District Not Recorded

SACRAMENTO, California. — Los resultados de una operación de un año de duración con la intervención de múltiples agencias policiales y cuerpos de seguridad dirigida contra los cultivadores y distribuidores de marihuana en los Condados de Shasta y Trinidad fueron anunciados hoy por el procurador federal Benjamin B. Wagner, el alguacil del Condado de Shasta Tom Bosenko, y el alguacil del Condado de Trinidad Bruce Haney.

La operación, denominada “Operación Condados Seguros,” està específicamente dirigida contra individuos y grupos en los Condados de Shasta y Trinidad involucrados en el cultivo de marihuana en terrenos públicos, así como aquellos que cultivan marihuana en propiedad privada y distribuyen su producto por toda California y los Estados Unidos utilizando mensajeros, el Servicio Postal de los Estados Unidos, e incluso aviones privados. Como resultado de estas investigaciones, 16 demandados han sido acusados por la  Procuradería Federal para el Distrito Oriental de California por el delito federal grave por drogas, y 10 màs han sido acusados por el Fiscal Condado de Shasta por delitos relacionados con drogas y el medio ambiente. En el curso de la operación y hasta la fecha, casi 60,000 plantas de marihuana, màs de 2,100 libras de marihuana procesada, 70 armas de fuego y màs de un millón de dólares de los Estados Unidos han sido confiscados. Varias investigaciones que comenzaron como resultado de la Operación Condados Seguros estàn aún en marcha.

Wagner, el procurador federal para el Distrito Oriental de California, dijo: “El uso de terrenos públicos en los Condados de Shasta y Trinidad para el cultivo comercial de marihuana presenta una amenaza para las personas que son dueñas o que utilizan esas tierras y para la tierra misma. El uso de terrenos privados para producir marihuana para su venta en otros estados, a menudo involucrando armas de fuego y violencia potencial, viola la ley federal y crea condiciones peligrosas aquí en el norte de California. Junto con nuestros socios de agencias policiales estatales y locales, estamos comprometidos a combatir estos delitos.”

El alguacil del Condado de Shasta Tom Bosenko declaró: “El centro de los esfuerzos de las agencias policiales son las operaciones criminales contra la marihuana. En años recientes la producción ilegal de marihuana se ha expandido significativamente. Las operaciones ilegales del cultivo de marihuana continúan siendo una amenaza inminente para nuestro medio ambiente, nuestra comunidad, y nuestros ciudadanos. Un esfuerzo colaborador entre agencias federales, estatales y locales es una fuerza multiplicadora no solamente contra estas operaciones sino contra el daño ambiental en terrenos públicos y privados.”

El alguacil del Condado de Trinidad Bruce Haney declaró: “Me gustaría dar las gracias al procurador federal Ben Wagner, y a las agencias policiales federales, locales y estatales que ayudaron a la Oficina del Alguacil de Trinidad con la Operación Condados Seguros el pasado agosto. Al igual que muchas comunidades, el Condado de Trinidad se ha visto abrumado por cultivos comerciales de marihuana que se escudan detràs del Compassionate Use Act (Ley de Uso Compasivo), Prop 215. Aunque hay usuarios legítimos que usan marihuana como medicina, las agencias policiales, los miembros de la comunidad y los cultivadores mismos saben que la mayoría de la marihuana que se cultiva en nuestros condados se transporta y se vende por todos los Estados Unidos. Esto es una violación de la ley estatal y federal. Esta actividad ilegal crea un ambiente peligroso para nuestros hijos y otros miembros de nuestras comunidades. El daño ambiental de la producción comercial de marihuana es también una inquietud muy real y està comenzando a ser el centro de muchas investigaciones. Hasta que la sociedad decida qué hacer con la marihuana, continuaremos trabajando de cerca con nuestros socios estatales y federales para proporcionar un lugar seguro para vivir, trabajar y visitar.”

Un caso que implica el cultivo exterior en terrenos públicos comenzó el 5 de junio de 2013, cuando agentes de policía llevaron a cabo una incursión en un jardín de marihuana en el Bosque Nacional Shasta Trinity. Se erradicaron aproximadamente 28,847 plantas de marihuana. La marihuana era regada con agua desviada del cercano arroyo de Big Bar Creek. Se encontró a Salvador Alcàzar-Varelas, de 28 años de edad, de Santa Rosa, California, trabajando en el lugar y fue acusado de conspiración para producir marihuana y producción de marihuana. Se declaró culpable de los cargos el 10 de abril de 2014 y està programado para recibir sentencia el 10 de julio de 2014.

Un caso que implica propiedad privada comenzó en el 2013, cuando la atención de la policía se dirigió a una propiedad rural en Palo Cedro después de que muchos vecinos se quejaron del fuerte olor a marihuana y actividad inusual en y alrededor de la mencionada propiedad. Un sobrevuelo confirmó el cultivo activo de marihuana en curso. Una búsqueda posterior reveló 531 plantas de marihuana creciendo en este lugar. Un registro de la residencia de John Richard Leithmann reveló 73 plantas de marihuana creciendo adentro. Otros dos individuos, Eric Cop y Mark Cop estaban en la propiedad de Palo Cedro en el momento de la inspección, y ambos admitieron cultivar marihuana en ese lugar. Un cultivo interior de marihuana consistente de 108 plantas de marihuana fue descubierto en la residencia de Mark Cop. Los tres son acusados de conspiración para producir marihuana y de producción de marihuana. Estàn programados para una audiencia preliminar el 16 de mayo de 2014.

Se llevaron a cabo casi tres docenas de investigaciones separadas bajo la agrupación de “Operación Condados Seguros,” por varias agencias policiales federales, estatales y locales. Los casos federales estàn siendo procesados por los ayudantes del procurador federal Michael McCoy y Christiaan H. Highsmith.

Las acusaciones son solamente alegaciones, y a los demandados que han sido acusados en estos casos se les considera inocentes a menos que y hasta que se les declare culpables.

Under an agreement announced today by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Justice, the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority (VIWAPA) will come into compliance with air pollution control requirements in the federal Clean Air Act at its Estate Richmond Generating Facility located on St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands.  These air pollution control requirements help reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) that can cause serious respiratory health effects. These pollutants are linked to serious health problems, including asthma, lung and heart disease. 

The United States found that the facility violated limits on nitrogen oxides and particulate matter.  This agreement is expected to reduce nitrogen oxides emissions by approximately 115 tons per year.  The agreement is expected to reduce particulate matter emissions by approximately three tons per year.

“Residents will breathe cleaner air as a result of this agreement to reduce air pollution emissions and bring VIWAPA into compliance with the nation’s Clean Air Act,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.  “The Justice Department and our partners at EPA are committed to addressing large sources of pollution to ensure the maximum positive impact on public health and the environment.”

“This legal agreement will go a long way toward reducing air pollution in St. Croix and beyond,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith A. Enck. “EPA is committed to protecting communities on St. Croix that are threatened by air pollution.” 

Under the EPA’s air permit requirements, large industrial facilities that make modifications that increase air pollution emissions must install best available control technology.  VIWAPA operates with a permit that requires it to use the best available control technology to control emissions of NOx and PM.  EPA found that VIWAPA had not properly operated nor maintained its water to fuel injection pollution control system during various times from October 2005 through December 2012.

The facility also failed to meet the particulate matter emissions limit during testing of emissions from its stacks and failed to conduct continuous monitoring to ensure compliance with its limits.  The EPA found that the facility violated its limits for NOx and PM.  VIWAPA also did not keep proper records.

Under the agreement, VIWAPA will continue its work to:

• Properly operate and maintain the water to fuel injection pollution control system;
• Develop and maintain an inventory of spare parts for the facility’s water to fuel injection system and emission monitoring equipment; 
• Test and properly operate a “real-time” emission monitoring system to ensure compliance with air pollution limits; 
• Conduct quality assurance testing of air monitoring systems;
• Conduct stack tests to demonstrate compliance with the Clean Air Act; and
• Employ an independent third party to develop protocols, enable proper operation of the air pollution monitoring systems, train staff and audit its compliance for three years.

The EPA has worked with VIWAPA over the past several years to address its violations and operations at the St. Croix facility.  As a result of that work, VIWAPA has already repaired and replaced pollution controls and monitoring equipment at the facility.  It replaced its data system, significantly repaired at least one unit and began purchasing better quality fuel.  To date, VIWAPA has spent approximately $4 million to come into compliance with pollution control requirements and will spend at least $2 million a year to maintain compliance.  VIWAPA will also pay a $700,000 penalty.

The consent decree was lodged in the U.S. District Court for the District of the Virgin Islands.  Notice of the lodging of the consent decree will appear in the Federal Register allowing for a 30-day public comment period before the consent decree can be entered by the court as final judgment.  The consent decree will available for viewing at www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html

To learn more about air issues in EPA Region 2, please visit: www.epa.gov/region02/air/.

A criminal information has been filed against a Pennsylvania firm and its chief officer, charging them with conspiracy to evade export reporting requirements and with attempting to smuggle to Iran a lathe machine in violation of U.S. export regulations. The announcement was made today by the U.S. Attorney Peter J. Smith for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Charged in the Criminal Information were Hetran Inc., an engineering and manufacturing plant in Orwigsburg, Pa., and its chief executive officer, Helmut Oertmann. At the same time, an indictment was unsealed that had previously been voted by a federal grand jury in Harrisburg in December 2012 against three Iranians and two Iranian firms connected with the criminal scheme: Mujahid Ali, Khosrow Kasraei, Reza Ghoreishi, FIMCO FZE, and Crescent International Trade and Services FZE.

Also charged was Suniel Malhotra, an Indian national, an overseas sales representative for Hetran Inc.

According to U.S. Attorney Peter Smith, Hetran allegedly manufactured a horizontal lathe, also described as a bar peeling machine (peeler), valued at more than $800,000 and weighing in excess of 50,000 pounds. A horizontal lathe, or peeling machine, is used in the production of high grade steel or bright steel,” a product used, among other things, in the manufacture of automobile and aircraft parts.

On or about June 2009, Hetran was allegedly contacted by representatives of FIMCO, an Iranian company with offices in Iran and the United Arab Emirates, and Crescent International, an affiliated company based in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.FIMCO allegedly wanted to purchase the peeler.During negotiations, it became apparent that the peeler was intended for shipment to Iran.American companies are forbidden to ship “dual use” items (such as the peeler) to Iran without first obtaining a license from the U.S. Department of Commerce.Aware that it was unlikely that such a license would be granted, Hetran, Helmut Oertmann and other co-conspirators agreed to falsely state on the shipping documents that the end-user of the peeler was Crescent International in Dubai.

On June 17, 2012, Hetranallegedlycaused the peeling machine to be shipped to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, fraudulently listing Crescent International in Dubai as the end-user, knowing that the shipment was ultimately being sent to Iran in violation of federal law.

Hetran is charged with conspiring to violate the export laws of the United States, and is subject to a sentence of up to $1,000,000.Helmut Oertmann, charged with attempting to smuggle goods from the United States to Iran, faces a potential penalty of up to 10 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000 and up to 5 years supervised release.The Iranian and Indian defendants are charged with conspiring to violate and with attempting to violate the export laws of the United States, each carrying potential penalties of up to 10 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000 and up to 5 years supervised release for the individual defendants and a $1,000,000 fine for each corporate defendant.

The case was investigated by the Office of Export Enforcement of the U.S. Department of Commerce.The prosecution is being coordinated by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Fawcett and Senior Litigation Counsel Gordon Zubrod and is being overseen by the National Security Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Indictments and criminal informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

In this case, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is 10 years imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.

Showa Corp., an automotive parts manufacturer based in Saitama, Japan, has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $19.9 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices and rig bids for pinion-assist type electric powered steering assemblies installed in cars sold in the United States and elsewhere, the Department of Justice announced today. 

According to a one-count felony charge filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio in Cincinnati, Showa engaged in a conspiracy to suppress and eliminate competition in the automotive parts industry by agreeing to rig bids for, and to fix, stabilize and maintain the prices of, certain pinion-assist type electric powered steering assemblies sold to Honda Motor Co. Ltd. and certain of its subsidiaries in the United States and elsewhere.  In addition to the criminal fine, Showa has agreed to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.  The plea agreement will be subject to court approval.

“Today’s guilty plea marks the 27th time a company has been held accountable for fixing prices on parts used to manufacture cars in the United States,” said Bill Baer, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division.  “The Antitrust Division and its law enforcement partners remain committed to prosecuting illegal cartels that harm U.S. consumers and businesses.”

According to the charge, Showa and its co-conspirators carried out the conspiracy through meetings, conversations and communications in which they discussed and agreed upon bids and price quotations on pinion-assist type electric powered steering assemblies to be submitted to Honda.  Showa then submitted quotations in accordance with those agreements and sold pinion-assist type electric powered steering assemblies at collusive and noncompetitive prices.  Showa and its co-conspirators monitored adherence to the agreed-upon bid-rigging and price-fixing scheme.  The conspirators kept their conduct secret by using code names and meeting at remote locations, among other things.  Showa’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as 2007 until as late as September 2012.

Showa manufactures and sells pinion-assist type electric powered steering assemblies.  These devices provide power to the steering gear pinion shaft from electric motors to assist the driver to more easily steer the automobile.  Pinion-assist type electric powered steering assemblies include an electronic control unit and link the steering wheel to the tires but do not include the column, intermediate shaft, steering wheel or tires.

Including Showa, 27 companies and 24 executives have pleaded guilty or agreed to plead guilty in the division’s ongoing investigation into price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry and have agreed to pay a total of $2.3 billion in criminal fines.

Showa Corp. is charged with price fixing and bid rigging in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries maximum penalties of a $100 million criminal fine for corporations.  The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.

Today’s charge is the result of an ongoing federal antitrust investigation into price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct in the automotive parts industry, which is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement sections and the FBI.  Today’s charge was brought by the Antitrust Division’s Chicago Office and the FBI’s Cincinnati Field Office with assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio.  Anyone with information on price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct related to other products in the automotive parts industry should contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 1-888-647-3258, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html or call the FBI’s Cincinnati Field Office at 513-421-4310.

U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar sentenced Michael Morgan, formerly an officer at Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., to serve 30 months in prison for depriving an inmate of his civil rights.  Morgan and other RCI officers from three different shifts assaulted Kenneth Davis, an inmate, in March 2008, in retaliation for a prior incident in which Davis struck an officer. 

Morgan pleaded guilty on Jan. 10, 2013, to deprivation of rights under color of law.  According to court documents filed in connection with his guilty plea, Morgan acknowledged that after he heard officers yelling at Davis for having previously hit an officer, he kicked Davis in the groin and then watched another officer kick Davis.  Morgan also admitted that he tried to cover up his involvement in the assault by providing false testimony during an administrative hearing on June 17, 2008.

“The defendant participated in one of the series of assaults suffered by Mr. Davis, and then he lied to cover up his involvement,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division.  “The defendant’s actions run completely counter to the responsibilities and trust given to correctional officers.  The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute those officers who, like this defendant, commit a crime under color of law.”

To date, 16 current or former officers at RCI have been convicted in connection with the series of assaults that Kenneth Davis suffered on March 8-9, 2008.  Four former officers still await sentencing by U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar.  

The case was investigated by the Frederick Resident Agency of the FBI, and prosecuted by Special Litigation Counsel Forrest Christian and Trial Attorney Sanjay Patel of the Civil Rights Division, with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Cunningham of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.

Alan Dresner, a federally-licensed fish dealer from Brooklyn, N.Y., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Central Islip, N.Y., to federal violations stemming from his role in systematically underreporting fluke (summer flounder) that was being harvested as part of the federal Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program, the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division announced.

Alan Dresner pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. The scheme involved his personal falsification and internet submission of at least 120 fisheries dealer reports from July 2009 to December 2011, as part of a scheme to defraud the United States of 246,376 pounds of overharvested and underreported fluke valued at $510,000.

As part of the plea deal, Dresner agreed to be subject to between $516,000 and $577,000 in combined fines and restitution. The defendant also agreed to make a $15,000 community service payment to the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County in order to pay for the enhancement of fluke habitat through the C.C.E.’s Marine Meadows Program. The jointly proposed sentence includes relinquishment of Dresner’s federal dealer license and a ban on accessing the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) SAFIS computer system . The court will hear sentencing recommendations regarding non-agreed terms at a hearing set for Oct. 22, 2014.

“Today, Dresner has acknowledged his role in cheating a federal research program for financial gain at the expense of law abiding fishermen,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “He repeatedly misled the government as he schemed to take hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegally harvested fluke. This conviction shows our commitment to protecting this resource for today’s fisherman and future generations.”

“These dealers created the market for these elicit, unreported fish and their willingness to conspire with the harvesters of these fish to no report them completely undermines the system of trying to obtain the best available science to manage this fishery,” said Logan Gregory, Special Agent in Charge of the NOAA Office of Law Enforcement’s Northeast Division. “The Office of Law Enforcement will continue to investigate this issue to conclusion.  It's not only important to fisheries management, but also important to the law abiding industry members who rely on the availability of this fish to harvest and sell.”

Alan Dresner is “Fish Dealer X” as that person is identified in the related case of U.S. v. Anthony Joseph. As a federal fish dealer, Dresner had a NOAA permit to purchase fish directly from commercial fishing vessels without having to go through an intermediary. In July 2009, Dresner learned that Anthony Joseph, captain of the F/V Stirs One, was consistently overharvesting fluke through Joseph’s abuse of the RSA Program. By July 2009, Dresner was making regular purchases of illegal fluke from Joseph at the Point Lookout, N.Y., waterfront.

In order to cover his illegal fishing, Joseph would mail falsified fishing logs, known as FVTRs, to NOAA, but falsified FVTRs were just one side of the coin. This is because fish dealers are required to report their purchases to NOAA on an electronic form known as a dealer report. The dealer reports include information such as date of landing, port of landing, catch vessel, corresponding FVTR numbers, commercial grade, species, price, and weight. NOAA utilizes the data in the dealer reports to set quotas and implement other management measures designed to ensure a sustainable fisheries. The dealer reports also serve as a check on the information that is submitted in FVTRs. In other words, in order to effectuate his scheme, Anthony Joseph needed to ensure that corresponding false dealer reports were being submitted that contained the same false information as was contained on the falsified FVTRs. A mismatch would have indicated a serious error or fraud, and would have been a red flag for fisheries managers. Accordingly, during July 2009 to December 2011, the defendant schemed with Anthony Joseph to file at least 120 false dealer reports with NOAA, representing a loss of 246,376 pounds of fluke valued at $510,000. Another part of the scheme involved Dresner paying for legitimate, reported fish with a check, but utilizing cash handoffs to Joseph to purchase the illegal fluke.

The case was investigated by agents of NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, with assistance from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Police. The case is being prosecuted by Christopher L. Hale of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section, Environment and Natural Resources Division.

Related Materials:

Bill of Information
Plea Agreement

As part of the Justice Department’s new clemency initiative, Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole announced six criteria the department will consider when reviewing and expediting clemency applications from federal inmates.

Under the new initiative, the department will prioritize clemency applications from inmates who meet all of the following factors:

·          They are currently serving a federal sentence in prison and, by operation of law, likely would have received a substantially lower sentence if convicted of the same offense(s) today;

·          They are non-violent, low-level offenders without significant ties to large scale criminal organizations, gangs or cartels;

·          They have served at least 10 years of their prison sentence;

·          They do not have a significant criminal history;

·          They have demonstrated good conduct in prison; and

·          They have no history of violence prior to or during their current term of imprisonment.

“For our criminal justice system to be effective, it needs to not only be fair; but it also must be perceived as being fair,” said Deputy Attorney General Cole.  “Older, stringent punishments that are out of line with sentences imposed under today’s laws erode people’s confidence in our criminal justice system, and I am confident that this initiative will go far to promote the most fundamental of American ideals – equal justice under law.”

In December 2013, President Obama commuted the sentences of eight individuals who were sentenced under an outdated regime—many of whom would have already paid their debt to society if they had been sentenced under current law.  Since that time, President Obama has said he wants to consider more applications for clemency from inmates who are similarly situated.  The Department of Justice, which assists the president in the exercise of executive clemency by reviewing petitions for clemency for federal offenses and making recommendations, is committed to carrying out this important mission and has pledged to provide the necessary resources to fulfill this goal expeditiously.

Outside of this initiative, any inmate can apply for commutation under the standard principles for which executive clemency has been granted historically.  This initiative applies to a limited category of petitioners whose clemency applications may be especially meritorious.

Deputy Attorney General Cole also announced Deborah Leff, Acting Senior Counselor for Access to Justice, as the new head of the Office of the Pardon Attorney.  Ronald Rodgers, who previously held the position, will assist Leff during a transition period and will then take on another role at the department to be announced at a later date.

“Over the past several years, Ron has performed admirably in what is a very tough job.  He has demonstrated dedication and integrity in his work on pardons and commutations,” Cole said.

Deputy Attorney General Cole added that Acting Senior Counselor Leff’s work with the department’s Access to Justice program makes her uniquely qualified to step into the pardon attorney’s role. 

“Deborah has committed her career to the very basis of this initiative - achieving equal justice under law,” said Deputy Attorney General Cole.  “As Acting Senior Counselor for Access to Justice, her fundamental mission has been to help the justice system deliver outcomes that are fair and accessible to all.”

To facilitate the thorough and rapid review of the new clemency applications this initiative will likely spur, Deputy Attorney General Cole announced that he issued a department-wide call for attorneys willing to help review new petitions.  These attorneys will help assess the petitions to determine which fall within the six stringent standards and merit further consideration.  Department lawyers will be temporarily assigned to the Pardon Attorney’s Office.

The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) will notify inmates in the coming days about this initiative and the availability of pro bono lawyers from the newly formed Clemency Project 2014.  The Clemency Project 2014, which is made up of independent, outside groups as well as federal public defenders, was organized in response to Deputy Attorney General Cole’s Jan. 30, 2014, speech at the New York State Bar Association in which he called for assistance in identifying appropriate clemency petitions under this initiative.

In addition to notifying inmates of this initiative, BOP will provide interested inmates with an electronic survey that will help both pro bono lawyers and Justice Department lawyers to screen the petitions for the Office of the Pardon Attorney to quickly identify whether inmates meet the criteria for the program.  BOP case managers will continue to provide inmates assistance with submitting the appropriate paperwork for clemency applications.

Deputy Attorney General Cole sent a letter to all of the 93 U.S. attorneys asking for their assistance in identifying meritorious candidates and notifying them that the Pardon Attorney’s Office will be soliciting their views on petitions that appear to meet the criteria after an initial screening by the lawyers in the Office of the Pardon Attorney.

The new clemency initiative is an outgrowth of Attorney General Holder’s “Smart on Crime” initiative, which is intended to strengthen the criminal justice system, promote public safety and deliver on the promise of equal justice under law. 

The Deputy Attorney General’s Office oversees the Office of the Pardon Attorney. The department assists the president in the exercise of executive clemency.  Under the Constitution, the president’s clemency power extends only to federal criminal offenses.  All requests for executive clemency for federal offenses are directed to the pardon attorney for investigation and review.  Petitions are then sent to the Deputy Attorney General for review and recommendation to the president.

Amedisys Inc. and its affiliates (Amedisys) have agreed to pay $150 million to the federal government to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by submitting false home healthcare billings to the Medicare program, the Department of Justice announced today.  Amedisys, a Louisiana-based for-profit company, is one of the nation’s largest providers of home health services and operates in 37 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.    

“It is critical that scarce Medicare home health dollars flow only to those who provide qualified services,” said Stuart F. Delery, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division.  “This settlement demonstrates the department’s commitment to ensuring that home health providers, like other providers, comply with the rules and don’t misuse taxpayer dollars.”  

The settlement announced today resolves allegations that, between 2008 and 2010, certain Amedisys offices improperly billed Medicare for ineligible patients and services.  Amedisys allegedly billed Medicare for nursing and therapy services that were medically unnecessary or provided to patients who were not homebound, and otherwise misrepresented patients’ conditions to increase its Medicare payments.  These billing violations were the alleged result of management pressure on nurses and therapists to provide care based on the financial benefits to Amedisys, rather than the needs of patients.    

Additionally, this settlement resolves certain allegations that Amedisys maintained improper financial relationships with referring physicians.  The Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Statute restrict the financial relationships that home healthcare providers may have with doctors who refer patients to them.  The United States alleged that Amedisys’ financial relationship with a private oncology practice in Georgia – whereby Amedisys employees provided patient care coordination services to the oncology practice at below-market prices – violated statutory requirements.

“Combating Medicare fraud and overbilling is a priority for my office, other components of the Department of Justice, and United States Attorneys’ Offices across the country,” said Zane David Memeger, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.  “We have recovered billions of dollars in federal health care funds from schemes such as the one alleged in this case.  Those are health care dollars that should be spent on legitimate medical needs.” 

“Home health services are a large and growing part of our federal health care system,” said Sally Quillian Yates, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.  “Health care dollars must be reserved to pay for services needed by patients, not to enrich providers who are bilking the system.”

  “Amedisys made false Medicare claims, depriving the American taxpayer of millions of dollars and unlawfully enriching Amedisys,” said Joyce White Vance, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama.  “The vigorous enforcement work by assistant U.S. attorneys in my office, along with their colleagues in North Georgia, Eastern Pennsylvania, Eastern Kentucky and the Civil Division of the Justice Department, has secured the return of $150 million to the taxpayers and stands as a warning to future wrongdoers that we will aggressively pursue them.”  

“This settlement represents a significant recovery of public funds and an important victory for the taxpayers,” said Kerry B. Harvey, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky.  “Fighting health care fraud and recovering tax payer dollars that fund our vital health care programs is one of the highest priorities for our district.”  

Amedisys also agreed to be bound by the terms of a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General that requires the companies to implement compliance measures designed to avoid or promptly detect conduct similar to that which gave rise to the settlement.    

“Improper financial relationships and false billing, as alleged in this case, can shortchange taxpayers and patients,” said Daniel R. Levinson, Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  “Our compliance agreement with Amedisys contains strong monitoring and reporting provisions to help ensure that people in Federal health programs will be protected.”   

This settlement resolves seven lawsuits pending against Amedisys in federal court – six in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and one in the Northern District of Georgia – that were filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private citizens to bring civil actions on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery.  As part of today’s settlement, the whistleblowers – primarily former Amedisys employees – will collectively split over $26 million.  

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius.  The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $19.2 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $13.6 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.  

The United States’ investigation was conducted by the Justice Department’s Commercial Litigation Branch of the Civil Division; the United States Attorneys’ Offices for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Northern District of Alabama, Northern District of Georgia, Eastern District of Kentucky, District of South Carolina, and Western District of New York; the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Office of Personnel Management’s Office of Inspector General; the Defense Criminal Investigative Service of the Department of Defense; and the Railroad Retirement Board’s Office of Inspector General.  

The lawsuits are captioned United States ex rel. CAF Partners et al. v. Amedisys, Inc. et al. 10-cv-2323 (E.D. Pa.); United States ex rel. Brown v. Amedisys, Inc. et al., 13-cv-2803 (E.D. Pa.); United States ex rel. Umberhandt  v. Amedisys, Inc., 13-cv-2789 (E.D. Pa.); United States ex rel. Doe et al. v. Amedisys, Inc., 13-cv-3187 (E.D. Pa.); United States ex rel. Ognen et al. v. Amedisys, Inc. et al. 13-cv-4232 (E.D. Pa.); United States ex rel. Lewis v. Amedisys, Inc., 13-cv-3359 (E.D. Pa.); and United States ex rel. Natalie Raven et al. v. Amedisys, Inc. et al., 11-cv-0994 (N.D. Ga.).  The claims settled by the agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability. 

The Department of Justice announced that a federal grand jury in Florence, S.C., returned a two-count indictment today charging Eric Walters and Franklin Brown, both former police officers with the City of Marion Police Department, with using unreasonable force against a female citizen.    

Walters and Brown have each been charged with one count of deprivation of rights under color of law, specifically alleging that, while acting as police officers, each defendant used unreasonable force on the victim, resulting in bodily injury.  The indictment alleges that on April 2, 2013, Walters and Brown each used their respective tasers multiple times on the victim.    

If convicted, each defendant faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.  

An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.  

This case is being investigated by the Myrtle Beach, S.C., Division of the FBI.  It is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Nicholas Murphy and Henry Leventis for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Bill Nettles and Assistant U.S. Attorney John Potterfield for the District of South Carolina.

A federal court has permanently barred Ramesh Sarva, a certified public accountant in Little Neck, N.Y., from promoting and selling an alleged nationwide tax scheme, the Justice Department announced today.  Judge Josephine L. Staton of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California entered the permanent injunction order yesterday, to which Sarva consented.

According to the complaint, welfare benefit plans permit companies to pool together and make monetary contributions toward the purchase of life insurance for the benefit of each company’s employees or principals.  Participants in legitimate welfare benefit plans may be able to deduct the full amount of their plan contributions as a business expense.  The complaint alleged that Sarva falsely informed his customers that the welfare benefit plans he promoted were legal, but in fact, Sarva has been promoting plans that illegally permitted his customers to both claim substantial tax deductions for their plan contributions and later access the full cash value of their plan contributions by taking out loans against the life insurance policies purchased.  The complaint alleged that Sarva’s promotion of these unlawful welfare benefit plans deprived the U.S. Treasury of significant amounts of tax and subjected his customers to audits and IRS scrutiny.

The injunction order bars Sarva from promoting and selling any purported welfare benefit plans.  The court also ordered Sarva to provide the United States with a list of his customers and to send copies of the injunction order to his customers.

In the past decade, the Justice Department’s Tax Division has obtained more than 500  injunctions to stop tax fraud promoters and tax return preparers.  Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page.  If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.

Related Materials:

United States v. Kenneth Elliott, et al.
Complaint for Permanent Injunction and Other Relief
Stipulated Order of Permanent Injunction

The Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) today released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 Accomplishments Report, detailing its work alongside other federal agencies, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, and state, local and tribal governments to enforce environmental and wildlife laws, protect our nation’s natural resources and ensure that all Americans enjoy clean air, water and land.

In the last fiscal year, the Justice Department continued carrying out its commitment to environmental justice to ensure the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental and natural resources laws and policies. The division’s work advancing the goals of environmental justice is illustrated in a separate chapter of the report.

“The Environment Division’s work to protect our air, land and water from pollution is as critical to our nation’s health, security, and sustainability as it has ever been,” said Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole.  “As we face significant challenges from climate change, in developing alternative and sustainable sources of energy and addressing pollution to protect public health and the environment, we are grateful to the division and its attorneys for the work they do each day on behalf of the American people and future generations of Americans.”

“As this report shows, every day, the division works with client agencies, U.S. Attorneys’ offices, and state, local and tribal governments to enforce federal environmental, natural resources, and wildlife laws,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division. “It also defends federal agency actions and rules when they are challenged in the courts, keeping the nation’s air, water, and land free of pollution, promoting military preparedness and national security, and supporting responsible stewardship of America’s forests, wildlife and other natural resources. The division also handles a broad array of important matters affecting Indian tribes and their members. Across all this work, we strive to ensure that all Americans enjoy clean air, water and land, implementing the department’s deep commitment to environmental justice.”

In FY 2013, the division secured over $1.78 billion in civil and stipulated penalties, cost recoveries, natural resource damages and other civil monetary relief, including almost $637 million recovered for the Superfund. The division obtained almost $6.5 billion in corrective measures, through court orders and settlements, to protect the nation’s air, water and other natural resources. It concluded 53 criminal cases against 87 defendants, obtaining nearly 65 years in confinement and over $79 million in criminal fines, restitution, community service funds and special assessments. Finally, the handling of defensive and condemnation cases closed in fiscal year 2013 saved the United States an estimated $6.8 billion.

Among other highlights included in the FY 2013 Accomplishments report: Accountability for the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill

The division’s top civil enforcement priority remains the ongoing civil litigation and trial stemming from the April 20, 2010 explosion and fire that destroyed the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico and triggered a massive oil spill. In December 2010, the United States brought a civil suit against BP, Anadarko, MOEX, and Transocean for civil penalties under the Clean Water Act and a declaration of liability under the Oil Pollution Act, as part of multidistrict litigation in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

Thus far, the department has secured over $1 billion in civil penalties through Deepwater Horizon settlements (with MOEX and Transocean), as well as far-reaching injunctive relief that should make Transocean’s deepwater drilling safer in the Gulf of Mexico.

The department tried the first phase of the U.S. case against the remaining defendants (addressing the cause of the disaster and liability) for nine weeks from February through April 2013, as part of a mass trial in which thousands of private plaintiffs also tried parts of their cases relating to liability and fault. The second phase of the U.S. case (principally addressing how much oil was discharged into the Gulf) took place over three weeks in September and October 2013. Both phases have been submitted to the district court for decision. The district court in New Orleans has scheduled the third phase of trial in this matter, addressing assessment of civil penalties, to begin in January 2015.

Addressing Climate Change

Over the past year, the division made important contributions to combating the effects of climate change. In January 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) regulations governing motor vehicle emissions of greenhouse gases took effect, triggering not only mobile source regulation, but also regulation of the largest stationary sources in accordance with EPA’s greenhouse gas tailoring rule. As of September 2012, the D.C. Circuit in Coalition for Responsible Regulation v. EPA upheld the agency’s greenhouse gas-related regulatory actions in their entirety. Challengers filed nine separate petitions for writs of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court. In July 2013, the Department’s Office of the Solicitor General, working closely with Division and client agency attorneys, filed an opposition to the petitions for certiorari. On Oct. 15, 2013, the Supreme Court granted certiorari on six of the petitions, which were consolidated and limited to a single issue: “Whether EPA permissibly determined that its regulation of greenhouse gas emissions from new motor vehicles triggered permitting requirements under the Clean Air Act for stationary sources that emit greenhouse gases.” The court denied the remaining three petitions, and rejected consideration of numerous additional issues raised by the petitions that were partially granted. In February 2014, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in the case.

In March 2013, the D.C. Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision in In re Polar Bear Endangered Species Act Listing, thereby upholding the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s 2008 listing of the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act as a threatened species throughout its range. The listing decision was based primarily on the polar bears’ dependence on arctic sea ice for their survival, existing and projected reductions in the extent and quality of sea ice habitat due to global climate change, and the inadequacy of existing regulatory measures to preserve the species.

In a settlement reached with the United States in September 2013, Safeway, the nation’s second largest grocery store chain, agreed to pay a $600,000 civil penalty and to implement a corporate-wide plan to significantly reduce its emissions of ozone-depleting substances from refrigeration equipment at over 650 of its stores nationwide, at an estimated cost of $4.1 million. The settlement resolves allegations that Safeway violated the Clean Air Act by failing to promptly repair leaks of HCFC-22, a hydrochlorofluorocarbon that has a global warming potential that is 1,800 times more potent than carbon dioxide. This first-of-its-kind settlement should also serve as a model for comprehensive solutions across a company.

Combatting Wildlife Trafficking

The department has long been a leader in the fight against wildlife trafficking. Over the last year, the department engaged fully in the administration’s effort to combat wildlife trafficking through its role as one of the three agency co-chairs of the Presidential Task Force on Wildlife Trafficking, established by President Obama’s July 2013 Executive Order—Combating Wildlife Trafficking. In the past decade, wildlife trafficking has escalated into an international crisis, making it both a critical conservation concern and a threat to global security. Beyond decimating the world’s iconic species, this illegal trade threatens international security. Transnational criminal organizations, including some terrorist networks, armed insurgent groups and narcotics trafficking organizations, are increasingly drawn to wildlife trafficking due to the exorbitant proceeds from this illicit trade.

The task force emphasizes the need for a “whole of government” approach to combating this problem and identifies three key priority areas: (1) strengthening domestic and global enforcement; (2) reducing demand for illegally traded wildlife at home and abroad; and (3) strengthening partnerships with foreign governments, international organizations, nongovernmental organizations, local communities, private industry, and others to combat illegal wildlife poaching and trade.

The division works with U.S. Attorneys’ offices around the country and federal agency partners (such as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) to combat wildlife trafficking under the Endangered Species Act and the Lacey Act, as well as statutes prohibiting smuggling, criminal conspiracy and related crimes. In fiscal year 2013, a prominent example of the division’s robust prosecution of illegal wildlife trafficking was “Operation Crash,” an ongoing multi-agency effort to detect, deter and prosecute those engaged in the illegal killing of rhinoceros and the illegal trafficking of endangered rhinoceros horns. This initiative has resulted in multiple convictions, significant jail time, penalties and asset forfeiture.

Read more about the Justice Department’s involvement in the fight to end wildlife trafficking: www.justice.gov/enrd/6329.htm

The Justice Department announced today that the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana approved its settlement with the city of New Orleans regarding a housing discrimination lawsuit late yesterday. 

Under the settlement, the city agrees to permit the conversion of the former Bethany Nursing Home, located at 2535 Esplanade Avenue, into 40 units of affordable housing.  Half of the units in the new Esplanade complex will be designated as permanent supportive housing and will be reserved for formerly homeless persons with disabilities.  In addition, the settlement commits New Orleans to developing additional supportive housing for 350 persons with disabilities over the next three years.

“We are very pleased to have worked constructively with New Orleans to reach an agreement that will not only enable the Esplanade to be built, but that will also provide additional permanent supportive housing for 350 persons with disabilities in New Orleans,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division.

“Nondiscriminatory housing is a fundamental right of the citizens of New Orleans, and this settlement agreement continues the efforts to rebuild and improve a housing inventory ravaged by Hurricane Katrina,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Allen Polite Jr. for the Eastern District of Louisiana.  “I applaud the cooperative efforts of the city and the department to reach a resolution that is in the best interests of persons with disabilities, who are amongst the most vulnerable members of our community.”

In addition to the development of 350 additional permanent supportive housing units, the settlement requires that the city agree to provide all appropriate permits for the Esplanade, amend its Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance to allow permanent supportive housing, continue its work to prepare and implement a reasonable accommodation policy approved by the United States, conduct fair housing training for key city officials and be subject to reporting requirements.    

The State Bond Commission, which was also named as a defendant, is not a party to the settlement.  On March 20, 2014, the Bond Commission voted not to approve a settlement.  As a result, the Justice Department has moved to reopen the litigation against the Bond Commission and the court has scheduled a status conference for June 26, 2014.

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability and familial status.  Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits governments from discriminating on the basis of disability in administering their zoning laws.  More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at the division website

The Justice Department reached an agreement today with SK Food Group Inc., a company based in Seattle, resolving claims that the company used discriminatory document practices when verifying the work authority of non-citizens. 

The department’s investigation, which was initiated based on a referral from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), found that SK Food required work-authorized non-U.S. citizens to produce specific Department of Homeland Security documents to prove their work authority in connection with the company’s employment eligibility verification process, but did not make similar demands of U.S. citizens.  Such discriminatory practices are prohibited under the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

Under the agreement, SK Food must pay $40,500 in civil penalties to the United States; identify and provide back pay to any individuals who suffered lost wages as a result of the company’s alleged discriminatory documentary practices; undergo training on the anti-discrimination provision of the INA; and be subject to monitoring of its employment eligibility verification practices for one year. 

“Employers cannot create discriminatory obstacles for work-authorized non-U.S. citizens in the employment eligibility verification process,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division.  “In this case, we commend the company for its full cooperation during the investigation and for its efforts to address and resolve the deficiencies in its employment eligibility verification process.” 

“No one who is legally authorized to work in the United States should be denied that opportunity based on suspicion or stereotypes,” said U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan for the Western District of Washington.  “The agreement filed today ensures training for human resource workers and outreach to employees to promote and safeguard equal treatment for all new workers.”

The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA.  This case was handled by OSC Trial Attorney Luz V. Lopez-Ortiz. 

For more information about protections against employment discrimination under immigration laws, call OSC’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired), call OSC’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired), sign up for a free webinar at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc/webinars.php, email [email protected] or visit the website at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc.

Applicants or employees who believe they were subjected to different documentary requirements based on their citizenship status, immigration status or national origin or  discrimination based on their citizenship status, immigration status or national origin in hiring, firing or recruitment or referral should contact the worker hotline above for assistance.

WASHINGTON - El Departamento de Justicia llegó a un acuerdo hoy con SK Food Group Inc., una empresa con sede en Seattle, el cual resuelve los reclamos de que la empresa usó prácticas documentales discriminatorias cuando verificó la autorización de trabajo de personas sin ciudadanía estadounidense.

La investigación del departamento, la cual se inició basado en una remisión del Servicio de Ciudadanía e Inmigración de los Estados Unidos (USCIS por sus siglas en inglés), encontró que SK Food requería que personas autorizadas a trabajar sin ciudadanía estadounidense produjeran documentos específicos emitidos por el Departamento de Seguridad Nacional para probar su autorización de trabajo en conexión con el proceso de verificación de elegibilidad de empleo de la compañía, pero no exigía lo mismo de los ciudadanos estadounidenses. Tales prácticas discriminatorias están prohibidas bajo de la provisión anti-discriminación de la Ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad (INA por sus siglas en inglés).

Conforme al acuerdo de resolución, SK Food tiene que pagar $40,500 en sanciones civiles a los Estados Unidos, identificar y proveerles sueldos perdidos a cualquieres individuos quienes sufrieron una pérdida de sueldo debido a las prácticas discriminatorias supuestas de la compañía, y estar sujeta a supervisión de sus prácticas de verificación de elegibilidad de empleo por un año.

"Los empleadores no pueden crear obstáculos discriminatorios para aquellas personas con autorización de trabajo que no tienen ciudadanía estadounidense durante el proceso de verificación de elegibilidad de empleo," expresó la Asistente Interina del Procurador General de la División de Derechos Civiles, Jocelyn Samuels. "En este caso, nosotros elogiamos a la compañía por su cooperación completa durante esta investigación, y por sus esfuerzos para abordar y resolver sus deficiencias en el proceso de verificación de elegibilidad de empleo."

"Ninguna persona legalmente autorizada a trabajar en los Estados Unidos debe ser negada esa oportunidad basada en sospechas o estereotipos," expresó Fiscal Federal Jenny A. Durkan, del Distrito del Oeste de Washington. "El acuerdo sometido hoy asegura adiestramiento para trabajadores de recursos humanos y alcance comunitario para empleados para promover y proteger el tratamiento justo para todos los nuevos trabajadores."

La Oficina del Consejero Especial para Prácticas Injustas en el Empleo Relacionadas a Inmigración (OSC por sus siglas en inglés) es responsable de exigir el cumplimiento de la provisión anti-discriminación de la INA. Este asunto fue manejado por Abogada de la OSC, Luz V. López-Ortiz.

Para más información sobre las protecciones contra la discriminación en el empleo conforme a las leyes de inmigración llame a la línea directa del empleado de la OSC al 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para las personas con dificultades auditivos), llame a la línea directa de empleadores de la OSC al 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para las personas con dificultades auditivos), regístrese para un seminario por internet gratis al www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc/webinars.php, mándenos un correo electrónico al [email protected] o visite el sitio web en www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc.

Los solicitantes o trabajadores que creen que han sido sometidos a requisitos documentales distintos basados en su ciudadanía, estatus de inmigración u origen nacional, ó a discriminación basada en su ciudadanía, estatus de inmigración u origen nacional en la contratación, despido, o reclutamiento o recomendación, deben comunicarse con la línea directa del empleado indicada arriba para recibir ayuda.

In recognition of the 20th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), the Department of Justice today announced a nationwide university tour by top administration officials to raise awareness of campus sexual assault.  From April 23-May 1, senior officials from the Departments of Justice and Education will visit campuses across the country, including public and private universities, community colleges, historically black colleges and faith-based and tribal-affiliated institutions around the nation.  Officials will speak with campus administrators, local law enforcement, community partners, local service providers and students about how best practices and lessons learned are playing out in areas such as prevention, public awareness and peer support.  Visits will also highlight the role that federal, state and local government, working with university administrators, faculty and students, should play.    

The federal government is proud to partner with hundreds of campuses across our country to improve safety for students with comprehensive solutions to both prevent acts of violence and to support victim services,” said Bea Hanson, Principal Deputy Director of the Office on Violence Against Women.  “The Campus Program is dedicated to building a future where domestic abuse, sexual assault, stalking and teen dating violence are eradicated.” 

Each campus on the tour is a recipient of the department’s Office on Violence Against Women’s “Grants to Reduce Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Dating Violence and Stalking on Campus Program.”  The Campus Program funds institutions of higher education to adopt comprehensive responses to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking, creating partnerships among campus entities and with community-based victim services organizations and criminal and civil justice agencies.  Campus Program grantees must provide prevention programs for all incoming students; train campus law enforcement or security staff; educate campus judicial or disciplinary boards on the unique dynamics of these crimes; and create a coordinated community response to enhance victim assistance and safety while holding offenders accountable.
 
Since 1999, OVW has funded approximately 400 campus-based projects, totaling more than $139 million, to address domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking on campuses. 
 
Logistical details will be released closer to the event date.  The list of the campus visits is below:

April 23, 2014

Associate Attorney General Tony West
North Carolina Central University (Durham, N.C.) 

Principal Deputy Director, Office on Violence Against Women, Bea Hanson
Director, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, Ronald L. Davis 
St. John’s University (Queens, N.Y.)

April 24, 2014
Deputy Attorney General  James M. Cole 
Principal Deputy Director, Office on Violence Against Women, Bea Hanson
Senior Counselor to the Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division, Becky L. Monroe
Gallaudet University (Washington, D.C.)

Associate Attorney General Tony West
Loyola University (Chicago, Ill.) 

April 25, 2014
Associate Attorney General Tony West
United Tribes Technical College (Bismarck, N.D.) 

Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels
University of Delaware (Newark, Del.) 

April 29, 2014
Associate Director, Office on Violence Against Women, Darlene Johnson
William Paterson University (Wayne, N.J.) 

April 30, 2014
Assistant Secretary, Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, Catherine E. Lhamon
University of California Santa Barbara (Santa Barbara, Calif.)

Principal Deputy Director, Office on Violence Against Women, Bea Hanson
State University of New York (SUNY) at Stony Brook (Stony Brook, N.Y.)

Associate Director, Office on Violence Against Women, Darlene Johnson
Bergen Community College (Paramus, N.J.)  

May 1, 2014
Assistant Secretary, Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, Catherine E. Lhamon
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Pomona, Calif.)

To learn more about the campus tour, please follow #SafetyonCampus through social media channels.

WASHINGTON—In an important step to reduce sentencing disparities for drug offenders in the federal prison system, Attorney General Eric Holder on Monday announced that the Justice Department will soon detail new, more expansive criteria that the department will use in considering when to recommend clemency applications for President Obama’s review.

In anticipation of the increase of eligible petitioners, the Justice Department is preparing to assign lawyers--with backgrounds in both prosecution and defense – to review the applications.

“The White House has indicated it wants to consider additional clemency applications, to restore a degree of justice, fairness and proportionality for deserving individuals who do not pose a threat to public safety,” said Attorney General Holder in a video message posted on the department’s website.  “The Justice Department is committed to recommending as many qualified applicants as possible for reduced sentences.”

Later this week, Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole is expected to announce more specific details about the expanded criteria the department will use and the logistical effort underway to ensure proper reviews of the anticipated wave of applications.

 The complete text of Attorney General Holder’s video message is below:

“In 2010, President Obama signed the Fair Sentencing Act, reducing unfair disparities in sentences imposed on people for offenses involving different forms of cocaine.

“But there are still too many people in federal prison who were sentenced under the old regime – and who, as a result, will have to spend far more time in prison than they would if sentenced today for exactly the same crime.

“This is simply not right.

“Legislation pending in Congress would help address these types of cases.  In the meantime, President Obama took a sensible step towards addressing this situation by granting commutations last December to eight men and women who had each served more than 15 years in prison for crack cocaine offenses.  For two of these individuals, it was the first conviction they’d ever received – yet, due to mandatory minimum guidelines that were considered severe at the time, and are profoundly out of date today – they and four others received life sentences.

“These stories illustrate the vital role that the clemency process can play in America’s justice system.

“The White House has indicated it wants to consider additional clemency applications, to restore a degree of justice, fairness, and proportionality for deserving individuals who do not pose a threat to public safety.  The Justice Department is committed to recommending as many qualified applicants as possible for reduced sentences.

“Later this week, the deputy attorney general will announce new criteria that the department will consider when recommending applications for the President’s review.  This new and improved approach will make the criteria for clemency recommendation more expansive.  This will allow the Department of Justice and the president to consider requests from a larger field of eligible individuals.

“Once these reforms go into effect, we expect to receive thousands of additional applications for clemency.  And we at the Department of Justice will meet this need by assigning potentially dozens of lawyers – with backgrounds in both prosecution and defense – to review applications and provide the rigorous scrutiny that all clemency applications require.

“As a society, we pay much too high a price whenever our system fails to deliver the just outcomes necessary to deter and punish crime, to keep us safe, and to ensure that those who have paid their debts have a chance to become productive citizens. 

“Our expanded clemency application process will aid in this effort.  And it will advance the aims of our innovative new Smart on Crime initiative – to strengthen the criminal justice system, promote public safety and deliver on the promise of equal justice under law.”

The full video message is available at http://www.justice.gov/agwa.php. 

William R. “Rusty” Miller, a real estate developer from Fairhope, Ala., was sentenced today in federal district court in Gulfport, Miss., for the unpermitted filling of wetlands near Bay St. Louis, Miss., in violation of the Clean Water Act, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Robert G. Dreher of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis for the Southern District of Mississippi and Special Agent in Charge Maureen O’Mara of the EPA’s Criminal Program in Mississippi.

Miller was sentenced to serve 15 months, with nine months in prison and six months in home confinement, to be followed by one year of supervised release. Miller also was ordered to pay a $15,000 fine and to pay $19,246 in restitution. Miller was sentenced by Chief United States District Judge Louis Guirola Jr.

Miller pleaded guilty in December 2013 and admitted to having caused the excavation and filling of wetlands on a 1,710 acre parcel of undeveloped property in Hancock County, Miss., west of the intersection of Route 603 and Interstate 10. The charging document to which Miller pleaded guilty identified him as a part-owner of corporations that purchased and intended to develop the land.

According to the felony information, in 2001 when Miller and his companies acquired the property, he was informed by a wetland expert that as much as 80 percent of the land was federally protected wetland connected by streams and bayous to the Gulf of Mexico and as such could not be developed without a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Wetland permits typically require that developers protect and preserve other wetlands to compensate for those they are permitted to fill and destroy. In spite of additional notice he had received of the prohibition against filling and draining wetland without authorization, Miller hired excavation contractors to trench, drain and fill large portions of the property to lower the water table and thus to destroy the wetland that would otherwise be an impediment to commercial development.

In pleading guilty, Miller has acknowledged that he knowingly ditched, drained and filled wetlands at 10 locations on the Hancock County property without having obtained a permit from the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Hancock County Land LLC (HCL), the principal owner of the land, previously entered a guilty plea to related charges. HCL pleaded guilty before Senior United States District Judge Walter J. Gex III of the Southern District of Mississippi, who also imposed sentence. The corporation agreed and was ordered to pay a total penalty of $1 million, or $500,000 for each of the two counts. The corporation also agreed and was ordered to perform community service by completing wetland restoration and preservation plans ordered by the court. These require the defendant to replant with appropriate native vegetation the wetland area it excavated and filled, donate approximately 272 acres of the southwest quadrant to the Land Trust for the Mississippi Coastal Plain to be preserved in perpetuity, to fund its management and maintenance, to pay $100,000 toward the litigation costs of the Gulf Restoration Network and to pay a civil penalty to the United States Treasury for the amount of $95,000.

The case was investigated by the EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division. The case was prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney Jeremy K. Korzenik of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Gaines Cleveland of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi.

A fourth U.S. Navy official has been charged in a complaint unsealed today with accepting cash, luxury travel and consumer electronics from a foreign defense contractor in exchange for classified and internal U.S. Navy information.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy of the Southern District of California, Director Andrew Traver of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) and Deputy Inspector General for Investigations James B. Burch of the U.S. Department of Defense Office of the Inspector General made the announcement.

Petty Officer First Class Dan Layug, 27, who enlisted in the Navy in September 2006, was arrested on April 16, 2014, in San Diego by special agents with NCIS and Defense Criminal Investigative Service. Layug made his initial appearance today in federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen S. Crawford in the Southern District of California.

According to the complaint, Layug received bribes in return for sending sensitive U.S. Navy information to employees of Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA), a defense contractor. GDMA CEO Leonard Glenn Francis, 49, of Malaysia, had previously been charged with conspiring to bribe U.S. Navy officials, and GDMA executive Alex Wisidagama, 40, of Singapore, pleaded guilty on March 18, 2014, to defrauding the U.S. Navy. Two other senior Navy officials – Commander Michael Vannak Khem Misiewicz, 46, and Commander Jose Luis Sanchez, 41 – have been charged separately with bribery conspiracies involving Francis and have pleaded not guilty. On Dec. 17, 2013, Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) Supervisory Special Agent John Bertrand Beliveau II, 44, pleaded guilty to bribery charges for regularly tipping off Francis to the status of the government’s investigation into GDMA.

According to the complaint, Layug worked secretly on behalf of GDMA by providing classified ship schedules and other sensitive U.S. Navy information in exchange for cash, travel expenses, and consumer electronics. Court records allege that Layug used his position as a logistics specialist at a U.S. Navy facility in Yokosuka, Japan, to gain access to U.S. Navy ship schedules – some of which were classified – and other internal information, and provided this information to GDMA’s vice president of global operations. In exchange, court records allege, GDMA provided Layug with regular payments, some of which were delivered in envelopes of cash. The complaint alleges that on May 21, 2012, the vice president of global operations instructed a GDMA accountant that “at the end of each month, we will be providing an allowance to Mr. Dan Layug. Total of US $1000. You may pay him the equivalent in Yen. He will come by the office at the end of each month to see you.”

Court records allege that, in addition to his monthly “allowance,” Layug sought consumer electronics from GDMA. In an email on March 9, 2012, Layug asked the vice president of global operations “what are the chances of getting the new Ipad 3 [sic]? Please let me know.” In another email exchange on May 28, 2013, Layug asked the vice president of global operations for a “bucket list” of items including a high end camera, an iPhone5 cellular phone, a Samsung S4 cellular phone, and an iPad Mini. Shortly after sending his “bucket list” to the vice president of global operations, Layug stated in an email that “the camera is awesome bro! Thanks a lot! Been a while since I had a new gadget!”

In addition to consumer electronics, GDMA allegedly provided Layug and his friends with rooms at luxury hotels throughout Asia.

According to court documents, Layug allegedly undertook steps to conceal his bribery relationship with GDMA by, among other things, describing classified ship schedules using the code word “golf schedules” and opening a bank account in the name of his infant daughter into which he deposited portions of his “allowance.”

The ongoing investigation is being conducted by NCIS, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Defense Contract Audit Agency.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark Pletcher and Robert Huie of the Southern District of California, Director of Procurement Fraud Catherine Votaw and Attorney Brian Young of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and Trial Attorney Wade Weems, on detail to the Fraud Section from the Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction.

The charges contained in the criminal complaint are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed to be not guilty unless and until proven guilty.

Those with information relating to fraud, corruption or waste in government contracting should contact the NCIS anonymous tip line at www.ncis.navy.mil or the DOD Hotline at www.dodig.mil/hotline , or call (800) 424-9098.

The Justice Department reached an agreement today with Potter Concrete, a company based in Dallas, resolving claims that the company engaged in a pattern or practice of document abuse in violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

The department’s investigation, which was initiated based on a referral from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), concluded that Potter Concrete subjected non-U.S. citizen new hires to unlawful demands for specific documentation issued by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in order to verify their employment eligibility, while U.S. citizens were permitted to present their choice of documentation.  The investigation also revealed that Potter Concrete selectively utilized E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of individuals they knew or believed to be non-U.S. citizens or foreign born.  The INA’s anti-discrimination provision prohibits employers from placing additional documentary burdens on work-authorized employees during the hiring and employment eligibility verification process based on their citizenship status or national origin.

Under the settlement agreement, Potter Concrete will pay $115,000 in civil penalties to the United States; undergo training on the anti-discrimination provision of the INA; revise its employment eligibility verification policies; and be subject to monitoring of its employment eligibility verification practices for one year.

“Employers cannot create discriminatory hurdles for work-authorized non-U.S. citizens or naturalized citizens in the employment eligibility verification process, which includes the E-Verify program,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division.  “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting U.S. citizens and all work-authorized immigrants from document abuse.”

The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA.  The statute prohibits, among other things, citizenship status and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing or recruitment or referral for a fee, document abuse and retaliation or intimidation .  This matter was handled by OSC Trial Attorney Ronald Lee and OSC Equal Opportunity Specialist Alexandra A. Vince.  For more information about protections against employment discrimination under immigration laws or how to sign up for a free webinar, call OSC’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired), call OSC’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired or visit the OSC website at www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc .  

Applicants or employees who believe they were subjected to different documentary requirements based on their citizenship status, immigration status or national origin or  discrimination based on their citizenship status, immigration status or national origin in hiring, firing or recruitment or referral should contact the worker hotline above for assistance.

Sant Singh Chatwal, 70, of New York – a businessman operating several restaurants, hotels and a hotel management company – pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of New York to conspiring to violate the Federal Election Campaign Act (the “Election Act”) by making more than $180,000 in federal campaign donations to three candidates through straw donors who were reimbursed and to witness tampering. There is no allegation that the candidates participated in, or were aware of, Chatwal’s scheme.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch of the Eastern District of New York, Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos of the FBI’s New York Field Office and Chief Richard Weber of the Internal Revenue Service–Criminal Investigation made the announcement.

The guilty plea proceeding took place before United States District Judge I. Leo Glasser of the Eastern District of New York. As part of his plea agreement with the government, Chatwal agreed to forfeit $1 million to the United States.

“Chatwal admitted that he used straw donors to secretly funnel money to political campaigns so that he could gain access to the politicians, and he coerced another person to hide his crime,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General O’Neil.  “Chatwal went to great lengths to undermine both election laws and our system of justice.  Today’s guilty plea shows our vigilance and determination to prosecute those who damage the integrity of elections by masking the true sources of campaign contributions.”

“The Election Act’s spending limits are in place to limit financial influence in federal elections and to ensure transparency as to the identity of donors,” said U.S. Attorney Lynch. “Chatwal’s scheme sought to subvert the very purpose of the Election Act. Chatwal then rolled the dice to stymie the government’s investigation, thinking he could corruptly convince witnesses to his federal election crimes to stay silent. That gamble did not pay off. Today’s conviction sends a clear message that this office is committed to vigorously investigating and prosecuting individuals who are responsible for committing crimes in connection with federal campaign donations and witness tampering.”

“Attempting to buy elections through illegal campaign contributions is unacceptable. It is also illegal,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge Venizelos. “Americans rightfully expect that elections will be free and fair. The FBI will continue investigating every case of abuse, wherever we find it.”

“Mr. Chatwal admitted his actions were designed to circumvent the Election Act,” said IRS-CI Chief Weber. “IRS-CI's ability to adapt our financial investigative skills to cases where they are needed uniquely equips our agents to defend and uphold America's trust in the fairness of the electoral process.”

The Election Act limits the amount and source of money that can be contributed to a federal candidate or to an individual candidate’s political campaign committee and multi-candidate political campaign committees, commonly referred to as “political action committees” (PACs). For example, in 2008, the Election Act limited primary and general election campaign contributions in a calendar year to $2,300 per campaign, for a total of $4,600, from any one individual to any one candidate. In 2010, the Election Act limited primary and general election campaign contributions in a calendar year to $2,400 per campaign, for a total of $4,800, from any one individual to any one candidate. The Election Act also prohibits making a campaign contribution in the name of another person, including giving funds to a “straw donor,” or a conduit, for the purpose of having the straw donor pass the funds to a federal candidate as the straw donor’s own contribution.

According to court filings and facts presented during the plea proceeding, Chatwal operated several businesses, including restaurants, hotels, and a hotel management company. From 2007 to 2011, Chatwal used his employees, business associates, and contractors who performed work on his hotels (the “Chatwal Associates”) to solicit campaign contributions on Chatwal’s behalf in support of various candidates for federal office and PACs, collect these contributions, and pay reimbursements for these contributions.

Further according to court filings, Chatwal and the Chatwal Associates induced straw donors to make these campaign contributions, promising them that they would be reimbursed. Chatwal orchestrated a scheme to make approximately $188,000 in campaign contributions to three candidates for federal office via straw donors, and he often arranged for the straw donors to be reimbursed through the Chatwal Associates, ultimately paying for the reimbursed contributions with funds belonging to Chatwal or one of Chatwal’s companies.

The evidence against Chatwal includes an October 2010 recorded conversation between Chatwal and a business associate who became an informant, in which Chatwal underscored his view as to the importance of political campaign contributions, stating that without campaign contributions, “nobody will even talk to you…That’s the only way to buy them, get into the system… What, what else is there? That’s the only thing.”

Also according to court filings, Chatwal sought to obstruct the grand jury investigation into his Election Act scheme by tampering with a witness, a person whose business performed construction work for Chatwal and Chatwal’s companies and who had recruited straw donors at Chatwal’s direction. In a June 2012 recorded conversation, Chatwal told the individual that if FBI and IRS agents approached him or his family, they should not speak with the agents and should instead refer them to a lawyer Chatwal would provide. During this conversation, the individual said that he would not tell agents that Chatwal gave him money to reimburse straw donors. Chatwal replied, “Never, never.”

A few days later, in a July 2012 recorded conversation, Chatwal directed the same individual to lie to agents about the Election Act scheme. Chatwal said he would pay for the individual’s legal fees in connection with the investigation and offered to conceal the money within a payment for work the individual’s company had performed for Chatwal. During the conversation, they discussed that investigators were seeking copies of campaign checks in the individual’s possession, and they then discussed that it was helpful that some of the straw donors had been reimbursed with cash. Chatwal added, “Cash has no proof.”

The case was investigated by the FBI’s New York Field Office and the IRS-CI. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Marquest Meeks of Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Martin Coffey, Carolyn Pokorny, Robert Capers and Brian Morris of the Eastern District of New York.

A Georgia real estate investor pleaded guilty today for his role in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Georgia, the Department of Justice announced.

Felony charges were filed on March 25, 2014, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia in Atlanta, against Mohamed Hanif Omar.  According to court documents, from at least as early as Sept. 1, 2009, until at least March 7, 2012, Omar conspired with others not to bid against one another, and instead to designate a winning bidder to obtain selected properties at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Gwinnett County, Ga.  Omar was also charged with conspiring to commit mail fraud by fraudulently acquiring title to selected Gwinnett County properties sold at public auctions.  Additionally, he was charged with making and receiving payoffs and diverting money to co-conspirators that would have gone to mortgage holders and others by holding second, private auctions open only to members of the conspiracy.  The department said that the selected properties were then awarded to the conspirators who submitted the highest bids in the second, private auctions.

“Today’s guilty plea is the fourth in the Antitrust Division’s ongoing investigation into anticompetitive conduct at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Georgia,” said Bill Baer, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division.  “The division remains committed to working with its law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute local cartels that harm distressed homeowners and lenders.”

The department said that the primary purpose of the conspiracies was to suppress and restrain competition and to conceal payoffs in order to obtain selected real estate offered at Gwinnett County public foreclosure auctions at non-competitive prices.  When real estate properties are sold at the auctions, the proceeds are used to pay off the mortgage and other debt attached to the property, with remaining proceeds, if any, paid to the homeowner.  According to court documents, the conspirators paid and received money that otherwise would have gone to pay off the mortgage and other holders of debt secured by the properties, and, in some cases, the defaulting homeowner.

“Today’s plea should further serve as an example for those who would consider exploiting the processes in place regarding public foreclosures,” said J. Britt Johnson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Atlanta Field Office. “The intent of the Sherman Act was to provide a level and competitive field within commerce and the FBI intends to enforce these types of violations.”

A violation of the Sherman Act carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals.  The maximum fine for a Sherman Act charge may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime if either amount is greater than the statutory maximum fine.  A count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for individuals.  The fine may be increased to twice the gross gain the conspirators derived from the crime or twice the gross loss caused to the victims of the crime.

The investigation is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s new Washington Criminal II Section and the FBI’s Atlanta Division, with the assistance of the Atlanta Field Office of the Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.  Anyone with information concerning bid rigging or fraud related to public real estate foreclosure auctions in Georgia should contact the Antitrust Division at 404-331-7113, call the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 1-888-647-3258, or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm.

Today’s charges were brought in connection with the President’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 is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud.  Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations.  Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed 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.   

Michael Garcia, a former detective with the Las Cruces Police Department (LCPD) in Las Cruces, N.M., who focused on child abuse and sex crimes investigations, pleaded guilty today in federal court to a one count information charging Garcia with violating the civil rights of an LCPD student intern when he sexually abused her while on duty.

According to court documents, as a detective, Garcia worked with students who participated in Las Cruces High School’s Excel program, through which students interned at the LCPD.  On or about May 4, 2011, Garcia took the victim on a ride-along in his department-issued vehicle to visit a crime scene.  Afterward, instead of driving the victim directly back to the police department so that she could retrieve her belongings and go home, Garcia drove her to a secluded location where he sexually assaulted her. 

As part of the plea agreement, Garcia acknowledged that he knew that his actions were against the law and that the victim did not consent to his behavior. 

“The defendant exploited his position as a sex crimes detective in a most deplorable way,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division.  “The Civil Rights Division will continue to vigorously prosecute law enforcement officers who use their authority to engage in sexual abuse.  We commend the victim for having the courage to come forward, and we are thankful for law enforcement officers in this case, as well as the vast majority of others, who support and help victims of crime.”

In addition to a prison sentence, the terms of the plea agreement require Garcia to forfeit his law enforcement certification and comply with federal and state sex offender registration requirements.  A sentencing hearing has not yet been set.

This case is being investigated by the Las Cruces Resident Agency of Albuquerque Division of the FBI and the LCPD and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark T. Baker and Holland S. Kastrin for the District of New Mexico and Trial Attorney Fara Gold of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

Kimberly Banks, Donalene Mosely and Arneshia Austin were sentenced today in Albany, Ga., to serve 192 months, 37 months and 21 months in prison, respectively, for crimes relating to filing fraudulent income tax returns using stolen identities, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore for the Middle District of Georgia.  After a weeklong jury trial, Banks was convicted on Jan. 14, 2014, of conspiring to file false federal income tax returns in the names of stolen identities, wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and theft of government money.  Mosely and Austin each pleaded guilty to conspiracy prior to trial.  In addition to their terms of imprisonment, the court ordered Banks, Mosely and Austin to pay $275,134 in restitution and to serve three years supervised release.

According to court documents and evidence introduced at trial, Banks, who is a former certified nursing assistant, obtained the names and Social Security numbers of nursing home patients from her employer and conspired with Mosely, Austin and others to use the stolen identifying information to steal money from the government in the form of tax refunds.  Several victims testified that they did not consent to the use of their names and Social Security numbers on these tax returns and testified that they did not receive any money from refunds generated by the false tax returns filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). 

The tax returns at issue were filed from internet protocol addresses assigned to Banks, and the fraudulent tax refunds were deposited onto prepaid debit cards that were mailed to addresses belonging to Banks, Mosely, Austin and others.  The evidence also revealed that Banks and others used the stolen proceeds to make payments on their car loans and on their mortgages, to throw a red-carpet party and to buy products online.  During the course of the conspiracy, Banks and her co-conspirators prepared 187 fraudulent tax returns that claimed over $600,000 in false refunds.

The case was investigated by special agents of the IRS-Criminal Investigation with the assistance of the Crisp County Sheriff’s Office.  Trial Attorneys Kimberly Shartar and Alexander Effendi of the Tax Division prosecuted the case.

More information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts can be found at the division website.

WASHINGTON – El Departamento de Justicia llegó a un acuerdo hoy con Potter Concrete, una empresa con sede en Dallas, el cual resuelve los reclamos de que la empresa cometió un patrón o práctica de abuso de documentos en violación de la Ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad (INA por sus siglas en inglés).

La investigación del departamento, la cual se inició basado en una remisión del Servicio de Cuidadanía e Inmigracaion de los Estados Unidos (USCIS por sus siglas en inglés), concluyó que Potter Concrete sometió a los nuevos empleados que no eran ciudadanos estadounidenses a exigencias ilegales de documentos específicos emitidos por el Departamento de Seguridad Nacional, mientras que a los ciudadanos estadounidenses se les permitía presentar los documentos de su elección. La investigación también reveló que Potter Concrete usaba el sistema E-verify selectivamente para confirmar que las personas que Potter Concrete sabían o creían que no eran ciudadanos estadounidenses o que habían nacido en el extranjero, cumplían con los requisitos de empleo. La provision anti-discriminación de la INA prohíbe que los empleadores impongan cargas documentales adicionales a los empleados con autorización de trabajo durante el proceso de contratación y verificación de elegibilidad de empleo basado en su estatus de inmigración u origen nacional.

Conforme al acuerdo de resolución, Potter Concrete pagará $115,000 en sanciones civiles a los Estados Unidos, participará en adiestramiento sobre la provision anti-discriminación de la INA, revisará las políticas de verificación de elegibilidad de empleo, y estará sujeta a supervisión de sus prácticas de verificación de elegibilidad de empleo por un año.

"Los empleadores no pueden crear obstáculos discriminatorios para aquellas personas con autorización de trabajo que no tienen ciudadanía estadounidense o que son ciudadanos naturalizados, durante el proceso de verificación de elegibilidad de empleo, lo cual incluye el programa E-verify", expresó la Asistente Interina del Procurador General de la División de Derechos Civiles, Jocelyn Samuels. "El Departamento de Justicia se compromete a proteger a los ciudadanos estadounidenses y a todos los inmigrantes con autorización de trabajo del abuso de documentos".

La Oficina del Consejero Especial para Prácticas Injustas en el Empleo Relacionadas a Inmigración (OSC por sus siglas en inglés) es responsable de exigir el cumplimiento de la provision anti-discriminación de la INA. La ley prohíbe, entre otras cosas, la discriminación basada en el estatus de inmigración u origen nacional en la contratación, despido o reclutamiento o recomendación a cambio de un pago; abuso de documentos; y represalias o intimidación. Este asunto fue manejado por Abogado de la OSC, Ronald Lee, y por Especialista de Igualdad en el Empleo de la OSC, Alexandra A. Vince. Para más información sobre las protecciones contra la discriminación en el empleo conforme a las leyes de inmigración o para como registrarse para un seminario de internet gratis, llame a la línea directa del empleado de la OSC al 1-800-255-7688 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para las personas con dificultades auditivos), llame a la línea directa de empleadores de la OSC al 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para las personas con dificultades auditivos), o visite el sitio web en www.justice.gov/crt/about/osc.

Los solicitantes o trabajadores que creen que han sido sometidos a requisitos documentales distintos basados en su cuidadanía, estatus de inmigración u origen nacional, o a discriminación basada en su cuidadanía, estatus de inmigración u origen nacional en la contratación, despido, o reclutamiento o recomendación, deben comunicarse con la línea directa del empleado indicada arriba para recibir ayuda.

Lowe’s Home Centers, one of the nation’s largest home improvement retailers, has agreed to implement a comprehensive, corporate-wide compliance program at its more than 1,700 stores nationwide to ensure its contractors minimize lead dust from home renovation activities, as required by the federal Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule, the Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today. The company will also pay a $500,000 civil penalty, which is the largest ever for violations of the RRP Rule.

The settlement stems from violations, discovered by EPA inspectors, of the RRP Rule’s recordkeeping and work practice standards at private homes that had been renovated by Lowe’s contractors. EPA enforces the RRP and other lead rules to protect children and others who are vulnerable to exposure to lead dust that can cause lead poisoning.

“Today’s settlement requires Lowe’s to institute a robust, nationwide program at its more than 1,700 stores nationwide to ensure that the contractors it hires to perform renovation projects, like window and carpet installation, are properly certified and adhere to practices that help prevent lead contamination in customers’ homes,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.  “This action, the first of its kind to address lead safe work practices on a system-wide basis, will help prevent children’s exposure to lead in communities across the nation by raising home improvement contractors’ awareness of EPA’s lead safety regulations and contributing to a culture of compliance.”

“Today’s settlement sends a clear message to all contractors and the firms they hire: Get lead certified and comply with the law to protect children from exposure to dangerous lead dust,” said Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Lowe’s is taking responsibility for the actions of the firms it hires, and EPA expects other contractors to do the same.”

“Protecting our most valuable assets, our children, is something that I will always do,” said Stephen R. Wigginton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois.  “This settlement will ensure that not only children in southern Illinois, but children throughout the United States will be better protected from the known hazards associated with lead exposure.  I commend Lowe’s for taking responsibility and entering into this agreement.”

EPA discovered the violations through a review of records from completed renovations performed by contractors hired by the following Lowe’s stores: Alton, Ill.; Kent and Trotwood, Ohio; Bedford, N.H.; Southington, Conn.; South Burlington, Vt.; Rochester, N.Y.; Savannah and Lebanon, Tenn.; Boise, Idaho Falls and Nampa, Idaho; and Muldoon, Alaska.

The government complaint alleged that Lowe’s failed to provide documentation showing that its contractors had been certified by EPA, had been properly trained, had used lead-safe work practices, or had correctly used EPA-approved lead test kits at renovation sites. Additionally, EPA’s investigation found that Lowe’s contractors had failed to ensure that work areas had been properly contained and cleaned during renovations at three homes. EPA’s investigation was prompted by tips and complaints submitted by the public.

In addition to the civil penalty, Lowe’s must implement a comprehensive compliance program to ensure that the contractors it hires to perform work for its customers comply with the RRP Rule during renovations of any child-occupied facilities, such as day-care centers and schools, and any housing that was built before 1978. For these projects, Lowe’s must contract with only EPA-certified renovators, ensure they maintain certification, and ensure they use lead safe work practices checklists during renovations. In addition, Lowe’s must suspend anyone that is not operating in compliance with the rule, investigate all reports of potential noncompliance and ensure that any violations are corrected.

The RRP Rule, which implements the federal Toxic Substances Control Act, is intended to ensure that owners and occupants of housing built before 1978, as well as any child-occupied facilities, receive information on lead-based paint hazards before renovations begin, and that individuals performing such renovations are properly trained and certified by EPA and follow specific work practices to reduce the potential for lead-based paint exposure. Home improvement companies such as Lowe’s that contract with renovators to perform renovation work must ensure that those contractors comply with all of the requirements of the RRP Rule.

Lead-based paint was banned in 1978 but still remains in many homes and apartments across the country. Lead dust hazards can occur when lead paint deteriorates or is disrupted during home renovation and remodeling activities. Lead exposure can cause a range of health problems, from behavioral disorders and learning disabilities to seizures and death, putting young children at the greatest risk because their nervous systems are still developing.

In February 2014, EPA announced enforcement actions that require 35 home renovation contractors and training providers to take additional steps to protect communities by minimizing harmful lead dust from home renovation activities, as required by the RRP Rule. Those settlements generated a total of $274,000 in civil penalties.

Renovators that are certified under EPA’s RRP Rule are encouraged to display EPA’s “Lead-Safe” logo on worker’s uniforms, signs, websites and other material, as appropriate. Consumers can protect themselves by looking for the logo before hiring a home renovator.

Lowe’s operates over 1,700 stores throughout the U.S., with over 120 additional stores located in Canada and Mexico. Lowe’s Home Centers, LLC, formerly known as Lowe’s Home Centers Inc. and Lowe’s HIW Inc., is headquartered in Mooresville, N.C.

The consent decree was lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois. Notice of the lodging of the consent decree will appear in the Federal Register allowing for a 30-day public comment period before the consent decree can be entered by the court as final judgment. The consent decree will available for viewing at www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html .

More information about today’s settlement: http://www2.epa.gov/enforcement/lowes-home-centers-llc-settlement

More information about related settlements: http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/2467feca60368729852573590040443d/383445d9a21d283f85257c83005a24ce!OpenDocument&Highlight=2,lead

More information about the RRP Rule and how contractors can get certified: www.epa.gov/lead

Related Materials:

Lowes Complaint
Lowes Consent Decree

Two leaders of the Armenian Power gang were found guilty today by a federal jury in Los Angeles for their participation in a racketeering conspiracy that included extortion, bank fraud targeting elderly bank customers and a sophisticated credit and debit card skimming scheme that stole account numbers and personal identification numbers (PINs) from thousands of people who used their cards at 99 Cents Only Stores throughout Southern California.

Armenian Power leaders Mher “Capone” Darbinyan and Arman “Horse” Sharopetrosian were each found guilty for their roles in a racketeering conspiracy, and an associate of the gang, Rafael Parsadanyan, was found guilty for his role in the 99 Cents Only Stores skimming scheme.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. of the Central District of California and Assistant Director in Charge Bill L. Lewis of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office made the announcement following a four-week jury trial before United States District Judge R. Gary Klausner of the Central District of California.

Darbinyan, 38, of Valencia, was found guilty of 57 criminal counts, including racketeering conspiracy, extortion conspiracy, extortion, bank fraud, access device fraud conspiracy, aggravated identity theft and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. According to the evidence presented at trial, Darbinyan was a powerful leader of Armenian Power who operated a sophisticated bank fraud scheme that used middlemen and runners to deposit and cash hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent checks drawn on the accounts of elderly customers and jewelry businesses. Darbinyan also organized and operated a sophisticated debit card skimming operation targeting customers of 99 Cents Only Stores. This expansive scheme involved installation of skimmers in stores that were used to steal customers’ debit card numbers and PINs. The scheme targeted stores throughout Southern California and involved the bank accounts of thousands of customers of the discount store. Separately, Darbinyan conspired to extort and extorted funds from a member of the Armenian community using threats of violence. He also possessed, on two separate occasions, firearms and ammunition after having previously been convicted of felony grand theft for his role in a 2004 debit card fraud scheme.

Sharopetrosian, 35, was convicted of three counts: racketeering conspiracy, extortion conspiracy and extortion. The evidence at trial showed that while Sharopetrosian was incarcerated in Avenal State Prison in 2009, he directed the extortion of a member of the Armenian community. Sharopetrosian worked together with Darbinyan and others to carry out the extortion over a period of six months, at one point even arranging the kidnapping of the victim in order to hasten the extortion payments. Sharopetrosian, at different times, threatened to kill and kidnap the victim to coerce the victim into paying him over $100,000.

Parsadanyan, 29, of Los Angeles, was convicted of 14 counts of bank fraud for his role in the 99 Cents Only Store scheme. The evidence at trial showed that Parsadanyan assisted Darbinyan by, among other things, collecting and storing proceeds of the fraud scheme, including delivering approximately $34,000 in criminal proceeds to a co-schemer.

Darbinyan is scheduled to be sentenced on July 21, 2014. Sharopetrosian is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept.15, 2014. Parsadanyan is scheduled to be sentenced on July 14, 2014.

Darbinyan, Sharopetrosian and Parsadanyan were among 90 individuals charged in 2011 in two indictments targeting Armenian Power. One indictment accused 29 defendants, including Darbinyan and Sharopetrosian, of participating in the Armenian Power racketeering conspiracy that involved a host of illegal activities such as sophisticated bank fraud schemes, identity theft, debit card skimming and manufacturing counterfeit checks. Some defendants in the case were charged with participating in a variety of violent crimes, such as kidnapping, extortion and firearms offenses.

According to court documents, the Armenian Power street gang formed in the East Hollywood area of Los Angeles in the 1980s. The gang’s membership consisted primarily of individuals of Armenian descent, as well as of other countries within the former Soviet bloc. Armenian Power has more than 250 documented members, as well as hundreds of associates. According to court documents, Armenian Power members and associates regularly carry out violent criminal acts, including murders, attempted murders, kidnappings, robberies, extortions and witness intimidation to enrich its members and associates and preserve and enhance the power of the criminal enterprise.

Out of the 90 defendants charged in the two indictments, 85 have now been convicted. Two of the defendants are still pending trial, two defendants are fugitives and prosecutors dismissed charges against one defendant. The charges contained in the indictments are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The case was investigated by the Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force, which is composed of the FBI, the Glendale Police Department, the Los Angeles Police Department, the Burbank Police Department, the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, IRS – Criminal Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Secret Service. The Huntington Beach Police Department and the Beverly Hills Police Department provided assistance.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Andrew Creighton of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys E. Martin Estrada and Elizabeth Yang of the Central District of California.

Macon Openshaw, 21, pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah today to a federal civil rights crime relating to a bias-motivated weapons discharge aimed at a local synagogue and to two unlawful gun possession charges.

During the plea proceedings, Openshaw admitted that late at night on a date in 2012, he fired three rounds from a Walther .22 caliber handgun at the Congregation Kol Ami synagogue in Salt Lake City because of its religious character, hitting the unoccupied structure’s second floor window casing and the exterior wall of the synagogue.  Openshaw also admitted to possessing a handgun with a destroyed serial number, which was the same handgun he used to shoot the synagogue.  He also admitted to possessing several firearms and ammunition while he was subject to a protective order.

“Religiously-motivated violence tears at the fabric of our diverse society,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division.  “Today, and in the future, the department stands vigilant to confront and eradicate violence based on a person’s religion, and we will continue to vigorously prosecute those who commit crimes born of hate.”

“Every citizen living in Utah has a right to be free from intimidation and threatening conduct,” said U.S. Attorney David B. Barlow.  “The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Utah has a strong history of prosecuting those who violate the civil rights of others.”

Openshaw entered into a plea agreement whereby he would be sentenced to 60 months incarceration.  As part of his plea agreement, Openshaw agreed to pay restitution to the synagogue to repair the damage caused by his actions.

Openshaw is scheduled to be sentenced on July 15, 2014, by U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell.

This case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlos Esqueda of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah and Trial Attorney Nicholas Durham of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section. 

Two former correctional officers at Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., were sentenced today in connection with the March 9, 2008, assault of Kenneth Davis, an inmate.  U.S. District Judge James K. Bredar sentenced Jeremy McCusker to serve 21 months in prison.  Walter Scott Steele was ordered to serve four months in prison and to complete 40 hours of community service. 

Jeremy McCusker previously pleaded guilty to deprivation of rights under color of law and conspiring to obstruct justice.  Walter Scott Steele also pleaded guilty to conspiring to obstruct justice as well as making false statements to federal authorities. 

Both McCusker and Steele testified for the prosecution at the federal trial of former RCI officer James Kalbflesh, who was convicted for his role in the assault of Davis that took place during a midnight shift and in the subsequent cover up. 

During their testimony at Kalbflesh’s trial and in court documents filed in connection with their respective guilty pleas, McCusker and Steele each admitted that they were present when other officers at RCI met during the midnight shift and agreed to assault Davis in retaliation for a prior incident involving Davis and another officer.  McCusker and other correctional officers then entered Davis’ cell and assaulted the inmate while Steele and another officer watched the assault. 

Later, Steele, McCusker and other officers met at a restaurant and agreed on a story to cover up their involvement in, or knowledge of, the midnight shift’s assault on Davis.  On Feb. 12, 2013, Steele met with federal authorities and provided false information regarding the incident.

“The overwhelming majority of correctional officers serve their communities with honor and professionalism,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division.  “The Justice Department will aggressively prosecute those who engage in criminal misconduct.”

To date, 16 current or former officers at RCI have been convicted in connection with a series of assaults that Davis suffered on March 8-9, 2008.  Four former RCI officers still await sentencing before Judge Bredar. 

The case was investigated by the Frederick Resident Agency of the FBI, and prosecuted by Special Litigation Counsel Forrest Christian and Trial Attorney Sanjay Patel of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Cunningham of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.

FALLS CHURCH, Va. – The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) today announced that it has released its Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 Statistics Yearbook. As announced on its website on October 1, 2013, EOIR has been working to enhance its external data reporting by changing the way it analyzes and reports its data. The new statistical methodology is featured in the FY 2013 Statistics Yearbook, an annual compilation of data that examines respondents' cases by nationality, language, and disposition, and provides detailed information surrounding asylum cases.

In September 2011, EOIR convened an internal data working group to evaluate the collection and analysis of data and to assist in EOIR's annual effort to improve the agency's most significant data report. The conclusions of that working group were consistent with recommendations from the Department of Justice's Office of Inspector General in October 2012.

"Our new methodology will allow us to be more responsive to external statistics requests and to provide more transparency into EOIR's daily operations," said EOIR Director Juan P. Osuna. "These changes will make the FY 2013 Statistics Yearbook an even more useful tool than in years past."

The new statistical methodology revises the manner in which matters received and completed at EOIR are counted so that that the number of new receipts and initial case completions will provide as close an approximation as possible to the number of new individuals coming into EOIR immigration courts, and the number of motions and bonds will show additional work in existing cases.

- EOIR -

The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is an agency within the Department of Justice. Under delegated authority from the Attorney General, immigration judges and the Board of Immigration Appeals interpret and adjudicate immigration cases according to United States immigration laws. EOIR’s immigration judges conduct administrative court proceedings in immigration courts located throughout the nation. They determine whether foreign-born individuals—whom the Department of Homeland Security charges with violating immigration law—should be ordered removed from the United States or should be granted relief from removal and be permitted to remain in this country. The Board of Immigration Appeals primarily reviews appeals of decisions by immigration judges. EOIR’s Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer adjudicates immigration-related employment cases. EOIR is committed to ensuring fairness in all of the cases it adjudicates.

The Department of Justice announced today that CRC Health Corp. (CRC) has agreed to pay $9.25 million to the federal government and the State of Tennessee to settle allegations that CRC knowingly submitted false claims by providing substandard treatment to adult and adolescent Medicaid patients suffering from alcohol and drug addiction at its facility in Burns, Tenn.  CRC, based in Cupertino, Calif., is a nationwide provider of substance abuse and mental health treatment services. 

“Medicaid patients who enter residential treatment programs for alcohol and drug addiction deserve to have treatment provided by qualified personnel according to the appropriate standard of care,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery.  “We will not tolerate health care providers who prioritize profit margins over the needs of their patients.” 

CRC owns and operates a residential substance abuse treatment facility in Burns, Tenn., called New Life Lodge.  The government alleged that, between 2006 and 2012, New Life Lodge billed the Tennessee Medicaid program (TennCare) for substance abuse therapy services that were not provided or were provided by therapists who were not properly licensed by the state of Tennessee.  The government also alleged that New Life Lodge failed to make a licensed psychiatrist available to patients at the facility, as required by the state’s regulations; failed to maintain patient-staffing ratios required by Tennessee Department of Mental Health regulations and billed for Medicaid patients in excess of the state-licensed bed capacity at the facility.  In addition, the government alleged that New Life Lodge double-billed Medicaid for prescription substance abuse medications given to residents at the facility.  New Life Lodge currently is not treating Medicaid patients at its facility.  

“Substance abuse of varying levels is rampant here and across the country,” said U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee David Rivera.  “Fortunately, when needed, Medicaid or TennCare covers substance abuse treatment and certain mental health assistance.  When those services are required, the government will ensure that the treatment is provided with the highest possible quality of care to those patients.  Anything less is unacceptable.”

“Safeguarding TennCare’s mental and behavioral health support system is a particular focus of this office,” said Tennessee Attorney General Bob Cooper.

The allegations covered by the settlement were raised in a lawsuit filed by Angie Cederoth, who was previously employed in New Life Lodge’s billing department, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to sue on behalf of the government for the submission of false claims and to receive a share of any recovery.  Cederoth will receive $1.5 million as her share of the settlement proceeds.

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius.  The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $19 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $13.4 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

“Providers of health care services must not place profits above patients,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General in Atlanta.  “This was a vulnerable population of individuals who were seeking treatment for their substance abuse problems.  We will pursue these cases in order to ensure proper treatment is afforded to those seeking treatment.”

The investigation of this matter reflects a coordinated effort among the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. 

“The FBI is committed to investigating allegations of wrongdoing and false claims related to federally funded health care programs,” said A. Todd McCall, Special Agent in Charge of the Memphis Division of the FBI.  “The resolution of this matter is the result of the hard work by the individual investigators and the coordinated effort of all the agencies involved.”

“This resolution is indicative of a great collaborative effort to combat egregious and fraudulent activity against health care, which ultimately impacts everyone in Tennessee,” said Director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Mark Gwyn. 

The lawsuit is captioned U.S. ex rel. Cederoth v. CRC Health Corporation Inc. , CV-3-11-00897 (M.D. Tenn.).  The claims asserted against the defendants are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

The Department of Justice announced today that it has entered into a settlement agreement that, if approved by the court, will resolve allegations that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) discriminated against an employee because of his sex in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 

The department filed its complaint against CDCR in July 2013, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.  The complaint alleged that Joe Cummings, a male cook with CDCR, was sexually harassed by a female co-worker and that CDCR failed to take timely steps both to end the harassment and to remedy it.  Title VII prohibits discrimination in employment because of sex, which includes sexual harassment, as well as because of color, national origin, race and religion.

According to the complaint, Cummings’s co-worker made frequent unwanted sexual advances toward Cummings for more than a year.  The complaint alleges that the co-worker frequently made lewd and sexually suggestive comments to Cummings that he explicitly rejected as unwelcome.  The complaint further alleges that the co-worker’s inappropriate verbal communications with Cummings escalated, over time, to unwanted physical contact.  According to the complaint, Cummings and other CDCR personnel complained numerous times to CDCR supervisors about the harassment, but CDCR failed to take timely remedial action to both end the harassment and to discipline the harasser.  The complaint alleges that CDCR’s failure to take timely action to address sexual harassment violates both Title VII and CDCR’s own anti-harassment policy, which requires its supervisors to prevent sexual harassment and to promptly address complaints of sexual harassment. 

Under the terms of the settlement agreement, CDCR must pay Cummings $50,000 in compensatory damages and restore leave that he indicated he used to try to avoid the alleged harasser.  CDCR must also maintain appropriate anti-harassment and anti-retaliation policies and procedures.  In addition, CDCR must provide appropriate training for its personnel on these policies and procedures.

“It is illegal to harass someone because of sex, regardless of the sex of the victim or the harasser,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Civil Rights Division.  “Title VII gives all employees the right to work in an environment that is free of sexual harassment, and the Civil Rights Division will continue to vigorously enforce that right.”

“Sexual harassment in the workplace is simply intolerable,” said U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr.  “Today's settlement with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation helps ensure continued compliance and furthers our efforts to stamp out employment discrimination.”

This case was litigated by Senior Trial Attorneys Raheemah Abdulaleem and Trevor Blake of the Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section, with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Robyn-Marie Lyon Monteleone for the Central District of California.

More information about Title VII and other federal employment laws is available at this website.  The continued enforcement of Title VII is a priority of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.  Additional information about the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice is available on its website.

A former Bridgestone Corp. executive has agreed to plead guilty and to serve 18 months in a U.S. prison for his role in an international conspiracy to fix prices and rig bids of automotive anti-vibration rubber parts sold in the United States and elsewhere, the Department of Justice announced today. 

 
According to the one-count felony charge filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio in Toledo, Yusuke Shimasaki, along with co-conspirators, engaged in a conspiracy to allocate sales of, to rig bids for, and to fix, raise and maintain the prices of automotive anti-vibration rubber parts sold to Toyota Motor Corp., Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. – more commonly known by its brand name, Subaru – and certain of their subsidiaries, affiliates and suppliers, in the United States and elsewhere. 

 
According to the charge, Shimasaki participated in the anti-vibration rubber conspiracy from at least as early as January 2001 until at least December 2008.  During that time period, he was employed by Bridgestone as a sales manager, an executive vice president at Bridgestone APM Co., in Findlay, Ohio, and as a general sales manager.  According to the plea agreement, in addition to serving time in prison, Shimasaki has also agreed to pay a $20,000 criminal fine and to cooperate in the department’s investigation.  The plea agreement is subject to court approval.

“The charge today once again demonstrates the Antitrust Division’s vigorous commitment to hold individuals accountable for engaging in anticompetitive conduct,” said Brent Snyder, Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement program.  “The division’s ongoing investigation has resulted in more than two dozen executives serving prison time for their participation in illegal conspiracies involving auto parts.”

 
Bridgestone manufactures and sells a variety of automotive parts, including anti-vibration rubber parts, which are comprised primarily of rubber and metal, and are installed in suspension systems and engine mounts as well as other parts of an automobile.  They are installed in automobiles for the purpose of reducing road and engine vibration.  On Feb. 13, 2014, the Department of Justice announced that Bridgestone had agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $425 million criminal fine for its role in the conspiracy.  On April 15, 2014, Yasuo Ryuto, Isao Yoshida, two former executives of Bridgestone Corp., and Yoshiyuki Tanaka, a current executive, were indicted their roles in a conspiracy to fix prices of automotive anti-vibration rubber parts.

 
To date, 33 individuals have been charged in the government’s ongoing investigation into price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry.  Additionally, 26 companies have pleaded guilty or agreed to plead guilty and have agreed to pay a total of more than $2.29 billion in fines.

 
Shimasaki is charged with price fixing and bid rigging in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine for individuals.  The maximum fine for an individual may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine. 

 
Today’s charge is the result of an ongoing federal antitrust investigation into price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct in the automotive parts industry, which is being conducted by each of the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement sections and the FBI.  Today’s charge was brought by the Antitrust Division’s Chicago Office and the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office, with the assistance of the FBI headquarters’ International Corruption Unit and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.  Anyone with information on price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct related to other products in the automotive parts industry should contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at (888) 647–3258, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html or call the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office at (216) 522-1400.

Pharmaceutical company Astellas Pharma US Inc. will pay $7.3 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act in connection with its marketing and promotion of the drug Mycamine for pediatric use, the Justice Department announced today.  Astellas Pharma US Inc., located in Northbrook, Ill., manufactures and sells pharmaceutical drugs, including Mycamine.

“The FDA’s drug approval process requires companies to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of their products,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery.  “The Justice Department will hold accountable pharmaceutical companies that skirt these rules and seek to bill federal health care programs for uses of drugs that are not reimbursable.” 

The settlement resolves allegations that, between 2005 and 2010, Astellas knowingly marketed and promoted the sale of Mycamine for pediatric use, which was not a medically accepted indication and, therefore, not covered by federal health care programs.  During this time period, the FDA approved Mycamine to treat adult patients suffering from serious and invasive infections caused by the fungus Candida, including infections in the esophagus, the blood and the abdomen, and to prevent Candida infections in adults undergoing stem cell transplants.  From 2005 through June 2013, however, Mycamine was not approved to treat pediatric patients for any use.       

As a result of today’s $7.3 million settlement, the federal government will receive $4.2 million, and state Medicaid programs will receive $3.1 million. 

“The settlement in this case further demonstrates our commitment to hold responsible any pharmaceutical company that disregards the FDA drug approval process and promotes drugs for uses before they have been deemed safe and effective,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania Zane David Memeger.  “It’s a message that should resonate with all drug companies: there are consequences for violating the False Claims Act and putting profit ahead of government safeguards.”

The allegations resolved by the settlement arose from a lawsuit filed by Frank Smith, a former Astellas sales representative, under the False Claims Act’s whistleblower provisions, which permit private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery.  Smith will receive $708,852.   

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius.  The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $19.1 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $13.6 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

This case was a cooperative effort among the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Civil Division of the Department of Justice and the Offices of the Inspectors General of the Department of Health and Human Services and Office of Personnel Management.  The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Smith v. Astellas Pharma, US Inc. et al., No. 10-999 (E.D. Pa.). 

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability. 

A Cleveland federal grand jury returned an indictment against one current executive and two former executives of Bridgestone Corp. for their roles in an international conspiracy to fix prices of automotive anti-vibration rubber parts sold in the United States and elsewhere, the Department of Justice announced today.

 
The indictment, filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio in Toledo, charges Yoshiyuki Tanaka, Yasuo Ryuto and Isao Yoshida, all Japanese nationals, with participating in a conspiracy to suppress and eliminate competition in the automotive parts industry by agreeing to allocate sales of, to rig bids for, and to fix, raise and maintain the prices of anti-vibration rubber parts sold to Toyota Motor Corp., Nissan Motor Corp., Suzuki Motor Corp., Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. – more commonly known by its brand name, Subaru – and certain of their subsidiaries, affiliates and suppliers, in the United States and elsewhere.

 
“Today’s indictment again demonstrates that antitrust violations are not just corporate offenses but also crimes by individuals,” said Brent Snyder, Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement program. “The division will continue to vigorously prosecute executives who circumvent the law in order to maximize profits by harming consumers.”

Tanaka was employed by Bridgestone in various positions involving anti-vibration rubber parts sales, including manager at Bridgestone and executive vice-president at Bridgestone’s U.S. subsidiary Bridgestone APM Co., from approximately 1991 through at least February 2011. He is currently manager of the anti-vibration rubber original equipment international planning section. Ryuto was employed by Bridgestone in various positions involving anti-vibration rubber parts sales, including general manager and director, from approximately 1991 through at least June 2008; he is no longer employed by the company. Yoshida was employed by Bridgestone in various positions involving anti-vibration rubber parts sales, including manager and general manager, from approximately 1997 through at least September 2008 ; he is no longer employed by the company.

 
The indictment alleges that Tanaka, Ryuto, Yoshida and their co-conspirators conducted meetings and communications in Japan to reach collusive agreements regarding the sale of automotive anti-vibration rubber products to automakers in the United States and elsewhere. The indictment alleges that the conspiracy involved agreements affecting the Tacoma, Camry, Tundra, Sequoia, Corolla, Sienna, Venza and Highlander. According to the indictment, Tanaka participated in the conspiracy from at least as early as January 2004 until at least June 2008; Ryuto participated in the conspiracy from at least as early as April 2001 until at least May 29, 2008; and Yoshida participated in the conspiracy from at least as early as January 2001 until at least July 2008.

 
Bridgestone manufactures and sells a variety of automotive parts, including anti-vibration rubber parts, which are comprised primarily of rubber and metal, and are installed in suspension systems and engine mounts as well as other parts of an automobile. They are installed in automobiles for the purpose of reducing road and engine vibration. On Feb. 13, 2014, Bridgestone agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $425 million criminal fine for its role in the conspiracy.

 
To date, 32 individuals have been charged in the government’s ongoing investigation into price fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry. Additionally, 26 companies have pleaded guilty or agreed to plead guilty and have agreed to pay a total of more than $2.29 billion in fines.

 
Each of the individuals is charged with price fixing and bid rigging in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine for individuals. The maximum fine for an individual may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.

Today’s charges are the result of an ongoing federal antitrust investigation into price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct in the automotive parts industry, which is being conducted by each of the Antitrust Division’s criminal enforcement sections and the FBI. These cases were brought by the Antitrust Division’s Chicago Office and the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office, with the assistance of the FBI headquarters’ International Corruption Unit and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio. Anyone with information on price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct related to other products in the automotive parts industry should contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 888-647-3258, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html or call the FBI’s Cleveland Field Office at 216-522-1400.

James E. Beavers and Beverly S. Beavers of Knoxville, Tenn., were each sentenced to serve 36 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.  James and Beverly Beavers were also each ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $591,123.  On March 20, 2013, a jury sitting in Knoxville, Tenn., found the couple guilty of conspiracy to defraud the United States and filing false claims for tax refunds.  They have been in custody since they were convicted.

Court documents and the evidence at trial showed that James Beavers held a Ph.D. in civil engineering and was employed as an engineering consultant.  He was formerly employed as the director of an academic engineering center at the University of Tennessee.  Beverly Beavers owned a small formalwear and jewelry store in Knoxville. 

According to court documents and the evidence presented at trial, in June 2009, James and Beverly Beavers arranged to have a fraudulent 2008 tax return prepared by PMDD Services LLC, a tax return preparation firm that helped clients claim exorbitant tax refunds specifically intended to help the clients pay off their personal debts.  The tax return falsely reported that their personal debts, including the amount of the Beavers’ mortgage and the limits on their credit cards, were actually income on which federal income tax was withheld.  This fictitious income and tax withholding were reported to the IRS on false Forms 1099-OID, which were prepared by Penny Jones of PMDD Services based on information provided by James and Beverly Beavers.  As a result of the fraudulently inflated income and withholding, the Beavers’ 2008 tax return claimed a fraudulent tax refund of over $591,000.  Upon receiving the funds, James and Beverly Beavers paid off their home mortgage, then conveyed their newly unencumbered real estate to sham trusts in order to impede IRS efforts to collect the erroneously paid refund.  They later filed false amended tax returns for the 2006 and 2007 tax years, also prepared by Jones, requesting fraudulent tax refunds of $193,056 and $202,625, respectively.  Jones pleaded guilty to related tax crimes and was sentenced to 144 months in prison in January 2013.

Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Tax Division commended the efforts of special agents of IRS – Criminal Investigation who investigated the case and Trial Attorneys Jonathan Marx and Jed Silversmith of the Tax Division who prosecuted the case, with local assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found at  the division website .

WASHINGTON, D.C – Today, President Barack Obama granted clemency to the following individual:

• Ceasar Huerta Cantu, also known as Cesar Huerta Cantu – Katy, Texas
Offenses:  Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute marijuana; money laundering (Western District of Virginia)
Sentence:  180 months’ imprisonment (as amended), five years’ supervised release
(May 11, 2006)
Commutation Grant:  Prison sentence commuted to 138 months’ imprisonment

The United States has requested that the federal district court in Montgomery, Ala., permanently bar Tonja Renee Toney and Jenika Williams from preparing federal income tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

According to the complaint, which was filed yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, Toney and Williams each prepared tax returns as employees of Premier Tax in Montgomery in 2007 and 2008, and both pleaded guilty to charges related to their work at Premier Tax.  The complaint further alleges that both prepared false and fraudulent tax returns after being interviewed by Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agents in connection with their activities at Premier Tax.

The complaint alleges that both defendants have knowingly prepared federal income tax returns for customers that understated the customers’ tax liability by reporting false income in order to inflate the taxpayer’s claim to an Earned Income Tax Credit.

Return-preparer fraud is one of the IRS’   Dirty Dozen Tax Scams for 2014 .  The IRS has some tips on their website   for choosing a tax preparer.  In the past decade, the Tax Division has obtained injunctions against hundreds of fraudulent tax preparers.  Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department   website .   An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on   this page .  If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the   Tax Division   with details.

Related Materials:

United States v. Tonja Renee Toney, et al.
Complaint for Permanent Injunction

Francis E. Chandler III was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway late yesterday to serve 37 months in prison and ordered to pay $3,066,629 in restitution for filing a false claim for tax refund and false retaliatory liens against four federal government officials, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. 

According to court documents, Chandler filed a fraudulent 2007 federal income tax return seeking a tax refund of $3,969,012 based on his false claim of interest income and tax withholding of $6,222,850.  In April 2010, a federal grand jury indicted Chandler for filing the false claim against the United States.  Shortly after his indictment and in retaliation for the performance of their official duties, Chandler knowingly filed false liens in Hawaiian public records against the property of two federal judges, the U.S. Attorney and an Assistant U.S. Attorney who were involved in the prosecution of his false claims case.  On Feb. 11, 2013, pursuant to a plea agreement, Chandler pleaded guilty to one count of filing a false claim against the United States and one count of filing a false retaliatory lien against four government officials. 

“This sentence shows that those who seek to obtain fraudulent refunds by participating in bogus schemes risk prosecution, incarceration and substantial financial consequences,” said Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally for the Tax Division.  “This sentence should also send a loud message that retaliating against government officials who are simply doing their jobs will not be tolerated.”

“With the income tax filing deadline today, this sentencing is a stark reminder that there is no secret formula to evade one's tax obligation,” said Special Agent in Charge Kenneth Hines of IRS-Criminal Investigation in the Pacific Northwest.  “When individuals seek to abuse the tax system by claiming bogus senseless tax refunds, they steal not only from the U.S. Treasury, they in effect steal from every one of us who pays taxes.  Chandler then tried to intimidate the very officials charged with upholding the law by filing retaliatory liens against them.  That sort of brazen tactic is simply illegal.”

Assistant Attorney General Keneally commended the efforts of special agents of IRS - Criminal Investigation, who investigated the case, and of Tax Division Senior Litigation Counsel Jen E. Ihlo and Trial Attorney Matthew J. Kluge, who prosecuted the case.         

More information about the Tax Division and its Tax Defier Initiative can be found at the division website. 

Following the recent tragedies at a Jewish Community Center outside of Kansas City and at Ft. Hood, Attorney General Eric Holder urged Congress Tuesday to approve $15 million in funding for active shooter training for law enforcement officers to ensure they have the tools they need to effectively respond to threats, protect themselves, and save innocent lives.

“In the face of this urgent and growing threat – when the lives of innocent people are at stake – those who stand on the front lines need our full and unwavering support," Holder said in a video message posted on the Justice Department's website. "This critical funding would help the Justice Department ensure that America’s police officers have the tools and guidance they need to effectively respond to active shooter incidents whenever and wherever they arise."

“Over the last decade, the Justice Department and the FBI have helped provide cutting-edge active shooter training to 50,000 front-line officers.  In the video message, Holder said continuing this training is critical since the patrol officers who arrive first on the scene are increasingly being relied on to respond directly to active shooters rather than wait for SWAT teams.”

The complete text of the Attorney General’s video message is below:

“Between 2000 and 2008, the United States experienced an average of approximately five active shooter incidents every year.  Since 2009, this annual average has roughly tripled.  Earlier this month, Fort Hood suffered the second mass shooting that community has experienced in just five years.  And in a separate incident over the weekend, a gunman opened fire at a Jewish Community Center just outside of Kansas City.

“The Justice Department has concluded that federal hate crimes charges are appropriate in this case, and in the months ahead, we will do everything in our power to ensure that justice is served for every victim.

“But each of these tragic events is a heartbreaking reminder that mass shootings are all too common.  And they have become increasingly deadly.

“As a nation, we must confront this alarming rise and all of its underlying causes – honestly, factually, and without regard for political consequence.  We must deal with these incidents whenever they happen – but, just as importantly, we must prevent them whenever we can.

“Today’s Department of Justice committed to doing just that.  We’re more determined than ever to prevent mass shootings.  The FBI’s Behavioral Threat Assessment Center, which supports state, local and campus safety stakeholders, has worked diligently to respond to a nearly 200 percent increase in requests for assistance in the last year, and to help detect and mitigate potential active shooter situations.

“But we must also be prepared to respond quickly and effectively to active shooter incidents if and when they do occur.  And in today’s world, the first response must often be led not by SWAT teams or specialized police units – but by the very first patrol officers to arrive on the scene.

“That’s why all law enforcement officers must have the best equipment and most up-to-date training to confront these situations – to stop active shooters in their tracks, to protect themselves, and to save innocent lives.

“Over the last decade, the Justice Department and the FBI have helped provide cutting-edge active shooter training to 50,000 front-line officers, more than 7,000 on-scene commanders, and over 3,000 local, state, and federal agency heads.  This vital work must continue – but to provide training, we need adequate funding.

“Today, I am urging Congress to approve President Obama’s request for $15 million for active shooter training and other officer safety initiatives.  This critical funding would help the Justice Department ensure that America’s police officers have the tools and guidance they need to effectively respond to active shooter incidents whenever and wherever they arise.

“Every day, America’s federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement officials perform their duties with integrity, courage, and extraordinary valor.  In the face of this urgent and growing threat – when the lives of innocent people are at stake – those who stand on the front lines need our full and unwavering support.  The safety of the American people demands it.  And the men, women, and children whose lives are impacted by active shooters every year deserve nothing less.”

The full video message is available at http://www.justice.gov/agwa.php. 

Members of two different piracy groups engaged in the illegal distribution of copies of copyrighted Android mobile device applications have pleaded guilty for their roles in separate schemes, each designed to distribute more than one million copies of copyrighted apps.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates of the Northern District of Georgia and Special Agent in Charge J. Britt Johnson of the FBI’s Atlanta Field Office made the announcement.

Thomas Pace, 38, of Oregon City, Ore., pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement and is scheduled for sentencing on July 9, 2104.  According to the information filed on Jan. 24, 2014, Pace and his fellow conspirators identified themselves as the Appbucket Group, and from August 2010 to August 2012, they conspired with other members of the Appbucket Group to reproduce and distribute more than one million copies of copyrighted Android mobile device apps, with a total retail value of over $700,000, through the Appbucket alternative online market without permission from the copyright owners of the apps.  Two other defendants charged in the information – Thomas Dye and Appbucket Group leader Nicholas Narbone – pleaded guilty to the same charge in the information on March 10 and March 24, 2014, respectively.

Kody Jon Peterson, 22, of Clermont, Fla., pleaded guilty on April 14, 2014, to one count of conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement.  According to the information filed on Jan. 23, 2014, Peterson and his fellow conspirators identified themselves as the SnappzMarket Group, and from May 2011 until August 2012, Peterson conspired with other members of the SnappzMarket Group to reproduce and distribute over one million copies of copyrighted Android mobile device apps, with a total retail value of over $1.7 million, through the SnappzMarket alternative online market without permission from the software developers and other copyright owners of the apps. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant Deputy Chief for Litigation John H. Zacharia of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Bly of the Northern District of Georgia. Significant assistance was provided by the CCIPS Cybercrime Lab and the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs.

The Department of Justice announced today that an information was filed charging Robert Keller, 70, with interfering with the housing rights of three members of an interracial family because of the family members’ races and because the family members were living in Hurricane, Utah.    

Keller has been charged with two counts of criminal interference with a right to fair housing.  More specifically, the information alleges that Keller wrote a note to two Caucasian family members of an interracial family threatening to kill them if they did not make their African-American family member leave their home and the community.  The first count alleges that  Keller’s threats interfered with the housing rights of the Caucasian residents to associate in their home with their African-American family member, and the second count alleges that Keller’s threats interfered with the African-American resident’s right to occupy the home. 

If convicted, Keller faces a statutory maximum penalty of one year in prison on each count.

This case is being investigated by the Salt Lake City Division of the FBI in cooperation with the Hurricane City Police Department.  It is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Saeed Mody of the Civil Rights Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Carlos Esqueda for the District of Utah.  

An information is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

WASHINGTON—U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder released the following statement Monday regarding the tragic shootings in Kansas yesterday:

 “I was horrified to learn of this weekend's tragic shootings outside Kansas City. These senseless acts of violence are all the more heartbreaking as they were perpetrated on the eve of the solemn occasion of Passover.
  
“Justice Department prosecutors will work with their state and local counterparts to provide all available support and to determine whether the federal hate crimes statute is implicated in this case.

“No matter what, we will do everything in our power to ensure justice is served in this case on behalf of the victims and their families. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected by these heinous acts.”

Hope Cancer Institute, a cancer treatment facility in Kansas, and Dr. Raj Sadasivan, the owner of Hope Cancer Institute, have agreed to pay $2.9 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by submitting claims to Medicare, Medicaid and the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program for drugs and services that were not provided to beneficiaries, the Department of Justice announced today.

“Billing Medicare and Medicaid for drugs that are not provided to beneficiaries contributes to the soaring costs of health care,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “Providers will be investigated aggressively and held accountable for falsely billing federal health care programs.”

The settlement resolves allegations that, between 2007 and 2011, Sadasivan and Hope Cancer Institute submitted claims to federal health benefit programs for the chemotherapy drugs Rituxan, Avastin and Taxotere that were not provided to federal health care beneficiaries. Sadasivan allegedly instructed the employees of Hope Cancer Institute to bill for a predetermined amount of cancer drugs at certain dosage levels, when lower dosages of these drugs were actually provided to beneficiaries. As a result of these instructions, Hope Cancer Institute submitted inflated claims to federal health care programs for drugs that were not actually provided to patients.

“Health care providers that try to make a quick buck by billing taxpayers for services never provided will instead pay a high price for their greed-fueled fraud," said Gerald T. Roy, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. “We are dedicated to investigating and prosecuting these types of deceptive schemes.”

The settlement resolves a lawsuit filed by Krisha Turner, Crystal Dercher and Amanda Reynolds, former employees of Hope Cancer Institute, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which allow private citizens with knowledge of false claims to file suit on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery.

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $19.1 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $13.6 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

The settlement with Sadasivan and Hope Cancer Institute was the result of a coordinated effort among the Justice Department’s Civil Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Kansas and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. The False Claims Act suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas and is captioned United States ex rel. Turner et al. v. Hope Cancer Institute, et al.

The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.

The government has intervened in a False Claims Act lawsuit against Orbit Medical Inc. and Jake Kilgore alleging that Orbit Medical’s sales representatives boosted power wheelchair and accessory sales by altering and forging physician prescriptions and supporting documentation, the Justice Department announced today. Orbit Medical is a durable medical equipment supplier based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Jake Kilgore is the former vice president and sales manager at Orbit Medical for the Western region of the United States.

“Medical equipment suppliers must bill federal health care programs accurately and honestly to ensure that federal dollars are used for individuals who truly need mobility devices,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “The Justice Department is committed to pursuing those who seek to abuse taxpayer-funded programs.”

Medicare pays for power wheelchairs for beneficiaries who cannot perform mobility- related activities of daily living in their home using other mobility assistance equipment, such as a cane, walker or power scooter. To qualify for reimbursement, a physician must conduct a face-to-face examination of the beneficiary and provide the supplier with a written prescription for a power wheelchair within 45 days of such an encounter, along with documentation that supports the medical necessity of the device. The prescription must be completed by the physician who performed the exam and must include the beneficiary’s name, the exam date, the diagnoses and conditions the wheelchair is expected to accommodate, the length of need and the physician’s signature.

The lawsuit alleges that Orbit Medical sales representatives, at Kilgore’s direction and encouragement, knowingly altered physician prescriptions and supporting documentation to get Orbit Medical’s power wheelchair and accessory claims paid by Medicare, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan and the Defense Health Agency. In particular, the lawsuit alleges that Orbit Medical sales representatives created documents to falsely establish that physicians examined beneficiaries in person; changed physicians’ prescriptions to falsely establish medical necessity for the power wheelchair or accessory; created or altered chart notes and other documents to falsely establish the medical necessity of the power wheelchair or accessory; forged physicians’ signatures on prescriptions and chart notes and added facsimile stamps to supporting documentation to make it appear as though physicians’ offices had sent the documents to Orbit Medical.

On Oct. 23, 2013, a federal grand jury in Utah indicted Jake Kilgore on three counts of health care fraud, three counts of false statements related to health care and three counts of wire fraud, all arising from his tenure with Orbit Medical.

“The government is intervening in this matter seeking to restore Medicare trust funds taken through the alleged use of falsified records and fraudulent billings, among other things,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Utah David B. Barlow. “Health care fraud is aggressively pursued in Utah. Every effort is made to restore taxpayers' dollars taken through fraudulent conduct.”

“Our agency is dedicated to investigating health care fraud schemes such as this, which divert scarce taxpayer funds meant to provide for legitimate patient care,” said Gerald T. Roy, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.

The allegations against Orbit Medical and Kilgore in this lawsuit were filed under the False Claims Act by two former Orbit employees, Dustin Clyde and Tyler Jackson. Under the act, private parties can sue for false claims on behalf of the government and share in any recovery. The act also permits the government to intervene in the whistleblowers’ suit, as the government did here.

The government’s intervention illustrates its emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $19.1 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $13.6 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

This case was a coordinated effort among the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah, the Civil Division of the Department of Justice, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Office of Personnel Management and the Defense Health Agency. The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Clyde; Jackson v. Orbit Medical; Kilgore, No. 2:10-CV-00297 (D. Utah).

The claims pursued by the government are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.

The chief executive officer and a managing partner of a New York-based U.S. broker-dealer were arrested today on felony charges arising from a conspiracy to pay bribes to a senior official in Venezuela’s state economic development bank.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara of the Southern District of New York and Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos of the New York Office of the FBI made the announcement.

According to the indictment unsealed today, Benito Chinea and Joseph DeMeneses, who were the Chief Executive Officer and a managing partner, respectively, of a New York-based broker-dealer (Broker-Dealer), are accused of conspiring with others to pay and launder bribes to Maria de los Angeles Gonzalez de Hernandez, a senior official in Venezuela’s state-owned economic development bank, Banco de Desarollo Económico y Social de Venezuela (BANDES), in exchange for her directing BANDES’s financial trading business to the Broker-Dealer.  DeMeneses was also charged with conspiring to obstruct an examination of the Broker-Dealer by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to conceal the true facts of the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES.

Chinea, 47, was arrested today in Manalapan, N.J., where he resides, and DeMeneses, 44, was arrested today in Fairfield, Conn., where he resides. In a separate action, the SEC announced civil charges against Chinea, DeMeneses and others involved in the bribery scheme.

“These senior Wall Street executives are accused of paying six-figure bribes to an official in Venezuela to secure foreign business for their firm,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General O’Neil.  “Today’s charges show once again that we will aggressively pursue individual executives, all the way up the corporate ladder, when they try to bribe their way ahead of the competition.”

“These two defendants, senior executives at a U.S. brokerage firm, are the fifth and sixth people to be charged in an alleged conspiracy to corrupt the trading business of a state-run economic development bank of Venezuela,” said U.S. Attorney Bharara. “They are alleged to have bribed a willing officer at the bank to steer its overseas trading business to the defendants’ brokerage firm, reaping millions for these defendants and their partners in crime.  This Office will not tolerate the kind of outright bribery and concealment that characterized this scheme.”

“As alleged in the indictment, Chinea and DeMeneses bribed Gonzalez to secure BANDES's financial trading business,” said FBI ADIC Venizelos. “DeMeneses compounded the Broker-Dealer’s illegal activities by conspiring to obstruct an investigation by regulators. The arrests today of Chinea and DeMeneses should be a reminder to all those in the business community that engaging in bribery schemes to secure business and make a profit is illegal.  Together with our law enforcement partners, the FBI will continue to investigate bribery and fraud at all levels.”

According to the allegations in the indictment unsealed today, as well as other documents previously filed in Manhattan federal court, Chinea and DeMeneses worked at the headquarters of the Broker-Dealer in New York City. In 2008, the Broker-Dealer established a group called the Global Markets Group (GMG), which offered fixed income trading services for institutional clients in the purchase and sale of foreign sovereign debt. One of the Broker-Dealer’s GMG clients was BANDES, which operated under the direction of the Venezuelan Ministry of Finance. Gonzalez was an official at BANDES and oversaw the development bank’s overseas trading activity. At her direction, BANDES conducted substantial trading through the Broker-Dealer. Most of the trades executed by the Broker-Dealer on behalf of BANDES involved fixed income investments for which the Broker-Dealer charged the bank a commission.

As alleged in court documents, from late 2008 through 2012, Chinea and DeMeneses, together with three Miami-based Broker-Dealer employees, Ernesto Lujan, Tomas Alberto Clarke Bethancourt and Jose Alejandro Hurtado, participated in a bribery scheme in which Gonzalez directed trading business she controlled at BANDES to the Broker-Dealer, and in return, agents and employees of the Broker-Dealer split the revenue the Broker-Dealer generated from this trading business with Gonzalez. During this time period, the Broker-Dealer generated over $60 million in commissions from trades with BANDES. In order to conceal their conduct, Chinea, DeMeneses and their co-conspirators routed the payments to Gonzalez, frequently in six-figure amounts, through third-parties posing as “foreign finders” and into offshore bank accounts. In several instances, Chinea personally signed checks worth millions of dollars that were made payable to one of these purported “foreign finders” and later deposited in a Swiss bank account.

As further alleged in court documents, as a result of the bribery scheme, BANDES quickly became the Broker-Dealer’s most profitable customer. As the relationship continued, however, Gonzalez became increasingly unhappy about the untimeliness of the payments due her from the Broker-Dealer, and she threatened to suspend BANDES’s business. In response, DeMeneses and Clarke agreed to pay Gonzalez approximately $1.5 million from their personal funds. Chinea and DeMeneses agreed to use Broker-Dealer funds to reimburse DeMeneses and Clarke for these bribe payments. To conceal their true nature, Chinea and DeMeneses agreed to hide these reimbursements in the Broker-Dealer’s books as sham loans from the Broker-Dealer to corporate entities associated with DeMeneses and Clarke.

Court documents also allege that beginning in or around November 2010, the SEC commenced a periodic examination of the Broker-Dealer, and from November 2010 through March 2011, the SEC’s exam staff made several visits to the Broker-Dealer’s offices in Manhattan. In or about early 2011, DeMeneses and others involved in the scheme discussed that the SEC was examining the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES. DeMeneses and others agreed they would take steps to conceal the true facts of the Broker-Dealer’s relationship with BANDES, including by deleting emails, in order to hide the actual relationship from the SEC.

Chinea and DeMeneses were each charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the Travel Act, five counts of violating the FCPA, and five counts of violating of the Travel Act. Chinea and DeMeneses were also charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and three counts of money laundering.  DeMeneses was further charged with one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice.

Previously, on Aug. 29 and Aug. 30, 2013, Lujan, Hurtado and Clarke each pleaded guilty in Manhattan federal court to conspiring to violate the FCPA, to violate the Travel Act and to commit money laundering, as well as substantive counts of these offenses, relating, among other things, to the scheme involving bribe payments to Gonzalez. On Nov. 18, 2013, Gonzalez pleaded guilty in Manhattan federal court to conspiring to violate the Travel Act and to commit money laundering, as well as substantive counts of these offenses, for her role in the corrupt scheme.

The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the FBI, with assistance from the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs. The department appreciates the substantial assistance provided by the SEC.

Senior Deputy Chief James Koukios and Trial Attorney Maria Gonzalez Calvet of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Harry A. Chernoff and Jason H. Cowley of the Southern District of New York’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force are in charge of the prosecution.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolina Fornos is responsible for the forfeiture aspects of the case.

Additional information about the Justice Department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be

found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa .

Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance for the Northern District of Alabama and FBI Special Agent in Charge Richard D. Shwein Jr. announced that a Talladega County, Ala., man was sentenced in federal court today for attempting to hire members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) to murder an African-American neighbor

Allen Wayne Densen Morgan, 29, of Munford, Ala., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Karon O. Bowdre on Oct. 24, 2013, to one count of using and causing someone else to use interstate facilities and travel with the intent to commit a murder-for-hire.  At today’s sentencing hearing, Judge Bowdre sentenced Morgan to serve 72 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Morgan previously admitted that in August 2013, he attempted to hire members of the KKK to murder his neighbor.  According to Morgan’s plea agreement, on Aug. 22, 2013, Morgan spoke on the phone with an undercover FBI agent, who identified himself as a KKK member.  The men arranged to meet three days later at an Oxford, Ala., motel to discuss payment for the murder.  In that phone conversation, Morgan used a racial slur to describe the man he wanted killed and bragged that he had just fired several shots toward the man to intimidate him.  Morgan also described, in detail, how he wanted the man to be “hung from a tree like a deer and gutted,” to have body parts cut off and to “die a slow, painful death.”  On August 25, Morgan met with FBI agents posing as members of the KKK.  Morgan offered a watch, a necklace and a gun as payment for the murder and gave explicit directions for the man’s torture and murder. 

“The defendant attempted to have his neighbor tortured and murdered by the KKK,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Samuels.  “Today’s sentence demonstrates that the Justice Department will continue to aggressively prosecute those who act on their racial hatred by seeking to inflict such acts of violence on others.”

“Mr. Morgan detailed his calculated desire to end his neighbor's life through the most brutal and heinous means,” said U.S. Attorney Vance. “Today's sentence reinforces that vigilantism is not acceptable in our society and we will prosecute that crime.”

This case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Pat Meadows and Brad Felton of the Northern District of Alabama and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney David Reese.

Nine  alleged members of a wide-ranging racketeering enterprise and conspiracy who infected thousands of business computers with malicious software known as “Zeus” have been charged in an indictment unsealed today in Lincoln, Neb.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Deborah R. Gilg for the District of Nebraska and Special Agent in Charge Thomas R. Metz of the FBI’s Omaha Division made the announcement.

The indictment alleges that the “Zeus” malware captured passwords, account numbers, and other information necessary to log into online banking accounts.  The conspirators allegedly used the information captured by “Zeus” to steal millions of dollars from account-holding victims’ bank accounts.

The indictment was unsealed in connection with the arraignment this afternoon at the federal courthouse in Lincoln of two Ukrainian nationals, Yuriy Konovalenko, 31, and Yevhen Kulibaba, 36.  Konovalenko and Kulibaba were recently extradited from the United Kingdom.  All of the defendants were charged by a federal grand jury in August 2012 with conspiracy to participate in racketeering activity, conspiracy to commit computer fraud and identity theft, aggravated identity theft, and multiple counts of bank fraud.

“The ‘Zeus’ malware is one of the most damaging pieces of financial malware that has ever been used,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General O’Neil.  “As the charges unsealed today demonstrate, we are committed to making the Internet more secure and protecting the personal information and bank accounts of American consumers.  With the invaluable cooperation of our foreign law enforcement partners, we will continue to bring to justice cyber criminals who steal the money of U.S. citizens.”

“In this case, the victims included a Nebraska bank and a Nebraska company,” said U.S. Attorney Gilg.  “This demonstrates the global reach of cybercrime and the significant threat to our financial infrastructure.  We are grateful for the collaboration of our international and federal law enforcement partners in this complex financial fraud crime."

This case illustrates the vigorous cooperation between national and global law enforcement agencies and sends a strong message to cyber thieves,” said FBI SAC Metz.  “The FBI and our international partners will continue to devote resources to finding better ways to safeguard our systems, fortify our cyber defenses and stop those who do us harm."

According to the indictment, the defendants participated in an enterprise and scheme that installed, without authorization, malicious software known as “Zeus” or “Zbot” on victims’ computers.  The defendants are charged with using that malicious software to capture bank account numbers, passwords, personal identification numbers, RSA SecureID token codes and similar information necessary to log into online banking accounts.  The indictment alleges that the defendants falsely represented to banks that they were employees of the victims and authorized to make transfers of funds from the victims’ bank accounts, causing the banks to make unauthorized transfers of funds from the victims’ accounts.

As part of the enterprise and scheme, the defendants allegedly used as “money mules” residents of the United States who received funds transferred over the Automated Clearing House network or through other interstate wire systems from victims’ bank accounts into the money mules’ own bank accounts.  These “money mules” then allegedly withdrew some of those funds and wired the money overseas to conspirators.

According to court documents unsealed today, Kulibaba allegedly operated the conspirators’ money laundering network in the United Kingdom by providing money mules and their associated banking credentials to launder the money withdrawn from U.S.-based victim accounts.  Konovalenko allegedly provided money mules’ and victims’ banking credentials to Kulibaba and facilitated the collection of victims’ data from other conspirators.

The following four identified defendants remain at large: • Vyacheslav Igorevich Penchukov, 32, of Ukraine, who allegedly coordinated the exchange of stolen banking credentials and money mules and received alerts once a bank account had been compromised.
• Ivan Viktorvich Klepikov, 30, of Ukraine, the alleged systems administrator who handled the technical aspects of the criminal scheme and also received alerts once a bank account had been compromised.
• Alexey Dmitrievich Bron, 26, of Ukraine, the alleged financial manager of the criminal operations who managed the transfer of money through an online money system known as Webmoney.
• Alexey Tikonov, of Russia, an alleged coder or developer who assisted the criminal enterprise by developing new codes to compromise banking systems.

The indictment also charges three other individuals as John Doe #1, John Doe #2 and John Doe #3.

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Omaha Cyber Task Force.  The Metropolitan Police Service of the United Kingdom, the National Police of the Netherlands’s National High Tech Crime Unit and the Security Service of Ukraine provided significant assistance in the investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney William A. Hall, Jr. of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven A. Russell of the District of Nebraska. The Office of International Affairs in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division provided valuable assistance with the extradition.

The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. 

Related Materials:

Konovalenko Complaint
Konovalenko Superseding Indictment

Anthony Joseph, a commercial fisherman from Levittown, N.Y., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Central Islip, N.Y., to federal violations stemming from his role in systematically underreporting fluke (summer flounder) that was being harvested as part of the federal Research Set-Aside (RSA) Program, the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division announced.

Joseph, the former operator of the dragger F/V Stirs One, pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud, two counts of wire fraud, and one count of falsification of federal records for knowingly submitting 158 falsified fishing logs, known as fishing vessel trip reports (FVTRs) and aiding and abetting the submission of 167 falsified dealer reports from June 2009 through December 2011, as part of a scheme to defraud the United States of overharvested and underreported fluke.

As part of the plea deal, Joseph agreed to be subject to between $629,000 and $692,000 in combined fine and restitution.  The defendant also agreed to make $15,000 in community service payments to the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County, N.Y., in order to pay for the enhancement of fluke habitat through the C.C.E.’s Marine Meadows Program.  The jointly proposed sentence includes relinquishment of federal fishing permits, a ban on participation in the RSA Program, and a ban from working on the Stirs One.  The court will hear sentencing recommendations regarding non-agreed terms at a hearing set for Oct. 7, 2014.

“Today’s conviction demonstrates that we will hold those who violate the integrity of the Research Set-Aside Program accountable under the law and in doing so make sure that this valuable resource remains available to everyone and sustainable for future generations,” said Robert G. Dreher, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.    

“Our office takes these violations very seriously,” said Logan Gregory, Special Agent in Charge of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Law Enforcement’s Northeast Division. “The ability to catch and sell fish from a limited set aside quota to help fund scientific research should be considered a limited privilege, not an entitlement. The unlawful behavior shown in this case undermines the purpose and accuracy of the set-aside program as well as impacts the profitability of these fish for law-abiding fishermen who comply with the regulations.”  

Under NOAA regulations, all of the Stirs One’s catch had to be reported to NOAA on FVTRs. During the years 2009, 2010, and 2011, the Stirs One principally targeted fluke. However, under the captaincy and with the knowledge of Anthony Joseph, the vessel exceeded its relevant federal and New York State quotas for fluke for at least 158 trips. These illegal overages totaled between 296,000 and 310,000 pounds of fluke worth between approximately $623,000 and $632,000.

In order to cover up the illegal fluke harvesting, Anthony Joseph falsified the FVTRs that he personally mailed to NOAA. He also utilized the exempted fisheries permit quota that was acquired through the federal RSA Program as a mask for his fluke overages. According to court documents, the defendant characterized the RSA Program as “a license to steal” and remarked that during the period of 2009-2011, he referred to the Research Set-Aside Program with the nickname, “Research Steal-Aside.” 

NOAA regulations also required the first purchasers of seafood, i.e., directly from the fishing vessel, to report their purchases to NOAA on an electronic form known as a dealer report. The dealer reports include information such as date of landing, port of landing, catch vessel, corresponding FVTR numbers, commercial grade, species, price and weight. NOAA utilizes the data in the dealer reports to set quotas and implement other management measures designed to ensure a sustainable fisheries. The dealer reports also serve as a check on the information that is submitted in FVTRs. In other words, in order to effectuate his scheme, Anthony Joseph needed to ensure that corresponding false dealer reports were being submitted that contained the same false information as was contained on the falsified FVTRs. A mismatch would have indicated a serious error or fraud, and would have been a red flag for fisheries managers. Accordingly, during June 2009 to December 2011, the defendant schemed with two other fish dealers to submit false dealer reports in furtherance of the fraud. In doing so, the defendant aided and abetted Fish Dealer X and Fish Dealer Y in their internet submission of a total of at least 167 false dealer reports from computers in New York to NOAA’s Regional Fisheries Office in Gloucester, Mass.

The case was investigated by agents of NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, with assistance from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Police. The case is being prosecuted by Christopher L. Hale of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section, Environment and Natural Resources Division.

Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally for the Tax Division and U.S. Attorney David A. Capp of the Northern District of Indiana announced today that Ronald Eugene Jamerson, 56, of Schererville, Ind., was sentenced to serve 12 months and one day in prison by U.S. District Judge Phillip P. Simon.  Jamerson was also ordered to pay $541,083 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for unpaid individual income taxes and employment taxes, which represents the total tax loss owed for all tax periods from 2003 through 2008, according to the plea agreement.  On Oct. 25, 2013, Jamerson pleaded guilty to one count of willfully failing to truthfully account for, collect and pay over employment taxes to the IRS.

On June 20, 2012, Jamerson was indicted by a federal grand jury on 11 counts of willfully failing to file quarterly employment tax returns with the IRS and willfully failing to pay the IRS the federal income taxes and the Federal Insurance Contributions Act taxes due and owing from the second quarter of 2006 through the fourth tax quarter of 2008.  Jamerson is an otolaryngologist (ear, nose and throat surgeon) who opened his own medical practice in the late 1990s.  According to court pleadings, Jamerson deducted and collected from his employees’ paychecks federal income taxes and employment taxes in the amount of $63,929 over the 11 tax quarters, but failed to file the employment tax returns and pay over the related employment taxes.

The case was investigated by Special Agents from IRS - Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Erin S. Mellen and Chris J. Maietta of the Tax Division, with valuable support from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Hammond, Ind.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch for the Eastern District of New York announced today that the United States has filed a complaint against the Town of Oyster Bay in Long Island, N.Y., for violating the Fair Housing Act.  The complaint alleges that two housing programs designed to develop below-market rate housing for first time homeowners and senior citizens discriminate against African-Americans because the programs give preference to residents of the town, which is predominantly white. 

“The Fair Housing Act protects the right of all individuals, regardless of their race, to choose where to live and to have equal access to affordable housing,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Samuels.  “Today’s lawsuit is a reminder that if municipalities wish to adopt residency preferences such as those imposed by the defendants, they must do so in a way that does not discriminate against people based on race.”

“Housing programs designed to help young families and senior citizens purchase homes should be available to people of all races, including African-Americans,” said U.S. Attorney Lynch.  “To the extent residency preferences prevent families and senior citizens from purchasing homes because of race, ethnicity or color, the preferences violate federal law and cannot be tolerated.”     

At issue are two town zoning incentive programs.  The Next Generation housing program encourages developers to build below-market rate housing for first time homebuyers, generally young families.  The Golden Age housing program offers similar incentives for the construction of below-market rate housing for senior citizens.  Developers who build housing under the programs receive zoning variances which allow them to build housing more densely than current zoning restrictions permit in exchange for lower sale prices for certain units.  Both programs require developers to award units constructed under the programs to residents and children of residents of the town. 

According to the complaint, the residency preferences discriminate against African-Americans because very few African-Americans reside in the town and even fewer are eligible for the program, as compared to the population of African-Americans in surrounding communities that are significantly more diverse.  African-Americans constituted less than one percent of families living in the Town of Oyster Bay who were income eligible and otherwise qualified to purchase housing under the Next Generation program.  Conversely, whites made up as much as 90 percent of the pool of eligible families.  The eligible population of Nassau County, N.Y., and Suffolk County, N.Y., residents was approximately 10 percent African-American and between 70 percent and 75 percent white and the eligible population in the New York City metropolitan area was approximately 20.5 percent African-American and approximately 48 percent white.

Also named as defendants are Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto, in his official capacity, and Long Island Housing Partnership (LIHP), the not-for-profit organization which is responsible for administering the Next Generation housing program, which includes implementing the residency preferences for the town.

The complaint was filed with an accompanying settlement between the Department and LIHP.  LIHP has agreed to injunctive relief which requires LIHP to ensure that residency preferences it administers are analyzed so that they do not violate fair housing laws.  LIHP will also provide education and training to localities, banks and individuals on Long Island regarding the requirements of fair housing laws.