, you have our unwavering support and eternal gratitude.”
“Each day, law enforcement officers work hard to keep our citizens safe, and we want to take this opportunity to honor their service during National Police Week,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “We also want to recognize the brave men and women in law enforcement who have been injured or lost their lives to protect our communities. My office is extremely grateful for the continued commitment and sacrifices they make for our communities.”
In 1962, President Kennedy issued the first proclamation for Peace Officers Memorial Day and National Police Week to remember and honor law enforcement officers for their service and sacrifices. Peace Officers Memorial Day, which every year falls on May 15, specifically honors law enforcement officers killed or disabled in the line of duty.
Each year, during National Police Week, our nation celebrates the contributions of law enforcement from around the country, recognizing their hard work, dedication, loyalty, and commitment to keeping our communities safe. This year the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted law enforcement officers’ courage and unwavering devotion to the communities that they have sworn to serve.
During the Roll Call of Heroes, a ceremony coordinated by the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), more than 300 officers will be honored. Based on data submitted to and analyzed by the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial Fund (NLEOMF), of the law enforcement officers who died nationwide in the line of duty in 2020, nearly 60 percent succumbed to COVID-19. Here in the Northern District of Georgia, seven officers died in the line of duty.
Additionally, according to statistics reported by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) through the Law Enforcement Officer Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA) Program, 46 law enforcement officers died as a result of felonious acts and 47 died in accidents in 2020. LEOKA statistics can be found on FBI’s Crime Data Explorer website.
The names of the 394 fallen officers who have been added in 2020 to the wall at the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial will be read on Thursday, May 13, 2021, during a Virtual Candlelight Vigil, which will be livestreamed to the public at 8:00 pm EDT. The Police Week in-person public events, originally scheduled for May, have been rescheduled due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns to October 13-17, 2021. An in-person Candlelight Vigil event is scheduled for October 14, 2021.
Those who wish to view the Virtual Candlelight Vigil on May 13, 2021, can watch on the NLEOMF YouTube channel found at https://www.youtube.com/user/TheNLEOMF. The FOP’s Roll Call of Heroes can be viewed at www.fop.net. To view the schedule of virtual Police Week events in May, please view NLEOMF’s Police Week Flyer.
To learn more about National Police Week in-person events scheduled for October, please visit www.policeweek.org.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Four men sentenced to prison for purchasing millions of dollars worth of cigarettes using stolen credit cardsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Mamadou Sow, Demarcus Myree, Boubacar Tivalo, and Jacob James, have been sentenced for access device fraud and aggravated identity theft related to purchases of massive quantities of cigarettes from Sam's Club retail locations in metro Atlanta.
“Identity theft wreaks havoc on the lives of individuals and compromises the financial security of victims,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The sentences reflect the egregiousness of their conduct and the harm caused to dozens of victims, including individuals, financial institutions, and the retail establishments.”
“Identity thieves are a serious threat to our community because these scammers can steal so much of your hard-earned money and vanish before you’re ever alerted,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “HSI and its partners are constantly working to identify, arrest and prosecute criminals, like these, that are exploiting the security of our financial networks.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: Mamadou Sow, Demarcus Myree, and Boubacar Tivalo obtained Sam's Club memberships and membership cards in their names and aliases. From September 2018 through November 30, 2018, the defendants used dozens of stolen credit cards, issued by various financial institutions, to make unauthorized purchases of cigarettes at Sam's Club retail locations throughout metro Atlanta. In combination with some cash transactions, these three defendants purchased over $1.7 million worth of cigarettes during the scheme. Myree was also charged with possession of a stolen firearm.
From September 2018 to December 2018, Jacob James, who was charged in a separate indictment, purchased over $635,000 worth of cigarettes from Sam’s Club stores using stolen credit cards.
The defendants have been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Eleanor L. Ross as follows:
- Mamadou Sow, a/k/a Moussa Sow, 30, of Guinea, was sentenced to two years, six months in prison for access device fraud, to be followed by two consecutive years imprisonment for aggravated identity theft. He was also sentenced to serve three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $749,772.31. Sow was convicted on these charges on July 23, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
- Demarcus Myree, a/k/a Yuri Markosov, 27, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to two years, six months in prison for access device fraud and possession of a stolen firearm, to be followed by two consecutive years imprisonment for aggravated identity theft. He was also sentenced to serve two years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $339,545.42. Myree was convicted on these charges on June 26, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
- Boubacar Tivalo, a/k/a Tivado Boubacar, 46, of Guinea, was sentenced to two years, six months in prison for access device fraud, to be followed by two consecutive years imprisonment for aggravated identity theft. He was also sentenced to serve three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $664,305.52. Tivalo was convicted on these charges on September 10, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
- Jacob James, a/k/a Mark Johnson and Joe Johnson, 31, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced to two years in prison for access device fraud, to be followed by two consecutive years imprisonment for aggravated identity theft. He was also sentenced to serve three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $635,242.75. James was convicted on these charged on November 24, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly K. Connors prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.AlixaRx LLC agrees to pay $2.75 million to resolve allegations that it improperly dispensed controlled substances at long-term care facilitiesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – AlixaRx, LLC, a national provider of pharmacy services to long-term care facilities, has agreed to pay the United States $2.75 million to resolve allegations that it violated federal law by, among other things, allowing opioids and other controlled substances to be dispensed without valid prescriptions between January 1, 2014 and December 13, 2017.
“The requirements of the Controlled Substances Act exist to ensure that dangerous drugs are not abused or diverted outside the DEA’s closed system of distribution,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “As this settlement makes clear, these requirements are not optional, and our office will vigorously pursue claims against registrants that place their own bottom line over the safety of our citizens.”
“AlixaRx, LLC spun a web of deception when it engaged in unlawful dispensing practices by abusing the emergency prescription provisions of the Controlled Substance Act,” said the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division Robert J. Murphy. “Such behavior allows for substances to be diverted and sold on the black market with no true measure of accountability. This civil penalty is a proactive step that DEA Diversion and its law enforcement partners can take to discourage other healthcare providers from engaging in such behavior.”
“The opioid epidemic has devastated communities, families, and individuals across our country. Health care providers who fail to secure these powerful drugs as required do a tremendous disservice to our society and will be held accountable for their actions,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson of HHS-OIG. “Working closely with our law enforcement partners, our oversight agency will continue to investigate such allegations to protect federal health care programs and the public.”
“This resolution sends a message that there are rules to be followed when dispensing controlled substances,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners make it a priority to protect patients from being supplied drugs without valid prescriptions.”
AlixaRx is a pharmacy company that dispenses prescription drugs, including controlled substances, to long-term care facilities, primarily through on-site automatic dispensing units (“ADUs”). AlixaRx supplied these ADUs with drugs through seven regional hubs located throughout the country. Each hub, as well as each ADU, was separately registered with the DEA as a pharmacy able to dispense controlled substances.
The Government alleged that AlixaRx violated the federal Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”) in its dispensing pursuant to purported “emergency prescriptions.” In nearly all circumstances, Schedule II controlled substances require a written prescription by a physician, and refills are not permitted by law. The CSA allows pharmacists to dispense Schedule II controlled substances, such as opioid pain medications, without a written prescription only in true emergency situations and, even then, only for the quantity of drugs necessary to treat the patient during the emergency period. Emergency prescriptions must promptly be reduced to writing and signed by an authorizing physician within seven days of issuance. Failure to meet these requirements results in an illegal dispensing of controlled substances without a valid prescription.
The Government’s investigation revealed that AlixaRx routinely abused the emergency prescription provisions of the CSA by requesting and obtaining verbal “emergency” refills from prescribers, in the absence of any true emergency. Instead, the company used these purported emergency prescriptions to effectuate simple refills of the patients’ medications. Moreover, AlixaRx routinely failed to obtain written prescriptions within seven days after the verbal authorization. Rather than disclose these violations to the DEA as required by law, AlixaRx engaged in a nationwide scheme to cover up its violations by obtaining backdated prescriptions from the prescribing physicians, in many cases over a year after the controlled substances were dispensed.
Finally, the Government resolved allegations that AlixaRx submitted false claims to Medicare for invalid emergency prescriptions, as discussed above. The Government also resolved claims that AlixaRx billed Medicare Part D for claims that had already been reimbursed through claims paid to long-term care facilities under Medicare Part A.
The settlement resolves a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia by a former pharmacist at AlixaRx’s Atlanta hub under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private citizens to bring lawsuits on behalf of the United States and obtain a portion of the government’s recovery.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Diversion Control Division, Atlanta Field Office, the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service.
The case was handled by David A. O’Neal, Assistant U.S. Attorney and Opioid Coordinator for the Northern District of Georgia.
The case is captioned United States ex rel. Gharavi v. AlixaRx LLC et al., 1:17-CV-00455-JPB. The claims resolved by this settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Couple sentenced for laundering over $500,000 on behalf of India-based phone scammersRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Husband and wife Mehulkumar Manubhai Patel and Chaitali Dave have been sentenced for laundering over $500,000 on behalf of India-based phone scammers.
“International call centers continue to victimize the elderly and most vulnerable members of our community,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The defendants worked with call centers to prey on and steal from these vulnerable victims. This case exists as an example of our commitment to investigating and prosecuting those who facilitate foreign-based scams. Citizens are reminded never to provide money or personal information to callers they don’t know and trust.”
“These convictions should stand as a warning that my office will aggressively investigate and work to hold those accountable who collect and transmit money from Social Security imposter scam victims,” said Gail S. Ennis, Inspector General for the Social Security Administration. “I want to thank the U.S Attorney’s Office for its leadership in bringing scam perpetrators and facilitators to justice, and our law enforcement partners who provided valuable assistance throughout this investigation.”
“We applaud all of the people who investigated and prosecuted this scam case,” said Andrew Saul, Commissioner of Social Security. “Never provide money or personal information to unknown callers when you receive a suspicious call. Just hang up and then go online to https://oig.ssa.gov/ to report these scams to Social Security.”
“We are duty bound to combat fraud schemes that victimize the public,” said U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Steven Baisel. “Efforts to purposely target the elderly are particularly heinous. We take great pride in working collaboratively to catch these kinds of offenders.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: Criminal India-based call centers defraud U.S. residents, including the elderly, by misleading victims over the telephone utilizing scams such as Social Security and tech support scams.
As part of their Social Security scam, India-based callers posed as federal agents in order to mislead victims into believing their Social Security numbers were involved in crimes. Callers threatened arrest and the loss of the victims’ assets if the victims did not send money. The callers directed victims to mail cash to aliases used by other members of the fraud network, including Patel and Dave.
As part of the tech support scam, callers induced victims to send money in exchange for supposed technical support for their computers. The callers then provided nothing in return. At times, callers misled the victims into providing remote access to their computers and the callers would access the victims’ bank accounts. The callers routinely misled the victims by making it appear as though the caller added money to the victims’ bank accounts. The callers then instructed the victims to mail cash to aliases used by other members of the fraud network, including Patel and Dave.
Based on misrepresentations made during the calls, the victims, including Georgia residents, mailed money to a network of individuals that laundered funds on behalf of the overseas fraud network. From on or about May 2019, to on or about January 2020, Patel and Dave laundered over $500,000 sent by dozens of scam victims.
- Chaitali Dave, 36, of Lamar, South Carolina, was sentenced on April 28, 2021, to one year, eight months to be followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $320,550 in restitution.
- Mehulkumar Manubhai Patel, 36, of Lamar, South Carolina, was sentenced on December 1, 2020, to two years, six months, to be followed by two years of supervised release and ordered to pay $259,217 in restitution.
The Social Security Administration - Office of the Inspector General investigated the case with the assistance of the U.S. Secret Service, El Dorado Task Force (New York), Aiken Department of Public Safety (South Carolina), Naperville Police Department (Illinois), Lexington County Sheriff’s Department (South Carolina), Rocky River Police Department (Ohio), Polk County Sheriff’s Office (Florida) and Henrico County Police Division (Virginia).
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Diane Schulman prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jolee Porter, the former Elder Justice Coordinator previously prosecuted the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is part of the Department of Justice Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force. The Strike Force focuses on investigating and prosecuting defendants associated with foreign-based fraud schemes that disproportionately affect American seniors. These include romance scams, phone scams, mass-mailing fraud schemes, and tech-support fraud schemes. For further information on these scams, see https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice/senior-scam-alert.
The public should exercise caution with any caller who claims to be a government employee. Government agencies will never threaten you with immediate arrest or other legal action if you do not send cash, retail gift cards, wire transfers, or internet currency. They will also never demand secrecy from you in resolving a debt or any other problem. If you need to send a payment to Social Security, SSA will send a letter with payment options and appeal rights. If you suspect you have received a Social Security scam call, report it at https://oig.ssa.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
- Chaitali Dave, 36, of Lamar, South Carolina, was sentenced on April 28, 2021, to one year, eight months to be followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $320,550 in restitution.
Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill indicted for federal civil rights violationsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Clayton County Sheriff Victor Hill has been indicted on federal civil rights charges for ordering his employees to use excessive force against four pretrial detainees at the Clayton County Jail in 2020. The indictment alleges that Hill, without any legal justification, ordered his employees to strap the detainees into a restraint chair and keep them there for hours in violation of their constitutional rights. The indictment further alleges that Hill deprived the detainees of their due process rights because such use of force was unreasonable, amounted to punishment, and caused the detainees physical pain and bodily injury.
“While the vast majority of our law enforcement officers perform their duties bravely, professionally, and with honor, those few who abuse their power must be held accountable,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Our constitution prohibits law enforcement officers from using unreasonable force. Without justification, Sheriff Hill allegedly ordered four detainees to be strapped into restraint chairs for hours. In so doing, he caused pain and injury to the detainees in his care. Sheriff Hill’s actions, as alleged by the Grand Jury, deprived the citizens he was sworn to protect of their civil rights. Such abuses of power not only harm the victims, they also erode the community’s trust in law enforcement.”
“Badges and guns don't come with the authority to ignore the Constitution. They come with the responsibility to protect it from anyone who would violate it, especially another public servant,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Christopher Macrae, FBI Atlanta. “Sheriff Hill is alleged to have abused his privileges and abandoned his responsibilities and the FBI is committed to restoring trust in law enforcement by holding him accountable.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the indictment, and other information presented in court: The Clayton County Sheriff’s Office’s (CCSO’s) “Inmate Restraint Chair Policy,” which was approved by Hill, states that “a restraint chair may be used by security staff to provide safe containment of an inmate exhibiting violent or uncontrollable behavior and to prevent self-injury, injury to others or property damage when control techniques are not effective.” Consistent with the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, the policy emphasizes that use of a restraint chair “will never be authorized as a form of punishment.”
Victim J.A.
On February 25, 2020, a victim identified as J.A. was accused of assaulting two women during a dispute at a Clayton County grocery store several weeks earlier. He was arrested by Forest Park (Georgia) Police Department officers and CCSO deputies without incident. At the time, J.A. was unarmed, was not under the influence of drugs, and offered no resistance. A short time later, J. A. was booked into the Clayton County jail as a pretrial detainee. During the booking process, J.A. was escorted by a group of deputies and correction officers to the fingerprinting area where Hill allegedly confronted J.A.
Hill asked J.A. what he had been doing in Clayton County on the day of the alleged assault. J.A. replied, “It’s a democracy, sir. It’s the United States.” Hill responded, “No, it’s not. Not in my county.” When J.A. asked whether he was entitled to a fair and speedy trial, Hill allegedly replied, “Roll that chair around here. You stay out of Clayton County, you understand me? You sound like a dummy.” When J.A. asked again whether he was entitled to a fair and speedy trial, Hill allegedly stated, “You entitled to sit in this chair, and you’re entitled to get the hell out of my county and don’t come back. That’s what you’re entitled to. You sound like a damn jackass. Don’t you ever put your hand on a woman like that again. You’re fortunate that wasn’t my mother or grandmama or you wouldn’t be standing there. Now, sit there and see if you can get some damn sense in your head.”
According to the indictment, during J.A.’s interaction with Hill, J.A. was surrounded by law enforcement personnel, was handcuffed most of the time, and never posed a threat to anyone. Despite those facts, J.A. was strapped into a restraint chair and left there for hours per Hill’s orders.
Victim C.H.
On April 26, 2020, C.H., who had just turned 17 years old, allegedly vandalized his family home during an argument with his mother. Shortly thereafter, a CCSO deputy apprehended C.H. near his home without incident and turned C.H. over to the custody of the Clayton County Police Department (CCPD). Clayton County records indicate C.H. was unarmed, was not under the influence of drugs, and offered no resistance.
According to the indictment, the deputy, a CCSO supervisor, then spoke with Hill on the phone, texted Hill a photograph of C.H. handcuffed and seated in a CCPD vehicle, and had the following text exchange with Hill:
Hill: How old is he?
Deputy: 17
Hill: Chair
A few hours later, early on April 27, 2020, C.H. was booked into the Clayton County jail as a pretrial detainee pending trial on charges stemming from the incident at his home. Although C.H. had been compliant with law enforcement during and after his arrest and never posed a threat to anyone, he was allegedly strapped into a restraint chair and left there for hours per Hill’s orders.
Victim J.H.
Also on the morning of April 27, 2020, J.H. was arrested by the Jonesboro Police Department following a domestic disturbance. At the police station after his arrest, J.H. fell out of a chair after allegedly pretending to pass out. J.H. was transported to a hospital for evaluation. While being treated at the hospital, J.H. refused treatment and left the building. When Jonesboro police officers re-apprehended J.H. outside his grandmother’s house that afternoon, J.H. did not cooperate or comply with officer’s commands and had to be carried down some steps and placed into a patrol vehicle. Clayton County records indicate that J.H. was unarmed, was not under the influence of drugs, and offered no resistance. In the patrol vehicle, J.H. again appeared to feign unconsciousness but offered no resistance.
Shortly thereafter, still during the afternoon of April 27, 2020, J.H. was booked into the Clayton County jail as a pretrial detainee pending trial on charges stemming from the domestic disturbance. Upon J.H.’s arrival at the jail, although J.H. was not combative and never posed a threat to anyone, J.H. was allegedly strapped into a restraint chair and left there for several hours per Hill’s order. During his time in the restraint chair, J.H. was not allowed to go to the restroom and urinated on the restraint chair due the length of his confinement.
According to the indictment, while C.H. and J.H. were both strapped in restraint chairs near each other, Hill allegedly confronted them. Referring to C.H., Hill allegedly said, “You know what he did yesterday? He went and destroyed his mother’s house yesterday. That’s what this asshole right here did.” Addressing both C.H. and J.H., Hill then allegedly stated, “Now, I’m going to tell you something. If I hear about you (C.H.) messing up your mama’s house again, if I hear about you (J.H.) fighting cops and faking and going to the Southern Regional and then walking out and pulling out the I.V., I’m a sit your ass in that chair for sixteen hours straight. Do you understand me? I need to hear from both of y’all that y’all not gonna show y’all’s ass in my county no more.”
Victim G.H.
In April 2020, G.H. and a CCSO deputy had a payment dispute over some landscaping work G.H. did for the deputy in Butts County, Georgia. The work and dispute were unrelated to the deputy’s employment with CCSO. After learning about the dispute, Hill allegedly called G.H. on April 23, 2020. During the call, Hill allegedly identified himself as the Clayton County Sheriff and asked G.H. why he was harassing his deputy. G.H. replied that Hill should tell his deputy to pay his bill and added, “you can go f--- yourself.” Unsure whether the caller had actually been the Clayton County Sheriff, G.H. used FaceTime to call back several times until Hill answered and removed a face mask he was wearing. After the FaceTime calls, Hill allegedly texted G.H., warning him not to call or text anymore. G.H. responded via text, “So this is Victor Hill correct[?” According to the indictment, Hill responded with a second text warning for G.H. not to call or text him anymore. Although G.H. did not call or text again, Hill allegedly instructed a CCSO deputy to swear out an arrest warrant against G.H. for harassing communications.
The next day, April 24, 2020, Hill allegedly texted G.H., “[T]his is Sheriff Victor Hill. We have a warrant for your arrest. Would you like to turn yourself in, or have my Deputies find you?” G.H. did not respond. The next morning, April 25, 2020, Hill again allegedly texted G.H., “My Deputies are actively looking for you. We have not and will not agree for you to turn yourself in when you want to. Turn yourself in today.” Meanwhile, Hill allegedly sent an armed fugitive squad to Butts County in an attempt to arrest G.H. on the misdemeanor arrest warrant.
After retaining a lawyer, G.H. turned himself in at the CCSO during the evening of April 27, 2020. Clayton County records indicate that G.H. was unarmed, was not under the influence of drugs, and offered no resistance. Shortly thereafter, G.H. was booked into the Clayton County jail as a pretrial detainee pending trial on the harassing communications charges. Surveillance footage from the jail shows G.H. interacting with jail personnel for more than half an hour, during which time he appeared cooperative and compliant before Hill arrived and confronted him. According to the indictment, immediately upon Hill’s arrival, although G.H. was surrounded by law enforcement personnel, remained compliant, and never posed a threat to anyone, G.H. was immediately strapped into a restraint chair and left there for several hours per Hill’s orders.
Victor Hill, 56, of Hampton, Georgia, was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Russell G. Vineyard. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brent Alan Gray and Bret R. Hobson are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Father and daughter plead guilty to selling millions of dollars in stolen retail product onlineRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Robert Whitley, a/k/a Mr. Bob, and Noni Whitley, father and daughter, have each pleaded guilty to a separate criminal information charging them for their roles in operating Closeout Express and Essential Daily Discounts, which for years sold millions of dollars of stolen retail product online.
“Robert and Noni Whitley operated a well-organized criminal enterprise disguised as an apparently legitimate small business,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “This is retail theft on a massive scale. We will continue to work with retailers and manufacturers to combat organized retail crime that is made easier and more lucrative by the ease by which stolen product can be sold online.”
"For more than eight years, the Whitley’s profited off of the backs of legitimate retailers by encouraging theft of their products for resale online,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Stopping this massive theft of products not only protects the retailers, but also consumers who are affected by those retailers’ losses.”
“The investigation of this criminal enterprise required coordinated enforcement actions through the sharing of intelligence and working together operationally with the FBI. This extensive scheme went beyond petty shoplifting at retail stores and entailed the deliberate sale of stolen goods through third party marketplaces for profit,” said Tommy D. Coke, Inspector in Charge of the Atlanta Division. “Postal Inspectors are committed to protecting the U.S. Mail system and will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to aggressively investigate these types of crimes.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: Between approximately January 2011 and November 2019, Robert Whitley and Noni Whitley operated an organized retail crime operation (“ORC”) in Atlanta through several entities, including Closeout Express and Essentials Daily Discounts. An ORC operation refers to a professional shoplifting, cargo theft, or retail crime ring, or other organized crime occurring in a retail environment. Robert Whitley was the owner and operator of Closeout Express. Noni Whitley worked with her father and helped operate and manage their ORC operation.
Closeout Express and Essential Daily Discounts operated from a warehouse and several residences in Atlanta. Robert Whitley and Noni Whitley relied on “boosters”—who are essentially professional shoplifters—to steal specific retail products or categories of items, including over-the-counter medications (e.g., Prilosec, Nexium, Rogaine, and Claritin), shaving razors, oral care products, as well as health and beauty aids. The boosters stole these products from various big box retailers, national drugstore chains, and national supermarket chains throughout metro Atlanta including CVS, Kroger, Publix, Target, and Walgreens. The boosters would typically bring the stolen product in large trash bags to Closeout Express's warehouse in southwest Atlanta. Robert and Noni Whitley paid the boosters in cash for the stolen product.
Closeout Express mainly sold the stolen retail products online at its own websites, and through various online e-commerce platforms, including the Amazon Marketplace, Walmart Marketplace, and Sears Marketplace. In exchange for a monthly fee or some percentage of the sales, Amazon, Walmart, and Sears permit third-party sellers to establish “online storefronts” to sell new or used products on a fixed-price online marketplace alongside these companies’ regular offerings. Closeout Express established “online storefronts” on each of these marketplaces to sell the stolen retail product. Across these various e-commerce platforms, Closeout Express sold millions of dollars of stolen retail product at below retail and even wholesale cost. Robert and Noni Whitley also sold hundreds of thousands of dollars of stolen product through Essential Daily Discounts’ own website.
In November 2019, federal agents executed multiple search warrants at Closeout Express’s southwest Atlanta warehouse and multiple residences connected to Robert and Noni Whitley. These locations had been used to sort, store, and process the stolen retail product (e.g., “clean” the items of identifying information or anti-theft devices.) Among other evidence of the ORC operation, agents recovered more than $1 million in stolen retail products.
While in operation, Robert Whitley and Noni Whitley sold more than $5 million in stolen retail product through Closeout Express and Essential Daily Discounts.
Robert Whitley, 70, of Atlanta, Georgia, pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of stolen property. His sentencing is scheduled for July 28, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. Noni Whitley, 46, of Atlanta, Georgia, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property. Her sentencing is scheduled for July 28, 2021 at 1:00 p.m. Both sentencings will be held before U.S. District Judge J. P. Boulee.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex R. Sistla is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Powder Springs man indicted for laundering over two million dollars in proceeds from a Business Email Compromise schemeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Denis Onderi Makori has been indicted on charges relating to a business email compromise (BEC) scheme targeting a Pennsylvania university and allegedly defrauding it out of more than $2 million.
“Business email compromise schemes pose a severe risk of financial loss to public and private institutions alike,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “In this case, Makori allegedly helped orchestrate a scheme that caused a university to transfer unknowingly over $2 million to bank accounts he controlled.”
“BEC schemes like this alleged one are a big reason why the Georgia Cyber Fraud Task Force, comprised of federal, state and local agencies, was launched in February,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “It takes a combination of education and our priority to investigate and prosecute these cases to make it a deterrent to those who contemplate committing these crimes.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Various individuals allegedly engaged in a fraudulent BEC scheme to cause a university located in Pennsylvania to send payments totaling more than $2 million via Automated Clearing House (ACH) to a bank account controlled by Makori, rather than to the intended beneficiary of such payments, a medical supply company based in Alpharetta, Georgia.
In furtherance of the scheme, a fraudulent email was allegedly sent to the university that purported to be from the medical supply company. The fraudulent email allegedly contained ACH payment instructions that directed the university to transfer payments to an account that purportedly belonged to the medical supply company. The university then transferred more than $2 million dollars to the bank account allegedly controlled by Makori. Then, Makori allegedly moved and laundered the funds between and among bank accounts associated with his logistics company, and then to bank accounts in Kenya, to himself, and to other persons associated with him.
Denis Onderi Makori, 34, of Powder Springs, Georgia, was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 20, 2021. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Chicago Field Office provided valuable assistance in this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan M. Christian is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Atlanta tax preparer charged with filing fraudulent tax returnsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Jean Samuel Gai has been arraigned on federal charges of aiding the filing of a false tax return. At the time, Gai was on probation in Georgia for similar tax-related offenses.
“At a time when he was already on probation for a prior tax-related charge, Gai’s allegedly returned to filing false tax returns,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “It is important to check a tax professional’s background before engaging him or her to assist with filing any tax returns.”
“Often in these types of schemes, the taxpayers fall victim to leaning on the trust of their return preparers,” said IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge James E. Dorsey. “The charges in this case show our seriousness in holding return preparers accountable for abusing their trusted positions to fraudulently gain more client funds. Taxpayers are strongly encouraged to review their return and ask questions in order to avoid falling victim to dishonest return preparers.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: Gai owned and operated N.C.E. Financial Services Incorporated, a tax return business that had two locations: one in Atlanta, Georgia and the other in Riverdale, Georgia. For the 2014 through 2018 tax years, Gai prepared and filed false income tax returns for his clients that allegedly claimed false Schedule C items, false W-2 wages, and false earned income tax credits to obtain refunds that his clients were not entitled to. Gai then allegedly kept most of the fraudulent refunds for his own use. The total loss associated with Gai’s fraud is estimated at more than $600,000.
In November 2013, Gai was convicted of first-degree forgery related to stealing and cashing tax refund checks issued by the State of Georgia. Gai was sentenced to 10 years’ probation for that offense and thus was on probation at the time he allegedly committed the current federal offenses.
Jean Samuel Gai, 45, of Atlanta, Georgia, was arraigned on April 6, 2021, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Catherine M. Salinas. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Russell Phillips is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Claimed real estate investor charged with securities fraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Richard J. Randolph, III, has been arraigned on federal charges of securities fraud. Randolph was charged in an information filed on April 1, 2021.
“Investors expect the companies that they invest in will operate with integrity,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The defendant allegedly went to great lengths to mislead potential clients, convincing some to invest over $1.5 million in the alleged scheme.”
“Creative fraud is still fraud,” said Special Agent in Charge Steve Baisel, U.S. Secret Service Atlanta Field Office. “Fortunately, the combined efforts of law enforcement partners are an effective way to stop bad actors.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: Richard Randolph was the CEO, Chairman of the Board of Directors, and majority shareholder of Randolph Acquisitions, Inc., a company headquartered in Atlanta that publicly filed its financials with the Securities and Exchange Commission. He also controlled Gallagher Management Group and other related entities. In 2017 and 2018, Randolph sold over $1 million in Randolph Acquisition stock to various investors.
In 2017, Randolph began preparing to merge Gallagher Management Group into Randolph Acquisitions and sold Randolph Acquisitions shares to multiple investors. Gallagher Management also engaged an accounting firm to audit its 2016 financial statements. In connection with this audit, Randolph allegedly provided false information regarding Gallagher Management Group’s assets which were then reflected on the balance sheet of the 2016 financial statements:
- Randolph falsely claimed that Gallagher Management Group owned two buildings valued at a claimed $10 million combined. In reality, neither Gallagher Management Group, nor Randolph ever owned these properties.
- Randolph falsely valued a different property at $10.5 million with no associated liability. In reality, Gallagher Management Group purchased the property in or about September 2016 for $1.1 million with a $1.1 million mortgage loan secured by the property. It was sold in August 2017 for $1.2 million.
- Randolph falsely valued yet another property at $4.5 million that was acquired in January 2016 for $425,000 by an entity controlled by Randolph and was transferred to Gallagher Management Group in March 2017. In April 2018, the property was sold at auction for $687,500 after Gallagher Management Group defaulted on a $500,000 loan.
- Randolph provided a false bank statement showing a balance of over $2.5 million. The actual balance in this account was $58,198.78.
The audited financials included other misrepresentations such as falsely stating that Gallagher Management Group “has consistently maintained over $50 million dollars in assets, under management, annually.”
Gallagher Management Group also engaged a consultant to prepare a business valuation for the merger which relied upon Gallagher Management Group’s 2016 audited financial statements, alleged additional false property valuation information provided by Randolph, and false projections provided by Randolph. The report valued Gallagher Management Group at $31.3 million on an enterprise value basis and $33.8 million on an equity value basis.
In connection with the proposed merger between Randolph Acquisitions and Gallagher Management Group, Randolph Acquisitions made multiple filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that attached the alleged false 2016 audited financial statements of Gallagher Management Group. Randolph directed investors to these filings. In addition to these documents, Randolph allegedly falsely claimed that Randolph Acquisitions owned EF Block when it did not. He allegedly falsely claimed that Randolph Acquisitions was close to securing a variety of large public and private contracts in the U.S. Virgin Islands, including hurricane remediation contracts and an agreement to manage the U.S. Virgin Islands public retirement fund, when in fact they never obtained any of those contracts.
These alleged misrepresentations materially increased Randolph Acquisitions’ apparent value and future prospects, when in reality, it was little more than a shell company with limited assets. Randolph allegedly induced 14 victims who relied upon the misrepresentations to invest over $1.5 million in Randolph Acquisitions.
Richard J. Randolph, III, 40, of Atlanta, Georgia, was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Regina D. Cannon. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, with assistance from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. In a related civil matter, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint charging Randolph and he consented to entry of a judgment against him.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber, Deputy Chief of the Complex Frauds Section, is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.Four inmates and conspirator charged with drug trafficking and bribery at state prisonRead the Press Release
ROME, Ga. - Jeffery Deroy Lewis, an inmate at Valdosta State Prison, along with Octavius Henry, Alexis Jay Stokley, and Khalid Eugene Mouton, inmates at Hays State Prison, and an accomplice, Jessica Corley Stokley, have been indicted and arraigned on federal drug trafficking and bribery charges stemming from a scheme to smuggle narcotics into Hay State Prison by bribing corrections officer Voltaire Peter Pierre.
“These inmates allegedly smuggled drugs and other contraband into the prison, putting guards and fellow inmates in danger,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “By using hidden cell phones to coordinate with conspirators, they sent and received payments via payment apps and prepaid cards, and allegedly bribed at least one prison official to allow illegal drugs to enter the prison community.”
“Prisons should be a place of rehabilitation, not a place to continue committing crimes,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Illegal cell phones have emboldened inmates and their associates to engage in criminal conduct, sometimes with the help of law enforcement officials. It threatens both inmates and staff and the FBI will pursue these investigations no matter who is involved.”
“These defendants being charged demonstrate the collaborative efforts of state and federal partners to dismantle this conspiracy. The officer violated his oath and the public’s trust by contributing to this criminal activity within the prison system,” said Vic Reynolds, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: From approximately June 2018 through October 2018, the defendants allegedly conspired to smuggle drugs, including methamphetamine, cocaine base (i.e., crack cocaine), and marijuana, along with other contraband into Hays State Prison.
The inmates allegedly communicated via contraband cell phones and through coded email messages sent via the prison email system with conspirators outside the prison to arrange for drugs and other contraband to be dropped at the home of Pierre, a Hays State Prison corrections officer who later smuggled the packages into prison for distribution to inmates. The inmates then transmitted drug payments and bribe payments to Pierre through a combination of prepaid debit cards and a payment app.
Voltaire Peter Pierre pleaded guilty to trafficking methamphetamine, crack cocaine, and marijuana on October 17, 2019.
Jeffery Deroy Lewis, a/k/a “2500,” 30, of Atlanta, Georgia, Octavius Henry, a/k/a “Forever,” a/k/a Robert Barrow, 33, of Atlanta, Georgia, Alexis Jay Stokley, 41, of Atlanta, Georgia, and Jessica Corley Stokley, 38, of Atlanta, Georgia, were arraigned on March 9, 2021, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Walter E. Johnson on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and conspiracy to commit bribery after being indicted by a federal grand jury on February 16, 2021. Khalid Eugene Mouton, a/k/a Michael Howard, 42, of Atlanta, Georgia, is pending arraignment.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan M. Christian and Calvin A. Leipold, III are prosecuting the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Federal law enforcement leaders address hate crimes and racism targeting the AAPI communityRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine and Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta are condemning bigotry, racism, and hatred against the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community and issuing a call for people to report potential discriminatory incidents immediately.
“We are deeply troubled by the acts of violence and harassment against our Asian American neighbors, family, and friends in this district,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “We will not tolerate discrimination or criminal acts against people based on their real or perceived race or ethnicity and will continue to examine all evidence related to the shooter’s motivation in order to determine whether these horrific murders violated federal hate crime laws. Federal law enforcement in this district is committed to the safety of the members of our AAPI community and we urge the public to report potential racial discrimination and hate crimes to law enforcement so we can address these illegal acts.”
“FBI Atlanta and The U.S. Attorney's Office have reached out to Atlanta's AAPI community, among other groups who have been targeted historically because of their race, to assure them they have an ally with law enforcement agencies and that individuals affected know their rights,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “Investigating civil rights/hate crimes is among the FBI's highest priorities. FBI Atlanta is dedicated to addressing every single allegation, and we strongly encourage anyone who believes their civil rights were violated to report it, so that we can determine whether a crime occurred.”
With respect to the tragic and horrific shooting of eight victims in Atlanta, the FBI, the USAO for the Northern District of Georgia, and the Civil Rights Division are fully supporting the state investigation into the tragic events of March 16th, while independently assessing whether the shootings involved a federal hate crime. Experienced civil rights prosecutors and agents are assessing all of the evidence and will continue to examine all evidence related to the shooter’s motivation.
We have increased our outreach to the AAPI community in the wake of last week’s tragic events. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI, along with other members of federal, state and local law enforcement, met with leaders of the AAPI community within 24 hours after the tragic shootings in the Atlanta area, and have this week, participated in a listening session in Doraville, Georgia with AAPI representatives. “Our outreach efforts will continue while reinforcing the message that we all stand together with the AAPI community to aggressively address incidents of anti-Asian bias in our district,” said Erskine.
There is a significant disparity between hate crimes that actually occur and those reported to law enforcement. It is critical to report hate crimes not only to show support for those directly impacted, but also to reinforce the message that our community will not tolerate these kinds of crimes. Reporting also enables law enforcement to fully understand the scope of the problem in a community and assign resources toward preventing and addressing crimes of bias and hate.
President Biden on January 26 issued the “Presidential Memorandum Condemning and Combating Racism, Xenophobia, and Intolerance Against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States.” The memorandum mandates that the Attorney General explore opportunities to support, consistent with applicable law, the efforts of state and local agencies, as well as AAPI communities and community-based organizations, to prevent discrimination, bullying, harassment, and hate crimes against AAPI individuals, and expand collection of data and public reporting regarding hate incidents against such individuals.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division enforces federal anti-discrimination laws, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office has dedicated units that prosecute civil rights violations in its Criminal Division and enforce civil rights laws in its Civil Division. The Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office also investigates non-criminal instances of discrimination.
If you or someone you know are in immediate danger, please call 911. If you believe you have been the target or victim of a hate crime or other violation of your civil rights, please contact the FBI Atlanta Field Office by calling (770) 216-3000 or submitting a tip online at https://www.fbi.gov/tips
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Georgia Institute of Technology professor charged with Visa and wire fraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Gee-Kung Chang has been arraigned on federal charges of conspiracy to commit visa fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and wire fraud. Chang and Jianjun Yu were indicted on March 18, 2021.
“The defendants allegedly abused the visa program and deceived Georgia Tech to bring researchers into the United States,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The charges presented are the first step toward holding them accountable.”
“The United States welcomes academics and researchers from across the globe,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “But we cannot allow anyone to exploit our benevolence. That's what these defendants are accused of doing and now they will be judged.”
“Schemes like this not only steal invaluable opportunities from legitimate, hard-working students it also allows scammers to come to the United States and profit from their misdeeds,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “Identifying, arresting and prosecuting violators is vital to protect the integrity of our nation’s visa program.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: Chang, a professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology (“Georgia Tech”) in Atlanta, Georgia, and Yu, who was then a research director at ZTE USA—a subsidiary of ZTE Corporation, a partially state-owned Chinese telecommunications and information technology company—in Morristown, New Jersey, allegedly conspired together to bring Chinese nationals to the United States to conduct research at the company.
To facilitate the entry of the Chinese nationals into the United States, Chang allegedly abused his position as a professor at Georgia Tech, an institution that was a designated exchange sponsor for the Department of State’s J-1 Visa program, to arrange for Chinese nationals to fraudulently obtain and maintain J-1 Visas.
The J-1 Visa program is for individuals approved to participate in specific work-and-study-based exchange visitor programs with exchange sponsor institutions, like Georgia Tech. The program is not intended for general employment of foreign workers in the United States.
In the J-1 Visa paperwork submitted to the Department of State, the Chinese nationals allegedly indicated that they would be working with Chang at Georgia Tech. In reality, the indictment alleges, after arriving in the United States, the Chinese nationals traveled to and resided in New Jersey to work with Yu at ZTE USA. And, in some instances, Chinese nationals were paid salaries from Georgia Tech while they were actually working at ZTE USA.
Gee-Kung Chang, 73, of Smyrna, Georgia, was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Christopher C. Bly. Chang and Jianjun Yu, 53, of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, were indicted by a federal grand jury on March 18, 2021. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendants’ guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Samir Kaushal is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
10 defendants indicted in multi-state, fraudulent COVID-19 related business loan schemeRead the Press Release
NEWNAN, Ga. - Ten defendants, who operated as part of a larger group, have been indicted for participating in a wide ranging, multi-state scheme to submit fraudulent loan applications on behalf of non-existent businesses as part of the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
“The impact of COVID-19 on small businesses around the country has been devastating,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The defendants allegedly abused both programs by submitting fraudulent applications and obtaining thousands of dollars that should have gone to support struggling businesses. We will work tirelessly to protect the integrity of the EIDL and PPP and to help small businesses stay afloat.”
“The COVID-19 pandemic has caused financial hardships for many hardworking business owners across the nation. The CARES Act was signed to provide economic assistance to keep companies afloat while navigating through these uncertain times,” said Tommy D. Coke, Inspector in Charge of the Atlanta Division. “Postal Inspectors are committed to aggressively pursuing investigations in which the U.S. Mails are used to facilitate criminal schemes.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the indictment, and other information presented in court: On August 11, 2020, agents with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and the Drug Enforcement Administration executed a search warrant at the home of Alicia Quarterman in connection with an ongoing narcotics trafficking investigation. A package containing methamphetamine hidden in dog food containers had been mailed to Quarterman’s home. As part of the court-authorized search, law enforcement seized Quarterman’s cell phones and discovered a handwritten ledger with the personal and banking information of several individuals.
After obtaining a second search warrant for the cell phones, USPIS inspectors uncovered hundreds of text messages and photos related to an additional crime, fraudulent EIDL and PPP business loans.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act is a federal law passed in March 2020 that provided $2.2 trillion dollars in emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by COVID-19. The provisions of the CARES Act, in conjunction with an officially declared disaster by the United States Government, allowed the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) to offer EIDL funding to business owners negatively affected by COVID-19. The EIDL application information, submitted by the applicant, was used by SBA systems to calculate the amount of money the business was eligible to receive in the form of a loan. However, in conjunction with the submission of an EIDL application, by having clicked on and checked a box within the on-line application, an applicant could request and then receive up to $10,000.00, an EIDL Advance which did not have to be repaid.
Another source of relief from the March 2020 CARES Act is the PPP which allows qualifying small businesses and other organizations to receive PPP loans to pay payroll costs, interest on mortgages, rent, and utilities. The PPP allows the interest and principal on the PPP loan to be entirely forgiven if the business spends the loan proceeds on these expense items within a designated period of time and uses a certain percentage of the PPP loan proceeds for payroll expenses.
Once Quarterman and her co-conspirator, Katrina Lawson, who is a former deputy sheriff for Fulton County, Georgia and is still a certified peace officer, became familiar with the requirements and applications for the EIDL program and the PPP, they allegedly devised a scheme to submit fraudulent business loan applications on behalf of their friends and family who did not actually own businesses. Quarterman would recruit co-conspirators who would send her their personal and banking information mostly via text message, and then Quarterman would send that information to Lawson who would submit the applications to the SBA. After the fraudulent loans were paid out by the SBA or partner banks, the co-conspirators completed their scheme by allegedly paying Quarterman a “fee” from the proceeds of the fraudulent loans which she would split with Lawson.
Some of Quarterman and Lawson’s co-conspirators also allegedly recruited additional participants to the scheme and then sent their information to Quarterman for fraudulent loan applications. As part of their crimes, the defendants not only submitted false information for the business loans, but for the PPP, they also allegedly created fake Internal Revenue Service documentation to support the applications.
Besides Alicia Quarterman, 38, of Fayetteville, Georgia, and Katrina Lawson, 41, of Houston, Texas, the following individuals also participated in the scheme and are charged in the indictment:
- India Middleton, 34, of Accokeek, Maryland,
- James McFarland, 56, of Atlanta, Georgia,
- Tranesha Quarterman, 33, of Atlanta, Georgia,
- Darryl Washington, 66, of Atlanta, Georgia,
- Adarin Jones, a/k/a Adrian Jones, 42, of Atlanta, Georgia,
- Katie Quarterman, 28, of Atlanta, Georgia,
- Nikia Wakefield, 42, of Rockville, Maryland, and
- Victor Montgomery, 43, of Washington, D.C.,
Overall, between July 1, 2020 and August 11, 2020, Quarterman sent Lawson the information for about 48 different individuals, and she allegedly completed approximately 58 fraudulent EIDL applications, seeking $490,000. In that same time frame, Lawson allegedly submitted 11 fraudulent PPP loan applications on behalf of many of the same individuals in an attempt to obtain at least $224,000. The defendants are charged with various counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges, and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Miguel R. Acosta is prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Eleven plead guilty to running multi-year mortgage fraud schemeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Eleven defendants have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States in a mortgage fraud scheme spanning more than four years and resulting in the approval of more than 100 mortgages based on fabricated documents and false information. Many of the loans are insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) resulting in claims being paid for mortgages that have defaulted.
“These defendants brazenly manipulated the real estate lending process by using their knowledge of the system,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine. “Mortgage fraudsters threaten the soundness of the real estate market in our community and divert critical resources away from those borrowers who properly qualify for loans. Rooting out bad actors who attempt to abuse the system for their own personal gain makes the mortgage lending system safer and fairer for everyone.”
“These defendants who dragged down our economy by using deception, will now be sentenced and forced to reimburse the victims of their conspiracy,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “The FBI is committed to combating such criminal activity to protect our citizens and the real estate market from predators who are most interested in pocketing money that they have no right to.”
“These offenders engaged in blatant criminal acts with the sole purpose of enriching themselves at the cost of a federal housing program designed to assist millions of American homebuyers. Their fraudulent undertaking strikes at the fiscal integrity of the FHA and we will work diligently in conjunction with our law enforcement partners to hold them accountable” said Wyatt Achord, Special Agent in Charge, HUD Office of Inspector General.
“The Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG) is committed to holding accountable those who waste, steal, or abuse the resources of the Government-Sponsored Enterprises regulated by FHFA. We are proud to have partnered with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia in this case,” said Edwin S. Bonano, Special Agent-in-Charge, FHFA-OIG, Southeast Region.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: The defendants participated in a conspiracy in which homebuyers and real estate agents submitted fraudulent loan applications to induce mortgage lenders to fund mortgages.
Listing agents Eric Hill and Robert Kelske represented a major nationwide homebuilder and helped more than 100 homebuyers who were looking to buy a home, but who were unqualified to obtain a mortgage, commit fraud. The agents instructed the homebuyers as to what type of assets they needed to claim to have in the bank, and what type of employment and income they needed to submit in their mortgage applications.
Hill and Kelske then coordinated with multiple document fabricators, including defendants Fawziyyah Connor and Stephanie Hogan, who altered the homebuyers’ bank statements to inflate their assets and to create bank entries reflecting false direct deposits from an employer selected by the real estate agent. The document fabricators also generated fake earnings statements that matched the direct deposit entries to make it appear that the homebuyer was employed, and earning income, from a fake employer. Other participants in the scheme then acted as employment verifiers and responded to phone calls or emails from lenders to falsely verify the homebuyers’ employment. Defendants Jerod Little, Renee Little, Maurice Lawson, Todd Taylor, Paige McDaniel and Donald Fontenot acted as employment verifiers. Hill and Kelske coordinated the creation and submission of the false information so that the lies to the lenders were consistent.
In another aspect of the scheme, real estate agent Anthony Richard falsely claimed to represent homebuyers as their selling agent in order to receive commissions from the home sales. In reality, Richard had never even met the homebuyers he claimed to represent. To avoid detection, he often notified closing attorneys that he would be unable to attend the closing and sent wire instructions for the receipt of his commissions. When Richard received his unearned commissions, he kicked back the majority of the commissions to Hill or Kelske for enabling him to be added to the deal, keeping a small share for his role in the scheme.
The following defendants have pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States:
• Eric Hill, 50, of Tyrone, Georgia
• Robert Kelske, 52, of Smyrna, Georgia
• Fawziyyah Connor, 41, of Tyrone, Georgia
• Stephanie Hogan, 57, of Norcross, Georgia
• Jerod Little, 42, of McDonough, Georgia
• Renee Little, 33, of McDonough, Georgia
• Maurice Lawson, 36, of Powder Springs, Georgia
• Todd Taylor, 54, of Fairburn, Georgia
• Paige McDaniel, 49, of Stockbridge, Georgia
• Donald Fontenot, 52, of Locust Grove, Georgia
• Anthony Richard, 44, of Locust Grove, Georgia
These defendants have agreed to pay restitution to the victims of their conspiracy, including the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which insures many of the residential mortgages in the United States. Sentencing hearings have been set for these defendants before U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen.
A twelfth defendant, Cephus Chapman, 49, of Warner Robins, Georgia is awaiting trial. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contain charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General, and Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alison Prout and Ryan Huschka are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Lithonia man charged with defrauding the USDA’s COVID Relief ProgramRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Christopher A. Hayes made an initial appearance on federal charges of making a false claim to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). Hayes was charged via an information filed on March 18, 2021.
“During the global pandemic, the government has provided a wide range of financial relief,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Unfortunately, when criminals steal these funds, they take them out of the hands of those suffering hardship, such as farmers, who are the focus of the USDA relief efforts.”
“This investigation and prosecution should send a strong zero-tolerance message to those individuals who explicitly apply for aid to exploit taxpayer funded pandemic relief programs such as CFAP,” said Jason Williams, Special Agent in Charge, USDA-Office of Inspector General. “We appreciate the partnership with our federal partners in pursuing this type of fraud and holding these bad actors to account in this great time of need.”
“It’s truly disheartening, that during this pandemic individuals are devising schemes to take advantage of funds set aside for those financially impacted,” said James E. Dorsey, Special Agent in Charge IRS-Criminal Investigation. “IRS-Criminal Investigation and our law enforcement partners will remain vigilant in uncovering fraud and recommending prosecution.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: Hayes was charged with submitting a false claim to the USDA’s CFAP for the claimed loss of livestock at his commercial farming operation. CFAP provided direct relief to producers who faced price declines and additional marketing costs due to COVID-19. Hayes allegedly did not own or operate a commercial farming operation and did not have losses associated with any livestock when he made a claim under CFAP.
In addition, Hayes allegedly submitted a fraudulent IRS Form 7200, which, when used legitimately, allows an employer to request an advance payment of employer credits under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). The FFCRA provides small and midsize employers refundable tax credits that reimburse them, dollar-for-dollar, for the cost of providing paid sick and family leave wages to their employees for leave related to COVID-19. In total, Hayes attempted to obtain over $1.5 million in COVID-19 relief funding.
Christopher A. Hayes, 35, of Lithonia, Georgia, made an initial appearance on March 18, 2021, before U.S. Magistrate Judge John K. Larkins III. Members of the public are reminded that the information only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and United States Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sarah Klapman and Christopher J. Huber, Deputy Chief of the Complex Frauds Section, are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Cypriot hacker sentenced to federal prison for extorting website operators with stolen personal informationRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – A Cypriot national who hacked into major websites as a teenager and threatened that he would release stolen user information unless the websites paid a ransom has been sentenced to federal prison. The defendant, Joshua Polloso Epifaniou, is the first Cypriot national ever extradited from Cyprus to the United States.
“Epifaniou harvested the personal information of website users to extort website operators into paying large ransoms,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Cyber extortion is a growing threat to American businesses. Cyber criminals typically identify sensitive information either by directly exploiting website security vulnerabilities or identifying weakness in the victim’s computer network.”
“This historic extradition and sentencing would not have been possible without the determination of our FBI investigators and the help of our federal and foreign partners,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “It is further proof that no matter where criminals who prey on U.S. companies and citizens are hiding, either geographically or virtually, we will pursue them and bring them to justice.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: Between at least October 2014 and November 2016, Epifaniou was a teenage hacker living with his mother in Cyprus who searched website traffic rankings to identify potential targets of his extortion scheme. After selecting targets, Epifaniou worked with co-conspirators to steal personally identifiable information from user and customer databases at victim websites. Epifaniou stole the sensitive information either by directly exploiting a security vulnerability at the websites or by obtaining a portion of the victim website’s user data from a co-conspirator who had hacked into the victim network. After obtaining the personally identifiable information, Epifaniou used proxy servers located in foreign countries to log into online email accounts and send messages to the victim websites threatening to leak the sensitive data unless a ransom was paid in cryptocurrency.
During his scheme, Epifaniou’s victims included an online sports news website owned by Turner Broadcasting System Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia; a free online game publisher based in Irvine, California; a hardware company based in New York, New York; an online employment website headquartered in Innsbrook, Virginia; and a consumer report website headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona.
After extorting the consumer report website operator, Epifaniou continued to hack into the website to remove online complaints posted on the website at the request of paying clients. Epifaniou and his co-conspirator, Pierre Zarokian, charged clients between $1,000 and $5,000 for removal of each complaint and falsely told clients that the removals were court-ordered.
Before entering a guilty plea, Epifaniou paid nearly $600,000 in restitution to the victims.
Joshua Polloso Epifaniou, 22, of Nicosia, Cyprus was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen to an additional one year and one day in prison, on top of credit for three years and ten months served in custody for the offense prior to his sentencing hearing. Epifaniou also paid forfeiture of $389,113 and 70,000 euros to the government as a result of his conviction. Epifaniou was convicted on January 25, 2021 after pleading guilty to computer fraud conspiracy and a substantive count of computer fraud transferred from the District of Arizona for purposes of his plea.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Foreign law enforcement partners also made significant contributions to the investigation, including the exceptional support and cooperation provided by the Office for Combating Cybercrime of the Cyprus Police. Valuable assistance also was provided by the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan P. Kitchens, Chief of the Public Integrity and Special Matters Section, prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Former mayoral candidate charged with stealing from the Paycheck Protection ProgramRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Olivia Ware, a former candidate for Mayor of the City of Conyers, has been arraigned on federal charges of bank fraud and money laundering stemming from a scheme to use a company she started to steal over $323,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
“Authorities continue to examine Paycheck Protection Program loans for acts of fraud, as the charges against Ware demonstrate,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “Those who would consider stealing from the Paycheck Protection Program should think twice.”
“It has been said that bad times bring out the best in people, this case is not an example of that. Ware tried to defraud the government out of money meant to help small businesses affected by the pandemic continue operations and take care of their employees. Instead of helping others through a difficult time as the money was intended, she used the money for personal gain,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “Every time a fraudster steals money from the PPP fund another legitimate business is unable to get those funds to help real employees with real families. HSI’s OPERATION STOLEN PROMISE protects the country from the threat of COVID-19-related fraud and criminal activity.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges, and other information presented in court: The PPP is an emergency funding program created to assist small business owners and their employees during the coronavirus pandemic. PPP loans are fully guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA).
In 2020, Olivia Ware was the CEO of a Georgia company called Let’s Talk About the Family, Inc., but according to state records, it did not pay wages to any employees. Yet, Ware allegedly submitted a false application to a bank for a PPP loan for the company that included fictitious tax records purporting to show the company had 54 employees that were paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in salary.
As a result of this materially false information, the bank loaned over $323,000 in PPP funds to Ware’s company. Ware then allegedly spent the PPP loan for her own benefit, including to buy an in-ground swimming pool, furniture, and other home improvement items, and to pay down the principal on her mortgage.
Ware, 61, of Oxford, Georgia, faces charges of bank fraud and money laundering. She was arraigned on a criminal information on March 16, 2021.
Members of the public are reminded that the criminal information only contains charges. The defendant is presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bernita B. Malloy and Trevor C. Wilmot are prosecuting the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Property developer sentenced to prison for fraudRead the Press Release
GAINESVILLE, Ga. - Louis Beria has been sentenced to prison for defrauding a company and its elderly owner. The defendant was previously an advisor and property manager of an apartment complex owned by the victim.
“The victim trusted Beria to manage his property but was betrayed when the defendant diverted over $1.6 million for his own benefit,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “With elder fraud unfortunately on the rise, it remains a priority for our office.”
“Beria stole the hard-earned money of an investor who trusted him to manage his properties,” said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “No matter how clever the investment scam is, the FBI will find and hold accountable anyone who preys on unsuspecting investors.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: The victim was an elderly, German investor, who began purchasing properties in Northern Georgia several years ago. Louis Beria met the victim and became an advisor and property manager for the victim.
Among other tasks, the victim hired Beria to manage an apartment complex he owned in Atlanta. While managing that apartment complex, Beria himself owned a separate apartment complex in Atlanta. Beria hired a company to do construction work on the complex he owned but used money from the victim’s apartment complex to pay for it. Ultimately, Beria stole $1,621,979 and lied to the victim about how he used this money.
Louis Beria, 64, of Milton, Georgia, was sentenced to four years, three months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,621,979. Beria was convicted on these charges on November 4, 2020, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Huber, Deputy Chief of the Complex Frauds Section, prosecuted the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is part of the Department of Justice Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force. The Strike Force focuses on investigating and prosecuting defendants associated with foreign-based fraud schemes that disproportionately affect American seniors. These include romance scams, phone scams, mass-mailing fraud schemes, and tech-support fraud schemes. For further information on these scams, see https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice/senior-scam-alert.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.
Norcross cousins sentenced for operating meth lab near an elementary schoolRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Zury Brito-Arroyo, Bonifacio Brito-Maldonado, and Roberto Arroyo-Garcia have been sentenced to federal prison for manufacturing and distributing methamphetamine in a home where a minor child resided and within 1,000 feet of a school. The three men, all of whom had illegally entered the United States from Mexico, utilized a family home in Norcross less than 200 feet from an elementary school to operate a methamphetamine laboratory.
“These men ran a lab churning out volatile and toxic chemicals to produce concentrated methamphetamine,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “In doing so, they were exposing not only members of their own family, including children, an expectant mother, and a grandmother, to serious harm, but also innocent neighbors and school children who were completely unaware of the danger.”
“Methamphetamine production can have devasting consequences that go beyond those associated with taking the drug. One such consequence is the toxic vapor and deadly chemicals produced when it is being made. These chemicals pose extreme danger to anyone in the vicinity. The innocent children in the school next door and even the other family members in the household were placed in danger due to the defendants’ recklessness,” said Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger, who oversees Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) operations in Georgia and Alabama. “This is a growing threat and HSI and its law enforcement partners are working to identify, arrest, and prosecute those involved in producing and selling this poison.”
“Those who manufacture methamphetamine, because of its toxicity and volatility, pose a grave danger to everyone,” said the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division Robert J. Murphy. “Given that this operational ‘meth’ lab was near a school, the outcome could have been devastating to the school children, staff and to the community at-large. Because of spirited law enforcement cooperation between DEA and its counterparts, these defendants will receive well-deserved time in prison.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: In August 2017, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents investigating a local methamphetamine distributor tracked him to a house in a residential neighborhood they believed was used as part of the drug manufacturing and distribution operation.
As agents were watching the house, Georgia State Patrol, working in conjunction with HSI, stopped defendant Zury Brito-Arroyo as he was driving away from the house. Inside his car, they found $10,000 cash wrapped in green cellophane and a 9mm pistol. Brito-Arroyo’s five-year-old child and wife were also in the car. Agents then searched the stash house and found defendants Roberto Arroyo-Garcia and Bonifacio Brito-Maldonado actively operating a methamphetamine laboratory in a shed in the backyard. Chemical fumes coming from the operation were so strong that one of the men began vomiting. Agents detained the two, but Arroyo-Garcia resisted arrest and fled. He was ultimately found hiding nearby and was arrested. Agents later searched Brito-Arroyo’s cell phone pursuant to a federal search warrant and discovered an app that monitored security cameras mounted at the house.
Agents seized over 10.7 kilograms of finished crystal methamphetamine from the shed and inside the house, some of which was over 90% pure, plus additional methamphetamine in liquid form that had not been fully processed into solid form for distribution. They also seized an additional 9mm pistol, $8,500 cash, and other methamphetamine trafficking paraphernalia including respirators, rubber gloves, and digital scales.
The DEA Clandestine Laboratory Enforcement Team responded to the scene to remove the dangerous chemicals. Agents also found children’s clothes inside the house, and later confirmed that a ten-year-old child, who was related to the defendants, lived there.
With assistance from the Sandy Springs Police Department, agents also searched another residence used by Brito-Arroyo, where they discovered a plastic bin with methamphetamine residue, another 9mm pistol, an electronic money counter, and four bundles of cash totaling $41,000 wrapped in green cellophane.
- Roberto Arroyo-Garcia, 39, of Guerrero, Mexico, who was previously deported on two separate occasions following prior drug convictions, was sentenced today to 22 years in prison to be followed by ten years of supervised release. Arroyo-Garcia was convicted on these charges on October 23, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
- Zury Brito-Arroyo, 28, of Guerrero, Mexico, was sentenced on February 25, 2020, to 21 years in prison to be followed by ten years of supervised release. Brito-Arroyo was convicted on these charges on October 17, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
- Bonifacio Brito-Maldonado, 24, of Michoacan, Mexico, was sentenced on October 19, 2020, to 19 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Brito-Maldonado was convicted on these charges on October 17, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Georgia State Patrol, and the Sandy Springs Police Department are investigating this case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Garrett L. Bradford, Deputy Chief of the Public Integrity and Special Matters Section, and Ryan M. Christian prosecuted the case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta recommends parents and children learn about the dangers of drugs at the following web site: www.justthinktwice.gov.This prosecution was brought as a part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Co-located Strike Forces Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations against a continuum of priority targets and their affiliate illicit financial networks. These prosecutor-led co-located Strike Forces capitalize on the synergy created through the long-term relationships that can be forged by agents, analysts, and prosecutors who remain together over time, and they epitomize the model that has proven most effective in combating organized crime. The specific mission of the Atlanta Strike Force is to disrupt, dismantle, and prosecute the highest-level members of international drug cartels and transnational criminal organizations that have operations in metro Atlanta and throughout the United States.
OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and is the keystone of the Department of Justice’s drug reduction strategy. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations, and money laundering organizations that present a significant threat to the public safety, economic, or national security of the United States.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.- Roberto Arroyo-Garcia, 39, of Guerrero, Mexico, who was previously deported on two separate occasions following prior drug convictions, was sentenced today to 22 years in prison to be followed by ten years of supervised release. Arroyo-Garcia was convicted on these charges on October 23, 2019, after he pleaded guilty.
Gunrunner and his accomplices sentenced for trafficking more than 100 firearms from Georgia to MarylandRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Warren Vernell Robertson, III, a prolific gun trafficker, along with two of his accomplices, has been sentenced for a variety of federal offenses involving the illicit resale of Georgia-sourced firearms on the streets of Baltimore, Maryland.
“Criminals who unlawfully traffic in firearms often only export crime and violence to other communities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine. “The impact of gun trafficking on our communities is especially acute now, given the uptick in violent crime occurring in many cities.”
“These defendants put guns in the hands of criminals,” said Arthur Peralta, ATF Atlanta Special Agent in Charge. “ATF will continue to focus its attention on anyone who chooses to arm criminals and willfully contribute to the violence harming our communities.”
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the charges and other information presented in court: From 2018, through the date of his arrest in mid-2020, Robertson trafficked more than 100 firearms from Georgia to Maryland. During that time, Robertson paid at least four other people, including co-defendant Asante Moore, to unlawfully purchase firearms on his behalf. Robertson also purchased firearms online using nearly a dozen fictitious names and email addresses. Robertson then sold the firearms in Baltimore.
Several of the guns trafficked by Robertson were recovered by law enforcement officers and from individuals involved in criminal activities. For example, ATF agents in Maryland seized nearly a dozen pistols and a rifle from inside a rental car Robertson had driven from Atlanta. Additionally, only weeks after Moore purchased a semiautomatic pistol for Robertson, Baltimore police officers recovered the firearm from a drug dealer. The pistol was fully loaded at that time.
In addition, during the first three months of 2020, Moore purchased more than 20 guns for Robertson. On March 16, 2020, Moore, Robertson, and Robertson’s cousin, Erik Alfonso Cohen, Jr., traveled together to a pawn shop in Jonesboro, Georgia, to purchase three of those guns. At the time, Cohen was prohibited from possessing firearms because he had been convicted of a weapons-related offense in Maryland. Robertson’s criminal history also included convictions for drug possession and other offenses.
All three defendants pleaded guilty to the following offenses and were sentenced by U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May:
- Warren Vernell Robertson, III, 25, of East Point, Georgia and Aberdeen, Maryland, was sentenced on March 10, 2021, to three years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty on November 20, 2020, to the offense of making a false statement to a licensed firearms dealer.
- Erik Alfonso Cohen, Jr., 23, of Edgewood, Maryland, was sentenced on March 3, 2021, to one year, six months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Cohen pleaded guilty on December 3, 2020, to the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm.
- Asante Moore, 24, of Atlanta, Georgia, was sentenced on December 2, 2020, to three months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Moore pleaded guilty on September 9, 2020, to the offense of unlawfully dealing in firearms.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland provided valuable assistance.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg prosecuted the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). In keeping with the Attorney General’s mission to reduce violent crime, the Northern District of Georgia’s PSN program focuses on prosecuting those individuals who most significantly drive violence in our communities, and supports and fosters partnerships between law enforcement and schools, the faith community, and local community leaders to prevent and deter future criminal conduct.
This case was also brought as part of Project Guardian, a national Department of Justice initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws, including those related to firearms trafficking. More information about Project Guardian can be found at https://www.justice.gov/projectguardian.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.