District of New Hampshire

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE:   John Allen Wright, 46, of Milton, appeared in United States District Court today and was sentenced to 160 years in prison, the maximum penalty allowed, after pleading guilty to five counts of sexual exploitation of children and one count of possession of child pornography, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.  
                            
          In February, 2011, a member of New Hampshire’s Internet Crimes Against Children (NH ICAC) Task Force initiated an undercover investigation to locate and identify individuals possessing and trading images of child pornography through file sharing networks.  Information obtained as a result of the investigation led to the issuance of a search warrant for Wright’s residence in Milton, New Hampshire.  In the course of the search, computers and peripherals were seized and forensic examination revealed several videos depicting Wright sexually assaulting minor children who were passengers aboard his school bus. The children, some of whom were completely non-verbal, suffered from a variety of disabilities.

The initial search of Wright’s computer also revealed thousands of child sexual assault images that had been downloaded from the internet.  A subsequent federal search warrant yielded more evidence linking Wright to the production of his own videos. The defendant has been in custody since his indictment in October, 2011.  He entered guilty pleas to all counts in the indictment in September of last year.

            United States Attorney Kacavas observed that “this case represents yet another example of our resolve to eradicate the threat to our children posed by predators like the Defendant. While a sentence of this duration is beyond man’s capacity to serve, justice for the young victims and a just punishment for this Defendant are beyond our capacity to achieve.  Therefore, only the maximum possible punishment authorized by law is appropriate and like-minded individuals who seek to prey on our children be warned.”   

United States Attorney Kacavas would like to thank the NH ICAC Task Force, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Rochester Police Department, the New London Police Department, the Strafford County Attorney’s Office, the Dover Police Department, and the Kittery (ME) Police Department, all of whom contributed valuable time and effort to this investigation and prosecution.

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

CONCORD, NH – Jose M. Reyes, 53, of Boston, Massachusetts, was sentenced in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to 10 years in federal prison and 4 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to participating in a cocaine distribution conspiracy and three counts of selling cocaine in the Manchester area, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.

            Reyes was categorized as a career offender under the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines based on prior convictions for drug trafficking.  Career offenders are subject to enhanced penalties under the sentencing guidelines.

            The case was investigated by the Manchester Police Department and prosecuted by First Assistant United States Attorney Don Feith.

CONCORD, N.H. – Felix Urena, 29, of Manchester, was sentenced in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to 5 months imprisonment and three years of supervised release, which includes 5 months of electronic monitoring, after pleading guilty to three counts of distribution of the controlled substance- crack cocaine, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas

            In March of 2011, the FBI Safe Street Task Force conducted an investigation into the illegal sale of controlled substances within the city of Manchester.  A confidential informant identified Urena as a source of supply for “crack” cocaine.  On three separate occasions, Urena sold the confidential informant crack cocaine.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra M. Walsh.

CONCORD, NH –Inez Rodriguez, 43, of Manchester, was sentenced in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to 12 months in prison and 2 years of supervised release, for her involvement in the distribution of oxycodone and crack cocaine, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.

Inez Rodriguez’s son, Felix Fernandez was a large-scale Percocet distributor.  Felix Fernandez supplied defendant Inez Rodriguez, and his grandmother, Aida Marquez, a/k/a “Abuela,” with Percocet for distribution.  The Percocet was distributed from various residences in Manchester, including, the residence of Felix Fernandez, the residence of Inez Rodriguez, and the residence of Aida Marquez.  

            The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Safe Streets Gang Task Force and the Manchester, New Hampshire, Police Department Special Investigation Unit.  The arrests consisted of a joint federal, state and local effort.  Members of the arrest teams included: (1) the Federal Bureau of Investigation; (2) the Manchester, New Hampshire, Police Department; (3) the United States Marshal’s Service;   (4) the New Hampshire State Police; (5) the Nashua, New Hampshire, Police Department; and (6) the New Hampshire Department of Probation and Parole and prosecuted by assistant United States Attorney Terry Ollila.

            The Safe Streets Gang Task Force initiative, part of the FBI's Violent Crimes and Major Offenders Program, was created to encourage coordinated crime fighting efforts among FBI field offices and our local law enforcement partners. The mission of the Safe Streets Gang Task Force is to effectively utilize task forces to investigate, locate, arrest, and prosecute subjects for serious federal and state crimes, including drug and weapons violations, armed robbery, bank robbery, kidnapping, and gang and drug-related violence.

BOSTON, MA – Torromeo Industries, Inc. will pay a $135,000 civil penalty and implement a compliance program to resolve numerous violations of the Clean Water Act (CWA) at its Kingston, N.H. sand, gravel and stone mining and ready-mix concrete plant. The settlement is pursuant to a consent decree lodged today in the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire, between the company and the U.S. Government.

In addition to paying the $135,000 penalty, the company has agreed to implement a $500,000 Supplemental Environmental Project.  The company will remove an impervious parking lot adjacent to Cobbett’s Pond, in Windham, N.H., and replace it with a 35,000 sq. foot pervious concrete parking lot.  This project will result in a significant decrease in the amount of polluted storm water that drains into Cobbett’s Pond.

Under the terms of the federal consent decree, the company will implement storm water pollution control measures designed to reduce the impacts of storm water discharges into surface waters.  In addition, the company will completely eliminate process waste water discharges from the site.

The complaint, filed in federal district court in Nov. 2010, alleged that the company violated the Clean Water Act by discharging stormwater and process water into wetlands and waterways, including the Little River, without the required authorization under a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit.

In a parallel state settlement, the NHDES announced today that the company has agreed to pay a $700,000 civil penalty for the unpermitted filling of approximately 12.5 acres of wetlands and streams at its plant in Kingston, N.H.  The state settlement requires the company to restore a significant area of filled wetlands and to preserve 69 acres of land on Bayberry Pond in Kingston. The federal and state enforcement actions arose from a joint inspection by the U.S. EPA and NHDES in 2009.

Process waste water discharges are strictly prohibited under the CWA, unless a company obtains a permit to allow for those discharges.  Waste water from concrete plants typically contains high pH, oils, greases, and high levels or total suspended solids.  When these solids settle they can form sediment deposits on the bottom of the water bodies that destroy the bottom fauna and the spawning grounds of fish.  High pH waters from truck wash-out and wash-off from concrete manufacturing sites are highly corrosive.  Rather than obtain individual discharge permits with stringent effluent limitations, most concrete manufacturing facilities contain, treat, and often recycle their process wastewaters onsite.  As part of this settlement, Torromeo agreed to eliminate all off-site waste water discharges.

“Stormwater runoff and process water discharges from the sand and gravel and ready-mix concrete industry are a significant source of water pollution,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA’s New England office.  “We consider the violations in this case to be extremely serious and we are glad that the company worked with EPA and the State to resolve these violations.”

United States Attorney John Kacavas credits the cooperative efforts of the EPA Region 1, the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, and Torromeo Industries in developing a workable plan. “The terms of the Consent Decree will protect New Hampshire’s natural resources from further degradation and deter others from engaging in irresponsible environmental impact practices.”

The settlement requires that the company conduct additional monitoring and reporting of storm water discharges, maintain a storm water pollution prevention plan, hire personnel certified in storm water management to oversee compliance at all both its Kingston, N.H. and Methuen, Mass. facilities where storm water permits are required, and provide training in storm water management for all operational employees. 

The settlement is the latest in a series of federal enforcement actions to address storm water violations from industrial facilities and construction sites around the country.

The consent decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court for New Hampshire, is subject to a 30-day public comment period commencing upon publication of notice of lodging of the consent decree in the federal register, and approval by the federal court.  A copy of the consent decree will be available on the Department of Justice Web site at http://www.usdoj.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html.

More Information: - EPA enforcement of Clean Water Act in New England https://www3.epa.gov/region1/sso/enforcement.html

- Storm Water Permits in New England http://epa.gov/region1/npdes/stormwater

CONCORD, N.H. – George McAlpin, 34, of Berlin, was sentenced in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to 8 years in federal prison and 15 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to transportation and possession of child pornography, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.                               

            In May of 2010, law enforcement agents in Chicago, IL, conducted an investigation into the illegal trafficking of child pornography.  Information forwarded to the Federal Bureau of Investigation indicated that images of child pornography had been sent to the defendant’s email account.  McAlpin was interviewed by agents of the FBI, and admitted to knowingly possessing and transmitting images of child pornography via computer.  A search of the defendant’s computer revealed thousands of images and numerous videos depicting the sexual assaults of children.

McAlpin will be required to register as a sex offender in any state in which he lives or works following his release from prison.

            This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Berlin Police Department and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.   The case was prosecuted by United States Attorney John P. Kacavas and Assistant United States Attorney Helen White Fitzgibbon, the U.S. Attorney’s coordinator for Project Safe Childhood.

Project Safe Childhood is a nationwide initiative of the United States Department of Justice aimed at combating the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.   Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

CONCORD, NH - Neville Padmore, 30, of Manchester, was sentenced in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to forty-eight months in prison and three years of supervised release for possessing controlled substances with the intent to distribute them, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.

On February 2, 2012, the Manchester Police Department found distribution quantities of oxycodone and marijuana in Padmore’s possession when they executed a warrant to search Padmore’s Manchester apartment.

            This matter was investigated by the Manchester Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Morse.

CONCORD, N.H. – Joseph Edwards, 38, of Goffstown was sentenced in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to 8 years in federal prison and 10 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to one count of possession of child pornography, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.                              

            Edwards was arrested in April of 2012 following a criminal investigation by the Goffstown Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that began when a citizen reported that images of child pornography had been observed in Edward’s residence.  A search warrant executed at Edward’s residence revealed numerous videos depicting the sexual assault of children that had been downloaded through the internet and stored on a computer owned by Edwards.

            In February 2006, the Department of Justice introduced Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys Offices, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

            This case was investigated by the Goffstown Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.   The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Helen White Fitzgibbon, the U.S. Attorney’s coordinator for Project Safe Childhood.

CONCORD, N.H. –Maria M. Ulloa, 51, of Nashua, was convicted in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire of filing false, fictitious and fraudulent claims for tax refunds with the Internal Revenue Service following a five day jury trial, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.

             Ulloa operated Main Travel, a Nashua business that provided, among other things, federal income tax return preparation services.  During the 2007 and 2008 tax filing seasons, she filed ten false federal income tax returns in the names of her clients, diverting most of the resulting inflated tax refunds to herself.  The jury returned guilty verdicts on all ten counts. 

Ulloa faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison and criminal fines of up to $250,000 on each count.  Ulloa will be confined to her home and subject to electronic monitoring pending sentencing which is presently scheduled for April 29, 2013.

Ulloa’s prosecution arose from an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation office in Manchester.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Nick Abramson and Bill Morse.

CONCORD, N.H. –   William Orestis, 64, of Greenland, New Hampshire, was sentenced in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to 33 months in prison and 3 years of supervised release for a mail fraud offense, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.
 
From approximately November 2003 to July 2010, Orestis and Steven Lewis solicited money on behalf of a sham investment company, Equivest, LLC.  Orestis and Lewis falsely assured investors that their money would be used to purchase foreign currencies and to support Equivest’s business activities.  They provided bogus account statements to investors that falsely claimed that impressive profits had been earned in Equivest accounts by other investors.  They also falsely assured many investors that their accounts would earn 12 percent interest annually and promised other investors that their accounts would earn income at rates as high as 18 percent annually.

Orestis and Lewis fraudulently obtained approximately $696,732 from investors, but used only a portion of that money to buy foreign currencies and made payments totaling approximately $124,715 to some investors in order to lull them into a false sense of security regarding the performance of their Equivest accounts.  As a result, the investors were defrauded of about $572,017.

On December 11, 2012, Lewis pled guilty to wire fraud.  He is scheduled to be sentenced on March 28, 2013.

            The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bob Kinsella.

CONCORD – Douglas McCullom, 52, pled guilty in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to one count of fraudulently obtaining controlled substances, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.

            According to documents that were filed in United States District Court, McCullom is a doctor of osteopathic medicine who is licensed to practice medicine in Maine.  He worked as a physician for the Department of Veterans Affairs in New Hampshire.  In 2010, McCullom wrote approximately 17 prescriptions for oxycodone and OxyContin that were not documented in the medical records of one of his patients.  Some of these prescriptions were written for the patient after McCullom was placed on worker’s compensation leave.  The patient has stated that he later provided some of these pills to McCullom.

            McCullom had a registration with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) that allowed him to write prescriptions for controlled substances.  As part of his plea agreement, McCullom has agreed to surrender his DEA registration and never to seek another DEA registration.  He also must advise the licensing authorities in Maine about his conviction and is scheduled to be sentenced on April 15, 2013.

            In November of 2012, McCullom entered into a separate civil settlement agreement to resolve allegations that he violated federal regulations when he issued prescriptions that were not for a legitimate medical purpose and were outside the scope of his DEA registration.  While not admitting any wrongdoing, McCullom paid $25,000 to resolve his potential civil liability.

The case was investigated by the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Drug Enforcement Administration.  The Office of Inspector General of the Office of Personnel Management also provided assistance in this investigation.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John J. Farley.

CONCORD, N.H. – Lisa Biron, 43, of Manchester was convicted today in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire on child exploitation charges, including transportation of a child for illegal sexual conduct and manufacturing and possessing child pornography, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.

The investigation began in September of last year when an 18-year-old male went to the Manchester Police and reported that he met the defendant, Lisa Biron on Craig’s List and that she had shown him videos of a minor child engaged in sexual activity.   The investigation then revealed that in May of 2012, the defendant took a minor child to Ontario, Canada where she produced videos of that minor engaged in sexual activity.  A search warrant was executed for Lisa Biron’s computer which revealed that she had produced additional images of child pornography. 

U.S. Attorney Kacavas would like to thank the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection, the Hillsborough County Attorney’s Office, the Manchester Police Department, the Strafford County House of Corrections and the Ontario Provincial Police for their efforts in bringing this case to a successful prosecution.

WASHINGTON – A Romanian national was sentenced today to serve 21 months in prison for his role in an international, multimillion-dollar scheme to remotely hack into and steal payment card data from hundreds of U.S. merchants’ computers, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney for the District of New Hampshire John P. Kacavas; and Holly Fraumeni, Resident Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service (USSS), Manchester, N.H., Resident Office.

Cezar Butu, 27, of Ploiesti, Romania, was sentenced by Judge Steven J. McAuliffe in U.S. District Court in New Hampshire.

On Sept. 17, 2012, Butu pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit access device fraud. 

In his guilty plea, Butu admitted that, from approximately 2009-2011, he  participated in a Romanian-based conspiracy to hack into hundreds of U.S.-based computers to steal credit, debit and payment account numbers and associated data (collectively “payment card data”) that belonged to U.S. cardholders.  According to court documents, Butu and his co-conspirators used the stolen payment card data to make unauthorized charges on, and/or transfers of funds from, cardholders’ accounts (or alternatively to transfer the stolen payment card data to other co-conspirators who would do the same).  Butu admitted that he repeatedly asked an alleged co-conspirator to provide him with stolen payment card data and that the alleged co-conspirator provided him with instructions for how to access a website where a portion of the stolen payment card data was stored.  Butu later attempted to use the stolen payment card data to make unauthorized charges on, or transfers of funds from, the accounts.  According to Butu’s plea agreement, he also attempted to sell, or otherwise transfer, the stolen payment card data to other co-conspirators for them to use in a similar manner.  Butu admitted to acquiring stolen payment card data belonging to approximately 140 cardholders during the course of the scheme.

In his plea agreement, Butu agreed to be sentenced to 21 months in prison.

Butu’s co-conspirator Iulian Dolan pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud and two counts of conspiracy to commit access device fraud, and has agreed to be sentenced to seven years in prison. Dolan’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 4, 2013.

Alleged co-conspirator Adrian-Tiberiu Oprea is scheduled for trial on Feb. 20, 2013, in U.S. District Court in New Hampshire.

The case was investigated by the USSS, with the assistance of the New Hampshire State Police and the Romanian Directorate of Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Mona Sedky in the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Arnold H. Huftalen from the District of New Hampshire.

CONCORD – John Giannelli, Sr., 66, of Danvers, Massachusetts, was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison today after pleading guilty on September 27, 2012 in the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to one count of money laundering, one count of operating an illegal gambling business, and five counts of impeding the administration of the Internal Revenue laws, announced United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.

            Giannelli operated a computer based sports betting business while he resided in Peabody, Massachusetts and then Kingston, New Hampshire.  Giannelli controlled access, through the use of user identifications and passwords, to a gambling site and granted access to that site to dozens of agents.  Approximately 300 customers making sports related wagers were able to gain access to the site through the agents and Giannelli was able to monitor the overall betting activity.   A forensic analysis of betting records obtained from computers seized at Giannelli’s residence in March 2012 established that the operation generated gross profits of approximately $188,000 over a twelve week period.

            The money laundering charges arose from a scheme in which Giannelli was listed as an employee on a former sports betting customer’s business.  Giannelli provided the business with cash proceeds generated by the gambling business and, in return, the business issued paychecks to Giannelli, thus making it appear that Giannelli’s income was legitimate.  The business also caused to be generated false W-2 forms that Giannelli used to support tax returns filed with the IRS.  Between 2003 and 2007, Giannelli laundered approximately $452,000 in proceeds through the scheme.  The District Court ordered a money judgment forfeiture in the amount of $452,000.

            The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service.