District of New Jersey
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Leader of Largest Counterfeit Goods Conspiracy Ever Charged Sentenced to 10 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – One of the leaders of a massive, international counterfeit goods conspiracy was sentenced today to 120 months in prison for his role in the scheme, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Hai Dong Jiang, a/k/a “Jimmy,” a/k/a “Dong,” 37, of Staten Island, N.Y., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in Court:
From November 2009 through February 2012, Dong Jiang and his co-defendants ran one of the largest counterfeit goods smuggling and distribution conspiracies ever charged by the Department of Justice. The defendants and others conspired to import hundreds of containers of counterfeit goods – primarily handbags, and footwear, and perfume – from China into the United States in furtherance of the conspiracy. These goods, if legitimate, would have had a retail value of more than $300 million.
The counterfeit goods were manufactured in China and smuggled into the United States through containers fraudulently associated with legitimate importers, with false and fraudulent shipping paperwork playing a critical role in the smuggling scheme. Some of the conspirators created and managed the flow of false shipping paperwork between China and the United States, and supervised the importation of counterfeit goods, and others controlled the importation of the counterfeit goods into the United States.
Other conspirators managed the distribution of counterfeit goods once those goods arrived in the United States. After importation, the counterfeit goods were delivered to warehouses, and distributed throughout New York, New Jersey, and elsewhere. Certain conspirators paid large amounts of cash to undercover law enforcement officers to assist in the removal of counterfeit goods from the port.Some conspirators acted as wholesalers for the counterfeit goods, supplying retailers who sold counterfeit goods to customers in the United States. Other conspirators were money structurers, who arranged for cash to be wired to China in amounts small enough to avoid applicable financial reporting requirements, to evade detection of the smuggling scheme and related proceeds.
Law enforcement introduced several undercover special agents (collectively, the UCs) to the conspirators. The UCs purported to have unspecified “connections” at the port, which allowed the UCs to release containers that were on hold and pass them through to the conspirators. The conspirators paid the UCs for these “services.” In total, during the course of this investigation, the conspirators provided the UCs more than $2 million.UCs recorded dozens of phone calls and in-person meetings with various conspirators. The investigation also utilized several court-authorized wiretaps of telephones and electronic communications.
Dong Jiang served as one of the directors of the smuggling scheme. Dong Jiang ordered counterfeit merchandise from China; negotiated shipments of counterfeit goods from China; arranged for payment for that merchandise and supervised the distribution of that merchandise in and around the New York/New Jersey area.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Salas sentenced Dong Jiang to two years of supervised release ordered forfeiture of cash and property as described in the plea agreement (attached).
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees, and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Pak and Zach Intrater of the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property section of the Economic Crimes Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark and Nicholas Grippo of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Trenton.
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Defense counsel: Joseph Conway Esq., Mineola, N.Y.Dong Jiang, Hai Plea Agreement
Dominican National Admits Role in $65 Million Stolen Identity Income Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Dominican national who was extradited from Canada earlier this year today admitted his role in one of the nation’s largest and longest-running stolen identity refund fraud schemes ever identified, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Alejandro Javier, 51, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to steal government funds and one count of theft of government funds.
Javier and others participated in a scheme that caused more than 8,000 fraudulent U.S. income tax returns to be filed, which sought more than $65 million in tax refunds, and which resulted in the losses to the United States of more than $12 million. A Dominican national, Javier evaded capture until July 2, 2013, when Canadian law enforcement authorities arrested him as he tried to illegally enter Canada. He had been incarcerated there until he was extradited to New Jersey on Jan. 10, 2014.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Stolen Identity Refund Fraud
Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (SIRF) is a common type of fraud committed against the United States government that results in more than $2 billion in losses annually to the United States Treasury. SIRF schemes generally share a number of hallmarks:
• SIRF perpetrators obtain personal identifying information, including Social Security numbers and dates of birth, from unwitting individuals, who often reside in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
• SIRF perpetrators complete Individual Income Tax Return Form 1040s (Form 1040) using the fraudulently-obtained information, and falsifying wages earned, taxes withheld and other data. Perpetrators use data to make it appear that the “taxpayers” listed on the fraudulent 1040 forms are entitled to tax refunds – when in fact, the various tax withholdings indicated on the fraudulent 1040s have not been paid by the listed “taxpayers,” and no refunds are due.
• Perpetrators direct the U.S. Treasury Department to issue the refunds through checks generated by the fraudulent 1040 forms to locations they control or can access, in various ways.
• Certain SIRF perpetrators sell the tax refund checks at a discount to face value. In turn, the buyers then cash the checks, either themselves or using straw account holders, by cashing checks at banks or check cashing businesses, or by depositing checks into bank accounts. When cashing or depositing refund checks, SIRF perpetrators often present false or fraudulent identification documents in the names of the “taxpayers” to whom the checks are payable.
The Investigation
Federal law enforcement agencies created a multi-agency task force in New Jersey composed of investigators from the IRS and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, along with the U.S. Secret Service, and with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration. The New Jersey Task Force, with assistance from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, revealed that from at least 2007, dozens of individuals in the New Jersey and New York area engaged in a large-scale, long running SIRF scheme.
Javier and others obtained personal identifiers, such as dates of birth and Social Security numbers, belonging to Puerto Rican citizens. Javier and others used those identifiers to create fraudulent 1040 forms, which falsely reported wages purportedly earned by the “taxpayers” and taxes purportedly withheld, to create the appearance that the “taxpayers” were entitled to tax refunds.
The fraudulent 1040 forms were created and filed electronically. By tracing the specific IP addresses that submitted the electronically-filed 1040s, law enforcement officers learned that just a handful of IP addresses created many of the fraudulent 1040 forms, which, in turn, led to the issuance of tax refund checks that the conspirators obtained, sold, cashed, and spent.
Conspirators purchased mail routes, that is, lists of addresses covered by a single mail carrier. Conspirators applied for tax refunds, inserted addresses along the mail route as the purported home addresses of the “taxpayers,” and obtained the checks sent to the addresses. In other instances, the conspirators applied for checks using addresses otherwise controlled by, or accessible by, certain conspirators, and collected the checks after they were delivered to those addresses. Hundreds of refund checks were mailed to just a few different addresses in a few towns, including Nutley, Somerset and Newark in New Jersey and Shirley, N.Y. After receiving the checks, Javier and others cashed the checks and divided the proceeds.
Members of the New Jersey Task Force identified certain “hot spots” of activity related to the scheme, where conspirators were directing millions of dollars of refunds just a few towns and cities. New Jersey Task Force members then interacted with U.S. Postal Service employees in these hot spots, and identified the characteristics of refund checks connected to the scheme. More than $22 million in fraudulently applied for refund checks were interdicted by law enforcement and never delivered.
The conspiracy count to which Javier pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine. The substantive count of theft of government property carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine. Sentencing for Javier is scheduled for Oct. 8, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the DEA, under the direction of special agent in charge Carl J. Kotowski; IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen; and inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Maria L. Kelokates, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James Mottola; and HSI-ICE, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees, for their roles.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lakshmi Srinivasan Herman, Zach Intrater, and Danielle Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark, and Mala Harker of the Special Prosecutions Division.
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Defense Counsel: David Oakley Esq., Princeton, N.J.Javier, Alejandro Information
Jewelry Store Owner Admits Role in International, $200 Million Credit Card Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A New Jersey jewelry store owner who used his business to further one of the largest credit card fraud schemes ever charged by the Justice Department today became the 18th conspirator to admit his role in the scheme, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Vijay Verma, 46, of Iselin, N.J., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with one count of access device fraud.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:Verma was indicted in October 2013 as part of a scheme to fabricate more than 7,000 false identities to obtain tens of thousands of credit cards. Participants in the scheme doctored credit reports to pump up the spending and borrowing power associated with the cards. They then borrowed or spent as much as they could, based on the phony credit history, but did not repay the debts – causing more than $200 million in confirmed losses to businesses and financial institutions. These debts were incurred at Verma’s jewelry store, among many other locations, where Verma would allow fraudulently obtained credit cards to be swiped in phony transactions.
The scheme involved a three-step process in which the defendants would make up a false identity by creating fraudulent identification documents and a fraudulent credit profile with the major credit bureaus; pump up the credit of the false identity by providing false information about that identity’s creditworthiness to those credit bureaus; then run up large charges.
The scope of the criminal fraud enterprise required other scheme participants to construct an elaborate network of false identities. Across the country, they maintained more than 1,800 “drop addresses,” including houses, apartments and post office boxes, which they used as the mailing addresses for the false identities.
Verma admitted he allowed others who came to his Jersey City, N.J., store to swipe cards he knew did not legitimately belong to them. Verma would then split the proceeds of the phony transactions with these other conspirators.
The count to which Verma pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss caused by the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 25, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI’s Cyber Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford; postal inspectors from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Postal Inspector in Charge Maria L. Kelokates; and special agents of the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James Mottola, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked the U.S. Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations in New Jersey for assisting in the investigation.The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zach Intrater and Daniel V. Shapiro of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit and Barbara Ward of the office’s Asset Forfeiture Unit in Newark.
This case 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. attorney’s 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.
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Defense counsel: Gerald Krovatin Esq., NewarkVerma, Vijay Information
Bergen County, N.J., Man Arrested for Defrauding Foreign Nation of More Than $3.5 MillionRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A Bergen County, N.J., man who was re-entering the United States from a trip abroad was arrested today at Newark International Airport on charges that he allegedly orchestrated a scheme to defraud a foreign nation of more than $3.5 million, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.
Bobby Boye, a/k/a “Bobby Ajiboye,” a/k/a “Bobby Aji-Boye,” 50, of Franklin Lakes, N.J., is charged by complaint with one count of wire fraud conspiracy and six counts of wire fraud. He is scheduled to make his initial appearance tomorrow before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark Falk in Newark federal court.
According to the complaint:
Beginning in July 2010, Boye worked as an international legal advisor for the victim nation, which is referred to in the complaint as “Country A.” Boye served on a three-member committee responsible for reviewing and evaluating bids, solicited in February 2012, for a multi-million dollar contract to provide legal and tax accounting advice to Country A. Boye allegedly deceived Country A representatives into awarding the lucrative contract to Opus & Best Services LLC (Opus & Best), a sham New York law and accounting firm that, unbeknownst to Country A, was secretly controlled by Boye.
On March 17, 2012, Boye allegedly caused Opus & Best to submit by email a bid for the contract with Country A. The bid documents, which allegedly were authored by Boye and a conspirator (CC-1), contained multiple, material misrepresentations and omissions, including: (1) a false claim that Opus & Best was founded in 1985, when in fact it was not founded until late March 2012; (2) a fraudulent listing of several purported employees of Opus & Best, who were described in the bid as a “first class talent of attorneys, accountants and economists.” There was no record of individuals of those same names as being admitted to practice law in New York or New Jersey or as being New York-licensed certified public accountants; (3) a false representation that Opus & Best had no conflicts of interest; Boye was both the sole member of Opus & Best and a member of the committee reviewing the bids; (4) a reference to prior consulting work purportedly performed by Opus & Best for another foreign country when that country had never awarded any type of consulting services contract to Opus & Best; and (5) a false representation that there were no third-party beneficiaries to the proposed contract between Opus & Best and Country A, when Boye himself was an undisclosed third-party beneficiary, given his alleged concealed intent to misappropriate the contract for his own benefit.
Unaware that Opus & Best allegedly was a sham firm, and relying on the recommendation of Boye, Country A awarded the contract to Opus & Best in June 2012. Under the terms of the consulting contract, Boye was one of the two project coordinators acting on behalf of Country A and had authority to receive and approve invoices for payment.
Between June 2012 and December 2012, Country A wired more than $3.5 million to Opus & Best’s New York business checking account, which was controlled by Boye. He used the money to purchase four properties in New Jersey for more than $1.5 million in cash, three luxury vehicles (a 2012 Bentley for $172,000, a 2012 Range Rover for $100,983, and a 2011 Rolls Royce for $215,000) and two designer watches for almost $20,000.
The conspiracy and wire fraud counts with which Boye is charged each carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gain or loss from the offense.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark with the investigation leading to the arrest.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shirley U. Emehelu of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Economic Crimes Unit in Newark and Assistant U.S. Attorney Evan S. Weitz of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit.
The charge and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This arrest 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. attorney’s 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.
14-224Defense counsel: TBD
Boye, Bobby Complaint
Member of Multi-State Theft Scheme Admits Selling Stolen PharmaceuticalsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Miami man today admitted his role in a multi-state conspiracy to possess and sell prescription medication taken from a stolen tractor trailer, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Martin Lopez, a/k/a “El Negro,” 47, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court to an information charging him with conspiracy to possess stolen prescription medicine.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On Dec. 2, 2009, a full shipment of prescription respiratory medicine manufactured by Dey LLP in Allen, Texas, was stolen on its way to Sandoz Inc. in Mechanicsburg, Pa. Lopez admitted that from December 2009 through March 2010, he conspired with others to acquire and sell medicine stolen from the shipment.
In early 2010, Lopez spoke with Ernesto Romero-Vidal, a/k/a “Bemba,” 48, of Hallandale, Fla., to identify a potential buyer for the stolen medicine. On March 2, 2010, Lopez arranged to have the medicine delivered to a buyer in New Jersey. Two days later, two other conspirators delivered the stolen goods to the buyer in return for $64,000 in cash, which they split with Lopez.
The conspiracy charge carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 24, 2014.
On Dec. 18, 2013, Romero-Vidal was sentenced by Judge Martini to 80 months in prison for his role in the scheme and other federal charges.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford; special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen; and detectives of the North Bergen Police Department, under the direction of Chief Robert J. Dowd, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.The government is represented by Senior Litigation Counsel Leslie Faye Schwartz and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jane H. Yoon of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Kathleen M. Theurer Esq., Jersey City, N.J.
Lopez, Martin Information
Jewelry Store Owner Pleads Guilty in International $200 Million Credit Card Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A New Jersey jewelry store owner who used his business to further one of the largest credit card fraud schemes ever charged by the Justice Department today admitted his role in the scheme, the 17th conspirator to do so, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Vinod Dadlani, 51, of Lyndhurst, N.J., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:Dadlani was indicted in October 2013 as part of a conspiracy to fabricate more than 7,000 false identities to obtain tens of thousands of credit cards. Members of the conspiracy doctored credit reports to pump up the spending and borrowing power associated with the cards. They then borrowed or spent as much as they could, based on the phony credit history, but did not repay the debts – causing more than $200 million in confirmed losses to businesses and financial institutions. These debts were incurred at Dadlani’s jewelry store, among many other locations, where Dadlani would allow fraudulently obtained credit cards to be swiped in phony transactions.
The scheme involved a three-step process in which the defendants would make up a false identity by creating fraudulent identification documents and a fraudulent credit profile with the major credit bureaus; pump up the credit of the false identity by providing false information about that identity’s creditworthiness to those credit bureaus; then run up large charges.
The scope of the criminal fraud enterprise required Dadlani’s conspirators to construct an elaborate network of false identities. Across the country, the conspirators maintained more than 1,800 “drop addresses,” including houses, apartments and post office boxes, which they used as the mailing addresses for the false identities.
During his guilty plea proceeding, Dadlani admitted he worked with other conspirators, who came to his Jersey City, N.J., store and allowed them to swipe cards he knew did not legitimately belong to them. Dadlani would then split the proceeds of the phony transactions with the conspirators.
The count to which Dadlani pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine, or twice the gain or loss caused by the offense.
Dadlani is scheduled for sentencing by JudgeThompson on Sept. 24, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the FBI’s Cyber Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, for the investigation; as well as postal inspectors from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Postal Inspector in Charge Maria L. Kelokates; and special agents of the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James Mottola. He also thanked the U.S. Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations in New Jersey for assisting in the investigation.The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zach Intrater and Daniel V. Shapiro of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit and Barbara Ward of the office’s Asset Forfeiture Unit in Newark.
This case 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. attorney’s 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.
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Defense counsel: Vincent Sarubbi Esq., Haddonfield, N.J.Dadlani, Vinod Information
Former Immigration Officer, Postal Worker Charged in Takedown of 14-Member Interstate Methamphetamine Distribution RingRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - Fourteen people – including a former U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officer and a U.S. Postal Service worker – have been arrested and charged for their alleged roles in a multi-state drug trafficking ring supplying large quantities of methamphetamine to the Jersey City area, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.
Nine alleged members of the ring were arrested June 16 to 18, 2014, by agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) as well as state and local law enforcement following a one-year investigation led by the DEA. They were charged by complaint with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. The New Jersey defendants made their initial court appearances before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cathy L. Waldor in Newark federal court.
Among the 14 people charged today are defendants from Las Vegas, Nev., Los Angeles, Calif., and Phoenix, Ariz.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Since July 2013 law enforcement has been investigating a drug trafficking organization (DTO) operating in Jersey City. The DTO coordinated shipments of methamphetamine from suppliers in Arizona, California, and Nevada through the mail to locations in northern New Jersey. Suppliers concealed the methamphetamine inside parcels that were shipped to addresses provided by the New Jersey-based conspirators, who would repackage the drugs for sale to lower level distributors.
John Freehauf, 36, a/k/a “Johnnie Rocket,” a/k/a “Agent,” of Jersey City, a former officer with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), allegedly coordinated the acquisition of the methamphetamine, ordering several pounds per month from various interstate suppliers. Freehauf negotiated the price and provided New Jersey addresses for his suppliers. He and Benjamin Navarro, 44, a/k/a “Kristie,” of Jersey City, repackaged the drugs for distribution to lower level suppliers and retailers.
Maria Lisa Pascual, 36, of North Bergen, N.J., used her position with the U.S. Postal Service to track and oversee the shipment of parcels. Pascual, Arnold Balagtas, 54, of Jersey City, and other conspirators redistributed smaller quantities of methamphetamine to lower level dealers and retailers. Pascual and Freehauf agreed to use the same sources of supply and to work together to set a common “market price” for methamphetamine in the northern New Jersey area. Pascual and Freehauf also assisted each other in distributing methamphetamine to lower level dealers. Pascual has recently been terminated by the U.S. Postal Service. The defendants are:Name
Age
Residence
36
Jersey City
Benjamin Navarro*
44
Jersey City
Maria Lisa Pascual
36
North Bergen, N.J.
Arnold Balagtas
54
Jersey City
Margaret Tiangco*
38
Jersey City
Javier Diaz
30
Los Angeles, Calif.
Candace Healy
21
Fresh Meadows, N.Y.
Ricce Anciado Jr.
44
Union, N.J.
Stephanie Luna*
36
Bergenfield, N.J.
Benedict Cipriano
51
Jersey City
Ricky Tulud
43
Belleville, N.J.
Janice Vidallon
31
Belleville
Ryan Bontempi
34
Phoenix, Ariz.
Howard Taylor
49
Phoenix
*Denotes fugitive
Freehauf, Pascual, Balagtas, Anciado, Tulud, Healy and Vidallon all appeared June 17, 2014, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Waldor in Newark federal court. Diaz appeared in federal court in Los Angeles June 17, 2014, and is scheduled to appear in Newark federal court on June 30, 2014. Cipriano appeared before Judge Waldor today. Navarro, Luna and Tiangco remains at large.
Bontempi, a/k/a “Rooster;” and Taylor were both arrested on May 12, 2014, in Phoenix, Arizona. Both were detained and transported to New Jersey, where they made their initial appearances today before Judge Waldor.
The count with which each of the defendants is charged carries a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum potential penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the DEA, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski; U.S. Postal Inspectors under the direction of Inspector in Charge Maria L. Kelokates; law enforcement officers from the N.J. National Guard Counter Drug Task Force, under the direction of the Adjutant General, Brig. Gen. Michael L. Cunniff; the N.J. State Police, under the direction of Superintendent Rick Fuentes; the Edison Police Department, under the direction of Chief Thomas Bryan; and the Jersey City Police Department, under the direction of Chief Robert Cowan, with the investigation leading to the charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam N. Subervi and Charlton Rugg of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Narcotics Unit in Newark.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaints are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Defense counsel:Freehauf: Joseph Rubino Esq., West Orange, N.J.
Navarro:
Pascual: Gregory Tomczak Esq., Montclair, N.J.
Balagtas: Angelo Servidio Esq., Nutley, N.J.
Tiangco:
Diaz: TBD
Healy: Elizabeth Smith Esq., Mendham, N.J.
Anciado Jr.: Bruce Rosen Esq., Florham Park, N.J.
Luna:
Cipriano: Zahid Quaraishi Esq., Morristown, N.J.
Tulud: Candace Hom Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Vidallon: Stephen Truano Esq., Newark
Bontempi: David Ruhnke Esq., Montclair
Taylor: Kathleen Theurer Esq., Jersey CityFreehauf, John et al., Complaint
Bontempi - Taylor ComplaintWoman Involved in Kidnapping and Death of Atlantic City Woman Sentenced to 35 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – An Atlantic City, N.J., woman was sentenced today to 35 years in prison for her role in the kidnapping and death of a 20-year-old Atlantic City woman, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Shamerria Smith, 27, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joseph H. Rodriguez to an information charging her with one count of use of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence – specifically, the Hobbs Act robbery and kidnapping that resulted in the death of Nadirah Ruffin. Judge Rodriguez imposed the sentence today in Camden federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:On March 23, 2011, a person identified as “D.H.” met with Isiah Ruffin (no relation to the victim) in the courtyard area of a housing complex on North Maryland Avenue, a section of Atlantic City known as “Back Maryland,” to talk to Isiah Ruffin about a dispute between Isiah Ruffin and Victim One. After a brief conversation, D.H. viciously assaulted Isiah Ruffin, knocking Isiah Ruffin unconscious and robbing him of cash. When Isiah Ruffin regained consciousness, D.H. assaulted him again. As a result of the assault, Isiah Ruffin was treated at the Atlantic City Medical Center for a possible concussion and facial lacerations. After Isiah Ruffin was released from the hospital, Smith and Aziz Sanders, 21, of Atlantic City, visited Isiah Ruffin, during which time Isiah Ruffin told Smith that D.H. had assaulted him.
To retaliate, Smith planned to enter Victim One’s house and assault and rob Victim One of illegal drugs and money. Sanders agreed to help Smith execute her plan and recruited a third co-defendant, DeShawn Hicks, 22, of Atlantic City, to participate. Smith supplied the gun, duct-tape and handcuffs.
On March 26, 2011, Smith, Sanders, and Hicks entered Victim One’s house and duct-taped Victim One and four other victims, including Nadirah Ruffin, who were present. While in the house, Sanders and Hicks took money from Victim One, some of which Victim One had earned from selling illegal drugs. They took money from another victim, as well as marijuana that the victim was planning to sell. Sanders and Hicks admitted to taking more than $500 dollars and 50 bags of marijuana from the house.
During the robbery, Nadirah Ruffin recognized Smith’s voice. Smith ordered Sanders to punch Nadirah Ruffin. After Sanders hit Nadirah Ruffin, Smith punched her because she did not think Sanders had hit her hard enough. As the three defendants were leaving the residence, Smith told Sanders and Hicks to take Nadirah Ruffin from the residence. Smith, Sanders and Hicks then placed Nadirah Ruffin in a green van. They drove first to the Clementon area and eventually to Philadelphia. Smith said that because she was a mother she could not kill Nadirah Ruffin. Smith placed the gun near Sanders and told him that they were not leaving until someone else killed Nadirah Ruffin. Sanders and Hicks took Nadirah Ruffin to the banks of the Schuylkill River, where Sanders shot her in the head, killing her. Her body was dumped in the river.
In addition to the prison terms, Judge Rodriguez sentenced Smith five years of supervised release and ordered her to pay restitution of $1,512,840. Hicks and Sanders have also pleaded guilty and both are scheduled to be sentenced July 9, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford; the Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor James P. McClain; and the Atlantic City Police Department, under the direction of Chief Henry White, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason M. Richardson and Matthew T. Smith of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Camden, assisted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Feder of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Appeals Division in Newark, and Mark Coyne, Chief of the Appeals Division.
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Defense counsel:
Smith: Christopher O’Malley Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Camden
Sanders: Edward Borden Esq., Cherry Hill, N.J., and Carl J. Herman Esq., West Orange, N.J.
Hicks: Michael Huff Esq., Camden, and David Glazer Esq.Founder of Ukraine-Based Hardcore Child Sexual Assault Website Sentenced in New Jersey to 30 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
Investigation Led to Conviction of More Than 600 American Subscribers to Illegal Site
NEWARK, N.J. – A Ukrainian man who founded and ran an international hardcore child sexual abuse website was sentenced today to 360 months in prison for his role in a child exploitation enterprise, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.Maksym Shynkarenko, 35, of Kharkov, Ukraine, previously pleaded guilty to Count 31 of an indictment charging him with conducting a child exploitation enterprise in connection with a website he operated between 2005 and 2008. The investigation into that website has led to convictions in 47 states of more than 600 American consumers of hardcore images of children being sexually assaulted and abused.
Shynkarenko was initially detained in Thailand in January 2009 pending extradition. He was transported to the United States, where he has been in custody since making his initial court appearance in June 2012. He pleaded guilty to the charge Jan. 8, 2014, before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls, who also imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
“Shynkarenko worked the supply side of a market that sells images of the most depraved, predatory abuse of children,” said U.S. Attorney Fishman. “Those images endure – as do the wounds inflicted when they were created and when others look at them. Shynkareko appropriately will spend decades of his life paying for significantly fostering the international consumption of documented child sex abuse.”
“The massive HSI investigation that led to today’s sentencing of an international, hardcore child sex abuse website founder is directly tied to more than 600 other criminal convictions for child pornography across 47 states, including dozens of individuals who were already convicted sex offenders,” said Andrew McLees, special agent in charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Newark. “Today’s sentencing illustrates HSI Newark’s ongoing commitment to identify and seek prosecution of criminals who destroy lives by preying on innocent children. The website operated by Shynkarenko not only offered subscribers access to thousands of images and videos showing graphic, unimaginable child sexual abuse, but it further exploited these victims by making money off their mistreatment. As we did in this case, HSI and our international law enforcement partners will continue to use every tool at our disposal to track down those who exploit children and bring them to justice.”
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From at least 2005 through mid-2008, Shynkarenko operated from Ukraine a website, that he helped design, which offered access to thousands of images and videos of child sexual abuse. Subscribers typically paid a fee of $79.99 for a 20-day subscription to the website. Shynkarenko worked in conjunction with other individuals, including one from Siberia who helped process credit card payments in a way that disguised the true nature of the purchases. Shynkarenko and the others operating the website granted access to images and videos to subscribers on hundreds of occasions from 2005 to 2008.
During his guilty plea proceeding, Shynkarenko said he worked with other individuals who advertised the child pornography website over the Internet under names such as “Illegal.CP” and “Pedo Heaven.”
HSI agents first located the child pornography website operated by Shynkarenko in October 2005 – based in part on e-mails recovered from the computer of an individual in Long Branch, N.J. At that time, the banner page of the site identified it as “Illegal.CP,” and the page featured more than a dozen images of minors engaged in sexual acts with other minors and adults. That page declared “[n]ow you are in [sic] few minutes away from the best children porn site on the net!” and “[i]f you join this site you will get tons of uncensored forbidden pics . . . forbidden stories, of course, many videos.” The words “join now” appeared at the top and bottom of the page.
Working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, HSI agents in Newark were able to identify hundreds of individuals who subscribed to the “Illegal.CP” website between November 2005 and February 2006. Those leads, largely developed through agents’ monitoring of the website, led to what became a three-phase investigation: Operation Emissary, Emissary II, and Thin Ice. In late 2006, agents recovered a database of hundreds of additional individuals whose credit cards had been processed while subscribing to the “Illegal.CP” website. During the third phase in 2008, the continued investigation by HSI agents focused more on the operators of the website, including Shynkarenko, and recovered evidence of hundreds of additional individuals who had attempted to subscribe.
The leads, along with master search warrants prepared by the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office, were distributed to HSI offices and U.S. Attorney’s Offices throughout the nation. The investigation has led to the conviction of more than 600 individuals in 47 states, making the investigation one of the most successful child sexual abuse investigations in the nation’s history. A list of the more than 600 American consumers of images of child sexual abuse convicted as a result of the investigation and the sentences they received was made available at the time of Shynkarenko’s guilty plea, and can be accessed at http://go.usa.gov/9c93.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Walls sentenced Shynkarenko to serve a lifetime of supervised release, and noted he would be required to register as a sex offender, but would likely be deported. In sentencing Shynkarenko, Judge Walls referred to his conduct as “one of the most serious crimes imaginable in our culture as human beings.”U.S. Attorney Fishman credited HSI special agents, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge McLees, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked the United States Marshals Service, under the direction of U.S. Marshal Juan Mattos Jr., for its work in transporting Shynkarenko from Thailand, and acknowledged the important work of Thai authorities. U.S. Attorney Fishman also thanked the numerous HSI offices and U.S. Attorney’s Offices around the country which prosecuted the cases that secured the 600 convictions achieved during Operations Emissary and Operation Thin ICE, and thanked the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs and Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section for their important roles.
The government is represented by Senior Litigation Counsel Mark J. McCarren and Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark and Attorney in Charge Harvey Bartle IV in Trenton.
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Defense counsel: Nicholas Wooldridge Esq. and Arkady Bukh Esq., Brooklyn, N.Y.
Casino Owner Sentenced in New Jersey to 46 Months in Prison for Evading Nearly $1.3 Million in Income Taxes from Trinidad CasinoRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – The owner of several New Jersey businesses was sentenced today to46 months in prison for evading taxes on income from his ownership of a casino in Trinidad, costing the United States approximately $1.3 million in tax losses, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
David Migliore, 51, of Brielle, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Mary L. Cooper to one count of an indictment charging him with evading taxes with respect to his 2011 personal tax return. Judge Cooper imposed the sentence today in Trenton federal court.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Migliore owns Brielle Investment LLC, Brielle Investments & Management Co. LLC and La Soufriere Maritime Inc. – all headquartered in New Jersey – as well as Island Club Casino in Trinidad.
From 2009 to 2011, Migliore earned millions of dollars from Island Club Casino, resulting in $1,286,657 in taxes due. During that time, Migliore took steps to conceal his income and assets from the IRS. At his guilty plea proceeding, Migliore admitted to using unreported bank accounts in Trinidad to deposit personal income, using U.S. bank accounts in the names of his New Jersey business entities to receive income from Island Club Casino and to using those business entities to pay for personal expenses.
Migliore also admitted to transferring income from Island Club Casino directly to vendors in the U.S. for personal expenses and directing Island Club Casino employees to send his income through Western Union to individuals in New Jersey who collected the cash on his behalf.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Cooper sentenced Migliore to serve three years of supervised release. As part of his guilty plea and sentence, Migliore also has paid restitution of $1,286,657 to the IRS.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen; the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark; and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees in Newark; as well as law enforcement officers from the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Monmouth County Prosecutor Christopher J. Gramiccioni; police officers from Wall Township Police Department, under the direction of Chief Robert Brice; and international assistance from the Financial Intelligence Unit for Trinidad & Tobago, with the investigation. U.S. Attorney Fishman also thanked the Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs for assistance provided.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Agarwal of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Robert Weir Esq., Red Bank, N.J.Owner of New Jersey Debit Card Business Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Filing False Tax ReturnsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An Orange County, N.Y., man who owned a New Jersey company was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for filing false income tax returns, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Richard Jackowitz, 61, of Warwick, N.Y., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton in Newark federal court to an information charging him with two counts of filing false tax returns.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Jackowitz owned and operated Branded Marketing, a Haskell, N.J., company that sold debit cards. For the 2007 and 2008 tax years, Jackowitz had unreported income from his company of $105,512 and $359, 677, respectively. Jackowitz’s false tax returns caused a loss to the IRS of more than $300,000.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Wigenton sentenced Jackowitz to one year of supervised release and fined him $4,000. As part of his plea agreement, Jackowitz also agreed to pay $319,940 in restitution to the government.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen; and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joseph B. Shumofsky and Jenny Kramer of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
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Defense counsel: John D. Williams Esq., Vernon, N.J.Owner of Defense Contracting Company Charged with Wire Fraud Conspiracy for Providing Nonconforming Parts to GovernmentRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – The former president of a Burlington, N.J.,-based defense contracting business was arrested and charged today with allegedly stealing $3 million through fraudulent contracts with the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Richard Melton, 44, of Moorestown, N.J., was charged by complaint with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for receiving $3 million from 2008 to 2009 as a result of allegedly fraudulent contracts with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). Melton is scheduled to make his initial court appearance this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Tonianne J. Bongiovanni in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Melton was the founder, owner, and president of Partz Network LLC (Partz Network), a company located in Burlington. Melton owned and operated Partz Network from April 2003 to December 2009. Partz Network contracted with the government to supply the DoD with parts on small-dollar contracts. The majority of the contracts were for replacement parts for military rolling stock: trucks, trailers, and engineering equipment. The majority of Partz Network’s DoD contracts required that the items provided be manufactured by DoD-recognized qualified manufacturers.
Melton and his conspirators allegedly lied on Partz Network’s bids for DoD contracts, stating that they would be providing the “exact product” sought by the DoD, meaning that the product was manufactured by a DoD-recognized qualified manufacturer. In fact, Partz Network was allegedly providing parts made by unapproved, and oftentimes unknown, sources.
In 2007, the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), a DoD contracting agency, became aware of reports of nonconforming parts being received from Partz Network. As a result, DLA required Partz Network to provide “traceability documents” to confirm that the items it was supplying were actually being manufactured by DoD recognized qualified manufacturers. Partz Network provided traceability documents and invoices to DLA regarding items provided under the DoD contracts. When DLA researched the traceability documents supplied by Partz Network, DLA learned that the documents were either altered or completely fictitious.
For example, on Nov. 15, 2007, Partz Network submitted a bid electronically through the DoD’s internet bid system to supply the DoD with 1,400 oil pans for $53.85 per item. Partz Network represented that the company was providing the exact product manufactured by one of the two DoD-recognized qualified manufacturers. Partz Network was subsequently awarded the contract for 1,400 oil pans for a total contract price of $75,390. Both the request for quotation (RFQ) and the final contract included the language that the exact product was required. The items ultimately provided by Partz Network were not the exact products required under the contract because the items were not manufactured by a qualified manufacturer. In fact, on Nov. 10, 2007, five days prior to Partz Network submitting its bid for the contract, Melton sent an e-mail to a Partz Network employee with a link to the DoD RFQ that stated the following: “Bid these (1400) HMMWW oil pans at $53.85 and I will have them made overseas by [a company located in the People’s Republic of China] or another overseas firm, 200-day lead time.” Based on Partz Network documents related to that contract, Partz Network purchased the oil pans that were provided to the DoD from a company located in India in January 2008.On Aug. 27, 2009, Partz Network was awarded a contract to supply the DoD with 887 bearing half sets for a total contract price of $16,010.35. Partz Network certified that the items would be the exact product required under the contract. The items ultimately provided by Partz Network under the contract were not the exact products required because the items were not manufactured by the qualified manufacturer. DoD ultimately inspected the items and determined that the items were manufactured by an unapproved source.
The wire fraud conspiracy count with which Melton is charged carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gain or loss from the offense.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Defense, Criminal Investigative Service, under the direction of Director James Burch; special agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HIS), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees, with the investigation leading to today’s arrest.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Fabiana Pierre-Louis of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Trenton and Evan Weitz of the Office’s Asset Forfeiture Unit in Newark.
The charge and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
14-216Defense counsel: Scott S. Christie Esq., Newark
Melton, Richard Complaint
New Jersey Doctor Sentenced to 21 Months in Prison for Taking Cash Kickbacks for Patient ReferralsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A doctor who was convicted at trial of receiving cash kickbacks for diagnostic testing referrals was sentenced today to 21 months in prison, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.
Maryam Jafari, 43, was convicted Feb. 4, 2014, of all three counts of a superseding indictment charging her with conspiracy and two counts of violating the federal health care anti-kickback statute after a three-week trial before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi, who imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and the evidence at trial:
Jafari was a doctor licensed in New Jersey to practice internal medicine and operated an office in Newark. From 2010 through December 2011, Jafari solicited and received cash kickbacks from Orange Community MRI LLC (Orange MRI) in exchange for MRIs and CAT scans she referred to the diagnostic testing facility.
At the end of each month, OCM printed patient reports that included information such as dates of service, patient name, referring health care practitioner and medical insurance to be billed. The reports were used to tally the number of tests referred by each doctor and determine the amount of kickback payment paid to the referring healthcare provider.
On Nov. 22, 2011, Jafari met with a cooperating witness at Jafari’s office and accepted a white envelope containing $1,965 in cash, payments for three months of tests Jafari referred to Orange MRI. On Dec. 6, she accepted another payment of $420 in cash for referrals from October 2011. A trial on these charges in 2012 ended in a mistrial when the jury could not reach a unanimous verdict.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Cecchi sentenced Jafari to two years of supervised release, fined her $45,000 and ordered forfeiture of $40,261.U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Tom O’Donnell, who investigated the case with criminal investigators from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott B. McBride, deputy chief of the Economic Crimes Unit, and Joseph G. Mack, deputy chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Health Care and Government Fraud Unit in Newark.
U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman reorganized the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office shortly after taking office, including creating a stand-alone Health Care and Government Fraud Unit to handle both criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses. Since 2010, the office has recovered more than $535 million in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.
Defense counsel: Maria Noto Esq., Matawan, N.J.
14-217Owner of Construction Company Admits Filing False Tax Returns and Underreporting More Than $1 Million in IncomeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - The owner and operator of Larino Masonry Inc., a construction company based in northern New Jersey, today admitted underreporting more than $1 million diverted from his business for his personal benefit, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Juan Larino, 53, of West New York, N.J., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Katherine S. Hayden in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of filing a false federal personal income tax return.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
During his operation of the business, Larino received checks made payable to Larino Masonry Inc. Larino admitted that instead of depositing all of the payments into bank accounts held by the business, he cashed some of the checks for his own personal benefit.
For the tax years 2010 through 2011, Larino filed individual income tax returns in which he claimed to report all of his income from the construction business. However, Larino failed to report approximately $1.1 million in cash that he kept from checks made payable to Larino Masonry Inc. Larino’s failure to truthfully disclose income he received as owner of the company resulted in a tax loss to the United States of $200,000 to $400,000.
As part of his guilty plea, Larino agreed to make full restitution for all losses resulting from his false tax returns. He also agreed to forfeit $575,000 in a related civil case with the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The subscribing to false tax returns charge carries a maximum potential penalty of three years in prison and a $100,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 29, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the IRS - Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Evan S. Weitz of the U.S. Attorney's Office Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit.
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Defense counsel: Vincent Martinelli Esq., Staten Island, N.Y.
Larino, Juan Information
New Jersey Chiropractor Admits Obstructing Health Care Fraud InvestigationRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A Sussex County, N.J., chiropractor today admitted destroying patient appointment records sought by federal agents investigating potential billing fraud at her medical office, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Mary Jean Negri, 57, of Lafayette, N.J., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden in Newark federal court to an information charging her with one count of obstructing an investigation of a health care offense.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
For the past 24 years, Negri, a licensed chiropractor and registered nurse in New Jersey, has owned Lafayette Hilltop Chiropractic Center (Lafayette Hilltop). In May 2012 she discovered the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office were investigating Lafayette Hilltop for potentially fraudulent billing practices. Negri suspected that investigators were interested in obtaining Lafayette Hilltop’s patient appointment books as evidence of potential fraud. In an effort to obstruct the government’s investigation, she discarded those patient appointment books.
The obstruction charge carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a maximum $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss caused by the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 29, 2014.U.S Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, as well as criminal investigators with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott B. McBride, Deputy Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Economic Crimes Unit.
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Defense counsel: John M. Vazquez Esq., Roseland, N.J.
Negri, Mary Jean Information
Michigan Woman Admits Role in $65 Million Stolen Identity Income Tax Refund Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Michigan woman today admitted her role in one of the nation’s largest and longest running stolen identity refund fraud schemes ever prosecuted, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Rosa Marmol, 36, of Grand Rapids, Mich., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi, to a superseding information charging her with conspiracy to defraud the United States and theft of government property. Marmol had been previously indicted on these charges in February 2014.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:
Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (SIRF) is a common type of fraud that results in more than $2 billion in losses annually to the U.S. Treasury. SIRF schemes generally share a number of hallmarks:
- SIRF perpetrators obtain personal identifying information, including Social Security numbers and dates of birth, from unwitting individuals, who often reside in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico;
- They complete Individual Income Tax Return 1040 Forms using the fraudulently obtained information and falsifying wages earned, taxes withheld and other data. Perpetrators use data to make it appear that the “taxpayers” listed on the fraudulent 1040 form are entitled to tax refunds – when in fact, the various tax withholdings indicated have not been paid and no refunds are due;
- They direct the U.S. Treasury Department to issue the refunds through checks to locations they control or can access, in various ways;
- SIRF perpetrators generate cash proceeds. Some sell the checks at a discount to face value. The buyers then cash the checks at banks or check cashing businesses or deposit them into bank accounts.
Federal law enforcement agencies, recognizing that SIRF was a serious problem, created a multi-agency task force in New Jersey composed of investigators from the IRS and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, along with the U.S. Secret Service, and with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration (the New Jersey Task Force).
An investigation led by the New Jersey Task Force with assistance from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, has revealed that starting as early as 2007, dozens of individuals in the New Jersey and New York area have been engaged in large-scale, long-running SIRF scheme that has caused more than 8,000 fraudulent 1040 forms to be filed, seeking more than $65 million in tax refunds, with losses to the U.S. Treasury of more than $12 million.
Members of the conspiracy obtained personal identifiers, such as dates of birth and Social Security numbers, belonging to Puerto Rican citizens. They used those identifiers to create fake 1040s, which falsely reported wages purportedly earned by the “taxpayers” and taxes purportedly withheld, to create the appearance that the “taxpayers” were entitled to tax refunds. The returns were filed electronically. By tracing the specific IP addresses that submitted them, law enforcement officers learned just a handful of IP addresses created many of the fraudulent forms that led to the issuance of tax refund checks.
Marmol and the other members of the conspiracy then gained control of checks, sometimes bribing mail carriers to intercept checks and deliver them to other members of the conspiracy. Marmol used the bank accounts of her family’s bodega and check cashing business, Tienda Guadalajara Jalisco, in Grand Rapids to negotiate the checks she cashed.
During the course of the investigation, members of the task force identified certain “hot spots” of activity and intercepted more than $22 million in fraudulently applied for refund checks before they were delivered to members of the conspiracy.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Inspector in Charge Maria L. Kelokates; the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent In Charge James Mottola; and the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Carl Kotowski, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The conspiracy count carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The count of theft of government property carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 10, 2014.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Danielle Alfonzo Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Health Care and Government Fraud Unit.
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Marmol, Rosa Superseding Information
Essex County, N.J. Contractor Admits Defrauding Bronx Home OwnerRead the Press Release
TRENTON N.J. - An Essex County, N.J. contractor who was paid nearly $100,000 to renovate the home of a Bronx, N.Y., woman, today admitted his role in defrauding her of the money in connection with the remodeling project, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.
Raymond Norville, 45, of Orange, N.J., owner of RRL Unique Homes Inc., a construction company, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joel A. Pisano in Trenton federal court to a superseding information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
In 2011, Norville was a contractor who owned RRL Unique Homes Inc. The victim, identified only as “C.P.,” wanted to renovate her newly purchased home in the Riverdale section of Bronx. Norville agreed to perform the renovations on the residence for $250,000. He submitted invoices to C.P., inducing her to pay him $98,600 in cash for the purchase of materials, supplies, architectural plans, rental equipment and permits needed for the project. Norville emailed pictures of materials that he intended to purchase. Norville neither delivered to the job site, nor provided proofs of purchase for the materials. By May 2011, work on the project had not started and C.P. demanded either a refund or the materials and supplies Norville promised to buy. Norville attempted to repay a portion of the $98,600 by providing C.P. with a check for $24,500, which was rejected for insufficient funds.
The count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 17, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Garcia for the New York Region; and detectives of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, under the direction of Commissioner Jan Gilhooly, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.The government is represented by Senior Litigation Counsel V. Grady O’Malley in Newark.
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Defense counsel: David P. Schroth Esq., TrentonNorville, Ray Information
Two Members of Largest Counterfeit Goods Conspiracy Ever Charged Admit GuiltRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Two members of a massive, international counterfeit goods conspiracy today admitted their roles in the scheme, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Ke Dao Jiang, 37, of Queens, and Wu Lin, 31, of Maspeth, N.Y., each pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court to an information charging them with one count of conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in Court:
From November 2009 through February 2012, the defendants and their conspirators ran one of the largest counterfeit goods smuggling and distribution conspiracies ever charged by the Department of Justice. The defendants and others conspired to import hundreds of containers of counterfeit goods – primarily handbags, and footwear, and perfume – from China into the United States in furtherance of the conspiracy. These goods, if legitimate, would have had a retail value of more than $300 million.
The counterfeit goods were manufactured in China and smuggled into the United States through containers fraudulently associated with legitimate importers, with false and fraudulent shipping paperwork playing a critical role in the smuggling scheme. Some of the conspirators created and managed the flow of false shipping paperwork between China and the United States, and supervised the importation of counterfeit goods, and others controlled the importation of the counterfeit goods into the United States.
Other conspirators managed the distribution of counterfeit goods once those goods arrived in the United States. After importation, the counterfeit goods were delivered to warehouses, and distributed throughout New York, New Jersey, and elsewhere. Certain conspirators paid large amounts of cash to undercover law enforcement officers to assist in the removal of counterfeit goods from the port.Some conspirators acted as wholesalers for the counterfeit goods, supplying retailers who sold counterfeit goods to customers in the United States. Other conspirators were money structurers, who arranged for cash to be wired to China in amounts small enough to avoid applicable financial reporting requirements, to evade detection of the smuggling scheme and related proceeds.
Both Jiang and Wu served as wholesalers and worked with other conspirators to distribute the counterfeit goods to small-scale retailers in New Jersey and New York.Law enforcement introduced several undercover special agents (collectively, the UCs) to the conspirators. The UCs purported to have unspecified “connections” at the port, which allowed the UCs to release containers that were on hold, and pass them through to the conspirators. The conspirators paid the UCs for these “services.” In total, during the course of this investigation, the conspirators provided the UCs more than $2 million.
The UCs recorded dozens of phone calls and in-person meetings with various conspirators. The investigation also utilized several court-authorized wiretaps of telephones and electronic communications.
The conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods count carries a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of $2 million. Sentencing for Lin is scheduled for Oct. 6, 2014, and for Jiang, Oct. 7, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees, and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, for the investigation leading to the guilty pleas.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Pak and Zach Intrater of the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property section of the Economic Crimes Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark and Nicholas Grippo of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Trenton.
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Defense counsel:
Jiang: Warren Sutnick Esq., Hackensack, N.J.
Lin: Wanda Akin Esq., NewarkJiang, Ke Dao Information
Lin, Wu InformationNigerian Man Admits Role in Computer Hacking Scheme That Targeted Government EmployeesRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A Nigerian man today admitted his role in a computer hacking and identity theft scheme that defrauded vendors of nearly $1 million of office products after “phishing” e-mail login information from government employees, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Abiodun Adejohn, a/k/a “James Williams,” a/k/a “Olawale Adeyemi,” a/k/a “Abiodun Ade John,” a/k/a “Abiodun Ade-John,” 30, of Nigeria, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of wire fraud conspiracy.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
The scheme employed “phishing” attacks, which used fraudulent e-mails and websites that mimicked the legitimate e-mails and web pages of U.S. government agencies, such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Employees of those agencies visited the fake web pages and provided their e-mail account usernames and passwords.
Adejohn and his conspirators used these stolen credentials to access the employees’ e-mail accounts in order to place fraudulent orders for office products, typically printer toner cartridges, in the employees’ names from vendors who were authorized to do business with U.S. government agencies. Adejohn and his conspirators directed the vendors to ship the fraudulent orders to individuals in New Jersey and elsewhere to be repackaged and ultimately shipped to overseas locations controlled by Adejohn and his conspirators. Once the orders were received in Nigeria, Adejohn and his conspirators sold the toner cartridges to another individual on the black market for profit.
Adejohn was arrested in Arizona on Sept. 24, 2013, and has been detained since his arrest.
The wire fraud conspiracy to which Adejohn pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 9, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the EPA Office of Inspector General (OIG), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Thomas Muskett; General Services Administration OIG, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Paul Walton; Department of Commerce OIG, under the direction of Todd J. Zinser; Department of Defense, Criminal Investigative Service, under the direction of Director James Burch; and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shana W. Chen, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
14-210Defense counsel: John Yauch Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender
Adejohn, Abiodun Information
Newark, N.J., Man Pleads Guilty to Multiple CarjackingsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - A Newark man today admitted his role in three gunpoint carjackings and an attempted carjacking within a one-week period and to firing his gun during one of the robberies, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Corey Thermitus, 22, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William H. Walls in Newark federal court to an information charging him with three counts of theft of a motor vehicle by force, violence and intimidation; one count of attempted theft of a motor vehicle by force, violence and intimidation; and one count of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On Dec. 21, 2012, Thermitus was a passenger in a car that had stopped on a street in the Ironbound section of Newark. Thermitus and several other men exited the car and approached two people standing next to a Toyota Corolla that had just parked. Thermitus brandished a gun at the victims, while another man searched the victims and took the keys to the Toyota Corolla. Once the men had the keys, Thermitus and the other men fled the scene in both vehicles.
He also admitted that on Dec. 26, 2012, he and another man were in the area of 6th Avenue and N. 9th Street in Newark, when they approached a Nissan Altima. Thermitus approached the passenger side of the vehicle, where one of the victims was seated, and attempted to open the door, but the victim resisted and attempted to hold the door closed. Thermitus then told an accomplice to shoot a second victim who was standing next to the car. In response, both victims stepped away from the Nissan Altima and the other man fled the area in the vehicle.
Thermitus admitted that on Dec. 28, 2012, he took a Honda Accord at gunpoint from a victim who was seated in the car in the driveway of a Newark residence. Once the victim got out of the car, Thermitus and two other men fled the area in the Honda Accord. Approximately one hour later, the three men traveled to Midland Place in Newark in the carjacked Accord, where he and one of the other men attempted to carjack a Nissan Pathfinder at gunpoint. Thermitus and another man approached the Nissan Pathfinder while one of the victims in the vehicle was parking it in the garage of a residence. Thermitus pointed a gun at the victim and demanded the victim get out of the vehicle. The victim resisted and drove down the driveway and down the street to escape the carjacking attempt. Moments later, the victim returned to the residence to find Thermitus and the other two men attempting to escape in the carjacked Honda Accord. When another person came outside of one of the residences on the street to check on the commotion, Thermitus fired a shot at the person. The three men fled the scene in the carjacked Honda Accord. No one was injured in the attack.
Each carjacking and attempted carjacking charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 15 years in prison. The discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime charge carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison, which must be consecutive to any term imposed on the underlying carjacking offenses. Each charge carries a statutory maximum fine equal to the greatest of $250,000, twice the gross amount of any pecuniary gain that any persons derived from the offense, or twice the gross amount of any pecuniary loss sustained by any victims of the offense. Thermitus must also pay restitution to the carjacking victims. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 10, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark; the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray; and the Newark Police Department, under the direction of Director Sheilah A. Coley and Chief Ivonne Roman, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dara Aquila Govan of the
Organized Crimes/Gangs Unit in Newark.14-209
Defense counsel: Peter Carter Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Thermitus, Corey Information
Newark Man Admits Convenience Store Robbery SpreeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Newark, N.J., man today admitted committing six armed robberies of Newark convenience stores – including the same grocery store twice within a week, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Larry McRae, 27, of Newark, N.J., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kevin McNulty in Newark federal court to an information charging him with six counts of Hobbs Act robbery and one count of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From June 30, 2012, through Sept. 15, 2012, McRae entered convenience stores in Newark on six different occasions and robbed the store clerks at gunpoint. During the Sept. 15, 2012, robbery he discharged one round from a handgun as he exited the store. He was apprehended by the Newark Police Department later that morning.
Each of the Hobbs Act robbery charges carries a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence carries a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison, a maximum of life in prison and a fine up to $250,000. The sentence on the discharging of the firearm will run consecutively to the sentence for the six robberies. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 15, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked the Newark Police Department for their contribution to the investigation.
The government is represented by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas S. Kearney of the U.S. Attorney’s Office General Crimes Unit in Newark.
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Defense counsel: John Yauch Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
McRae, Larry Information
Mercer County, N.J., Woman Admits Paying Bribes and Engaging in FraudRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Mercer County, N.J., woman today admitted paying bribes to a former Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employee who worked as a supervisory engineer at the VA’s campus in East Orange, N.J., U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Donna Doremus, 46, of Hopewell, N.J., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Mary L. Cooper in Trenton federal court to three counts of a four-count information charging her with one count of bribing a public official, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and two counts of making and subscribing to false federal tax returns.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
The bribes were paid in connection with VA contracts awarded to companies Doremus owned. She also admitted to a conspiracy to defraud the United States by falsely representing that one of her companies was owned and controlled by a service-disabled veteran.
From 2007 to July 2012, Doremus paid approximately $671,000 in bribes to a former VA official, Jarod Machinga, 44, also of Hopewell, in connection with VA contracts awarded to three companies she owned and controlled. In his position as a supervisory engineer, Machinga had the authority and influence to direct certain VA construction contracts to particular companies. Machinga directed more than $6 million of VA construction projects to Doremus’ companies.
One of Doremus’s companies, Tyro General Construction (Tyro), entered into a service-disabled, veteran-owned small business contract with the VA. Congress has established a program whereby certain VA contracts are reserved for small businesses that are owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans. Doremus conspired with Machinga to falsely represent to the VA that Tyro was a service-disabled, veteran-owned small business so that Tyro could improperly obtain a lucrative construction contract from the VA. Machinga then used his official position and influence at the VA to award such a contract to Tyro. In total, Tyro was paid more than $3 million by the VA in connection with this service-disabled veteran-owned contract.
Doremus also engaged in a tax crime. For tax years 2009 and 2010, she intentionally falsely reported on her federal tax returns that certain of the bribe payments she made to Machinga, as well as certain of her personal expenditures, were her companies’ business expenses. As a result, she failed to pay $250,374 in federal income taxes that she owed the IRS.
On Sept.18, 2013, Machinga pleaded guilty before Judge Cooper in connection with his accepting kickbacks from Doremus and engaging in a scheme to defraud the VA. He is awaiting sentencing.
The bribery count to which Doremus pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine of the greater of $250,000; twice the gross pecuniary loss or gain; or three times the value of the bribe paid. The conspiracy to defraud the United States count to which Doremus pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a fine equal to the greatest of $250,000 or twice the pecuniary gain or loss. The false tax return count to which Doremus pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of three years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 22, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Hughes; special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford; and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, for their work leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Vikas Khanna of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division and Peter Gaeta of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit in Newark.
14-208Defense counsel: Michael A. Caudo Esq., Philadelphia, Pa.
Doremus, Donna Information
Morris County, N.J., Couple Charged with Conspiracy to Commit Health Care FraudRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Morris County, N.J., couple who owned a mobile diagnostic testing company were arrested this morning and charged with conspiring to commit health care fraud, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Nita K. Patel, 51, and Kirtish N. Patel, 51, of Rockaway, N.J., owners and operators of Biosound Medical Services Inc. and Heart Solutions of Parsippany, N.J., were charged by complaint with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. They made their initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III in Newark federal court.
According to the complaint and statements made in Court:
From June 2012 through June 2014 Nita and Kirtish Patel owned and operated Biosound Medical Services and Heart Solutions (collectively, “Biosound”), which were mobile diagnostic companies and approved Medicare providers. The companies provided mobile diagnostic testing, including ultrasounds, echocardiograms, and nerve conduction studies.
Biosound technicians would travel to the office of a primary care physician in the New York and New Jersey area to conduct diagnostic testing. Biosound was responsible for sending the tests to a “reading physician” – an appropriate specialist who would interpret the results. After the reading physician prepared a report, Biosound was responsible for providing it to the referring physician. Biosound would bill Medicare and other payors for the diagnostic testing, the reading physician’s interpretation of the results and the report.
According to the complaint, about half of the diagnostic reports generated by Biosound in the past two years had a photocopied signature from a reading physician when no physician had actually seen, reviewed or interpreted the results. Rather than pay compensation to a reading physician, Kirtish N. Patel allegedly would interpret the diagnostic results himself, and Nita K. Patel would either photocopy or electronically cut and paste a physician’s signature onto a diagnostic report that was drafted by an employee of Biosound and forwarded to the referring physician who ordered the testing.
The charge of conspiracy to commit health care fraud carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Nita K. Patel and Kirtish N. Patel were each released on $100,000 unsecured bond, with travel restricted to New Jersey unless given prior approval by pretrial services, and they must surrender their United States and India passports.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford; and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of the Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Tom O’Donnell, with the investigation leading to today’s charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Alfonzo Walsman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Health Care and Government Fraud Unit.
U.S. Attorney Fishman reorganized the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office shortly after taking office, including creating a stand-alone Health Care and Government Fraud Unit to handle both criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses. Since 2010, the office has recovered more than $535 million in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.
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Defense counsel:
Kirtish Patel: Richard Asche Esq., New York
Nita Patel: John Yauch Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, NewarkPatel, Nita and Kirtish Complaint
Essex County, N.J., Man Sentenced to 114 Months in Prison for Role in Armed CarjackingRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – An Essex County, N.J., man was sentenced today 114 months in prison for his role in an armed carjacking in Newark on Nov. 8, 2012, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Nathaniel Tullies, 20, of East Orange, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of theft of a motor vehicle by force, violence, and intimidation, and one count of use of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. Judge Hayden imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
On Nov. 8, 2012, an individual got out of a 2006 Chevrolet Impala to open a garage door when Tullies and an accomplice got on either side of the car, took it from the victim at gunpoint and drove away. The victim called police, who responded within minutes. A Newark police detective spotted the vehicle and a high-speed chase ensued, ending when the Impala crashed on the shoulder of Routes 1/9, the suspects fled on foot and the detective chased and captured Tullies.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Hayden sentenced Tullies to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay restitution of $6,486.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited detectives with the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the Direction of Acting Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray, and investigators in the U.S. Attorney’s Office with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth M. Harris and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Romankow, acting deputy chief of the general crimes unit, in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Peter Carter Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Ringleader of Tax Refund Check Scam Admits $2.6 Million ConspiracyRead the Press Release
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Hernandez, Raymundo Information
Camden Man Sentenced to 37 Months in Prison for Exchanging More Than $2.5 Million in Snap/Food Stamp Benefits for CashRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A Camden man was sentenced today to 37 months in prison for stealing more than $2.5 million dollars from the U.S. Government through a food stamps scheme, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Alexander D. Vargas, 35, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Joseph H. Rodriguez to an information charging him with stealing U.S. Government monies during a scheme in which he purchased Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits (formerly known as food stamps) for approximately 50 cents on the dollar at the local grocery store he managed in Camden. Vargas was detained after his arrest on May 16, 2013, and his detention was continued.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From January 2012 through December 2012 Vargas managed Eddie’s Grocery Store, a small store in Camden that was authorized to accept SNAP benefits. The program is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Retail food stores approved for participation in SNAP may sell food in exchange for food stamp benefits. However, they may not exchange food stamp benefits for cash.
Every food stamp recipient receives an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card, similar to a debit card, with which to make purchases. Every retailer authorized to accept food stamp benefits has an EBT terminal. Food purchases are made by swiping the card at the terminal. After the customer enters a secret Personal Identification Number (PIN), the EBT terminal verifies the PIN, determines whether the customer’s account balance is sufficient to cover the proposed transaction and informs the retailer whether the transaction should be authorized or denied. If the transaction is authorized, the amount of the purchase is then deducted electronically from the food stamp benefits reserved for the customer, and the amount is credited to the retailer’s designated bank account.
Eddie’s Grocery designated a bank account at Sovereign Bank to receive the reimbursements for SNAP benefits. Bank records listed Vargas and another individual as managers of Eddie’s Grocery.Eddie’s Grocery was first approved to participate in the SNAP program in 2007. In his application to participate in SNAP, the owner estimated that Eddie’s Grocery would generate receipts of approximately $280,000 annually, or an average of $23,333 per month. The volume of SNAP benefits reimbursement received at Eddie’s Grocery substantially exceeded those estimates, indicating large scale food stamp fraud. From February 2012 through November 2012 the SNAP redemptions were more than $2.8 million greater than the estimates.
In addition to the high volume of SNAP benefits redemptions, law enforcement agents verified the fraudulent exchange of SNAP benefits for cash through the use of a cooperating witness and an undercover law enforcement officer. During a series of five transactions from June 7, 2012, through Oct. 4, 2012, law enforcement agents directed a cooperating witness and an undercover law enforcement officer to go into Eddie’s Grocery and exchange $1,359.75 in SNAP benefits for $650 cash.
A review of the bank records for the Eddie’s Grocery account showed total cash withdrawals of $3,109,776 for the 2012 calendar year. Records from Feb. 15, 2012, (when defendant Alexander Vargas was added as an authorized cosigner on the account) through December 2012, showed $2,548,510 in cash withdrawals – of which Vargas’ name was on 40 withdrawals totaling $1,869,266.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Rodriguez sentenced Vargas to three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $2,791,430 in restitution.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge William G. Squires Jr. in New York; the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees; and IRS – Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Diana Carrig of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Camden.
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Defense counsel: Jeffrey C. Zucker Esq., CamdenBoard-Certified New Jersey Pediatrician and Internist Sentenced to 20 Months in Prison for Taking KickbacksRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A board-certified pediatrician and internist from Morris County, N.J., was sentenced today to 20 months in prison for soliciting and taking cash and rental payments as kickbacks for his patients’ diagnostic testing referrals, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Chikezie Onyenso, 55, of Randolph, N.J., was convicted on Oct. 15, 2013, after a three-week trial before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi, of conspiracy to solicit and receive kickbacks from a diagnostic testing facility called Orange Community MRI LLC (Orange MRI), and of soliciting and taking such kickbacks from Orange MRI. Judge Cecchi imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
Including Onyenso, 18 defendants – including 16 doctors – have been convicted in connection with the government’s ongoing investigation of illegal payments made by Orange MRI.
According to documents filed in this case and the evidence at trial:
Onyenso was a licensed and board-certified pediatrician and internist who owned his own medical practice, Total Support Medical Group, in Irvington, N.J. From the summer of 2010 through December 2011 he conspired to take illegal kickbacks in exchange for sending his patients to Orange MRI. Onyenso sought and accepted thousands of dollars of cash in envelopes in exchange for referring his Medicare and Medicaid patients to Orange MRI for MRIs and CAT scans. For his ultrasound referrals, Onyenso received from Orange MRI more than $25,000 in kickback payments disguised as rental payments and documented by a bogus, $1,000-per-square-foot lease. He was recorded taking cash kickbacks in his Irvington office on Oct. 11, 2011, and Nov. 22, 2011.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Cecchi sentenced Onyenso to two years of supervised release, fined him $40,000 and ordered him to forfeit $42,176.Ashokkumar Babaria, 64, of Moorestown, N.J., Orange MRI’s former medical director, has been ordered to forfeit $2 million in revenue from corrupt referrals. Chirag Patel, 38, of Warren, N.J., Orange MRI’s former executive director, awaits sentencing and has agreed to forfeit $89,180 in corrupt gains. In addition, health care providers, including Onyenso, have agreed to or been ordered to forfeit a total of $429,666 in illegal cash kickbacks.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Tom O’Donnell, and criminal investigators from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott B. McBride, deputy chief of the Economic Crimes Unit, and Joseph G. Mack, deputy chief of the Health Care and Government Fraud Unit, in Newark.
U.S. Attorney Fishman reorganized the health care fraud practice at the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office shortly after taking office, including creating a stand-alone Health Care and Government Fraud Unit to handle both criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses. Since 2010, the office has recovered more than $500 million in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.
Defense counsel: Alan L. Zegas Esq., Chatham, NJ
14-204Middlesex County, N.J., Man Admits Saddle Brook Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A Middlesex County, N.J., man today admitted robbing a TD Bank in Saddle Brook, N.J., U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Jorge Rodriguez, 46, of South River, N.J., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of bank robbery.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Rodriguez admitted using a BB air pistol to rob a TD Bank in Saddle Brook on April 19, 2013. Rodriguez entered the bank wearing a disguise, which included a hat with a dreadlocks wig attached to it. During the robbery, Rodriguez brandished the BB air pistol, handed a bag to a bank teller and said, “Give me the money or I’ll shoot. You have two seconds.” The teller complied and Rodriguez then fled the bank with the bag of money, which also included a dye pack. Rodriguez was apprehended shortly after the robbery, after the dye pack exploded.
The bank robbery count carries a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 23, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, along with the Saddle Brook Police Department and the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Josh Hafetz and David M. Eskew of the Criminal Division of U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Patrick McMahon Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark
Rodriguez, Jorge Information
Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman at the Camden County College Police Academy Graduation for the 63rd Basic Police Recruit ClassRead the Press Release
CAMDEN COUNTY COLLEGE, BLACKWOOD, N.J.
Thank you, President Yannuzzi, for that introduction. It is always a privilege for me to speak with uniformed officers and it is a special thrill to be the keynote speaker on such a momentous occasion. The presence of so many public figures shows just how significant today is. And while I don’t want to run the risk of picking and choosing among elected and non-elected officials, I do want to single out two people. First, I want to thank Warren Faulk for his service as Camden County Prosecutor and for his friendship and for being such a great partner. I want to thank Chief Scott Thompson of the Camden County Police Department, with whom I have worked so closely over the last several years for his vision, his resolution, his flexibility and his leadership.
Thank you all for letting me mark this milestone with you today. Thank you for your service. And Congratulations Academy Class 63.
One morning, a few months from now, a woman will walk out of her door in the Parkside neighborhood in Camden with her new baby. And she will see one of you – maybe Officer Diana Deren or Ken Egan or Keyana Smith – walking up the block. And she will feel safer.
On a Tuesday afternoon in October, a retired couple will be taking a walk on the trail as the leaves change in Wood Lake Park in Edgewater Park. And maybe they will see Officer Kyle McPhillips or Charles Ryder pull into the parking lot. And they will feel safer.
Early one evening, a young family will get into their car after eating at one of the restaurants on Blackwood – Clementon Road as Matt Gray, or Joe Thomson, pulls in on a coffee break. And the kids will wave and the officers will wave back. And the parents will smile and feel safer.
And on a Sunday afternoon, a couple of teenagers will be riding their bikes to play ball at Legion Field in Fieldsboro. Maybe they’ll see Officer James or Officer Palma patrolling on Front Street or Washington Street. And they will be safer. And maybe one of those kids might think that he or she wants to be just like them.
Today we celebrate all of that. Today we recognize that all of you have chosen a career that will give you the chance to change people’s lives. Today we celebrate that all of you will, simply by doing your jobs, make our streets and our neighborhoods safer in 13 different communities – from Ocean City to Camden, and from Washington Township to Gloucester City. And today we congratulate you for having made it through a rigorous, demanding, state of the art academy that has prepared you to handle those responsibilities in the best possible way.
You each have come to this career, and to this day, for different reasons and by different paths. For some of you, this work is literally in your blood and you are part of a family tradition and the next in a line of dedicated officers. Recruits Bagby, Camacho and Melendez are following in the footsteps of parents who have served these same communities.
Others of you are like those teenagers on their bikes, who have always wanted to be cops and have imagined wearing these uniforms since you played at arresting your friends on the playground. Four of you have already served your country in the armed forces, and this work is a natural extension of that extraordinary service. Several of you have already finished college, and three of you have advanced degrees.
And all of you, I suspect, have some deep, personal reasons to make a difference.
Chief Thomson shared Recruit CaBria Davis’ story with me, and that alone would be enough to make me proud to be here today. In 1994, her father was tragically murdered at the Crestbury Apartments in Camden. She and her brother were raised on the 500 block of Mechanic Street by their mother who struggled to make ends meet while on government assistance. There are a lot of ways Recruit Davis could have turned as a result of those experiences. But instead, she worked two jobs to assist her mother and brother -- all while paying her own way to attend Camden County College and Rowan University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice. It is a testament to her resolve and an inspiration to all of us that she is motivated to use that experience and that education as a police officer in the City of Camden.
As the United States Attorney, I have a lot of opportunities to speak about the importance of public service and its rewards and obligations. For the better part of my 30-year career, I have been proud to tell people that I work for the Department of Justice, and it never gets old to say I represent the United States. As you all know, there is no greater honor than the opportunity to serve our country and our communities.
But while what I do is satisfying, rewarding and intellectually challenging, it’s not dangerous, and it’s not scary. I don’t get up in the morning and put on a uniform, and a badge, and strap on a gun. I’ve never put my body through the grueling training required to do the job and save lives; and I’ve never been involved in a high-speed chase with a dangerous felon. I've never had to run into a burning building to save someone else. And I've never pulled over and approached a car with tinted windows on a deserted street, not knowing who was behind the glass or what they were holding.
To do that; to be willing to do that; to ask to do that – that requires a special kind of dedication and commitment. It means making a choice – and sometimes it’s just an instinct – to put the safety and welfare of others ahead of your own.
It is no coincidence that your badges are pinned over your hearts.
That kind of public service demands the sacrifice of time, compensation, and the companionship of family and friends. It’s lost weekends, and all-nighters, and missed school concerts and baseball games.
That sacrifice is shared – if not exceeded – by your family and friends. If you love someone who is on the job – if your husband or your wife is on patrol; if your mom or your dad is on a stakeout; if your sister or your brother or your friend is making an undercover buy – you bear burdens and worries and sleepless nights that others just can’t fully understand or appreciate. To the families of these brave men and women, I want to thank you in advance for carrying that weight.
Today we also celebrate something else. A little more than a year ago, the Camden County Police Department was launched. After all of the raised expectations this change created, it is your class – finally bringing the ranks to nearly full staffing – that will be able to deliver.
As budgets have tightened, we have all done “more with less.” All over New Jersey, we and our law enforcement partners have thwarted terrorist plots, stopped corrupt public officials, crippled cyber thieves who steal our most valuable information, held corporations accountable and locked up white collar criminals who have defrauded victims and markets and illegally used our healthcare system as a cash cow. We’ve taken guns and drugs off the streets, stopped producers and traders of images of sexually abused children and protected our delicate environment. Every day, I see my colleagues throughout the law enforcement community do their jobs with professionalism, dedication and pride.
But at a certain point, we can only do less with less. Even the most resilient are not immune from the constant stress of budget cuts, shutdown, furloughs or lay-offs. In today’s economy, this has been the reality for all of us in law enforcement. But the police in Camden – and the people of its neighborhoods and communities – have felt a particularly harsh bite. I and your other partners in this work are thrilled to see the cavalry has arrived.
Not that the force hasn’t been doing amazing work. Even with significantly challenged staffing levels, the men and women of this department have worked to reduce violent crime by 10 percent, homicides by 20 percent, and shootings by 25 percent. And crime is down in every category.
So imagine how much more we can do now. Those of you graduating today will boost the new County force to almost 390, full stop. That will allow deployments to further drive down the crime rate and it will give the department the flexibility to really employ a model of community policing. More officers will walk beats, patrol neighborhoods on bikes, and make real connections with the people they protect and serve. The fact that the force is so diverse, and reflects more and more who lives in those neighborhoods, will help to establish and maintain that trust. And it will be a huge advantage that you can communicate in 11 different languages.
We in the federal government have been and remain dedicated to supporting you in so many ways. For example, ten of you in this class were funded by a grant from the Justice Department’s Community Orienting Policing Services – or COPS – Hiring Program of 2013, which awarded Camden more than $2.2 million to bring them on board.
Last September, with the support of my office, the Justice Department’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention awarded Camden a roughly $1.4 million Community-Based Violence Prevention Demonstration Program grant to implement a public health based violence-reduction program called Cure4Camden, which will use Outreach Workers and Violence Interrupters to target those who are threatening Camden’s four most challenged neighborhoods: Cooper-Lanning, Liberty Park, Whitman Park and Centerville.
OJJDP, as that office is known, also awarded Camden another quarter of a million dollars in a National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention grant in September to support the Mayor’s Task Force on Youth Violence Prevention – a multi-agency partnership that began meeting in the fall of 2012 to identify, plan and direct a number of strategic initiatives in the areas of prevention, intervention, enforcement and re-entry. I’m proud that my office is playing a major role in that initiative as well.
And just over two years ago, the federal Department of Education awarded Camden a half-million dollars Promise Neighborhood grant to ramp up services to children and families in the Cooper Plaza and Lanning Square neighborhoods; and the Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded Camden a $300,000 Choice Neighborhood grant to focus on addressing housing, transportation, education, employment, healthy living and health care for public housing residents in the Liberty Park, Whitman Park and Centerville neighborhoods.
As I know from my conversations with the mayor and the Chief, these resources are incredibly important, particularly in these lean days. But the federal commitment can’t be and isn’t just about big checks. It must also be about big ideas and new strategies.
We always preach that we work best and are most effective when we work together at all levels of law enforcement. But in my thirty years of experience, I have never seen a better model than how we’re doing that in Camden in what we call the Camden County Crime Collaboration, or “C-4.” Every federal, state, county, and local law enforcement agency responsible for combating drug trafficking, gang activity and violent crime in Camden has assigned personnel – including agents, cops, intelligence analysts and prosecutors – to work out of a single location in the city. Every morning at 10 o’clock, in a meeting that has become known as the “huddle,” senior supervisors of those agencies share real-time information about homicides, shootings, and – most important – the details of ongoing criminal investigations. The kind of information that is exchanged, and the trust among those agencies, is extraordinary, and this kind of cooperation and collaboration is truly unprecedented. Not only is there nothing else like it in New Jersey, but I don’t know of a similar program anywhere else in the country. It is smart, creative law enforcement, and I hope that many of you in this class will have the opportunity to work directly with this impressive group.
But whatever your assignment, no matter what community you serve, the moment is now yours. Regardless of all of our cooperation, and all of our partnerships, and all we do as a team – in those moments of crisis in those neighborhoods and on those streets, it will be you who is there. When there is a call of shots fired; when the blaze is still burning; when the scene is not yet secure; when the ambulance hasn’t yet arrived; when the lost child has not yet been found – it will be you who is there. You are literally the first to respond.
Today we say, “You are ready.” You have trained hard and well, and will continue to hone your instincts through years of experience on the job.
It isn’t just about the fact that you keep people safe, it is also about how you keep people safe – always mindful of the civil liberties you are sworn to defend and the trust of the public you protect.
For the people of your communities, you – each of you – is an ambassador. For many, their interaction with the police is the closest contact they will ever have with their government. It is on you to represent all of us in a professional and positive light. You will need to be that much better; your skin will need to be that much thicker; and you will need to be that much more resistant to the temptation of corruption and the abuse of your power. Remember that everything you do – the way you handle every encounter – reflects not just on you but on all of your brother and sister officers.
Throughout my career, I have been lucky and privileged to work with law enforcement officers at every level of government: local, county state and federal. At every turn, I have been moved by the willingness of the New Jersey law enforcement community – the one I know best – to stand against those who won’t or can’t abide by the laws of our society, particularly those who commit crimes of violence. You have made it your life’s work – your chosen career – to help keep our communities safe.
The work will be hard, but it will be hugely satisfying.
In the communities you will serve, your patrol will be a welcome sight. In the communities you will serve, you will build relationships that will yield rewards for years. In the communities you will serve, criminals will be more afraid to carry guns and the law abiding people who work, live, play, and go to school there will carry themselves with less fear – and more pride.Monmouth County, N.J., Man Charged with Receiving Sexually Explicit Images of 12-Year Old Pennsylvania GirlRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Monmouth County, N.J., man is expected to make his initial court appearance today on a charge that he received sexually explicit images of a 12-year old Pennsylvania girl with whom he had an online relationship, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Chad C. Weber, 21, of Colts Neck, N.J., is charged by complaint with one count of receiving child pornography. He surrendered this morning and made his initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Tonianne J. Bongiovanni in Trenton federal court.
According to the complaint:
In April 2013, law enforcement agents learned Weber had been communicating with a 12-year-old girl from Pennsylvania. The agents obtained and reviewed copies of various chat logs and other internet-based messages, which reflect Weber’s online communications with the victim between February 2013 and April 2013. Many of these communications were sexually explicit. Weber and the victim also traded sexually explicit photographs of each other through the internet and discussed the photographs in online chats. During some of these communications, Weber acknowledged that the victim was 12 years old.
Weber was released on $100,000 bond and will be subject to home detention with electronic monitoring, no possession or use of computers and no contact with minors unless in the presence of a parent or guardian who is notified about this case.
The charge of receiving child pornography carries a mandatory minimum term of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees in Newark, for the investigation leading to the charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas P. Grippo of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Trenton.
14-201Defense counsel: Brian P. Reilly Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, Trenton
Weber, Chad Complaint
Member of Largest Countefeit Goods Conspiracy Ever Charged Sentenced to 46 Months in PrisonRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – A member of a massive, international counterfeit goods conspiracy was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for his role in the scheme, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Ming Zheng, a/k/a “Uncle Mi,” 48, of New York, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to an information charging him with a conspiracy to launder money. Judge Salas imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in Court:
From November 2009 through February 2012, Zheng’s co-defendants ran one of the largest counterfeit goods smuggling and distribution conspiracies ever charged by the Department of Justice. The defendants and others conspired to import hundreds of containers of counterfeit goods – primarily handbags, and footwear, and perfume – from China into the United States in furtherance of the conspiracy. These goods, if legitimate, would have had a retail value of more than $300 million.
Zheng was a money launderer who was introduced to undercover special agents (collectively, the UCs) by co-defendants who were running the counterfeiting operation. Conspirators obtained cash from the UCs, purportedly the proceeds of gambling and other unlawful activities. These other conspirators then provided the money to Zheng. For every $50,000 in cash the UCs provided, Zheng and others would return approximately $42,500 – via wire transfers from banks in China – into a bank account set up by the UCs. When other conspirators received money from the UCs to be laundered, one of the conspirators would then contact Zheng, who in turn contacted a Chinese-based conspirator, and transferred the money to locations in China. Then the money (less the laundering fee) was transferred from Fujian, China, to a bank in Guangzho, China, where it was subsequently withdrawn and physically transported via courier to a bank in Hong Kong. The final transfer was from the bank in Hong Kong to the UCs’ bank account. Zheng was therefore instrumental in each of the money laundering transactions – he received the cash from other conspirators and caused it to be transferred overseas in furtherance of the laundering process.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI), under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees, and special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Pak and Zach Intrater of the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property section of the Economic Crimes Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark and Nicholas Grippo of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Trenton.
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Defense counsel: Stacey Van Malden Esq., Bronx, N.Y.Jersey City Police Officer Pleads Guilty to Transportation of Stolen Goods and ExtortionRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – A Jersey City, N.J. police officer today admitted stealing more than half a million cigarettes from a trailer and extorting $20,000 from a drug courier who turned out to be an undercover FBI agent, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Mario Rodriguez, 39, of Jersey City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with transportation of stolen goods and extortion under color of official right.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:
On July 3, 2013, Rodriguez and an individual working for the FBI as a confidential informant (CI) drove to a warehouse in Secaucus, N.J., to break into a trailer, steal cigarettes and sell the stolen goods to the CI’s associate. Law enforcement agents had previously parked the trailer at the warehouse and established surveillance of the area.
After using bolt-cutters to cut the lock off of the trailer, Rodriguez and the CI loaded 50 cases containing approximately 600,000 cigarettes and six televisions from the trailer into their vehicle. As they drove the stolen items to a parking lot in Staten Island, N.Y., Rodriguez made several phone calls seeking buyers for the TVs.
The pair met the CI’s associate – actually an undercover officer – in the parking lot to get the $5,000 payment for the cigarettes. Rodriguez kept $3,000 of the cash and three of the TVs.
On July 10, 2013, Rodriguez, the CI and an undercover law enforcement agent met in New Jersey and discussed the possibility of robbing a drug courier, who was actually another undercover officer. On July 24, 2013, the group met again in Staten Island to discuss the plan. The undercover officer told Rodriguez the courier would be delivering cocaine to them that day in exchange for a $20,000 payment. Rodriguez suggested a Jersey City mall parking lot due to an absence of surveillance cameras and called his associate, Anthony Roman, 48, of Jersey City, who was not a law enforcement officer, to help him with the robbery. Roman was charged with one count of Hobbs Act extortion.
Later that day, Rodriguez and Roman drove an SUV to the location where the CI and the drug courier were parked. Law enforcement agents had already established surveillance and staged the car containing $20,000 cash in a plastic bag. Rodriguez and Roman approached the car and identified themselves as law enforcement officers who were investigating the CI. They pretended to arrest the CI, threatened to arrest the drug courier and took the cash.
Later that day, Rodriguez, the CI and the undercover agent met in a hotel room at a Pennsylvania casino to split the cash.
The cargo theft and conspiracy to commit extortion charges to which Rodriguez pleaded guilty carry a maximum potential penalty of 10 and 20 years in prison, respectively. Both counts also carry a maximum fine of $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 26, 2014. Rodriguez has been suspended from the police department.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark; the Special Investigations Unit of the Jersey City Police Department, under the direction of Acting Chief Joseph Connors; the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Gaetano T. Gregory; and criminal investigators of the U.S. Attorney’s Office with the investigation leading to today’s plea. He also thanked the Bayonne Police Department, Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, IRS-Criminal Investigation, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and the N.J. State Commission of Investigation for their significant contributions to the investigation.
The government is represented by Acting Deputy Chief of the General Crimes Unit Jonathan W. Romankow in Newark.
The charges against Roman remain pending. They are merely accusations, and he remains innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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Defense counsel: Brian J. Neary Esq., Hackensack, N.J.
Rodriguez, Mario Information
Pharmacist Admits Attempting to Weaponize Deadly Toxins, Possessing Narcotics Manufacturing EquipmentRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. - A licensed pharmacist pleaded guilty in federal court today to attempting to develop, produce and possess the potentially deadly toxins ricin and abrin for use as weapons and to possessing equipment for producing illegal narcotics, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Jordan S. Gonzalez, 34, of New York and formerly of Jersey City, N.J., entered his guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Mary L. Cooper in Trenton federal court.
“Jordan Gonzalez admitted today that he worked to manufacture and deploy deadly toxins, stockpiled weapons and body armor and acquired manuals training him for violent confrontation,” said U.S. Attorney Fishman. “We all have seen the devastation possible when these behaviors go unchecked. With today’s guilty plea, Jordan Gonzalez will face justice and will not be a threat to society.”
“The overriding focus of the FBI’s WMD Directorate, and the primary focus of our overall efforts, is prevention,” said FBI Newark Division Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford. “To make this happen we pull together various resources from the FBI and work closely with our law enforcement partners. In this case, the FBI worked swiftly and tirelessly with our partners to prevent and neutralize all threats posed by this defendant.”
Carl J. Kotowski, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Jersey Division, said, “The men and women of DEA are dedicated to protecting the citizens of this nation. This investigation reveals how DEA and its law enforcement partners worked together to prevent Mr. Gonzalez from doing harm to the citizens of our communities.”
According documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From Sept. 18, 2011, through March 19, 2013, Gonzalez purchased thousands of seeds containing ricin and abrin, and materials to extract and administer those toxins to others, including filtering equipment, respirators, glass vials, a spraying device and projectile weapons including a crossbow pistol. Gonzalez also purchased materials for making RDX, an explosive compound used in military and commercial demolition applications. Gonzalez made the purchases through an online third-party vendor marketplace and all the items were delivered to him at his Jersey City apartment.
Gonzalez learned how to extract toxins from the seeds and about deployment methods from manuals he acquired. He also kept manuals teaching how to make improvised explosive devices and synthesize explosive compounds, including RDX.
On Nov. 8, 2013, while living in New York, Gonzalez purchased one kilogram of sodium azide, a toxic, gas-forming compound that can explode at high temperatures and is lethal if ingested or absorbed through the skin. Law enforcement officers intercepted the delivery during the investigation.
On Nov. 14, 2013, Gonzalez was arrested in Jersey City and search warrants were executed at three locations he used: apartments in Manhattan and Jersey City and a storage unit in Jersey City. Collectively, material collected through the searches included thousands of seeds containing ricin and abrin; explosive precursor chemicals; manuals related to toxins, explosives and improvised explosive devices; approximately one thousand rounds of ammunition, handguns, components for assault rifles, and high-capacity magazines; a bulletproof vest; and books and documents related to the collapse of social order and techniques for surviving in a lawless environment. Gonzalez has been in custody since his arrest.
Even small doses of ricin and abrin are potentially lethal to humans if ingested, inhaled or injected – causing death within 36 to 72 hours from the time of exposure.
During his guilty plea, Gonzalez admitted that acquiring this knowledge and these materials were substantial steps toward developing ricin and abrin as weapons and that he acquired all of the materials – including the firearms, ammunition and body armor – in anticipation of using them in confrontations with other people in the future.
Gonzalez also acquired manuals for synthesizing controlled substances, including methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA) and methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), also known as “ecstasy.” He bought and had delivered to the Jersey City apartment a three-neck round-bottom flask, gel capsules and an encapsulating machine, as well as precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of MDA and MDMA. Possession of that type of flask is prohibited if intended for use in the manufacturing of controlled substances.
The toxin charge to which Gonzalez pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of any term of years or life in prison and a $250,000 fine. The narcotics charge carries a maximum potential penalty of four years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Sept. 17, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ford in Newark, and the DEA, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Kotowski in New Jersey, with the investigation leading to today’s plea. He also thanked members of FBI Newark’s Joint Terrorism Task Force; FBI’s New York Office and Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate Laboratory Division; DEA’s New York Division; and the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness for their work on the case; as well as the police and fire departments of Jersey City and the City of New York, as well as the New Jersey State Police for their assistance.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney L. Judson Welle of the U.S. Attorney’s Office National Security Unit and Assistant U.S. Attorney Francisco J. Navarro of the Office’s Criminal Division, both in Newark. Valuable support was provided by attorneys of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division – Counterterrorism Section.14-198
Defense counsel: Steven Ross Esq., New York
Gonzalez, Jordan Information
Essex County, N.J., Man Admits Armed Bank RobberyRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – An Essex County, N.J., man today admitted committing the armed robbery of a PNC Bank in Montclair, N.J., U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Robert Mercedes, 24, of East Orange, N.J., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joel A. Pisano in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with one count of bank robbery and one count of using a firearm during the commission of crime of violence.According to documents filed in this case and statements in court:
Mercedes admitted using a gun to rob a PNC Bank in Montclair on Dec. 27, 2013. He brandished a gun and demanded that bank employees fill a backpack with money. Mercedes told employees of the bank, “I want 100s and 50s, I want 100s and 50s. You have 13 seconds.” Mercedes was apprehended the same day by members of the East Orange Police Department, with the assistance of the Montclair Police Department and the FBI.
The count of bank robbery carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The count of brandishing a firearm during the bank robbery carries a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 23, 2014
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, along with the East Orange and Montclair police departments and the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Hafetz of the U.S. Attorney’s General Crimes Unit in Newark.
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Defense Counsel: John McGovern Esq., Newark
Mercedes, Robert Information
New Jersey Business Owner Charged with Operating Corporate Ponzi Scheme Resulting in More Than $42 Million in LossesRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – The owner of a group of freight payment, logistics, and shipping businesses headquartered in Branchburg, N.J., surrendered today to face charges she operated them as a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Shirley Sooy, 63, currently of Fort Smith, Ark., surrendered in Newark this afternoon to inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation on a criminal complaint charging her with wire fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud, and transacting in criminal proceeds. She is scheduled for an initial appearance and bail hearing this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III in Newark federal court.
According to the complaint unsealed today:
From 2003 through April 2013, Sooy, through a collection of businesses operating under the umbrella of the “TransVantage Group,” entered contracts with corporate clients – referred to in the complaint as the “victim companies.” TransVantage audited freight bills generated by common carriers and freight forwarders hired by the victim companies. TransVantage was obligated to pay the audited and approved freight bills to the carriers from funds provided by those companies, and the funds were supposed to be held in trust by TransVantage until paid over to the carriers. The victim companies also paid TransVantage for its purported auditing services, payments separate and apart from the carrier payment funds.
Sooy allegedly operated TransVantage as a Ponzi scheme, which resulted in more than $42 million in losses to the victim companies. Sooy and others comingled the funds from the victim companies – funds that were to have been paid to carriers – into two accounts and then misused those funds in various ways. They paid prior, unpaid carrier bills of particular victim companies using funds provided by other, unrelated victim companies; they funded TransVantage’s payroll obligations and they funded the obligations of various TransVantage subsidiaries.
They also subsidized millions of dollars in personal expenses, including mortgage payments for personal properties owned by Sooy and others in Bloomsbury, N.J.; Phillipsburg, N.J.; Waretown, N.J.; and Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.; a 48-foot yacht purchased by Sooy with others; a $135,000 Maserati automobile purchased by a conspirator; payments for personal credit card charges incurred by Sooy and her family members; and payments for remodeling Sooy’s home.
The counts of wire fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, and mail fraud with which Sooy is charged each carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gain or loss from the offense. The counts of transacting in criminal proceeds with which Sooy is charged each carry a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gain or loss from the offense.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Postal Inspector in Charge Maria L. Kelokates; and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, for the investigation leading to today’s charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Zach Intrater and Shirley U. Emehelu of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
The charge and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.Today’s arrest 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. attorney’s 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.
14-194Defense counsel: Michael J. Rogers Esq., Somerville, N.J.
Sooy, Shirley Complaint
Gloucester County, N.J., Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Receipt of Child PornographyRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. - A Gloucester County, N.J., man was sentenced today to 240 months in prison for receipt of images of child sexual abuse, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Bryan Jacobs, 43, of Deptford, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Renée Marie Bumb to one count of a superseding indictment charging him with receipt of child pornography. Jacobs has been in custody since his arrest in January 2010 on a criminal complaint charging him with related conduct. Judge Bumb imposed the sentence today in Camden federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Jacobs created a profile on the social networking site MySpace, using the false persona of “Brianna,” purportedly a young woman from Philadephia. On Nov. 30, 2008, Jacobs, posing as Brianna, engaged in MySpace chats with a male minor. Jacobs received images that depicted the minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct, and downloaded those images to his computer.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Bumb sentenced Jacobs to 15 years of supervised release. Restitution will be determined at a later date.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Secret Service, Philadelphia Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Cynthia R. Wofford; and the Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Sean F. Dalton, with the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin Danilewitz and Diana Vondra Carrig of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Camden.
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Defense counsel: Peter Levin Esq., PhiladelphiaFormer Longshoremen Plead Guilty to Extortion Conspiracy Involving Christmastime Tribute PaymentsRead the Press Release
Genovese Crime Family Associate Also Pleads Guilty to Illegal Gambling Charges
NEWARK, N.J. - Two former longshoremen admitted today that they conspired to extort others in Local 1 and Local 1235 of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) for Christmastime tribute payments, and an associate of the Genovese organized crime family charged in the same case admitted running an illegal sports betting operation.
New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman and Eastern District of New York U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch announced the guilty pleas.
Rocco Ferrandino, 71, of Lakewood, N.J., and Michael Trueba, 78, of Kearny, N.J. – both former supervisors on the New Jersey piers – pleaded guilty to conspiring to extort Christmastime tributes from the union members – count three of the second superseding indictment against them. Richard Dehmer, 78, of Springfield, N.J., an associate of the Genovese organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra, also pleaded guilty today to conspiring to operate, and operating, an illegal sports betting operation with others. Ferrandino, Trueba and Dehmer entered their guilty pleas before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
During their guilty pleas, Ferrandino and Trueba admitted they conspired with each other and others to compel tribute payments from ILA union members, who made the payments based on actual and threatened force, violence and fear. The timing of the extortions typically coincided with the receipt by certain ILA members of “Container Royalty Fund” checks, a form of year-end compensation. Ferrandino, the former head timekeeper at Maher Terminals, and Trueba, the former vice president of ILA Local 1235, were suspended from their positions following their arrests in this case.
Charges are still pending against three defendants in the superseding indictment, including a racketeering conspiracy charge against Stephen Depiro, 58, of Kenilworth, N.J., a soldier in the Genovese family. Members of the Genovese family, including Depiro, are charged with conspiring to collect tribute payments from New Jersey port workers at Christmastime each year through their corrupt influence over union officials, including the last three presidents of Local 1235.
The charge to which Ferrandino and Trueba pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The charges to which Dehmer pleaded guilty carry a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Sept. 23, 24 and 30, 2014, for Dehmer, Ferrandino and Trueba, respectively.
U.S. Attorneys Fishman and Lynch credited the FBI in New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, and in New York, under the direction of Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos, as well as the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Garcia, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas. They also thanked the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor for its cooperation and assistance in the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Mahajan, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey.
The charges and allegations against Depiro and the other remaining defendants are merely accusations, and they are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.14-195
Defense counsel: Rocco Ferrandino: Vincent S. Verdiramo Esq., Jersey City, N.J.
Michael Trueba: Charles S. Lorber Esq., West Orange, N.J.
Richard Dehmer: Chester Keller Esq., NewarkFormer Engineer at Two Global Medical Technology Corporations Admits Theft of Trade SecretsRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – An engineer who formerly lived in Mahwah, N.J., admitted today to stealing trade secrets from two global medical technology companies based in northern New Jersey, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Ketankumar Maniar, 37, aka “Ketan Maniar,” pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Joel A. Pisano in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with two counts of theft and attempted theft of trade secrets for his own economic benefit. Maniar, an Indian national, has been in custody since his June 2013 arrest.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
C.R. Bard Inc. (Bard), based in Murray Hill, N.J., and Becton, Dickinson and Co. (BD), based in Franklin Lakes, N.J., are among the world’s leading manufacturers of medical technologies. From November 2004 until his resignation on Jan. 22, 2011, Maniar worked as an engineer at Bard’s Salt Lake City facility and was responsible for developing molding processes and specifications for catheters, ports and other medical products. From February 2012 until his resignation on May 24, 2013, Maniar worked as a staff engineer at BD’s Franklin Lakes headquarters, where he helped manufacture pre-fillable syringes and pen injectors.
Through his work at Bard and BD, Maniar was able to steal secret information related to the companies’ products, including Bard’s development of the first implantable port used for power injection of pharmaceutical drugs throughout the body. Maniar also had access to secret information related to a self-administered disposable pen injector still under development by BD and not yet available for commercial sale.
Maniar admitted he stole Bard and BD trade secrets that he kept after his resignation from those companies. Maniar downloaded numerous files containing Bard or BD product information from his work computers onto multiple computer storage devices, including external hard drives and thumb drives. He also used his work email accounts at Bard and BD to forward trade secrets to his personal email accounts.
On June 3, 2013, pursuant to court-issued federal warrants, FBI agents searched Maniar’s rental car and the New Jersey hotel room he stayed in while planning a move back to India. Agents seized – among other things – at least one hard drive containing Bard and BD trade secrets.
The theft of trade secrets charges are each punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Sept. 23, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, for their work in the investigation of this case.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shirley U. Emehelu of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
14-193Defense counsel: Bradley L. Henry Esq. and Ryan Blanch Esq., New York
Maniar, Ketankumar Information
Corrections Officers, Lawyer, Among Nine Charged in Schemes to Smuggle Contraband into Federal Pretrial Detention FacilityRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Two corrections officers, a lawyer, and six others were charged today in three separate complaints with smuggling contraband, including cell phones and marijuana, into a federal pretrial detention facility at the Essex County Correctional Facility, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Corrections officer Stephon Solomon, 26, of Irvington, N.J.; Darsell Davis, 28, Dwayne Harper, 30, and Deidra Harrison, 49, all of Newark; attorney Brian Kapalin, 66, of Maplewood, N.J.; and Vladimir Sauzereseteo, 40, of East Orange, N.J., were arrested this morning by special agents of the FBI. Corrections officer Channel Lespinasse, 25, of Florham Park, N.J., was issued a summons. Quasim Nichols, 29, and Muhammad Subpunallah, 32, already are incarcerated on unrelated federal charges.
“According to the complaints, the defendants operated contraband marketplace within the walls of the Essex County Correctional Facility,” said U.S. Attorney Fishman. “Jails are no place for drugs and illicit phones, and it is disappointing that two corrections officers and an attorney allegedly used their authority and access to make them available.”
“The allegations in today’s complaints underscore the commitment of the FBI and the Department of Justice to continue to pursue those employed by the government who undermine the public’s trust and engage in unethical and corrupt practices,” said Special Agent in Charge Ford. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners are determined to address public corruption at all levels of government.”
Solomon, Davis, Harper, Harrison, Kapalin, Sauzereseteo, Nichols and Subpunallah are scheduled to make their initial appearances this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III in Newark federal court. Lespinasse will appear for her initial appearance on June 2, 2014, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael A. Hammer in Newark.
According to the complaints unsealed today:
On at least five occasions between October 2013 and April 2014, Solomon, a corrections officer at the Essex County Correctional Facility, smuggled contraband – including cell phones, tobacco, and marijuana – to Nichols, an inmate there, in exchange for cash bribes. Nichols’ friends, Davis and Harper, helped by collecting the items that were to be smuggled into the jail. Davis then handed off the contraband and cash payments to Solomon. Nichols ultimately sold some of the marijuana and cell phones he received from Solomon to other inmates. The inmates purchasing marijuana and cell phones from Nichols had their friends and family pay for the items by sending Western Union money transfers to Nichols, who then enlisted Davis and others to retrieve the payments. Nichols also used the cell phones he received through this smuggling scheme to communicate with his conspirators.
Lespinasse, another corrections officer at the Essex County Correctional Facility, also smuggled in contraband in exchange for a cash bribe. In November 2013, Lespinasse and an associate, Harrison, agreed to smuggle a cell phone to an inmate in the jail in exchange for a cash bribe. On behalf of Lespinasse, Harrison accepted a $1,000 cash bribe and a cell phone from an undercover agent in the parking lot of a McDonald’s restaurant in Newark. Harrison promised the undercover federal agent that the cell phone would be delivered to its recipient – an inmate in the jail. Three days later, Lespinasse delivered the cell phone to the inmate.
Kapalin, a lawyer who practiced in New Jersey, used his access to inmates at the Essex County Correctional Facility to smuggle in contraband – including marijuana and tobacco – to inmates, including Subpunallah, in exchange for cash payments. Sauzereseteo, an associate of Subpunallah, delivered the contraband and the cash payments to Kapalin, who then smuggled the contraband into the jail. In January 2014, Kapalin spoke with Subpunallah – at that point an inmate at the Hudson County Correctional Facility – over a recorded jail phone. Subpunallah asked Kapalin to deliver contraband to an inmate at the Essex County Correctional Facility. Sauzereseteo was paid $1,650, via Western Union money transfers, which he used to purchase marijuana he delivered to Kapalin, along with a cash payment. A few days later, Kapalin met an inmate from the Essex County Correctional Facility in the attorney conference room at the jail, during which time he delivered the marijuana to the inmate.
A search of the federal pods at the Essex County Correctional Facility on May 26, 2014, produced nine hidden cellular phones, including one in the light fixture in the ceiling of Nichols’ cell.
The criminal complaints charge Solomon, Nichols, Davis, Harper, Lespinasse and Harrison each with one count of conspiring to violate the Hobbs Act, punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of the greatest of $250,000 or twice the gain or loss from the offense. The criminal complaints charge all nine defendants with one count of conspiring to provide contraband to inmates at the jail, a count that carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for smuggling marijuana or one year in prison and $100,000 maximum fine for smuggling a cell phone.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, and the Internal Affairs Division of Essex County Correctional Facility, under the leadership of Warden Roy Hendricks, with the ongoing investigation leading to today’s arrests.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Agarwal of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division and Rob Frazer of the Criminal Division, Organized Crime/Gangs Unit, in Newark.
14-192Solomon, Stephon et al. Complaint
Lespinasse, Channel et al. Complaint
Kapalin, Brian et al. ComplaintRingleader of International Rhino Smuggling Conspiracy Sentenced in New Jersey to 70 Months in Prison for Wildlife Trafficking CrimeRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Zhifei Li, the owner of an antique business in China, was sentenced today to 70 months in prison for heading an illegal wildlife smuggling conspiracy in which 30 rhinoceros horns and numerous objects made from rhino horn and elephant ivory worth more than $4.5 million were smuggled from the United States to China.
The sentence – one of the longest ever imposed in the United States for a wildlife smuggling offense – was announced by Paul J. Fishman, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey; Sam Hirsch, the Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice; Wifredo A. Ferrer, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Dan Ashe, Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).
“The multibillion-dollar illegal wildlife market is supplied by animal poaching of unthinkable brutality and fed by those willing to profit from such cruelty,” said U.S. Attorney Fishman. “Zhifei Li appropriately faces 70 months in prison for orchestrating schemes worth millions of dollars and for violating laws meant to protect the most vulnerable species.”
“Li was the ringleader of a criminal enterprise that spanned the globe and profited from an illegal trade that is pushing endangered animals toward extinction,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Hirsch. “As this case clearly demonstrates, rhino trafficking is increasingly organized, well financed and a threat to the rule of law. The United States is resolved to bring wildlife traffickers to justice.”
Li, 30, of Shandong, China, the owner of Overseas Treasure Finding in Shandong, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas to a total of 11 counts: one count of conspiracy to smuggle and violate the Lacey Act; seven counts of smuggling; one count of illegal wildlife trafficking in violation of the Lacey Act; and two counts of making false wildlife documents. Judge Salas also imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.
Li was arrested in Florida in January 2013 on federal charges brought under seal in New Jersey and shortly after arriving in the country. Before he was arrested, he purchased two endangered black rhinoceros horns from an undercover USFWS agent in a Miami Beach hotel room for $59,000 while attending an antique show. Li was arrested as part of “Operation Crash” – a nationwide effort led by the USFWS and the Justice Department to investigate and prosecute those involved in the black market trade of rhinoceros horns and other protected species.
In papers filed in Newark federal court, Li admitted that he was the “boss” of three antique dealers in the United States whom he paid to help obtain wildlife items and smuggle them to him via Hong Kong. One of those individuals was Qiang Wang, aka “Jeffrey Wang,” who was sentenced to 37 months in prison on Dec. 5, 2013, in the Southern District of New York. Li played a leadership and organizational role in the smuggling conspiracy by arranging for financing to pay for the wildlife, purchasing and negotiating prices, directing how to smuggle the items out of the United States, and getting the assistance of additional collaborators in Hong Kong to receive the goods and smuggle them to him in mainland China.
Rhinoceros are an herbivore species of prehistoric origin and one of the largest remaining mega-fauna on earth. They have no known predators other than humans. All species of rhinoceros are protected under United States and international law. Since 1976, trade in rhinoceros horn has been regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (known as CITES), a treaty signed by over 170 countries around the world to protect fish, wildlife and plants that are or may become imperiled due to the demands of international markets.
In pleading guilty, Li admitted that he sold 30 smuggled, raw rhinoceros horns worth approximately $3 million – approximately $17,500 per pound – to factories in China where raw rhinoceros horns are carved into fake antiques known as Zuo Jiu, which means “to make it as old” in Mandarin. In China, there is a centuries-old tradition of drinking from an intricately carved “libation cup” made from a rhinoceros horn. Owning or drinking from such a cup is believed by some to bring good health, and true antiques are highly prized by collectors. The escalating value of such items has resulted in an increased demand for rhinoceros horn that has helped fuel a thriving black market, including for recently carved fake antiques.
“Wild populations of rhinos are being slaughtered at appalling rates due to the greed and indifference of criminals like Li and his accomplices. The sentence handed down today serves notice to other organized trafficking and poaching rings that their crimes will not go unpunished,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Ashe. “We will relentlessly work across the U.S. government and with the international law enforcement community to destroy these networks, while strengthening protections for rhinos in the wild and reducing demand for horn in consumer countries.”
In addition to the prison term, Judge Salas ordered Li to serve two years of supervised release and to forfeit $3.5 million in proceeds of his criminal activity as well as several Asian artifacts. Various ivory objects seized by the USFWS as part of the investigation have also been surrendered.
The investigation is continuing and is being handled by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kathleen P. O’Leary and Barbara Ward of the New Jersey U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division and Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Unit, Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Watts-Fitzgerald of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and Senior Counsel Richard A. Udell of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Additional information, including a detailed joint factual statement and photo exhibits, can be found here: http://go.usa.gov/8nYY.
Defense counsel: Gary Cutler Esq., New York
14-191Queens, N.Y., Men Plead Guilty to Large-Scale Atm Skimming Scheme Targeting New Jersey Bank CustomersRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – Three Romanian natives living in Queens, N.Y., today admitted their involvement in a long-running and lucrative scheme to steal account information from bank customers throughout New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut by installing secret card-reading devices on ATMs, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Emil Revesz, a/k/a “Daniel Laptes,” 31, Constantin Pendus, a/k/a “Florin Bodgan Hristea,” 30, and Florin Apetrei, 19, each pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge William J. Martini in Newark federal court. Revesz pleaded guilty to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. Pendus and Apetrei each pleaded guilty to informations charging them with conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Revesz and Pendus have been held without bail since their arrests on June 27, 2013, and Apetrei has been held without bail since his arrest on July 12, 2013.
According to documents filed in this case and other cases and statements made in court:
Revesz, Pendus, Apetrei, and others participated in a large-scale ATM skimming scheme that involved the installation of skimmers and pinhole cameras on ATMs. Each skimmer, an electronic device, would read and record identity and account information contained in the magnetic strip of a customer’s ATM card. Each pinhole camera would secretly record bank customers’ keystrokes as they entered their personal identification numbers. The customer account information that was captured by the skimming devices and pinhole cameras was used to create counterfeit ATM cards that were then used to withdraw millions of dollars in cash from bank ATMs. From June 2012 through July 2013, the conspirators stole more than $5 million from Wells Fargo, Citibank, and TD Bank.
Revesz admitted he was one of the conspirators who installed skimmers and pinhole cameras at bank ATMs and who subsequently used counterfeit ATM cards to withdraw cash from Wells Fargo, Citibank, and TD throughout New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. Pendus admitted his participation in the scheme as it related to TD Bank, and Apetrei admitted to his participation in defrauding Wells Fargo Bank. Apetrei admitted he picked up pinhole camera parts and attempted, upon his arrest, to destroy debit cards containing the picture and name of another individual.The charges to which Revesz, Pendus and Apetrei pleaded guilty arose from a large investigation into a skimming scheme that targeted customers in the tri-state area in 2012 and early 2013. Of the 13 others charged in relation to the wider scheme, 12 are in custody.
The leader of the scheme, Marius Vintila, 31, was apprehended in Sweden and extradited to the United States on Feb. 7, 2014. Vintila was charged in a six-count indictment on Feb.18, 2014, with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to possess 15 or more counterfeit access devices, possession of 15 or more counterfeit access devices, conspiracy to possess access device-making equipment, and possession of access device-making equipment. Vintila and a conspirator, Bogdan Radu, 31, designed and created the actual skimming devices and pinhole cameras and Vintila recruited individuals, including Revesz, Pendus, and Apetrei, to install them on bank ATMs. Vintila also used an alias to rent multiple self-storage units, in which he stored the contents of an entire skimming operation, including skimming devices, pinhole cameras, super glue, tape, Secure Digital (SD) memory storage cards, batteries, computers, molds, fraudulent ATM cards, and cash proceeds. Vintila’s multimillion-dollar ATM skimming operation is one of the largest ever uncovered by law enforcement.
Other charged conspirators, including Radu, Constantin Ginga, 53, Marius Cotiga, 36, Dezso Gyapias, 29, Ioan Leusca, 30, Enes Causevic, 23, Luis Franco, 23, Mirel Hadzalic, 24, and another individual charged as “first name unknown, last name unknown,” a/k/a “Chioru,” installed the devices designed by Vintila and Radu onto bank ATMs and used fraudulent ATM cards to steal millions of dollars. They used hats, jackets, scarves and sunglasses to disguise themselves while installing the devices and while using the cards to withdraw money.Cotiga, Pendus, Revesz, Apetrei, Vintila, Franco, and Hadzalic are in custody in New Jersey and being held without bail. Causevic has been released on bail. Cotiga and Hadzalic previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit bank fraud and await sentencing, on June 5, 2014, for Cotiga and June 18, 2014, for Hadzalic. Radu previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit bank fraud and aggravated identity theft and awaits sentencing on June 5, 2014. Gyapias and Leusca were each sentenced on Feb. 20, 2014, to 57-month terms of imprisonment, and Ginga was sentenced on Feb. 26, 2014, to 57 months in prison. The individual known as “Chioru” remains at large.
The bank fraud conspiracy charge to which Revesz, Pendus, and Apetrei each pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. The aggravated identity theft charge to which Revesz pleaded guilty carries a mandatory, consecutive penalty of two years in prison and a maximum $250,000 fine. Sentencing for all three defendants is currently scheduled for Sept. 17, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the U.S. Secret Service, Newark Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James Mottola, along with special agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Newark, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas.As for the defendants charged in pending complaints, the charges and allegations are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rahul Agarwal and David Eskew of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.
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Defense Counsel:
Revesz: Joshua Reinitz Esq., Nutley, N.J.
Pendus: Kenneth W. Kayser Esq., East Hanover, N.J.
Apetrei: Paul D. Petrus Jr. Esq., New YorkRevesz, Emil Information
Pendus, Constantin Information
Apetrei, Florin InformationTwo Men Admit Roles in Armed Robbery of New Jersey Target Store on ‘Black Friday’ 2012Read the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – Two New Jersey men admitted this week to participating in an armed robbery of a Target Store in Union, N.J., on “Black Friday” in November 2012, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.
Maryland Liggins III, 29, of Newark, pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with conspiracy to commit a Hobbs Act robbery. On May 20, 2014, Darrell A. Carter, 24, of Irvington, N.J., pleaded guilty before Judge Thompson to an information charging him with one count of Hobbs Act robbery and one count of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
Carter, Liggins and two other men – Lavell Jones, 28, of East Orange, N.J., and DaQuaan Vaughn, 36, of Newark – were arrested on June 19, 2013, and charged by complaint in connection with the Target robbery. On April 29, 2013, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Jones and Vaughn charging both men with one count of Hobbs Act robbery, and charging Vaughn with one count of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:On Nov. 23, 2012, Carter and Liggins allegedly participated in an armed robbery of the Target store on Springfield Avenue in Union on Black Friday – the day after Thanksgiving – which is considered to be one of the busiest shopping days of the year. Carter and Vaughn allegedly entered the store and robbed the store’s employees at gunpoint and Liggins served as the getaway driver. Jones allegedly posed as a shopper and served as a lookout inside the store.
While in the store, Carter and Vaughn restrained Target employees with zip ties and robbed them at gunpoint, stealing more than $50,000 from a cash cart and safe located in the cash room. The two men then fled the store and ran out to a vehicle driven by Liggins that was parked on the shoulder of nearby Route 78.
The charge of Hobbs Act robbery is punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison. The charge of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence carries a maximum potential penalty of life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years, which must run consecutively to any other prison term. Each of these counts also carries a maximum fine of $250,000. Sentencing for Liggins is scheduled for Sept. 25, 2014; sentencing for Carter is scheduled for Sept. 24, 2014.U.S. Attorney Fishman praised special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, with the investigation leading to the guilty pleas. He also thanked the Union Police Department for its role in the investigation and Target corporate security for its cooperation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas P. Grippo of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Trenton, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Romankow, acting deputy chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Office General Crimes Unit.
14-188
Defense counsel:Carter: Peter Carter Esq., Newark
Liggins: Joseph Rotella Esq., Newark
Vaughn: Timothy Donohue Esq., West Orange, N.J.
Jones: Richie Roberts Esq., NewarkLiggins, Maryland Information
Carter, Darrell InformationNew Jersey Business Owner Admits Fraudulent Claims of Service-Disabled Veteran OwnershipRead the Press Release
Business Was Awarded Dozens of Undeserved Contracts Worth $1.2 Million
NEWARK, N.J. - The president of a New Jersey-based furniture and design services company admitted today to fraudulently holding her business out as a service-disabled veteran-owned small business, which obtained dozens of government contracts set aside for disabled veterans, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.Miriam Friedman, 54, of Teaneck, N.J., pleaded guilty to an information charging her with making false claims to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). She entered her guilty plea before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Friedman is the president and owner of Office Dimensions Inc. – which sells furniture and design services to industrial and government customers – controlling all its revenues and running the company’s day-to-day operations. Friedman never served in the U.S. military.
Friedman self-certified in a central registry for government contractors that Office Dimensions was a service-disabled veteran-owned small business. She falsely claimed in the certification that her father-in-law – who was retired, unemployed and had very little involvement with Office Dimensions – was the owner and operator of the business. He had served in the U.S. military, but was not classified as a service-disabled veteran. Friedman then started bidding for VA contracts set aside for service-disabled veterans who own their own businesses.
During her guilty plea proceeding, Friedman admitted that she knew her claims were false, and that they led to dozens of contracts with the VA to provide furniture and interior space planning at VA facilities.
In total, the VA paid approximately $1.2 million to Office Dimensions based on contracts set aside for service-disabled veterans.
The charge carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss caused by the offense. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Sept. 3, 2014, before U.S. District Judge Jose L. Linares.U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey G. Hughes; the U.S. General Services Administration, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Adams; and IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, with the investigation.
The case is being prosecuted by Scott B. McBride, Deputy Chief of the U.S. Attorney’s Economic Crimes Unit, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle A. Walsman of the office’s Health Care and Government Fraud Unit.
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Defense counsel: Brian J. Neary Esq.;Perry Primavera Esq., Hackensack and Hoboken, N.J.Friedman, Miriam Information
Four Orthodox Jewish Rabbis, One of Their Sons Indicted in Divorce-Compelling Kidnap ConspiracyRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. - A federal grand jury today indicted four Orthodox Jewish Rabbis and one of their sons for allegedly conspiring to kidnap and force Jewish men to grant their wives religious divorces, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
The indictment charges all five men with kidnapping conspiracy and variously charges the defendants with specific instances of kidnapping and attempted kidnapping. Rabbis Mendel Epstein, Martin Wolmark, Jay Goldstein, a/k/a “Yaakov” and Binyamin Stimler had previously been charged, along with others, with conspiracy to commit kidnapping in a complaint unsealed Oct.10, 2013. Four of the others charged, including Jay Goldstein’s sons, Avrohom Goldstein, 34, and Moshe Goldstein, 31, both of Brooklyn, N.Y., have since pleaded guilty to extortion charges in connection with the case. The rest of the charges are pending.
David Epstein was previously charged with a 2009 kidnapping to compel a religious divorce, or get, in a complaint filed on May 15, 2014.
The defendants and charges are outlined in the following chart. Each count also carries a maximum $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense.
Defendant
Count/Charge
Max Penalty
1 – conspiracy to commit kidnapping
life in prison
5 – attempted kidnapping
20 years in prison
Martin Wolmark, 56, Monsey, N.Y.
1 – conspiracy to commit kidnapping
life in prison
3 – kidnapping
5 – attempted kidnapping
20 years in prison
Jay Goldstein, 60, Brooklyn
1 – conspiracy to commit kidnapping
life in prison
3 – kidnapping
4 – kidnapping
5 – attempted kidnapping
20 years in prison
Binyamin Stimler, 38, Brooklyn
1 – conspiracy to commit kidnapping
life in prison
5 – attempted kidnapping
20 years in prison
David Epstein, 39, Lakewood
1 – conspiracy to commit kidnapping
life in prison
2 – kidnapping
3 – kidnapping
4 - kidnapping
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
The FBI began an undercover operation after becoming aware of incidents in which David Epstein and Jay Goldstein allegedly were involved in the kidnapping and assaulting of Orthodox Jewish men in order to compel them to grant religious divorces.
During the investigation, Mendel Epstein and Wolmark were recorded discussing plans to kidnap and torture victims. In an in-person meeting with undercover agents at his home on Aug. 14, 2013, Mendel Epstein laid out the plans for a particular target, including trapping him in a van and assaulting him with an electric cattle prod.
At that meeting, Mendel Epstein stated that the kidnapping would cost $10,000 to pay for the rabbinical court, or beth din, to approve the kidnapping and use of violence and an additional $50,000 to $60,000 to pay for the “tough guys” who would conduct the beating of the husband. One of the undercover agents made a payment of approximately $10,000 to Mendel Epstein for the purpose of engaging his organization.
Law enforcement tracked subsequent planning phone calls discussing tactics and payment, as well as a trip by Mendel Epstein and Jay Goldstein to inspect the warehouse in Middlesex, N.J., where they planned to hold the victim. Undercover agents also recorded the convening of a beth din at Wolmark’s Monsey office and a subsequent meeting at Mendel Epstein’s home.
On Oct. 9, 2013, Goldstein, Stimler traveled with others from New York to the warehouse to execute the kidnapping.The team arrived at the warehouse in two dark minivans shortly after 8:00 p.m. Some put on masks and entered the warehouse office with one of the undercover agents, while others walked around the outside of the warehouse with flashlights. Members of the team went in and out of the office wearing disguises, including ski masks, Halloween masks and bandanas. They discussed the plan. Among them, they carried rope, surgical blades, a screwdriver, plastic bags, and items used to ceremonially record a get.
Law enforcement moved into the office and arrested the eight members of the team, including Goldstein and Stimler.U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, with the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys R. Joseph Gribko and Sarah Wolfe of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Trenton.
The pending charges and allegations against related defendants are merely accusations and they are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Defense counsel:
Mendel Epstein: Susan Necheles Esq., New York
Martin Wolmark: Bejjamin Brafman Esq., New York
Jay Goldstein : Aiden O’Connor Esq., Hackensack, N.J.
David Epstein: Henry Mazurek Esq., New York
Binyamin Stimler: Nathan Lewin Esq., WashingtonEpstein, Mendel et al. Indictment
Trenton, N.J., Men Charged in Series of Armed RobberiesRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - Two Trenton, N.J. men have been charged with a series of armed robberies committed in Burlington and Mercer counties, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced today.
Samuel Matias Cruz, 33, of Trenton, was arrested today by special agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Arturo Delacruz, 35, of Trenton, was arrested May 20, 2014. Both are charged by complaint with one count of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery. Cruz made his initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Dickson today. Delacruz appeared before Judge Dickson yesterday. Both defendants were remanded without bail.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Between December 2012 and March 2013, Delacruz and Cruz allegedly planned and executed a number of violent armed robberies of various commercial establishments in the Trenton, N.J., area, including gas stations, restaurants, travel agencies and money-remitting businesses. On Dec.10, 2012, Delacruz and Cruz entered the Sabor Latino Bar in Trenton. While brandishing handguns, they physically restrained five people by tying their hands with plastic zip ties. They allegedly stole approximately $12,000 from the bar’s cash register, and approximately $2,000 in cash and jewelry from the bar’s patrons. Delacruz and Cruz fled the location in a getaway vehicle driven by another conspirator.
On Dec. 29, 2012, Delacruz allegedly planned the robbery of the Woodrow Wilson Service Plaza Sunoco Gas Station on the N.J. Turnpike, located in Hamilton Township, N.J. Delacruz allegedly provided weapons and clothing to Cruz and an unnamed conspirator, which were utilized in the robbery. A Sunoco station employee was restrained with plastic zip ties while Cruz and the conspirator stole approximately $26,000 from the station’s cash drawers and register.
The Hobbs Act conspiracy charges with which the defendants are charged carry a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison, as well as a maximum fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss arising out of the offense.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the ATF, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Stephanie R. Shoemaker; the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Joseph L. Bocchini Jr.; the Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Robert D. Bernardi with the investigation leading to the arrests. He also thanked officers from the N.J. State Police, under the direction of superintendent Col. Rick Fuentes; the Trenton Police Department, under the direction of Police Director Ralph Rivera Jr., and the Westampton Police Department, under the direction of Police Chief Ricky W. Smith for their roles in the case.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaints are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dennis C. Carletta of the U.S. Attorney’s Office National Security Unit in Newark.
14-185Defense counsel:
Delacruz: E. Alexander Jardines Esq., Union City, N.J.
Cruz: Adalgiza A. Nunez Esq., NewarkCruz, Samuel Matias Complaint
Delacruz, Arturo ComplaintFormer Senior Vice President of Operations at White Rose Food Sentenced to 20 Months in Prison for Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – The former senior vice president of operations of an independent wholesale food distributor was sentenced today to 20 months in prison for evading taxes on income he received from third parties, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
John Annetta, 61, of Marlboro, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan to an information charging him with one count of tax evasion.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Between 2006 and 2011, Annetta worked at White Rose Food, an independent wholesale food distributor in the New York City and New Jersey metropolitan areas. During that time he was given $1,648,085 from two people he met in the course of his employment. He failed to report this money as taxable income for the calendar years 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 in the amounts of $106,500, $234,000, $317,406, $398,542, $292,700 and $298,936, respectively. He admitted that for 2006 through 2011 he would have owed the government $536,530 if he had reported the additional cash on his income tax returns.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Sheridan sentenced Annetta to two years of supervised release.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, under the direction of Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Marie Kelokates, and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, for the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lakshmi Srinivasan Herman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Matt D. Mandel Esq. of Millburn, N.J.
Former Longshoremen Plead Guilty to Extortion Conspiracy Involving Christmastime Tribute PaymentsRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. - Three former longshoremen admitted today that they conspired to extort others in Local 1235 of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) for Christmastime tribute payments, New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman and Eastern District of New York U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch announced.
Salvatore LaGrasso, 58, of Edison, N.J.; Michael Nicolosi, 45, of Staten Island, N.Y.; and Julio Porrao, 71, of Palm Coast, Fla. – all former supervisors on the New Jersey piers – pleaded guilty today to conspiring to extort Christmastime tributes from the union members – count three of the second superseding indictment against them. LaGrasso, Nicolosi and Porrao entered their guilty pleas before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
During their guilty plea proceedings, LaGrasso, Nicolosi and Porrao admitted that they conspired with each other and others to compel tribute payments from ILA union members, who made the payments based on actual and threatened force, violence and fear. The timing of the extortions typically coincided with the receipt by certain ILA members of “Container Royalty Fund” checks, a form of year-end compensation. LaGrasso and Nicolosi were suspended from their positions following their arrests in this case. Porrao had already retired from his employment on the New Jersey piers at the time of his arrest.
Charges are still pending against five defendants in the superseding indictment, including a racketeering conspiracy charge against Stephen Depiro, 58, of Kenilworth, N.J. – a soldier in the Genovese organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra (Genovese family). Since at least 2005, Depiro has managed the Genovese family’s control over the New Jersey waterfront – including the nearly three-decades-long extortion of port workers in ILA Local 1, ILA Local 1235 and ILA Local 1478. Members of the Genovese family, including Depiro, are charged with conspiring to collect tribute payments from New Jersey port workers at Christmastime each year through their corrupt influence over union officials, including the last three presidents of Local 1235.
The charge to which LaGrasso, Nicolosi, and Porrao pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Sept. 17, 2014, for LaGrasso and Nicolosi and for Sept. 24, 2014, for Porrao.
U.S. Attorneys Fishman and Lynch credited the FBI in New Jersey, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, and in New York, under the direction of Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos, as well as the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Garcia, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas. They also thanked the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor for its cooperation and assistance in the investigation.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Mahajan, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey.
The charges and allegations against the remaining defendants are merely accusations and they are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.14-184
Defense counsel: Salvatore LaGrasso: Peter Till Esq., Springfield, N.J.
Michael Nicolosi: Arthur L. Aidala Esq., Brooklyn, N.Y.
Julio Porrao: Erik Hassing Esq., Flanders, N.J.Former Bank Officer Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Accepting Bribes, Bank FraudRead the Press Release
CAMDEN, N.J. – A former bank officer was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for accepting bribes of more than $50,000 in return for his assistance in corrupt financial transactions as well as bank fraud, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Jose Dominguez, 47, of Newark, N.J., previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman to an information charging him with soliciting and accepting bribes in excess of $1,000 as a bank officer. He had also pleaded guilty to a separate indictment charging him with bank fraud and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Judge Hillman imposed the sentence today in Camden federal court.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From January 1988 to February 2007, Dominguez was employed as a loan officer at Spencer Savings Bank in Elmwood Park, N.J. From September 2004 to November 2004, Dominguez and Victor Patela, 38, a former Newark Police officer, conspired to fraudulently obtain a $1.92 million commercial loan from Spencer Savings Bank so that they could purchase apartment buildings in Elizabeth, N.J. In connection with this scheme, Dominguez and Patela made false representations to Spencer Savings Bank relating to Patela’s assets in order to obtain the commercial loan. Dominguez also accepted bribe payments from Patela in exchange for using his influence as a loan officer to obtain the $1.92 million loan. In June 2012 Patela was convicted at trial of bank fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, two counts of loan application fraud and bank bribery and sentenced in April 2013 to 48 months in prison.
In 2003, Dominguez was contacted by a bank customer who wanted to refinance some loans with Spencer Savings Bank and wanted to do so without paying significant prepayment penalty fees. Dominguez advised the customer that if the customer made corrupt payments to Dominguez, the customer could obtain a lower interest rate without paying a prepayment penalty to Spencer Savings Bank.
Between August 2003 and December 2003, Dominguez accepted $55,529.57 in corrupt payments from the customer to influence the requested loan modification. Dominguez also admitted to accepting additional bribes from other bank customers in the amounts of $4,500 and $5,000, respectively.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Hillman sentenced Dominguez to three years of supervised release and fined him $4,000.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.
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Defense counsel: Thomas Young Esq., Assistant Federal Public Defender, CamdenTwo Admit Roles in Multimillion-Dollar International Cybercrime SchemeRead the Press Release
TRENTON, N.J. – Two members of an alleged international cybercrime, identity theft and credit card fraud conspiracy today admitted their roles in a scheme to use information hacked from customer accounts at more than a dozen banks, brokerage firms, payroll processing companies and government agencies to attempt to steal $15 million from customers, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Richard Gundersen, 47, of Brooklyn, N.Y., pleaded guilty to an indictment charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, access device fraud and identity theft. Lamar Taylor, 38, of Salem, Mass., pleaded guilty to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, access device fraud and identity theft. Both defendants entered their guilty pleas before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan in Trenton federal court.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:
Both Gundersen and Taylor were asked by other members of the conspiracy to participate in a scheme to “cash out” bank accounts and pre-paid debit cards opened in the names of others. Oleksiy Sharapka, 34, of Kiev, Ukraine, allegedly directed the conspiracy with the help of Leonid Yanovitsky, 39, also of Kiev. Oleg Pidtergerya, 50, who previously pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy, managed a cash-out crew in New York for Sharapka and Yanovitsky, and Robert Dubuc, 41, who has also pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy, controlled a cash-out crew in Massachusetts. Gundersen worked as “casher” under Pidtergerya, while Taylor performed a similar role under Dubuc.
Hackers first gained unauthorized access to the bank accounts of customers of more than a dozen global financial institutions and businesses, including: Aon Hewitt; Automatic Data Processing Inc.; Citibank N.A.; E-Trade; Electronic Payments Inc.; Fundtech Holdings LLC, iPayment Inc.; JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A.; Nordstrom Bank; PayPal; TD Ameritrade; U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Finance and Accounting Service; TIAA-CREF; USAA; and Veracity Payment Solutions Inc.
After obtaining unauthorized access to the bank accounts, Sharapka and Yanovitsky diverted money from them to bank accounts and pre-paid debit cards they controlled. They then implemented a sophisticated cash-out operation, employing crews of individuals, including Gundersen and Taylor, to withdraw the stolen funds by making ATM withdrawals and fraudulent purchases in New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, Georgia and elsewhere. Both Sharapka and Yanovitsky are under indictment in the United States and remain at large.
Gundersen and Taylor admitted they were aware fraudulent accounts and cards were created without the consent of the individuals in whose names they were opened. They admitted that they opened bank accounts in the names of identity theft victims and that those accounts were funded with money stolen by other conspirators. They also admitted conducting ATM and bank withdrawals of the stolen funds and providing the proceeds of the fraud, less their own fees, to their immediate higher-ups in the organization – Pidtergerya and Dubuc, who, in turn, sent a portion of the proceeds to Sharapka and Yanovitsky in Ukraine.
The government’s ongoing investigation into the organization has so far identified attempts to defraud the victim companies and their customers of more than $15 million.
The conspiracy to commit wire fraud, access device fraud and identity theft count carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a maximum $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Gundersen and Taylor’s sentencings are scheduled for Sept. 3, 2014.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited the special agents of the U.S. Secret Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James Mottola; U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Andrew M. McLees; Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jeffery D. Thorpe, Cyber Field Office; and IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty pleas.
The government is represented by Economic Crimes Unit Chief Gurbir S. Grewal of the
U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.The charges and allegations concerning the remaining conspirators are merely allegations and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
This case was brought in coordination with President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established 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 nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, please visit www.stopfraud.gov.
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Defense counsel:
Gundersen: Cynthia Hardaway Esq., Newark
Taylor: Bruce Rosen Esq., Florham Park, N.J.Gundersen, Richard Indictment
Taylor, Lamar InformationHudson County, N.J., Contractor Arrested, Charged with Paying Bribes to Fire OfficialRead the Press Release
NEWARK, N.J. – The owner of a general contracting company in West New York, N.J., was arrested at home in North Bergen, N.J., this morning by special agents of the FBI and charged with bribing a fire official to eliminate more than $8 million in outstanding fines on buildings with fire code violations, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Victor Coca, 48, of North Bergen, is charged by criminal complaint with one count of paying a bribe to a local government agent. He is scheduled to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Dickson this afternoon in Newark federal court.
According to the complaint filed today:
Two West New York buildings – one owned by Coca and one owned by a friend of his – had outstanding fines for fire code violations. Coca’s friend’s building – called “Building 1” in the complaint – had approximately $14,500 in fines, and Coca’s building – called “Building 2” in the complaint – had approximately $8.73 million in outstanding fines and penalties.
Coca paid a West New York Bureau of Fire Prevention official – who is cooperating with the government – cash bribes to reduce or eliminate the outstanding fines, paying $2,000 to eliminate the $14,500 debt on Building one. For Building 2, Coca paid a $5,000 cash bribe to the official, making the amount due to the West New York Bureau of Fire Prevention only the initial fine amount of $5,000.
The charge carries maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gain or loss from the offense.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark, with the ongoing investigation leading to today’s arrest.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Agarwal of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.
14-181Defense counsel: Zak Aljaludi, Union City, N.J.
Coca, Victor Complaint