Northern District of Georgia
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Radiology Billing Company to Pay $1.95 Million to Resolve False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - The United States Attorney’s Office announced that it has reached a settlement with Medical Business Service, Inc. (MBS), which agreed to pay $1.95 million to settle claims that it violated the False Claims Act by fraudulently changing diagnosis codes on claims to Medicare and Medicaid, in order to get the rejected claims paid on behalf of radiologists. MBS was located in Florida, with an office in Duluth, Ga.
“Billing companies provide a key check-point to combat medical billing fraud. Consequently, they will be examined with the same scrutiny as healthcare providers,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Federal funds designated for use through the Medicare and Medicaid programs are much needed but limited. When those funds are not used as intended, the system does not work as intended and people suffer. The FBI will continue to work with its various law enforcement partners in dedicating significant investigative resources toward ensuring that these federally funded healthcare based programs are not abused.”
“The health care providers who contracted with MBS placed their trust in the company to correctly process claims and not submit fraudulent information to the Medicare and Medicaid programs,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta. “The lack of compliance and oversight by MBS placed all these providers at risk. Billing services such as MBS have no less of a duty to ensure truthful information on claims than do the providers who use these services.”
The civil settlement resolves the United States’ investigation into MBS’s billing practices. The United States alleges that MBS improperly coded and billed claims by radiologists that were submitted to the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Medicare and Medicaid issue guidance stating that they will not pay for certain procedures given to patients with specific diagnoses. Medicare and Medicaid will reject claims for payment that combine those procedures and diagnoses. MBS allegedly changed the diagnosis codes on previously rejected claims to avoid those restrictions in order to have the claims paid. The settlement covers a three year period, 2008-2010, during which the conduct allegedly occurred.
This civil settlement resolves a lawsuit filed by Katlisa N. Vaughn under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private citizens to bring civil actions on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery obtained. The case, pending in the Northern District of Georgia, is filed under United States of America, State of Florida, State of Georgia, State of New York, State of Tennessee, and State of Texas ex rel. Katlisa N. Vaughn v. Medical Business Service, Inc., Civ. No. 1:10-CV-2953. The Federal government will receive $1.917 million from the settlement, while Florida, Georgia, New York, and Texas will split the remainder of the settlement. Ms. Vaughn will receive a share of the settlement payment that resolves the qui tam suit that she filed. The claims settled in the civil settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.This resolution is part of the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud under the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced by Attorney General Eric Holder and Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, in May 2009. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in that effort is the False Claims Act, which the Justice Department has used to recover more than $14 billion since January 2009 in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs. The Justice Department’s total recoveries in False Claims Act cases since January 2009 are over $20 billion.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General.
The civil settlement was reached by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Huber.
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 http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Barrow County Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Federal Prison for Distributing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
GAINESVILLE, Ga. -- Jonathan Lee Whitmire has been sentenced to the statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography.
“This defendant amassed a large collection of photos and videos depicting the sexual assault of very young children,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “We will continue to pursue significant sentences for those who trade in the victimization of the most innocent and vulnerable among us.”
“As long as there are predators in our society who traffic in the rape of children for their perverse desires, there will be HSI special agents a few steps behind them working tirelessly to seek justice for the victims of this pernicious crime,” said Brock D. Nicholson, Special Agent in Charge of ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Atlanta. “We will follow every lead, we will pull every thread, and we simply will not stop until every depraved degenerate who distributes this filth understands we will be knocking at their door the minute they hit ‘send.’”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the criminal indictment, and information presented in court: In September 2013, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) executed a search warrant in Cheyenne, Wyo., at the home of an individual using an international website to exchange child pornography. Investigators found that the Wyoming subject was also trading child pornography with numerous individuals using electronic mail. Based on a search of the Wyoming subject’s email accounts, HSI identified Jonathan Lee Whitmire as an individual who traded child pornography with the Wyoming subject. Subsequent searches of Whitmire’s email accounts showed Whitmire traded sexually explicit images of young children with a substantial number of other individuals using various email accounts.
In January 2014, a search warrant was executed at Whitmire’s home in Auburn, Ga. A forensic examination of electronic media found in Whitmire’s home showed that he had a large collection of images and videos of young children being sexually assaulted. The investigation also revealed that Whitmire molested at least two young girls.
Whitmire, 36, of Auburn, Ga., was sentenced by United States District Judge William C. O’Kelley to 20 years in prison to be followed by 20 years of supervised release. Whitmire was also ordered to pay a $3,000.00 fine and a $100 special assessment. The defendant will be required to register as a sex offender when he is released from prison.
Whitmire is charged with two counts of child molestation and two counts of aggravated sexual battery in Barrow County, Ga.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office, and the Barrow County District Attorney’s Office.
Assistant United States Attorney William McKinnon prosecuted the case.
This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims.
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 is www.justice.gov/usao/gan.
Ephren Taylor, II, Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit FraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Ephren Taylor, II, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud by defrauding hundreds of victims of their retirement savings.
“Taylor’s guilty plea brings a measure of justice for the hundreds of his victims, including those hard-working Georgians who lost their life savings to his criminal scheme,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
“Mr. Taylor exploited numerous investors by perpetrating a scheme that was based entirely on lies,” stated Special Agent in Charge Veronica Hyman-Pillot, IRS Criminal Investigation. “Mr. Taylor’s guilty plea today is an opportunity for him to admit to the deception and face the consequences of his actions.”
“The United States Secret Service is aggressive in our investigative mission to arrest those who commit financial crimes. In this case, we were particularly resolved to bring to justice a criminal who chose to take advantage of unsuspecting members of the public in environments of reverence and trust,” said Reginald G. Moore, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Atlanta Field Office.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: From at least April 2009 through October 2010, Ephren Taylor, II, then CEO of City Capital Corporation, and his co-defendant Wendy Connor, the former COO of City Capital Corporation, participated in a conspiracy to defraud investors. In pleading guilty, Taylor acknowledged that he defrauded hundreds of investors of more than $7 million nationwide. In a separate hearing, co-defendant Wendy Connor also pleaded guilty to interstate transportation of money taken by fraud.
As part of the scheme, Taylor traveled around the country on a “Building Wealth Tour,” where he gave wealth management seminars to church congregations. During this tour, Taylor claimed to be a socially conscious investor and falsely claimed that 20% of profits were donated to charity. One of the churches on the “Building Wealth Tour” was the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Ga. While there, Taylor and Connor met potential investors to discuss possible investments. Over 80 individuals from Georgia lost more than $2 million because of Taylor’s scheme.
The investments pushed by Taylor included investing in promissory notes, where the funds invested would be used to support small businesses, such as laundries, juice bars, and gas stations. Taylor falsely represented the revenues and returns for these businesses knowing that they were not profitable.
Taylor also pushed an investment in sweepstakes machines. Sweepstakes machines are computers loaded with various games that allow players to win cash prizes. Taylor published offering materials that falsely claimed the average sweepstakes machine would generate 300% investor returns. He also stated that the sweepstakes machine investments were 100% risk free.
Taylor knew that the investments he was touting were not profitable and that investors were not receiving actual returns from their investments.The sentencing for Ephren Taylor, 32, of Overland Park, Kan., is scheduled for December 18, 2014, at 2:30 p.m. Wendy Connor, 45, of Raleigh, N.C., is scheduled to be sentenced on December 18, 2014, at 9:30 a.m.
This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the United States Secret Service.
Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Huber 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Accountant Pleads Guilty to Hiding Swiss Bank AccountRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Forensic accountant and certified fraud examiner Howard Bloomberg has pleaded guilty to willfully failing to disclose to the U.S. Treasury Department a foreign bank account he controlled in Switzerland.
“The era of hiding money in secret Swiss bank accounts is over,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “Citizens should understand that failing to abide by their banking disclosure obligations to the U.S. Treasury Department could mean criminal prosecution.”
“The Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Attorney’s office will continue to pursue those who attempt to fraudulently obstruct or impede our Nation's tax system.” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: From 1997 to 2008, Bloomberg owned and controlled a foreign bank account with Union Bank of Switzerland AG (“UBS”), one of the biggest banks in Switzerland and largest wealth managers in the world. By 2001, Bloomberg’s foreign bank account with UBS had a high balance of approximately $930,000.
Citizens and residents of the United States who have a financial interest in, or signature authority over, a financial account in a foreign country with an aggregate value of more than $10,000 at any time during a calendar year are required to file with the U.S. Department of Treasury a “Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts,” commonly referred to as the “FBAR”. The FBAR for the applicable year is due to be filed by June 30 of the following year. Bloomberg pleaded guilty to willfully failing to file a FBAR for the 2008 year, even though that same year he wired over $540,000 from his Swiss UBS bank account to a United States bank account that he controlled.
Sentencing for Bloomberg, 55, of Atlanta, Ga., is scheduled for December 19, 2014 at 10:30 a.m. before United States District Judge Thomas W. Thrash.
This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Steven D. Grimberg 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Lawrenceville Tax Return Preparer Sentenced for Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Laura Romina Delgado has been sentenced for filing false tax returns that claimed over $3.6 million in fraudulent refunds.
“Honest, hard-working taxpayers who file their tax returns and pay their fair share of taxes should be assured that those who try to profit by filing false returns will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
“The sole objective of Ms. Delgado’s scheme was to unjustly enrich herself at the expense of the IRS,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation. “We will continue to pursue individuals like Delgado, who abuse positions of trust to commit crimes and ruin the lives of innocent citizens by misusing their identities.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: Delgado operated a business named Servicios Hispanos in Norcross, Ga., which offered various financial and legal services, mainly to members of the Hispanic community. Between January 2013 and May 2014, Delgado electronically filed approximately 1,300 federal income tax returns, claiming over $3.6 million in fraudulent refunds.
Many of the fraudulent returns filed by Delgado were in the names of individuals who were not documented to work in the United States. In some instances, she assisted these individuals in obtaining Individual Tax Identification Numbers (ITINs) from the IRS to facilitate the fraud. Delgado also submitted false and misleading W-2 forms with the returns she filed and assisted in negotiating U.S. Treasury checks representing the proceeds of the fraud. She also notarized and filed fraudulent ITIN applications.
Delgado, 33, of Lawrenceville, Ga., was sentenced to four years, three months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. She was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,148,440, and a special assessment of $100. Delgado was convicted on these charges on July 7, 2014, after she pleaded guilty to a criminal indictment charging her with wire fraud.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Assistant United States Attorneys J. Russell Phillips and Michael Brown 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Serial Armed Robber Sentenced to 32 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Artavius Brown has been sentenced to 32 years in prison for his use of a firearm during the commission of multiple armed robberies.
“Brown terrorized our community and put the lives of many innocent people at risk,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “This crime spree was brought to an end through the coordinated efforts of our state and federal law enforcement partners. Violent criminals should understand that in our district, significant federal penalties await them.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Today’s sentencing of Mr. Brown to thirty two years in federal prison for his extensive and violent crime spree illustrates that there is no tolerance for those who show a total and repeated disregard for law and order. Because of the lengthy sentences available for these types of offenders in the federal system and also noting that there is no parole in the federal system, it is important for law enforcement to consider federal prosecution in these types of cases.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: During a five-month crime spree, that spanned four counties in the Atlanta, Ga., area, Brown committed 24 armed robberies of Family Dollar and Dollar General stores and one armed robbery of a PNC Bank – often committing multiple robberies on the same day:
Date
Business
Address
2/18/2013
Family Dollar
3855 Lawrenceville Hwy., Tucker, Ga.
2/21/2013
Family Dollar
319 N. Stone Mountain-Lithonia Road,
Stone Mountain, Ga.2/25/2013
Dollar General
6633 Covington Highway, Lithonia, Ga.
2/25/2013
Family Dollar
4787 Covington Highway, Decatur, Ga.
3/4/2013
Dollar General
5570 Lawrenceville Highway, Lilburn, Ga.
5/1/2013
Family Dollar
3590 Panola Road, Lithonia, Ga.
5/1/2013
Dollar General
2552 Wesley Chapel Road, Decatur, Ga.
5/9/2013
Family Dollar
7184 Rockbridge Rd., Stone Mountain, Ga.
5/9/2013
Dollar General
4312 Chamblee Tucker Road, Atlanta, Ga.
5/9/2013
Family Dollar
4624 Jimmy Carter Blvd., Norcross, Ga.
5/14/2013
Dollar General
4351 Hugh Howell Road, Tucker, Ga.
5/17/2013
Dollar General
5610 Singleton Road, Norcross, Ga.
5/23/2013
Dollar General
3900 Glenwood Road, Decatur, Ga.
5/26/2013
Family Dollar
3500 Martin Luther King Dr., Atlanta, Ga.
5/28/2013
Family Dollar
1400 Moreland Avenue, Atlanta, Ga.
5/29/2013
Family Dollar
5403 Covington Highway, Decatur, Ga.
5/30/2013
Family Dollar
1455 Pleasant Hill Rd., Lawrenceville, Ga.
5/31/2013
Dollar General
2846 Lavista Road, Decatur, Ga.
5/31/2013
Dollar General
1500 Pleasant Hill Road, Duluth, Ga.
6/2/2013
Family Dollar
807 Cascade Road, Atlanta, Ga.
6/6/2013
Family Dollar
5279 Lawrenceville Highway, Lilburn, Ga.
6/6/2013
Family Dollar
6928 Main Street, Lithonia, Ga.
6/11/2013
Dollar General
1910 Jodeco Road, Stockbridge, Ga.
6/12/2013
Dollar General
1005 Brentwood Parkway, Stockbridge, Ga.
6/21/2013
PNC Bank
2355 Main Street, Tucker, Ga.
Brown, 24, of Atlanta, Ga., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William S. Duffey, Jr., to 32 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. He was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $4,509.35.
Brown was convicted of these charges on March 19, 2014, after pleading guilty to a criminal information that charged him with one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence (a Hobbs Act robbery) that occurred on May 26, 2013, and one count of brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence (armed bank robbery) that occurred on June 21, 2013. Conviction on the first count carried a mandatory minimum prison term of seven years, and conviction on the second count carried a mandatory minimum prison term of 25 years, to run consecutive to the seven year term of imprisonment.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the DeKalb County Police Department, the Atlanta Police Department, the Gwinnett County Police Department, the City of Lithonia Police Department, and the City of Lilburn Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorneys Angela M. Garland and John S. Ghose 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Repeat Offender and Accomplice Sentenced for Sex Trafficking of A Minor from West AfricaRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Steven E. Thompson has been sentenced to 25 years for sex trafficking of a minor by threats of force, fraud and coercion, conspiring to do the same, and inducing adult women to travel interstate for prostitution. His accomplice, Tierra Waters, has been sentenced to eight years for conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of a minor.
“These defendants exploited a 17-year-old girl from West Africa who desperately needed a place to live,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “The pair coerced the minor into engaging in prostitution at hotels and residences in Atlanta. Sex trafficking has no place in our society. And those who exploit vulnerable children in this way will face the kind of lengthy prison sentences that the defendants justly received today.”
“Like many of the young women we see exploited by sex traffickers in our investigations, this child was vulnerable and in need of help when she fell victim to this predator,” said Brock D. Nicholson, special agent in charge of ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Atlanta. “Make no mistake, it was no chance encounter that brought this child into contact with the defendants. Sex traffickers are constantly on the lookout for vulnerable women and children they can exploit for their so-called ‘escort’ businesses. As these defendants have learned, law enforcement agencies like HSI and GBI are constantly on the lookout for these abusive predators and will hold them accountable for their heartless crimes.”
“Protecting children is a top priority for the GBI. We will continue to work in partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to identify, investigate, and assist in the prosecution of individuals who have exploited children. It is imperative for law enforcement to protect those who cannot protect themselves,” said Vernon Keenan, Director, Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Between April and June 2011, Thompson, a convicted felon who used the nickname “Silk,” advertised a 17-year-old refugee from Sierra Leone, West Africa for prostitution on the website Backpage.com, falsely listing her as ages 19 and 20 years. When the juvenile met Thompson and Waters, she was living in the United States without her parents; relying on relatives and friends for housing and support; and frequently homeless. In February 2011, Clayton County, Ga., Juvenile Court declared her a deprived child and placed her in a temporary shelter. Her grandmother took custody of her, but soon left the country, leaving the minor to fend for herself.
In April 2011, Thompson and Waters offered to allow the minor to live with them while she waited to enter the Job Corps. After living with Thompson and Waters only a few weeks, the defendants told the minor that she must have sex with men to earn money or leave their condominium. During this time, the juvenile saw Thompson verbally and physically abuse Waters, who worked as a prostitute for Thompson. Thompson also forced the minor to have sex with him on more than one occasion. Thompson and Waters transported the minor to the various locations where they coerced her into engaging in prostitution, and kept all her earnings. Thompson and Waters also angrily confronted the juvenile after discovering that she was avoiding calls from customers responding to the Backpage.com ads.
A witness who met the minor through the Backpage.com ads agreed to cooperate in the investigation. According to the witness, he was initially unaware that the girl was underage. But after the witness engaged in a commercial sex act with the minor, he began receiving threatening text messages from Thompson. In the text messages, Thompson disclosed that the girl was a minor and attempted to extort money from the witness.
In addition to the minor victim, Thompson also advertised two adult women for prostitution in Internet ads: A.M. from Washington, and F.F. from Alabama. Thompson met the women on the Internet and persuaded them to travel to Atlanta to work as prostitutes for him. Between March and August 2011, Thompson induced both women to travel interstate for that purpose.
Thompson, 44, of Atlanta, Ga., a repeat offender, having been previously convicted of federal offenses involving counterfeiting currency and being a felon in possession of a firearm, was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison, to be followed by ten years of supervised release. Thompson was convicted on June 25, 2014, of conspiracy to commit, and commission of, sex trafficking of a minor, and inducing adult women to travel interstate for prostitution, following a jury trial. Thompson must register as sex offender as a condition of his supervised release.
Waters, 30, of Atlanta, Ga., pleaded guilty on July 25, 2013, to conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor and was sentenced to eight years in federal prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations-Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Susan Coppedge and Leslie J. Abrams prosecuted the case.This case is being brought as 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 United States 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Former City of Marietta Employees and Landlords Sentenced for Section 8 Housing FraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Shantel Bowens, Debbie Bailey, and Babatunde “Babs” Abass have been sentenced for stealing funds from the federal Housing Choice Voucher Program, known as “Section 8,” which provides rental assistance to low-income families.
“By stealing funds from the Section 8 program these defendants deprived needy families of suitable, safe housing,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “We will continue to aggressively prosecute government program fraud and criminals who steal from those most in need.”
Nadine E. Gurley, Special Agent in Charge for the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General said: “HUD’s Office of Inspector General is dedicated to protecting taxpayers’ dollars and ensuring HUD programs are free from fraud, waste and abuse. This partnership between the U.S. Attorney’s Office and HUD’s Office of Inspector General has helped demonstrate to our recipients that those who seek to unlawfully profit by defrauding HUD programs will be vigorously prosecuted.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Bowens and Bailey worked for the City of Marietta’s Housing Choice Voucher Program, which oversees tenant and landlord participation in the Section 8 program. HUD provides the program with over $4 million per year in Section 8 funding. Abass and a fourth defendant, Tunji “Chris” Imoukhuede, were enrolled as landlords in the program.
In 2011, Bowens began identifying former Section 8 tenants, and reactivating their accounts, which had been closed. In particular, Bowens and Bailey selected tenants who were eligible for the largest Section 8 payments, based upon their employment and family size. Bowens altered computer records to link these tenants to Abass and Imoukhuede. The falsified records then indicated that the former tenants were now residing in properties owned by Abass and Imoukhuede. As a result, the two landlords began receiving fraudulent Section 8 payments. Abass and Imoukhuede kept 40% of the funds for themselves, and withdrew the remaining 60% in cash. In turn, they gave the cash to Bailey, who split it with Bowens.
During the scheme, which took place from January 2011 through June 2013, the four defendants obtained over $230,000 as a result of their fraudulent actions. In addition, from January 2010 through June 2013, Bowens lived rent-free in Section 8 housing under false pretenses. She falsified computer records so that a rental subsidy would be paid monthly to her own landlord, purportedly on behalf of a former tenant in the program. Over $40,000 in Section 8 funds went to Bowens’ own housing.
Bowens, 43, of Atlanta, Ga., has been sentenced to two years and two months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $275,871. Bowens was convicted on these charges on July 17, 2014, after she pleaded guilty.
Bailey, 41, of Rome, Ga., was sentenced on August 18, 2014, to one year and two months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $234,977. She pleaded guilty to these charges on May 27, 2014.
Abass, 48, of Mableton, Ga., was sentenced to ten months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $80,349. He was convicted on these charges on June 11, 2014, after he pleaded guilty.
Tunji Imoukhuede was arraigned on September 17, 2014.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the City of Marietta, and the Marietta Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorney Shanya J. Dingle prosecuted the case.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Owner of Atlanta Income Tax Preparation Firm Sentenced for Nearly $7 Million Refund FraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Anita R. Ford, a/k/a Anita R. Dixon, has been sentenced to four years and three months in prison for preparing and filing approximately $7 million worth of fraudulent personal income tax returns.
“This defendant filed thousands of fraudulent tax returns with the IRS over five years, seeking millions of dollars in fraudulent refunds from the U.S. Treasury,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “On one of those occasions, the taxpayer was not her client, but was instead an undercover IRS agent. This conviction should make abusive return preparers think twice before attempting to rob the U.S. Treasury.”
“IRS special agents work year round to investigate and root out dishonest return preparers,” stated IRS Criminal Investigation, Special Agent in Charge, Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot. “The message this case sends is that participation in refund fraud schemes does not pay and those who do will be prosecuted. Ms. Ford violated the confidence of her clients, stole from the American taxpayer and today she is being held responsible for her actions.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Between 2004 and 2012, Ford owned and operated Georgia Peach Financial & Fast Tax Service (“Georgia Peach”), an Atlanta, Ga., personal income tax preparation business. During that time Ford prepared and electronically filed (“e-filed”) thousands of Form 1040 individual income tax returns with the IRS that intentionally misstated her clients’ income in order to generate fraudulent refunds. In particular, Ford made up fake side businesses with fake income and fake expenses, and then attached false Schedule C’s (“Profit or Loss from Business”) to the clients’ tax returns showing the made up income and expenses. This had the effect of off-setting her clients’ income tax liability from their real salaries, as reflected in Forms W2 (“Wage & Tax Statement”) issued by their real employers, generating false credits and refunds.
In March 2011, a Special Agent of IRS-CI visited Georgia Peach in an undercover capacity, posing as a taxpayer seeking to have a return prepared. Ford began preparing a tax return in the agent’s cover identity, based on a Form W2 in the cover identity, and informed the agent that they would owe approximately $200. In truth, the agent would have been due a refund of almost $400. Ford then created a fictitious Schedule C for a fake beauty salon business, with $30,000 in fake business expenses, generating a fraudulent refund of over $4,000, and e-filed the completed tax return with the IRS. To prepare and e-file the return, Ford charged a fee of $510. Ford did not provide a copy of the tax return to the undercover agent or review it with the undercover agent before e-filing it.
The returns identified in the scheme sought fraudulent refunds ranging from several thousand dollars to tens of thousands of dollars, including at least one fraudulent refund of more than $30,000. The returns sought a total of $6,934,337.92 in fraudulent refunds for Ford’s clients, portions of which Ford retained as tax preparation fees.
Ford, 50, of Jonesboro, Ga., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr., to four years, three months in federal prison to be followed by two years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution to the United States Treasury in the amount of $5,732,021.50. Ford was convicted of these charges on December 3, 2013, after she pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney David M. Chaiken prosecuted the case.
The IRS would like to remind people that while most preparers provide excellent service to their clients, the IRS urges taxpayers to be very careful when choosing a tax preparer. Taxpayers should be as careful as they would be in choosing a doctor or a lawyer. It is important to know that even if someone else prepares a tax return, the taxpayer is ultimately responsible for all the information on the tax return.
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 http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
New York Man Sentenced to Twelve Years in Prison for Defrauding Would-Be BorrowersRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Kenneth J. Enrico has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for posing as a mortgage broker to defraud over 300 borrowers nationwide out of $1.2 million in application fees for loans that he could not close.
“This defendant preyed on prospective home owners across the country that were pursuing the American dream of owning their own home,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “The facts of this case clearly illustrate that mortgage fraud is not a victimless crime. Because of the extensive harm done in these types of cases, the FBI will continue to aggressively identify, investigate, and present for prosecution those individuals involved.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: From 2009 until approximately October 2012, Enrico held himself out as a mortgage or real estate loan broker, doing business as Enrico Corporation, in Bohemia, N.Y. Enrico purported to offer a residential mortgage loan program that would finance as much as 105% of a home purchase at rates as low as 4.99%. Enrico marketed his loan program to people who had sufficient income to make the monthly payment, regardless of their credit score. He required prospective borrowers to pay him an up-front fee of $2,500 or more per loan, which supposedly was to cover the costs of processing and approving the loan application that borrowers submitted. Enrico recruited brokers around the country, including in the Atlanta area, to market his fraudulent loan program nationwide. Enrico incentivized the brokers by directing them to tack on extra application fees for themselves and promising them profits from the promised loan closings.
Enrico and his brokers received more than $1.2 million in application fees from more than 300 individuals across the country. Although many of these individuals received a letter informing them that they had been approved for a loan, Enrico never closed a single loan. In fact, Enrico lacked any source of funding for the loan program that he was marketing and appears to have done little or no work to obtain any such funding. Enrico operated out his apartment, equipped with a telephone and a fax machine. When the FBI executed a search warrant on his apartment in October 2012, special agents found boxes of loan applications stacked on the floor of Enrico’s closet. Enrico had removed the checks from borrowers and brokers from such boxes and negotiated or cashed such checks. Agents also found a total of $198,000 in cash in a safe, and other locations in Enrico’s apartment.
When buyers and brokers began questioning why loans never closed, Enrico gave numerous excuses and continued to promise that loans would close once various issues were resolved. While prospective borrowers lost fees paid to Enrico and the brokers, many also lost additional funds (such as earnest monies and fees paid for appraisals or inspections) when their real estate purchase fell through after Enrico’s failure to close their loan. Even after being indicted, Enrico continued to solicit loan application fees for loans that he could not close.
Enrico, 47, of Bohemia, N.Y., has been sentenced to 12 years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. The Court left restitution open for a period not to exceed 90 days to facilitate the final identification of Enrico’s victims and their loss amounts. Enrico was found guilty of 17 counts of conspiracy, mail fraud, and wire fraud by a jury on March 28, 2014.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Doug Gilfillan and Christopher Huber prosecuted the case.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Nineteen Indicted for Cashing Stolen United States Treasury Checks and Credit Card FraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – A federal grand jury has indicted 19 people for stealing government money, credit card fraud, and aggravated identity theft, based on their involvement in an extensive scheme to steal and cash United States Treasury checks and use fraudulently obtained credit cards.
“Fraud and identity theft crimes are now perceived as lucrative alternatives for criminal organizations,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “People who commit these crimes prey upon unsuspecting victims, stealing the victims’ money and compromising their livelihoods, sometimes causing lifelong financial consequences.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “These indictments and arrests are a direct result of an extensive 16 month multi-agency investigation focusing on a network of individuals who facilitated their criminal enterprise through various fraudulent schemes and other criminal activities. The elaborate networking of this group allowed them to expand their criminal activities throughout multiple states as they increased their victim base. The FBI would like to extend its gratitude to those participating law enforcement agencies at all levels as this investigation now moves into the court system for prosecution.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: From approximately June 2012 until September 2014, the defendants worked together to steal and then cash United States Treasury checks from various sources, including the United States mail. The checks were originally issued to those entitled to the federal funds, including taxpayers receiving refunds, retired federal employees receiving pension benefits, military families, and Social Security beneficiaries receiving social security and disability payments.
Each defendant had a critical role in the fraud scheme. First, the indictment alleges that check suppliers, such as Erica Willis and Corey Howell, obtained and sold the stolen checks to other defendants. Check purchasers, including Hussain Abdullah, Asad Abdullah, Hudhayfah Abdullah and Hafid Abdur-Rabbani, were frequent customers of the check suppliers and purchased checks by either paying 25% of the check’s face value or splitting the proceeds from the check in half with the supplier. After purchasing the stolen checks, the defendants would pay identification manufacturers, like Ibrahim Abdur-Rabbani and Khalil Majeed, to make fake Georgia driver’s licenses matching the names and addresses of the victims, but containing photos of “check runners.” In exchange for a fee, the “runners” would use the fake driver’s licenses to cash the stolen checks at retail locations throughout the Atlanta, Ga., area, such as Wal-Mart, Kroger, and Publix.
In addition to the check-cashing scheme, the indictment charges several defendants with a separate credit card fraud scheme against Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club. Between April 2011 and November 2011, defendants Asad Abdullah, Mikal Majeed, and Billee Cosby obtained and used counterfeit identification documents to pose as real Sam’s Club members. After presenting the fraudulent documents at various Sam’s Club locations in Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama, the defendants requested replacement store credit cards in the names of the victims, which the defendants then used to buy gift cards, gas, groceries, and other items at various Sam’s Club and Wal-Mart locations.
Across the two schemes, the defendants defrauded the federal government and Wal-Mart/Sam’s Club out of over approximately $350,000.
The 19 defendants have been indicted on multiple charges of theft of government funds, credit card fraud, related conspiracy offenses, and aggravated identity theft. The indictment also contains other charges against individual defendants, ranging from passport fraud to illegally obtaining a firearm. The defendants were indicted by a federal grand jury on September 11, 2014, and some have already made their initial appearances before United States Magistrate Judge Alan J. Baverman.
Those indicted and arrested, or already in custody, and their charges include (all from Atlanta, except where otherwise indicated):
- Hussain Abdullah, 33, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, Aggravated Identity Theft, and Conspiracy to Commit Hobbs Act Robbery.
- Hudhayfah Abdullah, 31, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, Aggravated Identity Theft, and Lying on Required Form to Purchase a Firearm.
- Asad Abdullah, a/k/a “Baldhead,” 36, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, Aggravated Identity Theft, Conspiracy to Commit Access Device Fraud, and Access Device Fraud.
- Hafid Abdur-Rabbani, 36, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Ibrahim Abdur-Rabbani, 32, of Decatur, Ga., conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Khalil Majeed, 34, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Fund, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Sayeed Valdez, 37, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Erica Willis, 35, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Dexter Willis, a/k/a Qadir Monies, a/k/a “Dent,” 35, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds.
- Antonio Slaton, 36, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds.
- Cory Howell, 42, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds.
- Damion Davis, 30, of College Park, Ga., conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds.
- Ali Al-Amin, 35, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Zakariyah Abdullah, 34, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, Aggravated Identity Theft, and Improper Use of a Passport.
- Billee Cosby, 33, conspiracy to Commit Access Device Fraud, Access Device Fraud, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Mikal Majeed, 32, of Ellenwood, Ga., conspiracy to Commit Access Device Fraud, Access Device Fraud, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Muhajid Ahmad, 32, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, Theft of Government Funds, and Aggravated Identity Theft.
- Joann Drigo, 26, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds.
- Jasmine Proctor, 19, conspiracy to Commit Theft of Government Funds, and Theft of Government Funds.
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. Assistance in this case has been provided by the following federal agencies: Federal Air Marshal Service; United States Customs and Border Protection; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; IRS-Criminal Investigations; United States Secret Service; United States Postal Service; and the Department of Homeland Security. The following state and local agencies have also assisted in this case: Georgia Bureau of Investigation; Georgia Office of Consumer Protection; Georgia Department of Corrections; Atlanta Police Department; Woodstock Police Department; Fulton County Sheriff’s Office; Henry County Police Department; Gwinnett County Police Department; Dunwoody Police Department; Brookhaven Police Department; Sandy Springs Police Department; DeKalb County Police Department, and Chamblee Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorneys Kim S. Dammers and Nekia S. Hackworth 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Hospital and Cardiologist Settle False Claims Act CaseRead the Press Release
ATLANTA, GA - The United States Attorney’s Office announced it has reached settlements with Banks-Jackson-Commerce Hospital and Nursing Home Authority d/b/a Banks Jackson Commerce Medical Center (BJC) and Dr. Narasimhulu Neelagaru that total over $500,000.
“Kickbacks pervert our health care system, which is designed to insure that health care providers make decisions based solely on what is best for the patient,” said Sally Quillian Yates, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.“The sustainability of the Medicare Trust Fund is dependent, in large part, upon medical facilities and professionals being prudent and responsible in their billing of health care programs,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta. “This settlement demonstrates the OIG’s commitment to ensuring that those who bill the government for services do so in a manner that is in accordance with the law.”
The civil settlement resolves the United States’ investigation into BJC’s practices related to paying compensation to Dr. Neelagaru for professional services and medical director services that was in excess of fair market value. The alleged period for these improper payments and patient referrals was from 2000-2009. Because of the nature of these payments to Dr. Neelagaru by BJC, the United States claims that BJC received improper payments by the Medicare program for patients referred to BJC by Dr. Neelagaru.
This settlement also resolves a lawsuit filed by Ralph D. Williams under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private citizens to bring civil actions on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery obtained.
The case, pending in the Northern District of Georgia, is filed under United States of America ex rel. Ralph D. Williams v. Banks-Jackson-Commerce Hospital and Nursing Home Authority d/b/a Banks Jackson Commerce Medical Center (“BJC”), Narasimhulu Neelagaru, M.D. and North Georgia Cardiology, PC, No. 1:08-cv-3235. Mr. Williams will receive a share of the settlement payment that resolves the qui tam suit that he filed. The claims settled in the civil settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.BJC reached its settlement with the United States in September 2010, but the case remained under seal pursuant to a Court order until the United States settled with Dr. Neelagaru. In connection with its settlement, BJC entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services. That agreement imposes certain obligations on BJC to bolster its compliance program, including independent review of BJC’s financial arrangements with medical providers who refer patients to BJC.
BJC paid $329,000 to settle the case and Dr. Neelagaru has agreed to pay $200,000. The settlement resolves claims that BJC improperly billed the Medicare program for certain procedures and services rendered to patients in violation of the Physician Self-Referral Law, commonly known as the Stark Law, and in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute.
This resolution is part of the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud under the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009, by Attorney General Eric Holder and Kathleen Sebelius, then-Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in that effort is the False Claims Act, which the Justice Department has used to recover more than $14 billion since January 2009 in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs. The Justice Department’s total recoveries in False Claims Act cases since January 2009 are over $20 billion.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General. The civil settlement was reached by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Huber.
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 http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Cherokee County Man Pleads Guilty to Multiple Felony Counts in “Sextortion” ProsecutionRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Destin Whitmore has pleaded guilty to threatening and extorting teen girls with sexually explicit images of themselves, and to distributing and possessing child pornography.
“Whitmore preyed on vulnerable girls who had the misfortune of crossing his path, both in person and online,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “We cannot emphasize enough the dangers to children of revealing personal information and sexually explicit images to others online. This case shows that those images could resurface in the most unexpected and unfortunate ways.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Today’s guilty plea will begin the process of removing a manipulative child predator from our streets. The criminal conduct of Mr. Whitmore, as well as those like him, ensures that the FBI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners in providing significant investigative resources toward the protection of our nation’s youth from those that would exploit or harm them.”
“In our continued partnership with the F.B.I., the Cobb County District Attorney’s Office, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and as a member of I.C.A.C. (Internet Crimes Against Children) Task Force, the Cobb County Police Department’s Crimes Against Children Unit will continue to aggressively pursue and prosecute those individuals who seek to exploit and harm our children,” said Sergeant Dana Pierce, Public Information Officer, Cobb County Police Department.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the criminal indictment, and information presented in court: In April 2012, a teen girl in Arizona reported that she was contacted using a popular social media website by an individual using a profile name “Ralph Jenkins.” The individual using the “Jenkins” profile, later identified as Destin Whitmore, sent back to the teen compromising images of herself that she had previously sent to Whitmore, and threatened to send those images to others, including her family members, if she did not immediately create additional images for him.
A subsequent investigation of that profile, along with a profile using the name “Lenny Carlington” showed that both profiles were used by the Defendant, along with his own social media accounts, to transmit pornographic images of numerous teen girls back to the girls to extort them for additional images. If they did not comply with his demands, he threatened to distribute the pornographic images to others and post them on various websites for public consumption. Many of the girls Whitmore extorted were known to him through personal relationships or through long term communications using web cameras with the girls online. Some of the girls had previously sent sexually explicit images to Whitmore or had provided such images to others, which Whitmore subsequently obtained.
Whitmore, 23, of Canton, Ga., pleaded guilty to five counts of extortion, three counts of distribution of child pornography, and two counts of possession of child pornography. Sentencing for Whitmore is scheduled for December 9, 2014, at 10:30 a.m. before U.S. District Court Judge Charles A. Pannell, Jr.
This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims.This case was investigated by the Cobb County Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Jill E. Steinberg and Mary L. Webb 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is www.justice.gov/usao/gan.
Former DeKalb and Georgia World Congress Center Official Indicted on Public Corruption ChargesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Patrick Jackson, a former janitorial services manager for DeKalb County and Georgia World Congress Center, has been indicted and arraigned on charges of mail fraud and bribery.
“Jackson is charged with abusing his official positions with DeKalb County and the Georgia World Congress Center,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “According to the indictment, over a six-year period he accepted bribes in exchange for his helping a company attain and maintain exclusive government contracts.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: "The FBI Atlanta office's public corruption program remains very active and determined in exposing the criminal conduct of public officials. The investigation and indictment of Mr. Jackson serves as further example of the FBI's commitment toward accountability for those serving the public and holding positions of trust."
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: Jackson was simultaneously employed by two government entities, DeKalb County and Georgia World Congress Center, from approximately 2006-2012. In both positions, he served as the manager of janitorial services. The indictment alleges that Jackson used his position as a public official to obtain favors from a company, identified only as “Company A,” that provided janitorial services to both DeKalb County and Georgia World Congress Center. Jackson was employed by “Company A” prior to his employment with DeKalb County and Georgia World Congress Center.
While employed by DeKalb County and Georgia World Congress Center, Jackson lived in a luxury apartment in Atlanta that was being paid for and furnished by “Company A.” In exchange, Jackson agreed to use his position as a public official to benefit the interests of “Company A” in its business dealings with DeKalb County and Georgia World Congress Center. Jackson did not disclose to either employer that “Company A” was providing him with an apartment. The indictment alleges that, by accepting these bribes, Jackson deprived his employers of their right to his honest services.
Patrick Jackson, 55, of Loganville, Ga., was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Linda T. Walker. Jackson was indicted by a federal grand jury on September 9, 2014.
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 United States Attorneys Jamie L. Mickelson and Kamal Ghali 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Former Gwinnett County Lawyer Indicted for Stealing Client FundsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Former attorney Michael Rene Berlon has been arraigned on federal charges of mail and wire fraud.
“This defendant is charged with defrauding his own clients out of over $1.8 million,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “They came to him for legal help, and instead he drained their bank accounts.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Individuals relying on the professionalism and trust of individuals like Mr. Berlon should be able to turn to someone when that trust is violated. The FBI, in being well positioned to investigate such allegations involving the diversion of funds through mail and wire fraud, is that someone.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: Berlon, who practiced in Grayson, Ga., through his law firm, the Law Office of Michael R. Berlon, is charged with obtaining funds from clients of his law firm and other individuals through false pretenses. The indictment alleges that some clients provided money to him believing that he would create a trust for them, and would hold the funds in trust. Instead, Berlon used the funds for personal expenses, including to pay his American Express bill and to repay other clients.
The indictment also alleges that in one instance, Berlon obtained money from two individuals who were looking for his assistance with starting a new business. He told the victims that he would help them get a loan, but they were required to provide a percentage of the requested loan amount as a down payment. Instead of assisting them with obtaining a loan, Berlon used the funds for his personal expenses and debts. In total, it is alleged that Berlon received at least $1.8 million in client funds from 2008-2013.
Berlon, 55, of Grayson, Ga., was arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Justin S. Anand. He was indicted by a federal grand jury on September 9, 2014.
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 United States Attorney Jamie L. Mickelson is prosecuting the case.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Atlanta Man Sentenced for Interstate Transportation of 17-Year-Old Girl for ProstitutionRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Johnathon Kelly has been sentenced to eleven years for interstate transportation of a minor for prostitution.
“This defendant took advantage of a young girl who was especially vulnerable, having run away from her home in Alabama, and exploited her for his personal gain,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “But she was saved as a result of the training and diligence of two state and local law enforcement officers who, during a routine traffic stop, recognized that the defendant might be sexually exploiting this child. The officers’ suspicions proved to be well-founded.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Today’s sentencing of Johnathon Kelly serves as a reminder to all that there are people like him waiting for the opportunity to exploit our nation’s youth. Today’s sentencing of Kelly also illustrates that there are dedicated law enforcement officers who are aware of this type of criminal activity and who remain vigilant in efforts toward protecting those being exploited.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charge, and other information presented in court: On or about November 22, 2012, Kelly drove 17-year-old R.W. from her home in Birmingham, Ala., to Atlanta, Ga. After R.W.’s arrival in Atlanta, Kelly posted photographs of R.W. on an Internet website. Using multiple Internet ads of R.W., Kelly obtained prostitution clients for the girl, both in and outside Georgia – including the states of Louisiana and Texas. Kelly caused R.W. to engage in prostitution at various hotels, including hotels in Augusta and Norcross, Ga., Bossier City, La., and Dallas, Texas.
R.W. was rescued from Kelly on January 9, 2013, after Kelly was stopped for speeding while driving on Interstate 20. R.W. was a passenger in the vehicle. A Greene County Sheriff’s deputy, who had recently undergone training in identifying human trafficking victims, and a Georgia State Patrol officer, involved in the traffic stop noticed that R.W. appeared frightened of Kelly; separated R.W. from Kelly; and, after briefly interviewing her, discovered that Kelly was causing R.W. to engage in prostitution.
Kelly, 31, of Atlanta, GA, was sentenced to eleven 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. Kelly must also pay the victim $7,500 in restitution. Kelly pleaded guilty on June 30, 2014.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Greene County Sheriff’s Office, and Georgia State Patrol.
Assistant United States Attorneys Mary F. Kruger, Richard S. Moultrie, Jr., and Susan Coppedge prosecuted the case.
This case is a 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 United States 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Attorney General Recognizes Northern District of Georgia EmployeesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Assistant United States Attorneys Glenn D. Baker, William G. Traynor, Dahil D. Goss, J. Russell Phillips, Stephen H. McClain, Investigator Donna J. Davis, IT Solutions Manager Michael Laskowski, and Paralegal Specialist Barbara A. McIntosh of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Georgia were among the 243 members of the Department of Justice recognized by Attorney General Eric Holder and Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys (EOUSA) Director Monty Wilkinson at the 30th annual Director’s Awards Ceremony today in Washington D.C.
The Northern District of Georgia was one of 44 districts represented at the ceremony which was held in the Great Hall at the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building.
In his prepared remarks to awardees, Attorney General Holder said, “Locally, nationally, and internationally, you represent the very best that this Department has to offer. Your work embodies our ongoing commitment – not merely to win cases, but to do justice; to protect our fellow citizens from crime, violence, and terrorism; to empower the most vulnerable among us; and to uphold the rule of law.”
EOUSA Director Monty Wilkinson echoed those sentiments, saying to the recipients, “You have persevered, and remained focused and motivated – achieving remarkable results in work that makes a difference in the lives of citizens across our great country. The vast scope of your collective accomplishments is nothing short of exceptional.”
“We are fortunate to have public servants of the highest caliber working to seek justice on behalf of the citizens of this district,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “Each of these deserving award recipients is remarkably talented and dedicated to protecting our community.”
The EOUSA Director’s Awards recipients from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia are as follows:
- AUSAs Russell Phillips and Steve McClain received a Director’s Award for Superior Performance as AUSAs in recognition of their investigation and conviction of Andrew S. Mackey and his common-law-wife, Inger Jensen, who operated a $12 million Ponzi scheme that victimized more than 150 investors throughout the United States. Mackey and Jensen pretended to be financial experts who, acting as ASM Financial Funding Corporation, invested funds for “sophisticated investors” and promised earnings of 20% per month. They never generated any return on their investments however, and lost all of the principal they invested. Most of the Georgia victims were members of the same church who invested because their pastor did so and appeared to be receiving huge returns. A jury convicted Mackey and Inger on 15 counts of wire fraud, mail fraud, and conspiracy after an eight-day trial. Mackey was sentenced to serve 27 years, and Jensen was sentenced to serve 14 years. Mackey’s sentence is the longest ever in the Northern District of Georgia for a case of this type.
- AUSAs Glenn D. Baker, William G. Traynor, and Dahil D. Goss; Investigator Donna J. Davis; and Paralegal Specialist Barbara A. McIntosh received a Director’s Award for Superior Performance by a Litigative Team for their investigation and prosecution of George Houser for healthcare and tax fraud. Houser was a nursing home owner who accepted $32.9 million in Medicare and Medicaid funds while his operation of the nursing homes exhibited a long term pattern and practice of conditions that were so poor that any services provided were of no value to the residents. The residents of three nursing homes went hungry and lived in abominable conditions. One resident’s physician removed a cockroach that had burrowed deep into the resident’s ear when she was hospitalized for dehydration and malnutrition. Also, a nurse from another nursing home, who had been called in to assist, described her shock when she found one bed-ridden resident covered from her neck to her feet with small black bugs, and the woman's eyes matted shut from lack of care and cleaning.
After a four-week trial, Houser was found guilty of conspiring to defraud the Medicare and Georgia Medicaid programs by billing for services he did not provide in the operation of three nursing homes between 2004 and 2007. At Houser’s sentencing, the district judge described the conditions at the nursing homes as “barbaric, inhumane and uncivilized,” and commented that if he had a case alleging these same conditions in a prison, he would close that prison on Eighth Amendment grounds. The court sentenced Houser to 20 years in prison. The significant sentence Houser received generated considerable awareness at both the local and national levels.
- IT Solutions Manager Michael Laskowski is being recognized as part of the team whose innovative work helped migrate the entire community of 94 United States Attorneys’ offices and the Executive Office for United States Attorneys to the Microsoft Office suite during 2013. This initiative achieved a major milestone in transforming the community’s ability to work with mobile devices and applications essential to functioning in the 21st century law enforcement environment. The team harnessed the transition to develop powerful new ways for attorneys and their colleagues to work. They created the Word USATab that includes many custom features for legal documents, such as embedding the Lexis and Westlaw Table-of-Authorities for citation style formatting and legal entity insertion. The team also created a set of standardized intelligent templates to automate the reuse of content and legal references and reduce keyboarding and mistakes. This effort saved $820,875 in fiscal year 2013, with savings expected to continue into the future.
EOUSA provides oversight, general executive assistance, and direction to the 94 United States Attorneys’ offices around the country. For more information on EOUSA and its mission, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao.
Registered Sex Offender Sentenced for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Charles Pelts, who was already a registered sex offender, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for receipt of child pornography.
“By trafficking in graphic images of pornography depicting very young children, Pelts contributed to the horrifying child exploitation trade,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “We remain steadfast in partnering with federal and local law enforcement officers to vigorously prosecute those engaged in the market for child pornography.”
“The defendant’s egregious disregard for the law and his perverse desire to witness the rape of children simply have no place in our society,” said Ryan L. Spradlin, acting special agent in charge of ICE Homeland Security Investigations in Atlanta. “The victims whose abuse is so starkly recorded in collections like this know exactly what sort of sick pleasure the defendant derived from seeing the worst moments of their lives. It’s enough to make anyone’s skin crawl.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charge, and other information presented in court: In or about November 2013, special agents with the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“HSI”), discovered that Pelts, a resident of Marietta, Ga., had used two e-mail accounts to transfer images of child pornography to others – including images depicting graphic sex acts involving very young children. HSI special agents subsequently obtained warrants to search Pelts’ e-mail accounts and his cell phone. A review of his e-mail accounts revealed that Pelts had received approximately 11,000 images of child pornography, including images of toddlers and infants. His cell phone contained approximately 4,050 images of child pornography. The agents also learned that Pelts had been registered as a sex offender since 2004.
Pelts, 35, of Marietta, Ga., was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison, to be followed by lifetime supervised release. Pelts will also be required to register federally as a sex offender when he is released from prison. He pleaded guilty on May 14, 2014.
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Assistant United States Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan prosecuted the case.
This case is a 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 United States 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Duluth Man Sentenced for Producing Child PornographyRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Todd Alexander Pell has been sentenced to 29 years in federal prison for producing pornographic images of young boys.
“The repeated acts of sexual abuse committed by Pell are appalling” said United States Attorney Yates. “We applaud the victim who had the courage to come forward and expose this abuse; he likely saved other young boys from the same fate.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Today’s lengthy prison sentence of Pell removes a dangerous child predator from our community and prevents him from harming others in this manner. In working with our various law enforcement partners in keeping America’s youth safe, the FBI will continue to provide significant assets and resources toward the investigation of violent crimes against children.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the criminal indictment, and information presented in court: In June 2013, a fourteen (14) year old male reported to Duluth Police that he had been sexually assaulted by Pell from December 2012 through February 2013 at Pell’s residence on Bromley Rowe in Duluth, Ga. Pell initially paid the victim to do yard work, but later propositioned the victim to engage in sex acts with Pell. In late 2012, Pell began taking sexually explicit photos of the victim and sexually abusing him. After each assault by Pell, Pell gave the victim money and took the victim out to eat. Pell also brought two older teens into his home to sexually assault the victim. Pell took photographs of these older males engaged in sex acts with the victim. During the course of the investigation, law enforcement also discovered two additional minor victims who were sexually abused by Pell. During the execution of a search warrant at Pell’s home, law enforcement recovered the camera Pell used to capture the sexual assaults and computers on which child pornography was found.
Pell, 44, of Duluth, Ga., was sentenced by United States District Judge Steve C. Jones to 29 years in prison to be followed by lifetime supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment. The defendant will be required to register as a sex offender when he is released from prison. As part of his plea agreement with federal and state authorities, Pell will also enter a guilty plea to six counts of aggravated sodomy in Gwinnett County Superior Court.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Duluth Police Department and the Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office.
This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children and to identify and rescue victims.
Assistant United States Attorney Jill E. Steinberg 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 HomePage for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is www.justice.gov/usao/gan.
Former CEO of Atlanta-Area Daycare Chain Sentenced to Prison for Stealing Nearly $2 Million in Federal Child Nutrition FundsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Antonio T. Hurt has been sentenced to two years and one month in federal prison for stealing nearly $2 million from a federal program that partially reimburses daycare centers for the cost of meals for needy children.
“Hurt used the child nutrition funds to expand his day care business, lease cars, buy jewelry, and pay for other personal expenses,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “Stealing almost $2 million in taxpayer money is bad enough, but stealing funds intended to feed underprivileged children is outrageous.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Stealing federal funds destined to feed needy children and using those funds to purchase luxury personal items is the epitome of a selfish act. This sentencing will hold Mr. Hurt accountable for his selfish act and serve as a reminder that the FBI will make every effort to identify and present for prosecution those individuals abusing their positions by diverting and stealing federal funds from their intended purpose for personal gain.”
“It is unfortunate that programs funded by the government, such as this one which assists in providing healthy meals to eligible day care children, are sometimes seen as a mechanism for fraud by individuals who continue to think they can get away with schemes to enrich themselves. Taxpayers trust that when such funding is provided that it will be utilized to help people and not be misused and misappropriated by those entrusted to deliver the programs. The United States Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, continues to dedicate its resources to work with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and its federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute such individuals. We hope that today’s sentencing of Mr. Hurt sends a strong message to others that fraud will not be tolerated in government funded programs,” said Karen Citizen-Wilcox, Special Agent-in-Charge for USDA’s Office of Inspector General.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: Between 2007 and 2010, Hurt served as the chief executive officer of Bright Star Early Learning Center, which owned and operated multiple daycare centers throughout metropolitan Atlanta, Ga., and in other parts of north Georgia under the name Bright Star. Hurt also entered into franchise agreements that allowed multiple additional third-party daycare centers to operate under the Bright Star name.
In February 2006, Hurt arranged for Bright Star Early Learning Center to apply to participate in the Child & Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). CACFP, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture under the National School Lunch Act of 1964, is a federal program that partially reimburses daycare centers for the cost of serving breakfast and lunch to eligible children whose family income falls below certain thresholds. In Georgia, the program is administered by the Georgia Department of Early Care & Learning. Child and adult care centers that are eligible to participate in the program are required to submit monthly claims to the Department of Early Care & Learning to detail the number of eligible students, meals, and other information for each 30-day period. The Department of Early Care & Learning then reimburses the daycare centers.
Beginning in October 2007 and continuing through January 2010, Hurt submitted millions of dollars in CACFP reimbursement claims to the Department of Early Care & Learning on behalf of his own daycare centers and his franchisees. Hurt’s reimbursement claims intentionally misstated the number of eligible students, meals, and other information. As a result, the Department of Early Care & Learning issued fraudulently inflated reimbursement funds to accounts that Hurt controlled. Hurt then issued the expected payments to the unsuspecting daycare centers and retained the fraudulently inflated portion for himself, amounting to approximately $1.9 million over a two-year period. Hurt used the money to expand and fund the operation of his daycare business and to live beyond his means.Hurt, 39, of Macon, Ga., was formerly a high school principal in Georgia and Maryland. Hurt was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg to two years, one month in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,872,152.78. Hurt was convicted on these charges on April 9, 2014, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney David M. Chaiken 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.Another Vendor Indicted in Corruption Case Against Former Georgia National Guard EmployeeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Angela Thicklin (f/k/a Angela Stanback Kinlaw) has been indicted for allegedly conspiring with Raytosha Elliott, a former contracting official with the Georgia Department of Defense, to obtain contracts in exchange for illegal kickbacks.
“Thicklin is the second vendor charged in this corruption case involving a former Georgia National Guard employee who is charged with awarding contracts to her friends, like Thicklin, in exchange for illegal kickbacks,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “The alleged actions of these defendants reflect that they have no sense of duty and that they defy the rule of law. They exhibited a very active scheme to defraud. The FBI, in working with its many law enforcement partners, will continue to make such public corruption cases an investigative priority.”
Special Agent in Charge John F. Khin, Southeast Field Office, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, commented, “Ensuring the integrity of Department of Defense programs will always remain one of DCIS' top priorities. DCIS special agents, in collaboration with our Federal and State partners, will fully investigate and bring to justice corrupt employees who undermine the public trust, and use their Government positions for personal gain.”
“Corruption at any level diminishes the hard work and dedication of the thousands of government employees who are dedicated to providing honest services to the American public,” stated Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot. “IRS-Criminal Investigation stands committed to weed out individuals who to take the path to financial success through greed and corruption.”
Interim Inspector General Deb Wallace of the State of Georgia Office of Inspector General said, “This second indictment should serve notice that the State of Georgia Office of Inspector General and its investigative counterparts will vigorously pursue all parties who choose to perpetrate fraud schemes in government.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: From May 2007 through April 2012, Elliott worked for the Georgia Department of Defense, the state agency charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the Georgia National Guard. Elliott worked as an Engineering Operations Manager out of the Clay National Guard Center, located at Dobbins Air Reserve Base, in Marietta, Ga. In that position, Elliott worked with engineering firms to develop bid-ready construction projects, prepared bid documents, and oversaw no-bid purchase orders. Under the rules governing the contracting process that Elliott oversaw, projects that cost less than $5,000 did not need to go through a competitive bidding process, allowing Elliott to award the contracts. She then certified that the work had been completed for those projects, and facilitated payment to the vendors who allegedly completed such projects.
In that position, Elliott awarded numerous contracts under $5,000 to vendor companies created by her friends and associates, including co-defendant Angela Thicklin. In return, the friends and associates paid Elliott kickbacks, equal to 50% of the value of the contracts, for steering the contracts to them. Elliott falsely certified that work had been completed when, in fact, it had not been, in order to facilitate payment. One of the vendor companies was 3M Construction LLC, which was owned by co-defendant Thicklin. Elliott awarded 3M Construction at least six contracts with a total value of approximately $25,000. Those contracts were for a variety of services supposedly to be performed by 3M Construction, including electrical work, landscaping, and HVAC work.
Instead, the defendants split the money awarded under these contracts and spent it on personal items, including travel, meals, and merchandise. As part of the scheme, Elliott owned a company named Tech Group Investments, LLC. Thicklin took money she had obtained from the Georgia Department of Defense contracts, and paid kickbacks to Elliott through this company.Elliott also awarded at least 17 contracts, worth approximately $75,000, to a company named Total Source Solution, LLC, which was owned by Lakeysha Ellis. On March 27, 2014, Ellis pleaded guilty to conspiring with Elliott to obtain these contracts in exchange for kickbacks. The alleged scheme involving Total Source Solution worked in a similar fashion to the one involving 3M Construction.
Additionally, Ellis pleaded guilty to conspiring with Elliott to defraud Baumueller-Nuermont Corporation, an industrial equipment company with offices in Atlanta, Ga. The indictment alleges that Elliott and Ellis defrauded the company from January 2009 through May 2011, when Ellis was an accountant there. Ellis falsified employee records in the corporation’s payroll system to disguise payments to the defendants’ two companies. Ellis created at least two phantom employees by altering the names of real employees (by switching their first and last names) and slightly changing their Social Security numbers. She then caused the payroll system to make fraudulent salary payments to Total Source Solution and Tech Group Investments for these new, non-existent employees. Baumueller-Nuermont lost about $85,000 from this scheme.
The 15-count superseding indictment charges Elliott, 34, and Thicklin, 43, both of Atlanta, Ga., with conspiracy and bribery of a public official. Elliott is also charged with separate counts of conspiring with Ellis and wire fraud. After the original indictment was returned on January 14, 2014, Ellis, 36, of Atlanta, Ga., pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy.
Members of the public are reminded that the indictment contains only allegations. 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 Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service; Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation; the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command; the Deputy Inspectors General of the State of Georgia Office of the Inspector General; and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Stephen H. McClain 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Former VA Employee Sentenced for Stealing Government FundsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Zerry Feaster has been sentenced for stealing over $80,000 from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), where she worked as a secretary, and making false statements.
“Rather than supporting the men and women who have served our country honorably, Ms. Feaster stole from the VA to gamble and buy herself luxury goods at Coach and Tiffany,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
“Feaster’s betrayal of the public trust for personal gain is reprehensible” said Special Agent in Charge Monty Stokes, Office of Inspector General, U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs. “The VA OIG will vigorously investigate allegations of the misuse of public funds whether for the funds whenever the funds are related to VA programs and operations.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Feaster was employed as a secretary in the Police Services Division at the Atlanta VA Medical Center (VAMC) in Decatur, Ga. From February 2010 through February 2012, Feaster stole over $80,000 from the VA by misusing her government-issued credit card. The credit card was supposed to be used to purchase office supplies and other equipment for the Police Services Division at the Atlanta VAMC. Feaster instead misused her government-issued credit card to purchase pre-paid gift cards, which she then used to buy personal items, such as luxury accessories and jewelry, as well as to gamble. Feaster attempted to hide the gift cards purchases by creating and submitting fake purchase orders to the VA, falsely claiming that she was using the government credit card to buy office supplies and equipment.
Feaster, 46, of Ellenwood, Ga., has been sentenced to one year, one month in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $88,264.47. Feaster was convicted of these charges on June 27, 2017, after she pleaded guilty to seven counts of theft of government funds, and five counts of making false statements.
This case was investigated by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General.
Assistant United States Attorney Mary L. Webb 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Corporate Vice President Pleads Guilty to Healthcare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Daniel K. Lane, Jr. has pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit healthcare fraud for filing fraudulent claims with Medicare, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and other insurers.
“This healthcare fraud scheme originated in the executive suite of Compass Healthcare and ended with the company filing thousands of false insurance claims,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “After cheating the insurers by getting them to pay for high-cost medical equipment never provided, the defendant papered up the fraud by sending in altered prescriptions with false patient diagnoses to support the claims. His business model was really a scam.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Leadership within the healthcare industry should be part of the cure, not the problem with respect to healthcare fraud related matters. The FBI will make every effort to focus its investigative resources and assets in identifying individuals such as Mr. Lane and presenting them for federal prosecution.”
"Protecting patients from unscrupulous billing practices and protecting the Medicare trust fund remains this agency's top priority," said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta. "In addition to billing for services that were not provided, in some instances, this owner reported false diagnosis codes, making it difficult for the patients to subsequently obtain health insurance. Justice was well served in this instance."
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Daniel K. Lane, Jr. is the Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Compass Healthcare, Inc., a durable medical equipment business headquartered in St. Louis, Mo., with offices in Atlanta, Ga., and other cities. Compass Healthcare specializes in providing compression stockings to patients who have been diagnosed with medical conditions such as chronic venous insufficiency and edema. Doctors may prescribe compression stockings, which come in different levels of tightness, as treatment for these conditions.
Lane’s position included responsibility for the billing of insurance companies for the compression stockings that Compass Healthcare provided to individuals who were covered by insurance. He fraudulently set up the company’s billing system so that in most instances it would automatically bill the insurers for the highest compression stocking, regardless of which stocking had actually been provided to the individual, in order to generate higher payments from Medicare, Blue Cross, and other insurers. As a result, Compass Healthcare routinely “upcoded” the claims it submitted to insurers for the stockings it had provided to individuals.
Lane conspired with an Office Manager for Compass Healthcare, Holly Keisker, and others to submit these false claims and conceal the fraudulent upcoding. Also as part of the scheme, Compass Healthcare included false diagnoses on its insurance claims to ensure payment. These false claims represented that Compass Healthcare customers had been diagnosed with various medical conditions, including chronic venous insufficiency and edema, to support the claims for high compression stockings, when in fact the customers had not been diagnosed by a doctor. Instead, Compass Healthcare used “blanket” diagnosis codes that were false to support insurance claims for compression stockings provided to customers who had no medical condition. Lane, Keisker, and others conspired to forge and alter doctors’ prescriptions so that they would support the fraudulent claims that had been submitted to insurers. They altered the prescriptions to falsely reflect that a high compression stocking had been prescribed and that the patient had been diagnosed with a medical condition. In 2011, Lane submitted altered prescriptions to Blue Cross in response to an audit conducted by the insurer.
Lane, 57, of St. Louis, Mo., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. On September 19, 2013, Keisker, 61, of St. Louis, Mo., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
Sentencing for Lane is scheduled for November 19, 2014, at 10:00 a.m., before United States District Judge Willis B. Hunt, Jr.. Sentencing for Keisker is scheduled for December 10, 2014, at 10 a.m., before Judge Hunt.
This case is being investigated by Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General.
Assistant United States Attorneys Stephen H. McClain and Jeffrey W. Davis 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is www.justice.gov/usao/gan.
Former DeKalb County Commissioner Charged with Stealing County FundsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Elaine Boyer, the former Commissioner of District 1 in DeKalb County, Ga., has been arraigned on charges relating to her embezzlement of county funds and misuse of her DeKalb County credit card.
“As an elected County Commissioner, Ms. Boyer had a duty to serve the best interests of the citizens of DeKalb County,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “Instead of honoring that commitment, Ms. Boyer stole from the citizens she was sworn to serve by diverting thousands of dollars in county funds to her personal bank account and using her county-issued credit card like it was her own.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Public corruption based investigations often stem from actions that would be seen as clearly improper and illegal to the average person. The charges in this case, however, reflect criminal actions of a twenty-two year veteran DeKalb County Commissioner who knew fully the nature of her actions and she will now face the consequences of those actions. The FBI places a high priority toward investigating allegations of public corruption due to the extensive harm that it can cause on many levels and we ask that anyone with information regarding such allegations to please contact their nearest FBI field office.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: In DeKalb County, Ga., the Board of Commissioners (“BOC”) serves as the legislative branch of the DeKalb County Government. The BOC is comprised of seven part-time commissioners, who are elected to serve four-year terms. Each of the seven Commissioners is responsible for the management of their respective offices, which includes controlling the offices’ budget and hiring staff members, contractors, and consultants. In recent years, the operating budget for a Commissioner’s office has been approximately $250,000 per year. The Commissioners may use their budget only for county-related business.
Since 1992, Ms. Boyer served as the Commissioner of District 1, which serves citizens in north DeKalb County, including in Brookhaven, Dunwoody, Tucker, and Smoke Rise, Ga. Among other responsibilities, Ms. Boyer sat on the BOC’s Finance, Budget, and Audit Committee and was the Chairwoman of the Employee Relations and Community Services Committee. Boyer’s term of office was to expire in 2016; however, Boyer resigned yesterday.
In September 2009, as the Commissioner of District 1, Ms. Boyer retained an individual (“Advisor”) supposedly to assist her with government consulting and advisory duties on issues that affected her constituents. From September 2009 to November 2011, false invoices were submitted to Ms. Boyer’s office for consulting services purportedly rendered by Advisor. In fact, Advisor performed no services for Ms. Boyer, District 1 constituents, or DeKalb County. Ms. Boyer used the false invoices as a basis to authorize payments to Advisor. Based on requisition requests from Ms. Boyer, DeKalb County mailed approximately 35 checks to Advisor for consulting services that were never performed. In total, DeKalb County paid Advisor more than $78,000, believing that legitimate services had been performed for the county.
After being paid by DeKalb County, Advisor funneled approximately 75% of the money received from DeKalb County into Ms. Boyer’s personal bank account. Between September 2009 and November 2011, Advisor deposited more than $58,000 in DeKalb County funds into Ms. Boyer’s personal bank account (while retaining the remainder of the money). In turn, Ms. Boyer used the money deposited into her account to pay personal expenses, including purchases at hotels and high-end department stores.
Additionally, in her capacity as a Commissioner, DeKalb County issued Ms. Boyer a Visa Purchasing Card (“P-Card”) to make county-related purchases. On January 14, 2010, she signed a Cardholder Users’ Agreement stating she would not use the P-Card to make personal purchases.
From October 2010 to February 2014, Ms. Boyer made more than 50 personal purchases on her P-Card, including purchasing airline tickets and hotel rooms for herself and her family for personal travel. In total, she made over $15,000 worth of purchases on her P-Card for personal goods and services.
Elaine Boyer, 57, of Stone Mountain, Ga., was charged via Criminal Information with conspiring to committed mail fraud and with wire fraud. She is scheduled to plead guilty at 3:00 p.m., on September 3, 2014, before U.S. District Court Judge Orinda D. Evans.
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 Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Jeffrey W. Davis and Kurt R. Erskine 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Smyrna Man Sentenced for Identity Theft and Tax FraudRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Michael Awiti has been sentenced to six years and three months in prison for filing fraudulent tax returns using the stolen identities of children.
“This defendant used the stolen identities of children in his scheme to steal from the United States Treasury,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “This office in collaboration with our law enforcement partners will continue to do our best to stop these fraudulent schemes and protect the public from identity theft.”
“Identity thieves are becoming more devious, creative, and conniving,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation. “They steal our identities, steal government money and prey upon innocent citizens. These criminals must be and will continue to be pursued in order to obtain justice for the victims as well as justice for our nation.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: From 2010 through 2012, Awiti owned and operated Fidelity Financial, LLC in Smyrna, Ga. During that time, Awiti engaged in a scheme to defraud the Department of the Treasury by filing over 500 fraudulent income tax returns using stolen identities. This type of scheme is commonly called stolen identity refund fraud. Awiti used the stolen personal identification information of hundreds of victims, along with fake wage and withholding information, to prepare fraudulent tax returns. The majority of the identity theft victims were children. Awiti sought fraudulent refunds totaling approximately $2,678,725.35; however, the IRS rejected some of the claims, resulting in an actual loss to the U.S. Treasury of $1,783,316.00.
Awiti, 29, of Smyrna, Ga., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Charles A. Pannell, Jr. to six years, three months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,783,316.00. Awiti was convicted on these charges on May 5, 2014, after he pleaded guilty.
This case was investigated by Special Agents the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. If you believe you may be a victim of tax return-related identity theft please contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 800-908-4490, extension 245 (Mon. - Fri., 7 a.m. - 7 p.m. local time).
Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey Brown 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Georgia Man Sentenced for Tax Fraud and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
ATLANTA –Mauricio Warner has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for using the identities of thousands of unsuspecting individuals to file federal tax returns claiming over $5 million in bogus refunds.
“Lengthy prison sentences wait for the growing number of criminals who use other people’s personal information to file phony tax returns,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “Mr. Warner deceived over 5,000 victims to get his hands on their names and Social Security numbers, and then used their information to steal over $5 million in fraudulent tax refunds. He will now spend years behind bars and have to pay back his ill-gotten gains. As this sentence shows, tax fraud and identity theft are crimes that do not pay.”
“IRS Criminal Investigation will remain proactive in the investigation of individuals who engage in stealing the identities of innocent people,” said Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. “We will continue to utilize every tool available to investigate those who victimize members of our community and innocent taxpayers for their own personal gain. As the defendant in this case has learned, stealing from the American people will not be tolerated.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: From approximately January 2011 to April 2012, Warner filed over 5,000 false tax returns using the names and Social Security numbers of unsuspecting victims. Victims were told they could submit an application for an “Obama stimulus payment” or “Free Government Money” by providing their names and Social Security numbers. In addition to word-of-mouth marketing, Warner used toll-free telephone numbers to collect victims’ personal identifying information. He then used the victims’ names and Social Security numbers to claim millions of dollars in fraudulent refunds. On the returns, Warner claimed false income amounts and student credits to generate the bogus tax refunds, and directed the IRS to pay the refund amounts to bank accounts he controlled. The victims did not know tax returns were being filed in their names.
Warner, 38, of Smyrna, Ga., was sentenced by United States District Judge Charles A. Pannell, Jr. to 20 years in federal prison and three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $5,041,869 in restitution. The Court also ordered the forfeiture of seven bank accounts controlled by Warner that contain $4,185,455.31 in funds derived from or involved in this scheme. On April 18, 2014, a jury convicted Warner of 16 counts of wire fraud, 16 counts of aggravated identity theft, 16 counts of filing false claims, and two counts of money laundering. Numerous victims testified at trial. Warner was taken into custody after the verdict.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Internal Revenue Service– Criminal Investigation. If you believe you may be a victim of tax return-related identity theft please contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 800-908-4490, extension 245 (Mon. - Fri., 7 a.m. - 7 p.m. local time).
Assistant United States Attorneys Stephen H. McClain and Thomas J. Krepp prosecuted the case.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Information Office at [email protected] or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the HomePage for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is www.justice.gov/usao/gan.
Former Leader of Hindu Temple of Georgia Convicted on Fraud and Obstruction ChargesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Annamalai Annamalai, a/k/a Dr. Commander Selvam, a/k/a Swamiji Sri Selvam Siddhar, the former leader of the now defunct Hindu Temple of Georgia, was convicted of 34 felony counts following a two-week jury trial.
“This defendant traded on his perceived religious authority and spiritual powers to cheat the faithful who believed in him,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “The jury saw through his deception, and he is being held accountable for his fraud.”
“Annamalai Annamalai clearly took advantage of his religious standing in the community as well as the individuals who respected and revered him” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation. He used deceit and fraud, to circumvent the bankruptcy courts and to collect money for his own personal benefit. Today’s verdict should send a strong message that this will not be tolerated.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Annamalai generated income through the Hindu Temple of Georgia (“the Hindu Temple”) by charging fees to his followers in exchange for providing spiritual or related services. In a typical transaction, a follower agreed to purchase a particular service for a communicated price, and provided a credit card number by telephone to guarantee payment. Annamalai caused the followers’ credit card numbers to be charged on multiple occasions, in excess of the agreed amount and without authorization. If the followers disputed the charges with their respective credit card companies, Annamalai submitted false documentation to the credit card companies in support of the unauthorized charges, which formed the basis for his conviction on bank fraud charges.
The income generated by the Hindu Temple through these credit card charges was used to fund the personal lifestyle of Annamalai and his family, who owned or controlled numerous homes and real properties, luxury vehicles, and foreign bank accounts in India. Annamalai was convicted of willfully filing a false tax return for the 2007 year, for failing to disclose his financial interest in foreign bank accounts held in India.
Annamalai was also convicted of bankruptcy fraud offenses in connection with the Hindu Temple’s petition for bankruptcy protection in August 2009. Annamalai concealed assets from creditors and others by diverting credit card receipts and donations intended for the Hindu Temple to a bank account in the name of a different entity. Annamalai was also convicted of money laundering for using proceeds from the bankruptcy fraud to pay mortgages on properties that he owned, and payments to himself.
Annamalai was also convicted on three counts of obstruction and false statements in connection with the grand jury investigation and the bankruptcy proceeding. Annamalai transmitted a fraudulent email to an IRS Special Agent, which was falsely made to appear as if the email had been written and authored by a witness of the criminal investigation. Annamalai submitted a false affidavit to the grand jury, and a false affidavit to the Bankruptcy Court in connection with the Hindu Temple’s bankruptcy proceeding.
Finally, Annamalai was convicted of conspiring with his spouse and co-defendant, Parvathi Sivanadiyan, and others to conceal the arrest of co-defendant Kumar Chinnathambi. Chinnathambi was later arrested and pled guilty to conspiracy to commit bankruptcy fraud on July 17, 2014. He is scheduled to be sentenced on October 24, 2014, at 10 a.m. before District Court Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr. Sivanadiyan is awaiting trial.
Annamalai was convicted of bank fraud offenses, filing a false tax return, bankruptcy fraud offenses, money laundering, obstruction, false statement offenses, and conspiring to conceal a person from arrest. He is scheduled to be sentenced on November 13, 2014, at 10 a.m. before District Court Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr.
This case is being investigated by Special Agents of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, with valuable assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Steven D. Grimberg and Samir Kaushal 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Two Sentenced to Prison for Carjacking and Beating Robbery VictimRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Frederick Todd Anderson and David Starks have been sentenced for an attempted robbery of a business where the business owner was carjacked, abducted, pistol-whipped, and left lying in a stream behind an abandoned house. A third defendant, Deshawn Antoine Mackey, was sentenced previously.
“This was a terrifying and horrific crime that left the victim with lasting injuries. No one should suffer like this victim,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “The defendants struck the victim, stole his car, and beat him to get his ATM PIN number before they finally left him for dead in a stream behind an abandoned house. The lengthy prison sentences the court imposed on Anderson and Starks today are warranted by the savagery of this crime.”
“These individuals acted in a cold and callous manner with little regard for the life of the victim, and today, justice has been served,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan L. Spradlin, who currently oversees Homeland Security Investigations in Georgia and the Carolinas. “This case highlights the effective collaboration between federal and local law enforcement agencies to ensure that violent criminals are put behind bars.”
“The victim and the community deserve safety and justice,” said Clayton County Police Chief Greg Porter. “We will continue to work hard as everyone in this case did, to ensure justice is served for the victims, and criminals are captured and investigated. Safety is paramount for the Clayton County community. We appreciate the partnerships that existed with this particular investigation.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: On March 11, 2013, the three federal defendants – Anderson, Starks, and Mackey – along with two minors who are being prosecuted by the state, jumped the victim as he walked from his vehicle to his office in College Park, Ga. to begin his workday at a shipping company located near Hartsfield-Jackson airport. The robbers took his wallet, wedding ring, and car keys, and Anderson instructed the minors to take the victim’s car. The victim was then forced into the backseat of the robbers’ vehicle, where he was repeatedly beaten by Anderson until he provided his ATM PIN number. Video surveillance captured Starks and Mackey going to several ATM machines to withdraw money from the victim’s account.
At one point, the victim told the robbers that he had $5000 back at the business location, hoping that police would have already responded to that location. The robbers went back to the office parking lot with the victim, but left when they saw police nearby. From there, they drove the victim to an abandoned house, forced him into the backyard, and pistol-whipped him until they left him for dead, lying in the stream. The victim managed to make it to the street, where a passerby stopped and called police. The victim, who spoke at the sentencing hearings, told the court that he believed that he was going to be killed and that even though he suffered some permanent injury from the beating, he is back at work.
Frederick Todd Anderson, 26, of Riverdale, Ga., has been sentenced to 19 years, 7 months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $8,060. David Starks, 30, of College Park, Ga., has been sentenced to eleven years, eleven months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $8,060. Both Anderson and Starks were assessed a fee of $300. He was convicted on these charges on May 2, 2014, after he pleaded guilty. Deshawn Antoine Mackey, 19, of Riverdale, Ga., was sentenced earlier to five years in federal prison.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and Clayton County Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorney Kim S. Dammers 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Radric Davis, Aka Gucci Mane, Sentenced to Federal Prison for Illegal Gun PossessionRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Radric Davis, a/k/a Gucci Mane, has been sentenced to three years and three months in federal prison on firearms charges.
“Davis has a long history of violence and of illegally possessing and using guns,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “One of our highest priorities is to remove violent repeat offenders from our streets so that our neighborhoods and cities are safer.”
“This sentence is a direct message to criminals that ATF and our law enforcement partners are observant and will not allow violations of our laws to go unpunished, regardless of celebrity status,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Ray Brown. “ATF is committed to utilizing the frontline strategy and working with partners to prevent violent crime and ensure that violators are prosecuted and removed from our streets.”
“The proliferation and use of guns by criminals has wreaked havoc on the streets of Atlanta for far too long,” Atlanta Police Chief George Turner said. “I hope this sentence sends a strong message that we simply will not tolerate this type of irresponsible, criminal behavior from anyone, regardless of who they are.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: On Sept. 14, 2013, the Atlanta Police Department received a call from a concerned citizen and acquaintance of Davis, who told police that the defendant was acting violent and had a handgun. When police arrived, they found Davis pacing the street, smelling strongly of marijuana, waving a loaded Glock 40 caliber handgun, and making threatening comments. Just two days earlier, police had been called to a different location in DeKalb County, where they found Davis with a different firearm, making threatening comments.
Radric Davis, 34, of Atlanta, Ga., was sentenced to three years, three months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $5,000. He was also ordered to forfeit all firearms listed in the indictment. Davis was convicted on these charges on May 13, 2014, after he pleaded guilty.
As part of the plea agreement and the Court’s sentence, Davis will seek mental health treatment once he is released from prison.This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Atlanta Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorney Kim S. Dammers 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Albany Ga., Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Stealing Children's Social Security BenefitsRead the Press Release
GAINESVILLE, Ga. - Christopher Castleberry has been sentenced to one year and six months in prison after pleading guilty to stealing his children’s Social Security Survivor’s benefits.
“This defendant stole his sons’ benefits and left them to be raised by their maternal grandparents while he continued to receive and spend their money,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “We hope that this sentence gives the boys a small measure of comfort to know that the defendant will answer for his crime against them.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: The defendant became the representative payee for his two minor sons’ Title II Survivor’s benefits after his wife died in 2001. In 2009, the children moved in with their maternal grandparents and the defendant continued to receive their benefits. The defendant refused to sign the appropriate paperwork that would have allowed the grandparents to enroll the boys in high school. Because of the defendant’s refusal, the boys were unable to attend or finish high school. The defendant did, however, complete paperwork falsely swearing to the Social Security Administration that the boys continued to reside with him and that he spent their benefits on their care and support.
Castleberry, 49, of Albany, Ga., has been sentenced to one year and six months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $46,200. Castleberry pleaded guilty to these charges on June 2, 2014.
This case was investigated by the Social Security Administration - Office of the Inspector General.
Special Assistant United States Attorney Diane C. Schulman 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Gainesville Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Former Deputy Sheriff Sentenced to Federal Prison for Soliciting KickbacksRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Former Fulton County Deputy Sheriff Reginald Warren has been sentenced for demanding bribe payments from security officers he scheduled to work at the City of Atlanta's public swimming pools.
“Mr. Warren’s conviction and sentence are a reflection of our commitment to make sure those who work within the law enforcement community respect and keep the public’s trust,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “This former deputy sheriff used his position and badge to extort kickbacks from workers contracted by the City of Atlanta to make the pools safe for its citizens and, consequently, betrayed the people he promised to help.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “The FBI remains committed to identifying, investigating, and presenting for prosecution those law enforcement officers who would sell their badges for personal gain and today's sentencing reflects that commitment. The FBI, in carrying out its public corruption mandate, asks that the public report such activity to their nearest FBI field office.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: During the summer of 2011, while Warren was employed as a deputy with the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, he contracted with the City of Atlanta to coordinate and supervise security at the city’s public swimming pools. In that capacity, Warren hired a number of security officers and scheduled them to work various shifts at pools located throughout the city. Soon after the officers were hired, Warren demanded payments from at least three officers in exchange for continuing to schedule them for more work. Over a three-month period, Warren accepted thousands of dollars in kickbacks from the officers which he pocketed for himself.
Warren, 50, of Covington, Ga., was sentenced to one year, three months in federal prison, to be followed by supervised release for two years. He pleaded guilty on May 6, 2014.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Brent Alan Gray 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Forsyth Woman Sentenced for Fraudulently Obtaining Government GrantsRead the Press Release
GAINESVILLE, Ga. - Jessica Regas has been sentenced for falsifying government grant applications and fraudulently obtaining $600,000 in government anti-drug grant funds.
“Regas stole over $600,000 in grant funds intended to fight youth substance abuse,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “Rather than steering young people away from drug abuse, she lined her own pocket. Not only did the federal government lose grant funds, but those intended to benefit were cheated as well.”
“Jessica Regas was greedy and she manipulated the grant process to steal federal funds needed for substance abuse prevention,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta. “Grant fraud is a priority for the Office of Inspector General and we will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to identify individuals who steal crucial grant funds and victimize taxpayers.”
“Ms. Regas used deceit and fraud, to obtain money that she was not entitled and used the money for her own personal benefit”, stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. “This sentence is a message to others that there are consequences for submitting fraudulent information to an agency of the United States Government.”
“Our team did an outstanding job coordinating local and federal agencies to bring swift justice. We will remain vigilant identifying, investigating and prosecuting crimes of this nature,” said Forsyth County Sheriff Duane K. Piper.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Regas and her husband operated a private business named the “Georgia Martial Arts Foundation,” in Cumming, Ga. Beginning in 2004, Regas, acting on behalf of the Georgia Martial Arts Foundation, applied for a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The grant required grantees to coordinate a coalition of members from at least 12 community sectors, including, but not limited to law enforcement agencies, media, religious and fraternal organizations, and schools. The grantee was required to, among other things, run coalition meetings that focused on substance abuse among youth, maintain minutes from those meetings, and certify that the grantee had obtained non-federal funding.
The purpose of the grant is to reduce substance abuse among youth; help community coalitions strengthen collaboration; enhance inter-governmental communication and coordination; enable communities to conduct data-driven research-based prevention planning; and provide communities with technical assistance, guidance, and financial support. Georgia Martial Arts Foundation received such a grant on an annual basis from 2004 through 2013. Georgia Martial Arts Foundation was designated as the grantee in charge of a coalition named the “Drug Free Forsyth Coalition.”
Regas submitted numerous annual continuation applications to SAMHSA with materially false statements, including that the “Drug Free Forsyth Coalition” had representatives from the 12 required sectors of the community, had substantial involvement from volunteer leader or members, and could be sustained as an ongoing concern with non-federal financial support. In fact, the “Drug Free Forsyth Coalition” never had representatives from the 12 required sectors of the community, rarely held meetings, and lacked the required non-federal matching funds.
Beginning in 2011, the “Georgia Martial Arts Foundation” ceased to exist. Despite the fact that the “Georgia Martial Arts Foundation” no longer existed, the Defendant continued to submit continuation applications to SAMHSA using the “Georgia Martial Arts Foundation” as the name of the grantee. These renewal applications continued to have materially false statements. Based upon these renewal applications, SAMHSA continued to send $125,000 a year to Regas.
Regas, 62, of Cumming, Ga., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge William C. O’Kelley to one year, nine months in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $600,000 in restitution.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, and Forsyth County Sheriff's Office.
Assistant United States Attorney Thomas J. Krepp 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Gainesville Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Former Co-Owner of Atlanta-based Medical Clinic Chain and Former Hospital Executive Plead Guilty to Illegal Pay-for-Patient ConspiracyRead the Press Release
ATLANTA –Tracey Cota and Gary Lang have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute by paying and receiving illegal remuneration in exchange for Medicaid patient referrals to hospitals in the Atlanta area and on Hilton Head Island, S.C.
“Our federal health care programs depend on providers exercising independent judgment in the best interests of patients,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “These illegal referral arrangements resulted in women being steered to deliver their babies at hospitals on the basis of Clinica’s and the hospitals’ financial self-interest, regardless of whether it was in the women’s best interest.”
“These medical executives enriched themselves by using uninsured pregnant women and newborn babies as commodities, whose health care could be bought and sold for kickbacks and bribes,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Miller. “Unlawful payments for patient referrals can lead to increased Medicaid costs, corrupt medical decision-making, overutilization of medical services, and unfair competition – and most importantly, insufficient or inadequate care for patients. The Justice Department is committed to investigating and prosecuting those who illegally pay for patients.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Today’s guilty pleas will hold two individuals who were in positions of trust and authority accountable for their participation in a criminal scheme in which decisions on patient care were driven by illegal monetary gain instead of the patients’ best interest. The FBI will continue to partner with HHS-OIG and the Department of Justice to ensure that the many facets of the health care industry operate as intended and are free from those who seek opportunity to illegally profit by manipulating federal programs designed to aid those in need.”
“It is unacceptable that health care providers would scheme to refer uninsured mothers about to deliver their babies to hospitals based on a kickback agreement designed to boost profits rather than based on who would provide the best health care to the mothers and newborns. Our agency is dedicated to unearthing such illegal kickback schemes, which undermine the public’s trust in the medical profession,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General’s Atlanta Regional Office.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Cota was the co-owner and chief operating officer of Hispanic Medical Management, Inc. d/b/a Clinica de la Mama (“Clinica”), a Georgia corporation that operated several medical clinics in the Atlanta, Ga., area and on Hilton Head Island, S.C. These clinics specialized in the provision of prenatal care services to primarily undocumented Hispanic women. Because of their immigration status, the women, who lacked other means of medical insurance, were ineligible for Medicaid coverage. Georgia and South Carolina Medicaid, however, did cover and pay certain costs associated with their labor and delivery and the care of their newborns at hospitals, as well as the professional fees of the physicians providing labor and delivery services. Lang was the Chief Executive Officer of an Atlanta area hospital that was enrolled as a provider in the Georgia Medicaid program.
Between July 2000 and July 2012, Cota conspired with executives from Atlanta area hospitals, including Lang, and from a hospital on Hilton Head Island, to compensate Clinica for the referral of Clinica’s patients to the hospitals. To accomplish this goal, the hospitals contracted with, and paid, Clinica to provide certain services, including translation services and Medicaid eligibility determination services, but the true purpose of the arrangements were to pay Clinica for patient referrals. These referrals ultimately triggered Medicaid reimbursements of over $100 million to the hospitals.
Cota, 50, of Dunwoody, Ga., and Lang, 58, also of Atlanta, Ga., were each charged in separate Criminal Informations on June 28, 2014, with one count of conspiracy to pay and receive remuneration in exchange for Medicaid patient referrals. Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General.
Assistant United States Attorney Sally B. Molloy and Assistant Chiefs Ben Curtis and Rob Zink with DOJ Criminal Division’s Fraud 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Nine Law Enforcement Officers Sentenced for Protecting Drug DealersRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Thirteen defendants, including nine former police officers, have been sentenced to federal prison this week for accepting thousands of dollars in cash payments to provide protection during staged drug deals that were part of a federal undercover operation.
“This case sent shock waves through Georgia law enforcement offices, both local and federal,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “Certainly, these departments are filled with dedicated officers who literally risk their lives every day to make our communities safe. But this case revealed a troubling number of officers from a variety of law enforcement agencies who betrayed their oaths to protect and serve, taking cash from the very criminals they should have been arresting.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “While the sentences in this extensive law enforcement corruption matter ends the careers of those law enforcement and correctional officers involved, it can serve as an opportunity to those many other law enforcement officers and personnel to re-dedicate themselves to the oaths of office that they took when they accepted the badge. It also serves as a reminder to the public that the FBI remains responsive to such allegations of police misconduct and corruption and will investigate and present for prosecution those involved.”
“The vast majority of law enforcement officers serve the public with honor and distinction,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Ray Brown of the Atlanta ATF Field Office. “Officers like these unfortunately tarnish the badge of the committed men and women of law enforcement. These individuals will now have to face the consequences for their deplorable actions. ATF will remain on the frontline of preventing violent crime through the dynamic level of law enforcement cooperation with our partners.”
Seven defendants who have been sentenced were active law enforcement officers during the time when they protected drug deals. Once the officers were arrested in February 2013, they were fired and are no longer police officers. All pleaded guilty before a federal judge. Those sentenced were:
- Kelvin Allen, 42, of Atlanta, Ga., an officer with the Atlanta Police Department, was sentenced to five years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release;
- Dennis Duren, 32, of Atlanta, Ga., an officer with the DeKalb County Police Department, was sentenced to seven years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release;
- Dorian Williams, 25, of Stone Mountain, Ga., an officer with the DeKalb County Police Department, was sentenced to seven years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release;
- Victor Middlebrook, 44, of Jonesboro, Ga., a Forest Park Police Department Sergeant, was sentenced to seven years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release;
- Marquez Holmes, 45, of Jonesboro, Ga., a MARTA Police Department Officer, was sentenced to five years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release;
- Denoris Carter, 42, of Lithonia, Ga., a Stone Mountain Police Department Officer, was sentenced to three years, one month in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release; and
- Federal Protective Services Officer Sharon Peters, 43, of Lithonia, Ga., was sentenced to three years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release.
Also sentenced this week were two defendants who were former DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office jail officers at the time they protected the purported drug deals:
- Monyette McLaurin, 37, of Atlanta, Ga., was sentenced to six years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release; and
- Chase Valentine, 44, of Covington, Ga., was sentenced to two years, nine months in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release.
Also sentenced were four defendants who were not law enforcement officers, but who participated in the drug transactions:
- Elizabeth Coss, 35, of Atlanta, Ga., was sentenced to six months in custody to be followed by six months of home confinement, and five years of supervised release;
- Gregory Lee Harvey, 26, of Stone Mountain, Ga., was sentenced to nine years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release;
- Alexander B. Hill, 22, of Ellenwood, Ga., was sentenced to five years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release; and
- Jerry B. Mannery, Jr., 38, of Tucker, Ga., was sentenced to four years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: The undercover operation arose out of an ATF investigation of an Atlanta, Ga., area street gang in August 2011. ATF agents learned from an individual associated with the gang that police officers were involved in protecting the gang’s criminal operations, including drug trafficking crimes. According to this cooperating individual, the officers—while wearing uniforms, driving police vehicles, or otherwise displaying badges—provided security to the gang members during drug deals.Three individuals, while not law enforcement officers themselves, provided the cooperator with the names of police officers who wanted to provide security for drug deals. Once these officers were identified, FBI and ATF agents arranged with the cooperator for the officers to provide security for drug transactions that were described in advance to involve the sale of multiple kilograms of cocaine. The police officers, almost always wearing their uniform and displaying a weapon and occasionally in their police vehicles, patrolled the parking lots where the deals took place and monitored the transactions. These transactions were audio and video recorded.
Specifically, the undercover investigation included the following transactions:
DeKalb County Police Department
Dennis Duren. Between October 2011 and November 2011, then DeKalb County Police Officer Dennis Duren provided protection for what he believed were four separate transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. Duren and a co-defendant accepted cash payments totaling $8,800 for these services. During the transactions, Duren was dressed in his DeKalb County Police uniform and carried a gun in a holster on his belt, as he patrolled on foot in the parking lots in which the undercover sales took place. Duren pleaded guilty to one of those deals, which occurred on November 1, 2011.
Dorian Williams. Between January and February 2013, then DeKalb County Police Officer Dorian Williams provided protection for what he believed were three separate transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. Williams and his co-defendant accepted cash payments totaling $18,000 for these services. During the transactions, Williams was dressed in his DeKalb County Police uniform and carried a gun in a holster on his belt, and he patrolled the parking lots in which the undercover sales took place in his DeKalb Police vehicle. Williams pleaded guilty to one of those deals that occurred on January 28, 2013.
Stone Mountain Police Department
Denoris Carter. Between April and September 2012, then Stone Mountain Police Officer Denoris Carter provided protection for what he believed were five separate transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. For these services, Carter and his co-defendant accepted cash payments totaling $23,500. For all five transactions, Carter wore his Stone Mountain Police uniform. In four of the deals, he arrived in his police cruiser and either patrolled or parked in the parking lots in which the undercover sales took place and watched the transactions. During the final transaction in September 2012, Carter was on foot, displaying a firearm in a holster on his belt, and walked through the parking lot in which the transaction took place while watching the participants. Carter pleaded guilty to one of those deals that occurred on September 20, 2012.
Atlanta Police Department
Kelvin D. Allen. Between June and August 2012, then Atlanta Police officer Kelvin D. Allen provided protection for what he believed were three separate transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. Allen and his co-defendant accepted cash payments totaling $10,500 for their services. For two transactions, Allen dressed in his Atlanta Police uniform and carried a gun in a holster on his belt. Allen patrolled on foot in parking lots in which the undercover sales took place and appeared to be monitoring the transactions. Allen pleaded guilty to one of those deals that occurred on July 6, 2012.
MARTA Police Department
Marquez Holmes. Between August and November 2012, then MARTA Police Department Officer Marquez Holmes provided protection for what he believed were four separate transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. For these services, Holmes and a co-defendant accepted cash payments totaling $9,000. During the transactions, Holmes was dressed in his MARTA Police uniform and carried a gun in a holster on his belt. In two of the transactions, Holmes patrolled on foot in the parking lots in which the undercover sales took place and monitored the transactions. During the other two deals, Holmes drove to the site in his MARTA police cruiser and parked next to the vehicles in which the undercover drug sale took place. Holmes pleaded guilty to one of those deals that occurred on November 8, 2012.
Forest Park Police Department
Victor Middlebrook. Between October to December 2012, then Forest Park Police Sergeant Victor Middlebrook provided protection for what he believed were six separate drug deals in the Atlanta area, each involving multiple kilograms of cocaine. For his services in the first four transactions, Middlebook accepted cash payments totaling $13,800. During these transactions, Middlebrook wore plain clothes, but displayed his badge and a firearm in a holster on his belt. He patrolled on foot in the parking lots nearby the vehicles in which the undercover sales took place and appeared to be monitoring the transactions. Middlebrook pleaded guilty to one of those deals that occurred on December 7, 2012.
DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office
Monyette McLaurin. In January 2013, former DeKalb County Sheriff Jail Officer Monyette McLaurin provided protection for what he believed were two separate drug transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. For his services, McLaurin and a co-defendant were paid $12,000 in cash. During a meeting to discuss future drug transactions, McLaurin falsely represented that he was a deputy employed by the DeKalb Sheriff’s office, even though his position as a jail officer ended in 2011. During the two transactions McLaurin was dressed in a DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office uniform with a badge, and he carried a gun in a holster on his belt. McLaurin pleaded guilty to one of those deals that occurred on January 3, 2013.
Chase Valentine. In January 2013, former DeKalb County Sheriff’s Jail Officer, Chase Valentine, helped McLaurin and another co-defendant, Gregory Lee Harvey, provide security for what he believed were drug deals. Like McLaurin, Valentine falsely represented himself to be a DeKalb County Sheriff’s Deputy, even though his position as a jail officer ended in 2010. Valentine provided security for one undercover drug transaction on January 17, 2013, during which he wore a DeKalb Sheriff’s Office uniform and a pistol in a holster on his belt. Valentine pleaded guilty to that one deal, which occurred on January 17, 2013.
Gregory Lee Harvey. In December 2012, Harvey falsely represented that he was a DeKalb County detention officer and protected what he believed were two multiple kilogram deals of cocaine while wearing a black shirt with the letters “SHERIFF” printed across the back. After this, Harvey stated that he knew other police officers who wanted to protect drug deals, and in January 2013 he introduced McLaurin as one of these officers. Harvey protected a total of seven separate transactions and pleaded guilty to one transaction, which occurred on December 17, 2012.
Federal Protective Services
Sharon Peters. In November 2012, Sharon Peters, who was then a contract officer for the Federal Protective Services provided protection for what she believed were two separate transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. For these services, Peters and a co-defendant accepted cash payments totaling $14,000. For both transactions, Peters parked her vehicle nearby the cars where the sham drugs and money were exchanged, and watched the transactions. Peters pleaded guilty to one of those deals that occurred on November 19, 2012.
Imposter Clayton County Police Officer
Alexander B. Hill. Between December 2012 and January 2013, Alexander B. Hill falsely represented himself to be an officer with the Clayton County Police Department while providing security for what he believed were three separate drug transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. During an initial meeting, Hill wore a uniform that appeared to be from Clayton Police, but during the transactions he wore plain clothes and, for at least the first deal, a badge displayed on his belt. For these services, Hill received payments totaling $9,000 in cash. Hill pleaded guilty to one of those deals that occurred on December 20, 2012.
The Recruiters
Jerry B. Mannery, Jr. Mannery never presented himself as a law enforcement officer, but he introduced corrupt officers Carter and Peters to the informant, and coordinated the drug deals that those officers’ protected. Mannery, along with one or more corrupt law enforcement officer, provided security for what he believed were ten separate drug transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. For these services, Mannery and his co-defendants received payments totaling over $30,000 in cash. Mannery pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy for deals occurring between April 9, 2012 and February 1, 2013.
Elizabeth Coss. Like Mannery, Coss never presented herself as a law enforcement officer, but instead introduced corrupt officers Holmes and Williams to the informant. Coss, along with one of the two corrupt law enforcement officers, provided security for what she believed were five separate drug transactions in the Atlanta area that involved multiple kilograms of cocaine. For these services, Coss and her co-defendants received payments totaling over $17,000 in cash. Coss pleaded guilty to one drug deal that occurred on August 15, 2012.
These cases were investigated by special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Assistant United States Attorneys Kim Dammers and Brent Alan Gray prosecuted these cases.
For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney's Public Information 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 is www.justice.gov/usao/gan.Identity Thieves Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Maario Coleman and Angela Russell have been sentenced for stealing the identities of Emory University and University of Georgia students in order to apply for student loans.
“Just as these law and medical students were graduating to embark on their careers, they found themselves victims of identity theft,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “We encourage citizens to diligently review their credit reports and bank accounts to spot fraudulent activity as soon as possible.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “This elaborate and aggressive scheme to defraud targeted not only those students at Emory University and the University of Georgia, but also Discover Bank and serves as an example of the harm that can be caused by several well placed individuals using their access and others’ personal information in this manner. FBI Atlanta is proud of the role that its capable cyber trained investigators played in working with Emory University’s Police Department to interrupt this criminal scheme and to bring these individuals to justice.”
“We are proud of the efforts of our investigators and grateful for the cooperative assistance the FBI provided in bringing resolution to this situation,” said Emory Police Chief Craig Watson.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Coleman obtained the names of over 100 members of the 2013 class of graduating law and medical students at Emory University and five law students at the University of Georgia. After obtaining partial social security numbers and dates of birth for the students, he asked Russell to supply the remaining personal identifiers. At the time, Russell had access to credit reporting databases through her employment. Together, the defendants compiled students’ birthdates and social security numbers. Using that information, Coleman then applied for over $400,000 worth of post-graduate bar exam study loans and medical residency loans through Discover Bank.
In many cases, Discover required student transcripts before it would approve and fund the loans. To facilitate approval of the loans, Coleman used the students’ personal identifiers to obtain passwords to Emory’s online portal, where he ordered transcripts and had them mailed to his associates. The transcripts were then sent to Coleman, who forwarded them on to Discover. Coleman also arranged for the loan proceeds to be deposited into bank accounts fraudulently opened in the victims’ names. After the loans were funded, other associates of Coleman withdrew the funds via ATM. The defendants obtained $52,000 worth of loans before the scheme was uncovered.
Maario Coleman, 28, of Atlanta, Ga., pleaded guilty to computer fraud and aggravated identity theft on May 13, 2014. He was sentenced by United States District Judge Thomas W. Thrash, Jr., to four years, nine months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $52,000. Angela Russell, 43, of Atlanta, Ga., was also sentenced by Judge Thrash to two years in prison to be followed by one year of supervised release, and was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $26,000. She pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft on May 13, 2014.
This case was being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Shanya J. Dingle prosecuted the case.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Cartersville Man Sentenced in Sextortion CaseRead the Press Release
ROME, Ga., - Joshua James Geer has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for child pornography production, coercion of minors to engage in unlawful sex acts, and possession of child pornography.
“This defendant coerced children into engaging in sexual activity and forced them to send him photos of that activity,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “He is the type of predatory monster parents fear when their children are on the internet. He deserves every day of the sentence the court imposed.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Having this disturbing child predator off of our streets is not only a tremendous victory for those investigators and prosecutors working this matter, but for the victims involved and for those who would have become victims had Mr. Geer been allowed to continue with his cyber based criminal exploitation of minors. The FBI will continue to provide significant investigative resources toward the investigation and apprehension of individuals such as Mr. Geer who choose to exploit and prey on children.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: on or about February 18, 2013, Geer contacted N.B., a 17-year-old boy living in Illinois, through an on-line communication service. Initially, Geer befriended the boy during their online chats. But then Geer coerced N.B. to use a cellular telephone to take photographs of N.B. and his 11-year-old sister engaged in graphic sex acts. Geer threatened to expose N.B. to others if the boy refused to send the images to Geer; so N.B. transmitted the images to Geer using an iPod computer device. Investigators identified Geer through his chats with N.B., which revealed Geer’s telephone number.
Several months later, on June 20, 2013, Pinellas County, Fla., Sheriff’s Office Detective Jennifer Zinge (“Det. Zinge”) received a complaint made by V.O., a 16 year old girl. V.O. told Det. Zinge that on June 19, 2013, she began chatting on line with a person who initially identified himself as a girl using the online profile “TNT.” Federal agents subsequently identified “TNT” as Geer.
During their online exchanges, Geer sent a photograph of a child who appeared to be a girl of about 4 years old to V.O. The photograph depicted the child nude above her waist. V.O. then attempted to end her online chats with Geer. But when V.O. tried to terminate her contact with Geer, he sent a text message to V.O. in which he claimed that V.O. was in possession of child pornography. In his message, Geer stated that if V.O. did not comply with his demands that he would report her to the police. Geer forced V.O. to send him nude photographs of her using her cellular telephone. V.O. did so. The photographs depict V.O.’s pubic area and V.O. posed in various lascivious positions under Geer’s written instructions.
Investigators were able to identify Geer as the person corresponding with V.O. using an internet account, as well as his cellular telephone number. FBI agents in Atlanta, Ga., learned that Geer had used the same telephone number to contact and demand pornographic images from N.B., the boy in Illinois.
On June 20, 2013, FBI agents obtained an arrest warrant for Geer, as well as a warrant to search his home in Cartersville, Ga. Federal agents seized an iPhone from Geer at the time of his arrest. An examination of the device revealed that it contained more than 300 images of child pornography, including graphic images depicting infants. Additionally, federal agents discovered more instances of Geer coercing minors to produce child pornography that he forced the victims to send him via the Internet, and that he distributed to others online. During a search of Geer’s closet, federal agents also found a handwritten note detailing how to commit a rape, along with various items bearing the description, “kidnapping kit.”
Geer, 22, of Cartersville, Ga., was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, to be followed by supervised release for life. He must also register as a sex offender as a condition of his supervised release. Geer pleaded guilty on May 22, 2014.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigations.
Assistant United States Attorney Richard S. Moultrie, Jr. prosecuted the case.
This case is a 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 United States 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Lingerie Business Owner Sentenced to Federal Prison for BriberyRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Jae Jun Bae has been sentenced to one year and one day in prison for offering bribes to Doraville employees in exchange for a zoning modification.
“Bae tried to buy his way around zoning restrictions by offering bribes to Doraville employees,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “As anticipated, those employees reported Bae’s conduct and assisted law enforcement authorities to bring him to justice. Bae opened his wallet looking to circumvent the law. What he found was a felony conviction and a prison cell.”
“Doraville Police Department is dedicated to ensuring the integrity of the city government,” said Doraville Police Chief John King. “Our message is don't bring your corruption or bribery attempts to Doraville or you will face prosecution. We would like to thank the U.S. Attorney's office and the FBI for helping us maintain this integrity and ensuring the proper sentence for Mr. Bae.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: Bae is the owner of Moon Lingerie, a lingerie business located in Doraville, Ga. In April 2012, Bae bought a commercial building located on Buford Highway in Doraville, Ga. At the time of the purchase, the property was zoned for retail use and could not be used as a wholesale location as Bae wanted. In August 2012, Bae met with an employee of the City of Doraville and attempted to give the employee an envelope of cash, in an effort to have the Buford Highway property re-zoned. The employee did not take the envelope and reported Bae’s attempt to local law enforcement authorities.
In October 2013, Bae asked to meet with a member of Doraville’s Community Development Department. Based on the allegations from August 2012, the staff member (SM) reported Bae’s request for a meeting to law enforcement authorities and agreed to cooperate with them. Thereafter, the FBI and the Doraville Police Department conducted a series of undercover operations involving Bae. In particular, on October 17, 2013, Bae met with the SM and an undercover officer (UC), who was posing as a member of Doraville’s Community Development Department. During the meeting, Bae agreed to pay approximately $100,000 to have the Buford Highway property re-zoned to permit wholesale uses. On October 18, 2013, Bae met with the UC and re-negotiated the price to obtain a wholesale re-zoning from $100,000 down to $70,000. On October 29, 2013, Bae made a $5,000 payment to the SM as a deposit to get the Buford Highway property re-zoned. On the next day, Bae gave the UC a $3,000 payment, which the UC said would secure a vote in favor of Bae’s re-zoning application. On November 14, 2013, the FBI arrested Bae.
On April 3, 2014, Bae, 35, of Duluth, Ga., pleaded guilty to one count of honest services wire fraud. He was sentenced to one year and one day in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, ordered to pay a $1,000 fine, and to serve 200 hours of community service.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Doraville Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis and Special Assistant United States Attorney Erin Sanders 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Owner of Allergy Lab Pleads Guilty to Faking Allergy Test ResultsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Rahsaan Jackson Garth has pleaded guilty to a charge of health care fraud for faking the results of allergy tests that patients’ doctors had ordered.
“Garth put his own greed above the health and safety of citizens,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “This defendant seriously endangered the lives of children and adults in Atlanta when he faked their allergy test results and misled their doctors.”
“Such reckless conduct cannot be tolerated” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General in Atlanta. “The blatant disregard for potential patient harm is inexcusable, especially when many of the patients affected were children and the elderly. Today’s plea demonstrates the OIG’s commitment to bringing to justice those who put profit before patient safety.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: The defendant, Rahsaan Jackson Garth, a/k/a/ R. Jackson Garth, opened an allergy laboratory in 2011, named Polaris Allergy Labs, Inc. Polaris Allergy Labs, Inc. was located in East Point, Ga. Doctors would send their patients’ blood samples to Polaris Allergy Labs, Inc. to be tested for food and environmental allergies. Beginning in approximately September 2012, and continuing through February 2014, Garth directed his allergy laboratory technician not to actually test some of the blood samples for allergens. Garth ordered his technician not to test the blood in order to save money by not using the allergen reagents necessary for testing. Instead of testing the blood, Garth would create fake allergy test result reports for the patients. Then he would have the fake test result reports sent back to the patients’ doctors.
Sometimes Garth created results showing no allergic reaction, and other times he created results showing an allergic reaction, in order to avoid raising the suspicions of the doctors to whom he sent fake test result reports. The patients’ doctors were unaware that Garth was sending them fake allergy test results for their patients.
After creating a fake allergy test report for a patient, Garth would then cause a bill to be submitted to the patient's health care benefit program, even though no service had in fact been provided.The sentencing for Garth, a/k/a R. Jackson Garth, 39, of Marietta, Ga., has not yet been scheduled.
This case is being investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Assistant United States Attorney Mary L. Webb 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Atlanta Armed Robbery Crew SentencedRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Woodrow Rudolph Dixon, Jr., and Cornelius Bernard Wilson each have been sentenced to federal prison for planning to rob a drug stash house while dressed as police officers.
“These two planned to conduct home invasions while impersonating police officers,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “The safety of our citizens is a top priority for this office. Their removal from our community will make Atlanta safer.”
“Individuals brazen enough to pose as law enforcement to commit armed robberies are clear and present dangers to our community,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher Shaefer. “These sentences send an unequivocal message that this conduct will not be tolerated and provide more evidence of ATF’s commitment to combating violent crime through use of the Frontline strategy by utilizing all available resources to make our communities safer.”
Harry S. Sommers, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division stated, “Drug dealing breeds violence and drug traffickers often commit acts of violence while carrying out their criminal activities. In this case, these dangerous criminals never had the opportunity to commit yet another robbery because of the dedicated efforts of all law enforcement agencies involved.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: In May 2012, the ATF began investigating Dixon, based on information the agency received that Dixon was an experienced leader of a crew of men who conducted armed home invasion style robberies of drug stash houses in the Atlanta, Ga., area. At that time, Dixon was planning to have his crew rob a man named “Tony,” a man who Dixon believed to be a high-level cocaine trafficker in the Atlanta area. “Tony” was in fact an undercover narcotics Task Force Officer for the DEA, who Dixon had met when “Tony” tried to buy cocaine from Dixon as a part of an investigation.
As the ATF investigation into Dixon's armed robbery plans continued, the investigation revealed that Dixon, leading a crew, had carried out previous armed robberies of houses with the purpose of stealing cocaine or other drugs. The ATF investigation later identified Wilson as a member of the crew Dixon assembled to rob “Tony.” On June 21, 2012, the day of the planned robbery, Wilson and other members of the robbing crew met in advance to prepare for the robbery. Dixon, who had left Atlanta, directed their actions over the telephone.
To prepare for the robbery, the men dressed up in police gear, including police badges, and armed themselves with loaded firearms: a sawed-off shotgun, a .44 caliber revolver, and a .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol. They then met with two undercover ATF agents who they believed were going to lead them to “Tony’s” stash house so that the crew could carry out the robbery. Instead, once the men met with the undercover agents, they were arrested. Dixon, the leader of the crew, was arrested five days later after he returned to Atlanta.
Both Dixon and another member of the robbing crew, Kirk Floyd, were convicted on November 25, 2013, after a week-long jury trial on federal charges of conspiracy to commit armed robbery, possession of firearms in connection with the armed robbery charge, and conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine for leading a crew of armed home invasion robbers in the Atlanta area who sought to rob what the crew believed to be a cocaine “stash house.” Wilson, a member of the armed robbery crew, pleaded guilty on December 3, 2013, to federal charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and possession of a firearm in connection with the drug charge.
Woodrow Rudolph Dixon, Jr., a/k/a Dro, 42, of Atlanta, Ga., was sentenced to 20 years in prison to be followed by six years of supervised release. Dixon was found guilty by a jury on November 25, 2013. Cornelius Bernard Wilson, a/k/a Dog-man, 45, of Atlanta, Ga., was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Wilson pleaded guilty on December 3, 2013. Kirk Floyd was found guilty by a jury on November 25, 2013, and is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date.
This case was investigated by the David G. Wilhelm OCDETF Strike force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Assistant United States Attorneys Mary L. Webb and William Tolliver 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Company Settles Claims That It Deliberately Underpaid WorkersRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Advanced Power & Lighting (“APL”) and two of the company’s former officers and/or employees, Richard Lee Robertson and Greg Piccione, have agreed to pay a total of $780,000 to settle allegations that they deliberately underpaid workers on several federally funded projects covered by the Davis-Bacon Act, and then violated the False Claims Act by submitting false and fictitious payroll records to conceal their conduct.
“The underlying False Claims Act lawsuit alleges that APL, Robertson and Piccione deliberately took advantage of workers, at a time when they were most vulnerable,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “The settlement reflects the reality that individuals and entities that exploit workers will be held accountable by the government.”
U.S. Department of Commerce Inspector General Todd Zinser commended the cooperative effort by the staffs of the U.S. Attorney’s for the Northern District of Georgia, the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General and the Commerce Department OIG to ensure APL was held accountable for funds it received under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Zinser also noted the importance of Federal Whistleblower laws that led to the revelations of APL underpaying its workers.
Special Agent in Charge Richard L. Walker of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations stated, “This case is a great example of the OIG's work with its law enforcement partners to actively investigate fraud involving federal contracts, including the filing of false payroll records to facilitate cheating workers of their earned wages.”
The relevant conduct arose in connection with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the “Recovery Act”), which was enacted to stimulate the economy and create jobs by funding infrastructure projects. Pursuant to a Recovery Act initiative known as the Broadband Technologies Opportunities Program (“BTOP”), the federal government provided the U.S. Department of Commerce with $4.7 billion to promote, through grants, the deployment of broadband infrastructure – e.g., miles of fiber-optic cable and supporting structures – throughout North Georgia.
To effectuate the Recovery Act’s goal of providing high wage jobs, contractors on BTOP projects were required to comply with the Davis-Bacon Act, which requires that workers be paid not less than the applicable prevailing wage, which is set by the U.S. Department of Labor, and can be fulfilled by providing the applicable wage in all cash, or through a combination of cash and bona fide fringe benefits.
In late 2010, APL was awarded a BTOP subcontract to assist with broadband projects in North Georgia, and the company repeatedly acknowledged – and promised to comply with – the projects’ Davis-Bacon Act requirements. The False Claims Act lawsuit alleges that, despite these repeated promises, in order to increase their own profit margins and/or bonuses, APL, Robertson and Piccione – over an extended period of time – deliberately underpaid certain workers by approximately $10.00 per hour.
The lawsuit further alleges that, to conceal the underpayments, APL, Robertson and Piccione submitted fictitious payroll documentation, which falsely represented that workers were receiving approximately $10.00 per hour in training and uniforms, which they erroneously characterized as fringe benefits. In truth, however, no such training or uniforms were provided to workers, and these items did not even qualify as fringe benefits under the criteria set forth by the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor.
This civil settlement resolves a lawsuit filed by a former APL employee under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private citizens to bring civil actions on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery obtained. The case, pending in the Northern District of Georgia, is filed under United States of America ex rel., v. Advanced Power & Lighting, Richard Lee Robertson and Greg Piccione, et. al., Civ. No. 1:12-cv-3825-AT (N.D. Ga. Nov. 1, 2012). The claims settled in the civil settlement are claims only, and there has been no determination of liability.
The case was investigated by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia; the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of the Inspector General; and the U.S. Department of Commerce, Office of the Inspector General.
This matter was handled for the United States by Assistant United States Attorney Paris A. Wynn.
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 http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.Former Carter’s Executives and Portfolio Manager for New York Hedge Fund Sentenced to Federal Prison for Multi-Million Dollar Insider Trading ConspiraciesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Eric M. Martin, Mark Megalli, and Richard T. Posey have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in insider trading conspiracies involving Carter’s, Inc. stock.
“Illegal insider trading undermines confidence in the nation’s stock markets. Today’s sentences are a step towards restoring that confidence. These sentences send a strong message to company insiders and investment industry professionals in this district and elsewhere that they are required to follow the same rules that govern regular investors, and that the consequences for failing to do so can be severe,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “Those individuals who choose to ignore insider trading laws do so at the risk of becoming targets of federal investigations. The FBI will continue to provide substantial investigative resources toward such insider trading activities with the primary goal of maintaining a fair and equitable stock market for all.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Carter’s, Inc. is a major children’s clothing company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Carter’s is a public company registered with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (“SEC”), and its common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Martin was employed as Carter’s Director and later Vice President of Investor Relations between 2003 and March 2009. In this capacity, Martin participated in and helped the company’s key executives prepare for Carter’s public disclosure of its quarterly and annual financial results at the end of each quarter or fiscal year. These and other duties afforded Martin regular access to material, non-public information about Carter’s upcoming earnings releases and other significant developments and transactions.
On a consistent basis between early 2005 and his separation from Carter’s in March 2009, Martin disclosed material, non-public information about Carter’s upcoming earnings releases and other developments to a former Wall Street analyst identified by the government as “Cooperator Number 1,” for the purpose of making illegal insider trades. Cooperator Number 1 repeatedly bought and sold Carter’s stock on the basis of this information, earning substantial illegal profits and illegally avoiding substantial losses. Cooperator Number 1 also tipped others, including Titan Capital Management LLC, a New Jersey hedge fund that had retained him as an outside consultant. Martin disclosed this and other material, non-public information in exchange for friendship, reciprocal stock tips about other public companies to which Cooperator Number 1 had access, and future business and networking opportunities.
After Martin separated from Carter’s in March 2009, Martin continued to obtain inside information in advance of Carter’s earnings releases and other events from Posey, who was his friend and former Carter’s co-worker. Posey was employed as a Vice President of Operations for various Carter’s brands and divisions and later as Vice President of Operations for the company’s wholesale sales business from in or about July 2002 until his termination in January 2013. Posey disclosed the information to Martin from early 2009 through July 2010 in exchange for friendship, reciprocal stock tips, and future business and networking opportunities.
Martin in turn traded on the information himself and also continued to provide the inside information to Cooperator Number 1 and others through July 2010. Further, in or about September 2009, Martin began providing the inside information to several financial institutions and investment firms that hired him as an outside consultant, including multibillion dollar New York hedge fund Level Global Investors LP. Martin’s contact at Level Global was Mark Megalli, who was employed as the portfolio manager for Level Global’s consumer sector. Megalli in turn caused Level Global to execute multimillion dollar trades in Carter’s stocks based on the inside information received from Martin from September 2009 through July 2010.
Martin and Posey also traded in Carter’s stock for their own benefit on the basis of material, non-public information in advance of Carter’s earnings releases and other events during their employment with the company. This trading took place during company-wide trading blackout periods that preceded the company’s quarterly and annual earnings releases, even though company policies prohibited company insiders from trading in Carter’s stock at those times.
Martin’s illegal trading and tipping of others between 2005 and 2010 resulted in over $7 million in insider trading gains and losses avoided for Martin and his downstream tippees. Posey’s illegal trading and tipping of Martin between 2009 and 2010 resulted in over $5 million in insider trading gains and losses avoided. Megalli’s illegal trading between 2009 and 2010 resulted in over $3 million in insider trading gains and losses avoided for Level Global.
- Martin, 44, of Roswell, GA, was sentenced to two years in prison to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $950,000, and ordered to perform 80 hours of community service. Martin was convicted on these charges on December 18, 2012, after he pleaded guilty.
- Posey, 53, of Duluth, GA, was sentenced to one year, three months in prison to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $750,000, and ordered to perform 80 hours of community service. Posey was convicted on these charges on June 19, 2013, after he pleaded guilty.
- Megalli, 42, of New York, NY, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $50,000, and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service. Megalli was convicted on these charges on November 14, 2013, after he pleaded guilty.
A fourth defendant, Steven E. Slawson, 67, of Lebanon, New Jersey, was indicted by the grand jury on May 20, 2014. Slawson, a co-founder of Titan Capital Management, is alleged to have traded on tips obtained from Cooperator Number 1 and later directly from Martin from early 2005 through July 2010. The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Richard W. Story for trial. A trial date has not yet been set.
The cases are being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys David M. Chaiken and Stephen H. McClain are prosecuting the cases.
The Atlanta Regional Office of the SEC has conducted a separate investigation into potential civil violations of the U.S. securities laws relating to insider trading in Carter’s stock. In connection with its investigation, the SEC has filed civil enforcement actions against multiple individuals.
Carter’s, Inc. is cooperating in the investigation.
Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed more than 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,700 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/College Park Police Officer Sentenced to Federal Prison for Illegally Obtaining U.S. CitizenshipRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Devon Campbell, a/k/a Wilmott Alvin Livingston, a former Jamaican police officer who illegally entered the United States and then became a U.S. citizen and a College Park police officer, was sentenced to ten months in prison for committing immigration fraud.
“For more than a decade, Campbell violated this country’s immigration laws and deceived this nation’s immigration authorities,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “We require honesty and integrity from our police officers, and Campbell’s fraud on the immigration system violated this trust.”
“The defendant used his fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship to become a police officer in this country, making a mockery of the very laws he was sworn to uphold,” said Brock D. Nicholson, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Atlanta. “U.S. citizenship is eagerly sought by millions of people across the world, and HSI special agents work hard to maintain the integrity of our system by identifying those like Mr. Campbell who seek to gain it through fraud.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges, and other information presented in court: In 2000, Campbell lived in Jamaica, where he had previously been employed as a police officer with the Jamaican Constabulary Force. On November 7, 2000, Campbell left Jamaica and entered the United States using a Jamaican passport bearing the fabricated name Wilmott Alvin Livingston and a false date of birth.
While in the United States, Campbell lived under the Livingston alias. On April 19, 2001, Campbell (using the Livingston alias) married a United States citizen in Jonesboro, Ga. Shortly thereafter, Campbell (under the Livingston name) petitioned to become a Lawful Permanent Resident. On August 13, 2004, U.S. immigration authorities granted the application and Campbell (under the Livingston name) became a permanent resident of the United States.
On October 15, 2007, Campbell, using the Livingston name and date of birth, filed an Application for Naturalization with U.S. immigration services. Although the application required Campbell to list any previously-used names, Campbell marked that section with the letters “N/A,” meaning ‘Not Applicable.’ Campbell also signed the form under penalty of perjury using the fabricated name Wilmott Alvin Livingston. On April 11, 2008, Campbell (under the Livingston alias) became a naturalized U.S. citizen. Later that month, Campbell applied for and was subsequently issued a U.S. passport. On the passport application, Campbell listed his false name and date of birth. Campbell has used his fraudulently-obtained passport to travel back and forth to Jamaica.
Two months after becoming a U.S. citizen, on June 12, 2008, Campbell (under the Livingston identity) and his wife divorced. Eight days later, Campbell (under the Livingston identity) married another woman.
Since 2011, Campbell has served as a police officer with the College Park Police Department. In obtaining his Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training certification, Campbell falsely claimed to be a naturalized United States citizen and submitted an unlawfully obtained Certificate of Naturalization.
On April 8, 2014, Campbell, 46, of Ellenwood, Ga., pleaded guilty to one count of Unlawfully Procuring Citizenship or Naturalization and one count of Using a Passport Secured by False Statements.
As part of his conviction, Campbell’s United States citizenship has been revoked. In addition, after completing his prison sentence, Campbell will be removed from the United States.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.
Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey W. Davis 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Apollo E. Nida Sentenced for Conspiring to Commit Mail, Wire and Bank FraudRead the Press Release
Nida Used Fake Collection Agencies And Databases To Target Identity Theft Victims
ATLANTA - Apollo E. Nida, 35, of Atlanta, Ga., was sentenced today for conspiring to commit mail, wire and bank fraud in a complex fraud scheme which spanned over four years and harmed over 50 victims.
“Identity theft continues to be a focus for my office as thieves continue to refine devious schemes to exploit our citizens,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “This defendant organized two separate fake collection agencies, used them to harvest data from databases like Equifax and LexisNexis, and then deployed that data in identity theft attacks tailored to the vulnerabilities and characteristics of each victim.”
“Today’s sentencing exemplifies impartial justice regardless of economic class or perceived celebrity status. Nida’s sentence should be an eye opener for other like-minded criminals who scheme to steal victims’ identities, defraud them and ignore the consequences of their actions,” said Reginald G. Moore, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Atlanta Field Office.According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Beginning in August 2009, Nida, 35, of Atlanta, Ga., and others obtained stolen checks by stealing them or buying them from other criminal associates. The stolen checks involved in the scheme included United States Treasury Checks, as well as checks stolen from the pension fund of Delta Airlines. Additionally, the conspirators obtained funds by filing fraudulent tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service and making fraudulent claims against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and at least eleven states, all in the names of victims whose identities had been stolen.
Many of these checks were mailed to a large network of mailboxes rented by the conspirators at UPS Stores in the Northern District of Georgia and throughout the nation, for eventual forwarding to the conspirators. The conspirators also obtained fraudulent auto loans secured by vehicles that they had no ownership interest in whatsoever. To convince banks to issue these loans, Nida and his conspirators created fake documents and websites appearing to belong to legitimate auto dealerships.
Once the conspirators obtained the stolen checks, they laundered them through numerous victim financial institutions. Often, the conspirators laundered the checks by opening bank accounts in the names of the payees listed on the face of the checks. This involved impersonating each payee and stealing his or her identity. The conspirators prepared for these impersonations by researching their victims using databases like LexisNexis and Equifax, to which they obtained access through fake collection agencies they had opened as part of the scheme. Sometimes, the conspirators negotiated checks by laundering them in bulk through accounts which appeared to belong to legitimate businesses, such as one in the name “Signature Tax Collections.”
The illegal conduct ended only when agents of the U.S. Secret Service confronted Nida and seized his laptop computer, pursuant to a search warrant, on September 13, 2013.
Nida has been sentenced to 8 years in prison to be followed by 5 years of supervised release. U.S. District Court Judge Charles A. Pannell, Jr. also ordered Nida to pay restitution to the victims of his offenses, and scheduled a separate hearing to take place on July 17, 2014, to calculate the restitution amount. Nida was convicted on May 6, 2014, when he pleaded guilty.This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Georgia Governor’s Office of Consumer Protection.
Assistant United States Attorney Alana R. Black 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Lilburn Resident Sentenced for Illegal Possession of FirearmsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Kevin S. Lahey has been sentenced to serve seven years and three months in prison after pleading guilty to possessing seven firearms while being an unlawful user of controlled substances.
“The significant sentence imposed by the Court serves as a warning that illegal possession of a firearm will be taken seriously by the United States,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “Here, federal and local law enforcement agencies were able to work together to avert what could have been a tragedy by identifying and arresting Kevin Lahey before he could use his weapons to harm others in the community.”
“ATF’s involvement in securing this sentence is a prime example of the successful use of federal laws to confront, engage and eliminate criminal activity by staying on the frontline of preventing violent crime,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Christopher Shaefer. “Criminals must understand that there are serious repercussions for the illegal possession of firearms and that ATF and our law enforcement partners will contribute all necessary time and effort to ensure criminals are brought to justice.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: On February 6, 2013, a man, later identified as Lahey, stole two silencers from a Lawrenceville, Ga., firearms dealer. Three days later, police in Snellville, Ga., arrested Lahey in connection with a shoplifting incident at Wal-Mart where he allegedly attempted to steal two laser sights, a rifle bi-pod stand, and a holster. Lahey resisted arrest when officers attempted to take him into custody. Officers report that, during that scuffle, Lahey dropped a loaded handgun. After his arrest, Lahey was released on bond on February 10, 2013. As a result of this shoplifting arrest, Snellville police were able to identify Lahey as the individual who stole the silencers on February 6, 2013, and they notified the ATF.
A short time later, an ATF task force officer obtained a warrant for Lahey’s arrest and a search warrant for his residence. On February 25, 2013, officers and agents from both the ATF and the Gwinnett County Police Department executed the search warrant. During that search, investigators found one of the stolen silencers attached to a .22 caliber pistol. They later returned and found the second silencer in the crawlspace underneath the home of Lahey’s parents. Neither silencer was registered to Lahey in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, as required by federal law. Also during the search, investigators found multiple firearms - including three rifles and four handguns - in Lahey’s possession. In addition to the firearms, agents seized over 10,000 rounds of ammunition, military-style and hunting knives, marijuana, bongs, drug pipes and other drug paraphernalia, and a body armor fragmentation protective vest.
Lahey, 27, of Lilburn, Ga., has been sentenced to seven years, three months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. He was indicted on federal firearms charges on May 21, 2013. On December 2, 2013, Lahey pleaded guilty to the illegal possession of seven firearms while being an unlawful user of controlled substances.This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Huber 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Griffin, GA. Tax Preparer Sentenced for Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - A federal judge has sentenced Buffy Drake to three years and nine months in prison for filing false tax returns that claimed over $2.5 million in bogus refunds.
“This defendant stole millions of dollars from American taxpayers through her criminal conduct. She is now going to federal prison as a result of her actions,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
“Return preparer fraud is like a contagious disease, it affects not only the preparer, but the individuals who have filed false information with Internal Revenue Service,” said Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge, IRS-Criminal Investigation. “Criminal Investigation is determined to stop these false tax refund schemes. It is our hope that this sentence will send a strong message that participation in refund fraud schemes does not pay and those who chose to participate will be prosecuted.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Drake operated a tax preparation business in Griffin named “Imagine That.” While operating “Imagine That,” Drake filed hundreds of false tax returns that claimed millions of dollars in fraudulent refunds. In total, from 2011 through 2012, Drake filed tax returns claiming in excess of $2,500,000 in fraudulent refunds. Drake retained a substantial portion of the proceeds from this scheme. In some instances, tax returns were filed without the permission of the individuals whose identities were used on the tax returns.
Drake, 43, of Griffin, Ga., was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison and three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay over $2.5 million in restitution. Drake pleaded guilty on March 5, 2014, to one count of wire fraud.
This case was investigated by Special Agents of the Internal Revenue Service‑Criminal Investigation with the assistance of the City of Griffin Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorney Thomas J. Krepp 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Newnan Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Business Owner Sentenced to Prison for Obstructing the Collection of $3 Million in Employment TaxesRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Paulette Bryant has been sentenced to three years in prison for obstructing and impeding the IRS’s collection of almost $3 million in payroll taxes that her business withheld from employee paychecks over a ten year period.
“Honest, hardworking citizens should be assured that employers or business owners who withhold payroll taxes from paychecks and then fail to pay those funds to the IRS will be prosecuted,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
“The manipulation of the payroll system to steal income and evade taxes is a serious offense,” stated Veronica F. Hyman-Pillot, Special Agent in Charge with IRS Criminal Investigation. “This sentence is a vital element in maintaining the public confidence in our legal and financial system.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: Bryant owned and operated a temporary employment staffing business with several locations in North Georgia. Bryant’s business was responsible for withholding payroll taxes from employee paychecks and, along with quarterly filings, paying those taxes and her company’s share of employment taxes to the IRS.
Between 1998 and 2009, except for brief periods during or relating to an IRS audit, Bryant’s business failed to make the required quarterly filings and to pay the IRS the payroll taxes owed by her employees and business. In 2001, the IRS audited her business and assessed Bryant a personal penalty of $1 million in unpaid payroll taxes going back to 1998. Even after this audit and penalty, which went unpaid, Bryant and her businesses continued to fail to file with the IRS and to pay payroll taxes. By 2009, the unpaid payroll taxes and penalty totaled $2,914,931.12.
Bryant used the funds that should have been paid to the IRS to operate her company and fund her personal lifestyle. Although the operation of her business essentially remained the same during this period, Bryant formed and used new, overlapping corporate identities that had various names and that used various pseudonyms as corporate officers. The effect of this was to delay and hinder the IRS’s efforts to collect the employment taxes that her business owed. The business identities used by Bryant included Selective Employment Services, Inc. (formed in 2001), Corporate Staffing, Inc. (formed in 2002), Corporate Solutions Group, Inc. (formed in 2004), and Optimum Staffing Solutions Corporation (formed in 2009).
Bryant, 68, of Stockbridge, Ga., has been sentenced to three years in prison to be followed by 1 year of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2,914,931.12. Bryant was convicted of obstructing and impeding the IRS’s collection of payroll taxes on October 9, 2013, after she pleaded guilty to an Information.
This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Douglas W. Gilfillan 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Two Men Charged with Defrauding Delta and Northwest Air Lines of $22 MillionRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Michael Yedor and Paul Anderson have been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges that they participated in a long-running scheme to defraud Delta Air Lines of millions of dollars. Yedor was arrested in San Diego, Calif. on Saturday, June 21, 2014.
“The longevity and scope of the scheme to defraud Delta is simply astonishing,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “The indictment is an important first step in finally bringing these defendants to justice after so many years of engaging in fraud.”
J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Atlanta Field Office, stated: “The FBI was not only uniquely positioned to investigate and present for prosecution this extensive case of fraud targeting Delta Air Lines, but also to coordinate the arrest of one of those individuals upon his return to the U.S. The FBI would like to thank our many law enforcement partners for their assistance in this matter, particularly those involved with the apprehension of Mr. Yedor at San Diego, California.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Anderson had been an employee of Northwest Airlines since 1979. In 2008, Delta Air Lines purchased Northwest. The two airlines merged into a single company in December 2009, at which time Anderson became an employee of Delta working in its Minneapolis, Minn., office.
The indictment alleges that, from at least 2004 through 2013, Anderson was involved with Yedor in a scheme to defraud Northwest and, later, Delta, by submitting numerous false invoices on behalf of a company, Airborne Voice and Data, purportedly owned by Yedor. The invoices sought payment from the airlines for goods provided and services supposedly rendered by Airborne Voice and Data, when in fact, both Anderson and Yedor knew that Yedor’s company had not provided any such goods or services.
The indictment also alleges that Yedor sent the invoices to Anderson to be approved. Anderson approved the fraudulent invoices, which caused the airlines to issue payments to Airborne Voice and Data. In exchange for approving each of the invoices, Anderson received a portion of the proceeds of the fraud. The indictment alleges that Yedor and Anderson caused Northwest and Delta to issue approximately $22 million in payments to Airborne on the basis of the false invoices between 2004 and 2013.
Yedor, 62, of Los Angeles, Calif., and Anderson, 57, of Apple Valley, Minn., were indicted on June 10, 2014, and have each been charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and ninety-six counts of mail fraud. The indictment was unsealed after Yedor’s arrest on Saturday, June 21, 2014.
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.
Delta Air Lines is fully cooperating with the investigation.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The arrest of Michael Yedor involved the assistance of and the FBI’s coordination with several federal and local authorities in locating and interdicting Yedor’s motor yacht, including: U.S. Customs and Border Protection Office of Air and Marine; U.S. Coast Guard; U.S. Border Patrol; San Diego Regional Coordinating Mechanism (ReCoM); San Diego Harbor Police; and San Diego Joint Harbor Operations Center.
Assistant United States Attorneys Glenn D. Baker, Jamie L. Mickelson, and Jenny Turner 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Northern District of Georgia Targets Prescription Drug AbuseRead the Press Release
ATLANTA – Abuse of pain medications like oxycodone continues to plague Georgia communities at epidemic levels and now accounts for six times more deaths than all of the traditional illegal drugs combined. The United States Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Georgia has enhanced its prosecution efforts on the prescription drug abuse problem as part of a broad effort to reverse this deadly trend.
“The abuse of prescription drugs and its related criminal activity is a significant public safety problem in many Georgia communities - one we have made a central focus of our office,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “This problem is too big to prosecute away and requires solutions from doctors, pharmacists, legislators, and public health officials. But we are committed to prosecuting and punishing those who are the primary contributors to this problem.”
“Over the past decade Oxycodone and other opioids have risen to be the most abused and overdose related drugs in the State of Georgia,” said C. Richard Allen, Director of the Georgia Drugs & Narcotics Agency. “Five of the top eight drugs found in overdose deaths are opioids. Of those eight, Oxycodone products are #2 on this list. Ten of the top twenty five most prescribed drugs are opioids. We applaud the U.S. Attorney's office and its efforts to help stop, or at least slow down, this deadly epidemic.”
In the past year, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has successfully prosecuted three cases that reflect the broad spectrum of criminal activity associated with prescription drug abuse.
Most recently, nine of eleven defendants were sentenced for participating in a scheme to obtain and sell painkillers using forged prescriptions. “Many of the defendants sentenced were themselves addicts, some of whom became addicted after receiving a lawful prescription for oxycodone,” said Yates. “Some of them even engaged in further criminal behavior to feed their own addiction. These criminal acts also perpetuated the addiction of others by putting the drugs on the street. It’s a terrible cycle.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court in the prosecution of eleven defendants: Holly Worley forged prescriptions for oxycodone using the names of actual doctors. The remaining ten defendants would then present the forged prescriptions at numerous pharmacies throughout the Atlanta and North Georgia area to obtain what appeared to be legitimately obtained pain medication. Once the conspirators received the drugs, Worley and Jason Johns would deliver the drugs to others to have them sold on the streets. Worley rewarded the co-conspirators for the participation with either cash or a portion of their oxycodone pills.
All eleven defendants pleaded guilty to conspiring to possess oxycodone with intent to distribute, and many were sentenced by United States District Court Judge Orinda D. Evans on June 19 and 20, 2014:
• Holly Noel Worley, 29, of Cuming, Ga., received a sentence of eight years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release;
• Jason Cody Johns, 30, of Gainesville, Ga., received a sentence of eight years, seven months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release;
• Shayna Marie Massara, 23, of Alpharetta, Ga., received a sentence of five years of probation with a condition of eight months of home confinement;
• Kelly Webb Ardizone, 26, of Cumming, Ga., received a sentence of two years, three months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release;
• Michael Ardizone, 28, of Cumming, Ga., received a sentence of one year in prison, in addition to receiving credit for an additional 18 months already served, to be followed by three years of supervised release;
• Keva Lee Hamrick, 23, of Cumming, Ga., received a sentence of five years of probation;
• Andrew Derek Johnson, 30, of Lawrenceville, Ga., received a sentence of two years in prison;
• Tyler Starnes Newsom, 24, of Suwanee, Ga., received a sentence of two years, six months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release;
• James Cory Linder, 24, of Roswell, Ga., received a sentence of two years in prison.
James Brandon Sweatman, 27, and Brian Thompson Myers, 33, both of Cumming, Ga., are scheduled to be sentenced on July 7, 2014.
“This case demonstrates cycle of harm caused by the abuse of prescription drugs,” said U.S Attorney Yates. “Through the combination of incarceration and substance abuse treatment, we hope to break this cycle so that the defendants can become productive members of society.”
Prescription drug abuse manifests itself in many different ways. Falsifying prescriptions, theft, or just purchasing pills on the street are some of the more popular methods of illegally obtaining oxycodone. However, many abusers of prescription drugs also obtain oxycodone from illegitimate pain clinics, known as “pill mills.”
“Illegitimate pain clinics prey on so-called patients who are addicted to opiates,” said Harry S. Sommers, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division. “Some of the doctors who dispense these addictive analgesics often operate under the guise of a stethoscope and a white coat, when in actuality they are nothing more than drug traffickers.”
In one recent “pill mill” prosecution, Jason Cole Votrobek and Roland Rafael Castellanos were non-physician owners of the ‘Atlanta Medical Group’ (AMG) medical clinic in Cartersville, Ga., which served as a front for the mass distribution of addictive pain killers.
“The defendants in this case preyed upon those addicted to prescription drugs in order to line their own pockets,” said Yates.
In their respective capacities, Votrobek and Castellanos, along with Jesse Violante, financed the clinic and worked to procure and distribute oxycodone pills to addicts and distributors. Votrobek, Castellanos, and Violante directed the clinic’s doctors to see as many patients as possible, and to prescribe as many oxycodone pills as possible, in order to generate mass profits. Dr. James Chapman allegedly did so, however, without conducting sufficient medical examinations and, indeed, according to evidence produced at trial, was frequently incapacitated due to intoxication. Tara Atkins served as the office manager. She filled out prescriptions for the doctor to sign, and the amounts of pills distributed to patients were excessive, and with unusual dosage patterns.
Evidence offered at trial established that the clinic was really a drug distribution operation with over 98 % of its patients traveling to the clinic from surrounding states, the majority from Kentucky and Tennessee. Many of those visiting had obvious signs of being addicts. The clinic engaged in unusual practices, like, permitting non-medical staff to assist with medical procedures, such as taking blood pressure, to maximize the number of patients seen. Indeed, in 2011, the clinic was one of the ‘Top 15’ purchasers of oxycodone in the nation. Votrobek and Castellanos made millions of dollars during the clinic's approximately one year of operation. Votrobek and Castellanos established multiple bank accounts, many in third party names, to conceal the windfall profits.
Jason Cole Votrobek had previously been acquitted in Florida of similar charges stemming from his ownership of a Florida pain clinic. During trial, the government offered evidence that Votrobek, 30, of Vero Beach Fla., Roland Rafael Castellanos, 34, of Hollywood, Fla., and Jesse Violante, 35, of Vero Beach, Fla., financed and operated the clinic. Tara Atkins, 36, of Cartersville, Ga., served as the office manager. Dr. James Chapman, 64, of Macon, Ga., served as the primary doctor.
Both Votrobek and Castellanos were convicted on March 26, 2014, after a month-long jury trial on federal drug and money laundering charges for owning and operating the AMG pain clinic, and, on June 19, 2014, they were each sentenced to 15 years in federal prison. Jesse Violante was sentenced to four years and four months in prison and Tara Atkins was sentenced to two years in prison. Dr. James Chapman is presently awaiting trial.
In another recent case, Gerald Young and Rodney Strachan were two Florida men who supplied large amounts of the prescription narcotic oxycodone to pill distributors in northwest Georgia. They were sentenced to federal prison in February 2014.
Young and Strachan stockpiled copious amounts of oxycodone pills, which they would then provide to John Gregory Alvarez and his co-conspirators on consignment. Alvarez’s drug trafficking organization was part of a thirteen-person conspiracy that distributed oxycodone in northwest Georgia and laundered the proceeds of the illicit sales of the pills. The organization obtained the vast majority of its pills from Florida. Specifically, Alvarez, and later co-defendants that he recruited, would travel to Florida on a monthly basis to obtain prescription oxycodone painkillers from both Young and Strachan.
Members of the Alvarez organization would sell the pills for a profit, and then reinvest the proceeds into the organization by using the funds to pay for the previous month’s supply of narcotics. The reach of this organization’s illegal oxycodone distribution included not only the northwest Georgia area, but also extended into Tennessee, West Virginia, and Kentucky. Investigators determined that this conspiracy was responsible for trafficking hundreds of thousands of oxycodone pills.
Young, 69, of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., was sentenced to ten years, one month in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Strachan, 58, of Pompano Beach, Fla., Strachan was sentenced to nine years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. They were the last defendants to be sentenced for their roles in this oxycodone distribution ring based in Rossville, Ga. For his role in leading the northwest Georgia drug trafficking organization, Alvarez was sentenced on October 21, 2011, to 21 years, ten months in prison to be followed by six years of supervised release.
“The significant sentences imposed for Young and Strachan are another indicator of our office’s continued commitment to ending the illegal distribution of prescription painkillers in our community,” said Yates. “In recent years, the abuse of oxycodone has risen to epidemic proportions, and fatal overdose rates continue to rise. Anyone who is involved in the illegal acquisition and distribution of pain killers, including unscrupulous doctors, pharmacists, or clinic owners, is on notice that they will be found out and prosecuted.”
In addition to prosecuting criminal cases, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has conducted outreach events to spread the warning to Georgia communities about the dangers of prescription drug abuse and the need for treatment and services for those who become addicted to the substances. In 2011, the office hosted a prescription drug summit at Georgia State University that brought together speakers from national and local law enforcement agencies, medical experts in prescription drug abuse, pharmacists, and substance abuse counselors, to explore the scope of the prescription drug abuse problem and steps to address the problem. In 2014, the office hosted a second summit focusing on the rising dangers of synthetic drugs, convening law enforcement together with medical experts, educators, and university and school officials to publicize the devastating effects of these drugs and how we can best target the problem.
The Worley case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Elizabeth M. Hathaway, and it was investigated by Special Agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office, Dawson County Sheriff’s Office, and the Georgia Drugs and Narcotics Agency.
The Votrobek and Castellanos case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys G. Scott Hulsey, Cassandra J. Schansman, and Laurel R. Boatright, and investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration’s Diversion Group, Bartow/Cartersville Drug Task Force, Georgia Drugs and Narcotics Agency, and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; with special assistance from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Kentucky State Police.
Assistant United States Attorney C. Brock Brockington prosecuted the Young and Strachan case, and the investigation was conducted by Special Agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, officers of the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit Drug Task Force, and deputies of the Catoosa County Sheriff’s Office.
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.com .
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 http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.Disbarred Attorney Sentenced for Stealing Client FundsRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Thomas W. Dickson has been sentenced for stealing over $300,000 from his law firm’s clients.
“When Dickson stole over $300,000 of his clients’ money, he violated the law,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates.
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: In December 2008, while employed with a large Atlanta, Ga., law firm, Dickson was retained by Tenants In Common (TIC), owners of commercial real estate purchased through DBSI Inc., an Idaho based company. DBSI sold TIC investments or fractional ownership interests in commercial real estate to investors across the country. In November 2008, DBSI filed bankruptcy and many of the investors lost their life savings. In December 2008, several TIC property owners retained Dickson to represent their interests in the bankruptcy action. In 2009, Dickson encouraged TIC owners to transfer rents and other income into his law firm’s trust account.
Between February 24, 2010, and January 6, 2012, Dickson fraudulently directed his law firm’s accounting department to unlawfully transfer over $300,000 from the law firm’s trust account to a checking account controlled by Dickson and his wife. Dickson led the firm’s accounting department to believe that the funds were being transferred on behalf of TIC clients to pay legitimate third party expenses. In March 2013, Dickson was disbarred by the Georgia State Bar.
Dickson, 53, of Boulder, Colo., has been sentenced by United States District Judge Willis B. Hunt, Jr., to 12 months and one day in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, with the first six months of supervised release to be served in home confinement, 120 hours of community service, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $175,951.98. Dickson pled guilty to wire fraud on August 14, 2013.This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey A. Brown 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 home page for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division is http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.
Atlanta Man Who Impersonated A DEA Agent Pleads Guilty to Charges Related to Prescription Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
ATLANTA - Jason Elledge, who schemed to obtain controlled substances from local pharmacies, has pleaded guilty to impersonating a federal officer, making false statements to law enforcement, and attempting to obtain fraudulent prescriptions.
“Elledge victimized several doctors with his prescription fraud scheme,” said United States Attorney Sally Quillian Yates. “He used the doctors’ identities to call in fraudulent prescriptions and then, by pretending to be a DEA agent, extracted information from the doctors that he then used to avoid detection by law enforcement. Despite Elledge’s efforts to hide his crimes, today he answered for them.”
Harry S. Sommers, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division commented, “DEA is fully committed to tirelessly pursuing those who knowingly break the law by victimizing healthcare professionals with prescription fraud schemes. Mr. Elledge’s criminal actions of prescription drug fraud, impersonating a federal officer and making false statements ultimately led to his demise. This successful investigation was built upon the collaborative efforts of a multitude of law enforcement agencies.”
According to United States Attorney Yates, the charges and other information presented in court: From January 2013 through November 2013, Elledge engaged in a scheme to illegally obtain controlled substances from local pharmacies and avoid detection by law enforcement. First, Elledge selected certain Atlanta, Ga., area doctors to target. Using those doctors’ identities, Elledge called in prescriptions to local pharmacies using various aliases as patient names. The prescriptions typically would consist of 120 tablets of Lortab 10/500mg or Norco 10/325mg, both Schedule III controlled substances, and other non-narcotic drugs. Elledge included non-narcotics in the prescriptions to avoid raising suspicion with the pharmacists that the prescriptions were fraudulent.
Elledge then called the offices of the doctors whom he had targeted and identified himself as DEA agent ‘Alan Velez’ or ‘Jason McDonald.’ He explained to the doctors’ staff that unknown individuals were using the doctors’ identities to call in fraudulent prescriptions to area pharmacies. Elledge claimed that he was investigating the fraudulent prescriptions and needed ‘real time’ information from the doctors’ staff about calls from pharmacies seeking to verify prescriptions. To that end, he instructed the doctors’ staff to contact him whenever they received calls from pharmacies seeking to verify prescriptions for individuals who were not patients of the doctors. Elledge told the doctors’ staff that having this information would allow him to send a member of his team to the pharmacies to arrest the individual(s) who arrived to pick up the fraudulent prescriptions.
In reality, when the doctors’ staff contacted Elledge to report a verification call from a pharmacy about a fraudulent prescription and the prescription was one Elledge had called in, he knew to not go to that pharmacy to pick up that prescription because the pharmacy knew the prescription was fraudulent. Attempting to pick up a prescription that the pharmacy had verified as fraudulent exposed Elledge to the risk of encountering law enforcement.Several of the doctors’ offices Elledge targeted complied with his instructions because they initially believed Elledge was in fact a real DEA agent.
As part of this scheme, on August 1, 2013, Elledge attempted to pick up a fraudulent prescription for 120 tablets of Norco 10/325mg in the name of ‘Kenneth Mayes’ from a Target pharmacy in East Point, Ga. On November 5, 2013, Elledge attempted to pick up a fraudulent prescription for 120 tablets of Lortab 10/500mg in the name of ‘John Coventa’ from a Walgreens pharmacy in Conyers, Ga. On November 7, 2013, Elledge attempted to pick up a fraudulent prescription for 120 tablets of Norco 10/325mg in the name of ‘Sam(uel) Garcia’ from the Atlantic Station Target pharmacy.
On November 7, 2013, when DEA agents made contact with Elledge at the Atlantic Station Target pharmacy, he claimed that another individual, J.L.K., called in the fraudulent prescriptions for Lortab and Norco tablets to various area pharmacies using aliases; J.L.K. would direct him to visit the pharmacies J.L.K. contacted and pick up the fraudulent prescriptions; and Elledge would give 100 of the 120 Lortab and Norco tablets from each fraudulent prescription that he picked up to J.L.K., who would often barter the Lortab and Norco tablets for Oxycodone tablets. Elledge later admitted to DEA agents that these statements were false and that J.L.K. was not involved in the scheme.
On March 18, 2014, Elledge, 40, of Atlanta, Ga., was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of impersonating a federal officer, one count of making false statements to law enforcement, and three counts of attempting to obtain prescriptions by fraud.
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 4, 2014, at 10:30 a.m. before United States District Judge Charles A. Pannell Jr.,
This case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Special Assistant United States Attorney DeLana M. Jones 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.com.
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 http://www.justice.gov/usao/gan/.