District Not Recorded
The source did not name an office we could identify. These records remain unassigned rather than guessed.
Philadelphia-based CDI Corporation Settles False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON -- CDI Corporation has agreed to pay the United States $1.95 million to resolve allegations in a lawsuit brought under the False Claims Act that CDI wrongfully charged labor costs to work orders under military aircraft engine contracts for The General Electric Company (GE), the Justice Department announced today. According to the government’s allegations, the work for which the military was charged was not actually performed.
CDI is headquartered in Philadelphia. The CDI regional office, located in Sharonville, Ohio, was the subject of the False Claims Act allegations. CDI is a supplier of engineering services under time and material subcontracts with GE Transportation and Aviation divisions for engineering work on commercial and military projects.
The civil investigation examined CDI’s labor and billing records from Jan. 15, 2001, to Dec. 31, 2006. The civil investigation found that during this time period, CDI directed the mischarging of employees’ labor costs to purchase orders that would be reimbursed by the U.S. military. In fact, the employees did not perform the work billed to those military projects. CDI entered these mischarged labor costs in increments of 0.5 hours or less to evade detection.
"Those who contract with the U.S. military must do so fairly and honestly," said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. "Taxpayers should not foot the bill when government contractors charge for work that was not done."
The lawsuit was filed in the federal district court in Cincinnati by Vicki Lanich, a former CDI employee. Under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of the recovery. Under the settlement, the whistleblower will receive $360,750.
This civil investigation was conducted by special agents of the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio. Audit support was provided by the Defense Contract Audit Agency, Mid-Atlantic Region. The settlement was negotiated by the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.
Florida-based Medicare Advantage Plan Owners & Primary Care Provider Agree to Pay $22.6 Million to Settle Claims of Falsifying DiagnosesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Dr. Walter Janke, his wife, Lalita Janke, and Vero Beach, Fla.-based Medical Resources L.L.C. (MR) have agreed to pay $22.6 million to resolve allegations that they caused Medicare to pay inflated amounts based upon the submission of false diagnosis codes, the Justice Department announced today.
The Jankes were the owners of America’s Health Choice Medical Plans Inc. (AHC), a Medicare Advantage Organization (MAO), approved by the federal health care program to provide health care to enrolled Medicare beneficiaries. The Jankes also owned MR, AHC’s primary care provider. AHC and MR are no longer doing business.
The agreement resolves a lawsuit brought by the United States in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida alleging that the Jankes and MR violated the False Claims Act by causing AHC to falsely increase the severity of beneficiary diagnoses to obtain higher Medicare payments. Under the Medicare Advantage Program, MAO's are paid more to provide services for members with serious and/or chronic medical conditions then they are for relatively healthy members.
In addition to suing the Jankes and MR, the United States successfully petitioned the court to freeze approximately $20 million of the Janke's assets believed to be the proceeds of their unlawful scheme. A portion of the Janke’s frozen assets, along with monies resulting from the dissolution of AHC now held in receivership by the Florida Department of Financial Services, will be used to pay the settlement.
"Patients seeking health care should be able to rely on the diagnoses they are given," said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. "We will aggressively pursue those who falsify medical diagnoses in order to receive taxpayer funds to which they are not entitled."
Christopher B. Dennis, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Health and Human Services’ Miami Regional Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), stated, "[w]hile the OIG continues to target healthcare fraud criminally, this case involving Medicare’s managed care program also reinforces the OIG’s commitment to civilly investigate health care fraud."
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator, Donald Berwick, M.D., added, "[t]his case confirms that Medicare Advantage plans must comply with Medicare’s requirements that payment data must be accurate."
Both HHS-OIG and CMS expressed appreciation for the Department of Justice’s willingness to collaborate with them on the case and to ensure that restitution be made to the Medicare Trust Fund and the federal taxpayers.
The settlement is part of the government's emphasis on combating health care fraud and another step for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), which was announced by Attorney General Eric Holder and HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in May 2009. The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid fraud through enhanced cooperation. One of the most powerful tools in that effort is the False Claims Act, which the Justice Department has used to recover approximately $4.2 billion since January 2009 in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs. The Justice Department's total recoveries in False Claims Act cases since January 2009 have topped $5.8 billion
The settlement was part of a coordinated effort among the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, HHS’s OIG and Office of the General Counsel, and the CMS.
United States Announces Global Environmental Bankruptcy Settlement with TronoxRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Under a global bankruptcy settlement lodged in federal bankruptcy court in Manhattan today, Tronox Inc. and its affiliated debtors will pay $270 million into trusts and to federal and state agencies that will fund the cleanup of contaminated sites in 22 states, numerous federal agencies announced today.
Officials from the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Forest Service, the Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Department of Commerce, Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) announced that the United States, 22 states, the Navajo Nation, and local governments in Chicago and West Chicago, Ill., have entered into a consent decree and settlement agreement with Tronox Inc., a chemical company and its 14 affiliated debtors, to settle certain environmental liabilities under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) also known as the "Superfund", the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and other state, local, and tribal environmental laws.
The settlement agreement, filed today in Manhattan bankruptcy court, will create five environmental response trusts to take title to contaminated properties currently owned by Tronox. Tronox will pay the governments and the trusts $270 million for future cleanup and administration at these and other sites contaminated by Tronox and its predecessor companies, and in compensation for moneys previously expended by the governments and penalties for which Tronox is liable.
Additionally, Tronox will transfer to the governments and trusts an 88 percent share of Tronox’s interest in a pending lawsuit against the company’s former parent company Kerr-McGee Corporation, and its parent company Anadarko Petroleum Corporation. This lawsuit alleges that these defendants fraudulently transferred valuable assets out of Tronox, leaving Tronox with insufficient funds to pay the billions of dollars of environmental liabilities that Tronox owed to the governments. The United States has intervened in the lawsuit. Tronox will also create and fund with a portion of the $270 million, a litigation trust to conduct the lawsuit after the effective date of Tronox’s plan of reorganization.
The five environmental response trusts are:
- A multistate trust will take custody of more than 25 contaminated properties in 14 states and will perform or fund cleanup at more than 1,800 potentially contaminated former service station properties around the country.
- The Henderson Trust will take custody of real property owned by Tronox in Henderson, Nev., on which Tronox’s electrolytic chemical facility is situated.
- The Cimarron Trust will take custody of Tronox’s former nuclear fuel processing facility in Cimarron, Okla.
- The Savannah Trust will take custody of Tronox’s former titanium dioxide facility and active sulfuric acid plant, in Savannah, Ga.
- The West Chicago Trust will take custody of Tronox’s thorium-contaminated Rare Earths Facility in West Chicago and will also perform clean up work at related vicinity properties. A portion of the proceeds and of Tronox’s interest in the pending lawsuit will go directly to the governments for civil penalties and natural resource damages, as well as past and future cleanup costs at sites not owned by Tronox.
Tronox filed bankruptcy in January 2009 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. In August 2009, the United States filed claims against Tronox in the bankruptcy seeking to recover past and future environmental cleanup costs, decommissioning costs, and natural resource damages for sites presently or formerly owned or operated by Tronox. The United States also sought civil monetary penalties for violations of CERCLA, RCRA, the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act. The claims of the United States were brought on behalf of the EPA, the Forest Service, the NRC, the Fish and Wildlife Service of DOI, and NOAA. The Settlement also resolves claims of the Bureau of Land Management of DOI, and a contribution claim brought on behalf of the U.S. Department of Defense.
Before being considered by the bankruptcy court for approval under applicable environmental laws, the Settlement Agreement will be lodged with the bankruptcy court for a period of 30 days to provide public notice and to afford members of the public the opportunity to comment on the settlement.
The United States, the Navajo Nation, the states and the local governmental entities worked closely and engaged in extensive negotiations to ensure that the settlement agreement reflected the needs of the contaminated sites and provided a fair resolution of Tronox’s environmental liabilities to the governments.
Southern District of New York Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert William Yalen, Tomoko Onozawa and Joseph Pantoja, along with Alan S. Tenenbaum, Frederick S. Phillips, Katherine Kane, Marcello Mollo, and Erica Pencak of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice, are handling the case.
For more information on clean-ups, visit the EPA website: www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/cases/cleanup/cercla/tronox/index.html.
Man Found Guilty for Forcing Women and Juveniles into ProstitutionRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - A federal jury today convicted Amador Cortes-Meza, 36, of Mexico, of multiple charges of sex trafficking and human smuggling offenses related to a scheme to force women and juveniles into prostitution. The jury found Cortes-Meza guilty on all 19 counts after a trial lasting approximately two weeks.
“The exploitation of these vulnerable individuals is a violation of the fundamental rights on which our country was founded, and is intolerable in a nation that prides itself on freedom,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “The Department of Justice will continue to prosecute vigorously the trafficking of human beings to vindicate the rights of those held in modern-day slavery, whether for labor or for sexual exploitation.”
U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said, “This defendant preyed on the most vulnerable of victims--girls and young women hoping for a better life-- through promises of jobs or marriage. He then physically abused them, enslaved them, and forced them into prostitution. This trial provided a glimpse into the monstrous world of human trafficking. We are committed to giving voice to the victims of these horrific crimes and holding the defendants accountable for their crimes.”
“We hope that the victims who suffered at the hands of this monster can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that justice has been served,” said Brock Nicholson, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) office that oversees the Carolinas and Georgia. “We are committed to working with our local, state and federal partners to target human traffickers who think that their heinous crimes will go unchecked.”
According to the evidence presented in court, from Spring 2006 through June 2008, Amador Cortes-Meza and others charged in the conspiracy recruited and enticed approximately 10 victims to enter the United States illegally from Mexico and come to the Atlanta area. Amador Cortes-Meza then forced them into prostitution for the financial benefit of the members of the conspiracy. He lured the young women and girls to the U.S. by promising better lives, legitimate employment or romantic relationships with him. A brother and two nephews of Amador Cortes-Meza were previously convicted after pleading guilty to sex trafficking charges related to this scheme.
Nine of the victims addressed the court about what they suffered at the hands of this sex trafficking ring, telling of physical threats, beatings, and intimidation which caused them to work as prostitutes against their will. Evidence at trial showed that after smuggling the victims into the United States, Amador Cortes-Meza forced them to engage in prostitution by isolating them from their families, brutally beating them, and threatening to harm them and their loved ones. One victim testified that he told her that “he was going to hit her where it hurt the most” and she took that to mean he was going to go after her family. Another victim testified that the defendant told her he would kill her parents in Mexico if he was ever arrested. On a nightly basis, Amador Cortes-Meza provided the victims to drivers who drove them to apartments and homes in Duluth, Ga.; Chamblee, Ga.; Canton, Ga.; Marietta, Ga.; Forrest Park, Ga.; and as far away as Alabama and North Carolina to provide commercial sex to as many as 40 customers a night. The victims testified that the clients were charged $25-30 for 10 to 15 minutes of time with them from which the drivers were given $10.
The jury convicted Amador Cortes-Meza on 19 counts, including offenses of sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion; sex trafficking of minors; conspiracy; importation and harboring of aliens for the purposes of prostitution; and smuggling aliens into the United States. Amador Cortes-Meza faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Human trafficking prosecutions are a top priority for the Justice Department. The Department of Homeland Security Tip Line to report trafficking crimes is 1-866-347-2423.
This case was investigated by ICE/HSI Special Agents assigned to the Atlanta Special Agent in Charge office.
Deputy Chief Karima Maloney of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan Coppedge prosecuted the case.
Lawyer for A&O Entities Pleads Guilty for His Role in $100 Million Fraud Scheme Involving Life SettlementsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Russell Mackert, 51, of Spring, Texas, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Richmond, Va., to conspiracy charges in connection with his role as a lawyer for the A&O entities, a group of businesses that acquired and marketed more than $100 million of fraudulent investments in life settlements to more than 800 victims across the United States and Canada, announced U.S. Attorney Neil H. MacBride of the Eastern District of Virginia and Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division.
"Russell Mackert today admitted he helped perpetuate a massive fraud estimated at over $100 million against innocent investors – including a number of elderly retirees – throughout the country," said U.S. Attorney MacBride. "Mr. Mackert abused his position as an attorney to mislead investors, and now he is being held responsible for his financial crimes. I want to commend the outstanding work of the Virginia Financial and Securities Fraud Task Force for its outstanding work in uncovering this massive fraud."
"Investment fraud schemes like the one perpetrated by Mr. Mackert and his co-conspirators can lead to devastating losses for individual victims," said Assistant Attorney General Breuer. "We will continue to be aggressive in prosecuting individuals who attempt to profit by such criminal schemes, including the lawyers and accountants who facilitate them."
Mackert pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dennis W. Dohnal in the Eastern District of Virginia to a two-count criminal information alleging conspiracy to commit mail fraud and bulk cash smuggling involving losses to investors of more than $19 million. At sentencing, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the conspiracy to commit mail fraud charge and five years in prison on the bulk cash smuggling charge, as well as a $250,000 fine on each count.
According to court documents, Mackert admitted to making material misrepresentations and omissions to investors about A&O. Specifically, he admitted making false statements and omissions about A&O’s safekeeping and use of investor funds and about the risks of A&O’s investment offerings. Mackert also admitted that he and his co-conspirators failed to inform A&O investors that the vast majority of investor money was used for purposes wholly unrelated to purchasing and maintaining portfolios of life settlements. Mackert also admitted that he facilitated the sham sales transaction of A&O to Blue Dymond and created a fictional person named "RJ Stephenson" to serve as Blue Dymond’s purported representative. Mackert also admitted to taking undeclared cashiers’ checks totaling $10 million out of the United States as part of an effort to open offshore bank accounts in which to hide his co-conspirators’ gains from the conspiracy.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Internal Revenue Service and FBI, with significant assistance from the Texas State Securities Board. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael S. Dry and Jessica Aber Brumberg from the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Albert B. Stieglitz Jr., of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.
The investigation has been coordinated by the Virginia Financial and Securities Fraud Task Force, an unprecedented partnership between criminal investigators and civil regulators to investigate and prosecute complex financial fraud cases in the nation and in Virginia. The task force is an investigative arm of the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force.
President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.
Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Alleging Discrimination at Condominium in Methuen, MassachusettsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The Justice Department has reached an agreement with Stonecleave Village Association, Inc. to resolve allegations that Stonecleave engaged in a pattern or practice of familial status discrimination by imposing excessive fines on residents with children for alleged violations of Stonecleave’s rules. The settlement still must be approved by U.S. District Court Judge Joseph L. Tauro.
According to the department’s findings, Stonecleave fined families with children more than $500 when their children played games, such as wiffle ball and tag, on the complex's outdoor common area, yet fined other residents only $10 for similar rules violations. The United States also alleged that Stonecleave retaliated against one mother who filed a complaint of discrimination by charging her $1,000 to cover the costs of hiring an attorney to defend against her complaint. Five families with children filed complaints with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) . After an investigation, HUD determined that there was reasonable cause to believe that Stonecleave had violated the Fair Housing Act and referred the matter to the Justice Department.
“There is no excuse for violating our nation’s fair housing laws and imposing fees on families with children,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will continue its vigorous enforcement of Fair Housing laws along with its partners at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.”
“This settlement should serve as a warning to condo associations across the Commonwealth that discrimination against residents with children is unacceptable,” said U.S. Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz. “My office remains committed to vigorously prosecuting all types of civil rights violations in Massachusetts.”
“Forcing families to pay so their children can play is unacceptable and illegal. We thank our Department of Justice partners in vigorously enforcing the Fair Housing Act,” said John Trasvina, Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity.
Under the terms of the settlement, Stonecleave has agreed to pay $130,000 to the victims and $20,000 in civil penalties to the United States. In addition to the $150,000 payment, the settlement also requires Stonecleave to obtain training on the Fair Housing Act for the condo board members.
Fighting illegal housing discrimination is a top priority of the Justice Department. The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin and disability. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt . Persons who believe they have experienced or witnessed unlawful housing discrimination may call the Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743, e-mail the Justice Department at [email protected] , or contact HUD at 1-800-669-9777. More information about the Fair Housing Act can also be found at www.usdoj.gov/crt/housing or www.hud.gov/fairhousing .
Jury Convicts Oakland, California, Patient Recruiter for Participating in Wheelchair Scam to Defraud MedicareRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – An Oakland, Calif., woman was convicted of health care fraud in connection with a scheme to bill Medicare for power wheelchairs that were medically unnecessary, announced the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS).
On Monday, after a one-week trial in federal court in Los Angeles, a jury found Donna K. Wells, 52, guilty of one count of health care fraud. The evidence introduced at trial showed that Wells worked the streets and low-income, senior living communities of Oakland to recruit Medicare beneficiaries to bill Medicare for expensive power wheelchairs and other durable medical equipment (DME) which the beneficiaries did not want, need or use. The beneficiaries who testified at trial said that Wells approached them on the street, at the store, or in the lobby of their apartment buildings and offered them free power wheelchairs in exchange for the beneficiaries allowing Wells to copy their Medicare and California identification cards. One beneficiary testified that when she told Wells that she wanted a hospital bed and did not need or want a power wheelchair, Wells said that the beneficiary had to accept a power wheelchair in order to get a hospital bed. Based on that representation, the beneficiary agreed to accept both a power wheelchair and a hospital bed even though she did not need and never used the wheelchair.
Witnesses who lived in or worked at the San Pablo Hotel, one of the low-income senior living communities where Wells illegally recruited beneficiaries, testified that Wells often sat in the lobby of the hotel offering residents free power wheelchairs and copying their Medicare and California identification cards. These and other witnesses testified that many of the residents of the San Pablo Hotel did not use the power wheelchairs they received through Wells.
According to testimony at trial, Wells sold the beneficiaries’ Medicare information to others. Witnesses testified that Wells charged them between $400 and $500 for the Medicare information of each beneficiary she recruited. One witness testified that over a four-year period, Wells sold the witness the Medicare information of approximately 200 different beneficiaries. Once these witnesses received the Medicare information from Wells, they sold the information to a fraudulent medical clinic in Los Angeles, which then used the information to fabricate fraudulent prescriptions for power wheelchairs and other DME in the names of the beneficiaries whom Wells recruited. One of the doctors whose name appeared on these fraudulent prescriptions testified that he never wrote the prescriptions or treated any of the Oakland beneficiaries whom Wells recruited.
Witnesses testified that they purchased the fraudulent power wheelchair and DME prescriptions from the fraudulent medical clinic, and then sold both the Medicare information they received from Wells and the fraudulent prescriptions for more than $1,000 per prescription to a number of Los Angeles-area DME supply companies. These DME supply companies used the beneficiaries’ information and the fraudulent prescriptions to submit claims to Medicare for power wheelchairs which cost Medicare approximately $4,000 per wheelchair but cost the DME supply companies approximately $900 per wheelchair wholesale. Evidence introduced at trial showed that these DME supply companies submitted more than $577,000 in false power wheelchairs claims to Medicare. Several beneficiaries testified at trial that they did not need and rarely, if ever, used their power wheelchairs.
One of the DME supply companies that used the Medicare information from Wells was Maydads Medical Supply of Arleta, Calif. Trial evidence established that between June 2007 and August 2009, Maydads Medical Supply submitted approximately $470,973 in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare, almost all of which were for power wheelchairs. The owner and operator of Maydads Medical Supply, Sylvester Ijewere, pleaded guilty to health care fraud and was sentenced on Oct. 5, 2010, to 46 months in prison.
Wells was originally charged in October 2009 with three counts of health care fraud. The jury was unable to reach a verdict on two of the three counts. U.S. District Court Judge Dales S. Fischer scheduled Wells’ sentencing for March 28, 2011. Wells faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Today’s guilty verdict was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. for the Central District of California; Tony Sidley, Assistant Chief of the California Department of Justice, Bureau of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse; Glenn R. Ferry, Special Agent-in-Charge for the Los Angeles Region of the Office of Inspector General for HHS (HHS-OIG); and Steven Martinez, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office.
The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Jonathan Baum and Senior Trial Attorney John Michelich of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The case was investigated by the California Department of Justice. HHS OIG assisted with the trial. The case was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
Since their inception in March 2007, Strike Force operations in seven districts have obtained indictments of more than 825 individuals who collectively have falsely billed the Medicare program for more than $2 billion. In addition, HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.
Hombre fue encontrado culpable de forzar a mujeres y jóvenes a cometer prostituciónRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Un jurado federal condenó hoy a Amador Cortés-Meza, 36, de México, por múltiples cargos de tráfico sexual y contrabando de personas asociados a un ardid para forzar a mujeres y jóvenes a practicar la prostitución. El jurado encontró a Cortés-Meza culpable de los 19 cargos después de un juicio que duró aproximadamente dos semanas.
"La explotación de estas personas vulnerables es una violación de los derechos fundamentales sobre los que se fundó nuestro país, y es intolerable en una nación que se vanagloria de su libertad", dijo Thomas E. Pérez, Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles. "El Departamento de Justicia seguirá enjuiciando enérgicamente el tráfico de seres humanos para reivindicar los derechos de quienes son objeto de la esclavitud moderna, ya sea para trabajo forzado o explotación sexual".
La Fiscal Federal Sally Quillian Yates dijo, "Este demandado acechó a las más vulnerables de las víctimas -- niñas y jóvenes que buscaban una vida mejor -- a través de promesas de empleo o matrimonio. Luego, abusó físicamente de ellas, las esclavizó y las obligó a practicar la prostitución. Este enjuiciamiento permitió un vistazo al mundo monstruoso del tráfico de personas. Nos comprometemos a darles voz a las víctimas de estos delitos horrorosos y a hacer pagar a los demandados por sus delitos".
"Esperamos que las víctimas que sufrieron en manos de este monstruo puedan respirar con alivio al saber que se ha hecho justicia", dijo Brock Nicholson, Agente Especial Interino a Cargo de la Oficina de Investigaciones de Seguridad Nacional [Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)] del Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas de EE.UU. [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)] que supervisa las Carolinas y Georgia. "Nos empeñamos en trabajar con nuestros asociados locales, estatales y federales para enjuiciar a los traficantes de personas que creen que sus delitos atroces quedarán impunes".
De acuerdo con pruebas presentadas en el tribunal, desde la primavera de 2006 a junio de 2008, Amador Cortés-Meza y otros acusados en la conspiración reclutaron y atrajeron a aproximadamente 10 víctimas para que ingresaran a los Estados Unidos ilegalmente desde México y vinieran al área de Atlanta. Amador Cortés-Meza luego las obligó a practicar la prostitución en beneficio financiero de los miembros de la conspiración. Atrajo a las jóvenes y niñas a EE.UU. prometiéndoles mejores vidas, empleos legítimos o relaciones románticas consigo. Un hermano y dos sobrinos de Amador Cortés-Meza habían sido previamente condenados después de declararse culpables de cargos de tráfico sexual asociados a este ardid.
Nueve de las víctimas se dirigieron al tribunal respecto a cómo habían sufrido en manos de esta red de tráfico de personas, contándole sobre amenazas físicas, golpizas e intimidación recibidas por las que trabajaron como prostitutas contra su voluntad. Pruebas presentadas en el juicio demostraron que, después de haber contrabandeado a las víctimas a los Estados Unidos, Amador Cortés-Meza las obligó a dedicarse a la prostitución al aislarlas de sus familias, golpearlas brutalmente y amenazar hacerles daño a ellas y a sus seres queridos. Una víctima atestiguó y le dijo que "la golpearía donde más dolor le causaría" y ella entendió por ello que le haría daño a su familia. Otra familia atestiguó que el demandado le dijo que mataría a sus padres en México si llegaba a ser arrestado. Todas las noches, Amador Cortés-Meza entregaba a las víctimas a conductores que las llevaban a apartamentos y hogares en Duluth, Ga.; Chamblee, Ga.; Cantón, Ga.; Marietta, Ga.; Forrest Park, Ga.; y a lugares lejanos como Alabama y Carolina del Norte para proveer sexo comercial a hasta 40 clientes por noche. Las víctimas atestiguaron que se le cobraba $25-$30 dólares a cada cliente por 10 a 15 minutos con ellas, de los cuales los conductores recibían $10 dólares.
El jurado condenó a Amador Cortés-Meza por 19 cargos, incluidos cargos de tráfico sexual por fuerza, fraude y coerción; tráfico sexual de menores; conspiración; importación y alojamiento de extranjeros para fines de prostitución; y contrabando de extranjeros a los Estados Unidos. Amador Cortés-Meza enfrenta una sentencia máxima de prisión perpetua.
Los enjuiciamientos de tráfico de personas son una de las principales prioridades del Departamento de Justicia. La Línea Abierta del Departamento de Seguridad Nacional para denunciar delitos de tráfico es (866) 347-2423.
Este caso fue investigado por Agentes Especiales de ICE/HSI asignados a la oficina del Agente Especial a Cargo en Atlanta.
La Jefe Adjunta Karima Maloney de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia y la Fiscal Federal Auxiliar Susan Coppedge estuvieron a cargo de la acusación en el caso.
Former Massachusetts Direct Mail Production Director Agrees to Plead Guilty to Fraud Conspiracies and Tax EvasionRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — A former employee of two Massachusetts-based customer relationship management agencies that purchase direct mail advertising has agreed to plead guilty to charges relating to his receipt of more than $1.8 million in kickbacks, the Department of Justice announced today.
According to the charges filed today in U.S. District Court in Boston, Reed A. Richard conspired with others to defraud two of his employers by accepting kickbacks from two direct mail advertising printing brokers in exchange for awarding printing work to companies the brokers represented. The conspiracy took place from approximately January 2000 through at least February 2006. According to the court documents, Richard, a former director of production at PreVision Marketing LLC who resided in Carlisle, Mass. during the conspiracy, took the kickbacks during different periods of employment with two separate customer relationship management agencies, which he defrauded as part of the schemes. Richard is also charged with tax evasion for tax years 2004 and 2005 by falsely claiming substantial personal expenses as business expenses on tax returns.
The customer relationship management agencies that employed Richard purchased direct mail printing services for their direct mail advertising clients. Direct mail advertising allows companies to specifically target potential customers and contact them with custom tailored offers, promotional materials or advertisements using the United States mail. According to the court documents, Richard was responsible for procuring direct mail printing services by obtaining competitive bids from printing companies, awarding contracts, reviewing invoices and authorizing payment.
According to the charges, Richard approved invoices knowing that they were fraudulently inflated to include the kickbacks he was to receive. A portion of the inflations were passed from the brokers to Richard as kickback payments. In order to conceal his role in the scheme, Richard purported to provide consulting services to the printing brokers through a shell company he owned. Richard claimed substantial illegitimate business deductions on his corporation’s federal income tax returns. As a result, he under-reported his corporate and personal taxable income, resulting in a total tax loss of approximately $170,000. The plea agreement is subject to court approval.
Today’s charge arose from an ongoing investigation into the direct mail printing industry being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office, with the assistance of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, in Springfield, Mass. Anyone with information concerning fraud or tax offenses relating to the direct mail printing industry should contact the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office at 212-264-9308, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm or contact the IRS Criminal Investigation’s Springfield Office at 413-785-0090.
El Secretario de Justicia de los Estados Unidos Eric Holder nombra 18 expertos para la Nueva Junta Asesora CientíficaRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – El Secretario de Justicia de los Estados Unidos Eric Holder nombró hoy a 18 expertos - eruditos y profesionales practicantes de la criminología, la estadística, la sociología y profesionales de los campos de la justicia criminal y juvenil - para la nueva Junta Asesora Científica de la Oficina de Programas Judiciales [Office of Justice Programs (OJP)]. Laurie O. Robinson, la Secretaria de Justicia Auxiliar de la OJP, recomendó la creación de la junta asesora como medio de unir la brecha entre la investigación y la práctica en los campos de la justicia criminal. La primera reunión de la junta tendrá lugar a principios de 2011.
"Este gobierno se compromete a utilizar la ciencia para ayudar a informar y orientar el desarrollo de políticas. Al proveer consejos y asesoría al Departamento de Justicia, los miembros de esta junta asesora nos ayudarán a concentrarnos en enfoques basados en las pruebas para prevenir y reducir la delincuencia", dijo el Secretario de Justicia de los Estados Unidos Holder.
En el año fiscal 2010, la OJP, la que administra subsidios en nombre del Departamento, otorgó casi 5,000 subsidios por un total de $2.6 billones de dólares al campo de la justicia criminal y juvenil, incluidas dependencias de las fuerzas del orden público federales, estatales, locales y tribales y organizaciones comunitarias. Los fondos brindan apoyo a una amplia gama de actividades, incluidos programas de investigación y evaluación diseñados para mejorar la creación de programas innovadores para prevenir y controlar la delincuencia, prestar asistencia a víctimas y aumentar la capacidad las dependencias de las fuerzas del orden público estatales, locales y tribales.
"Me complacerá trabajar con esta junta asesora en asegurar que la investigación realizada por la OJP sea científicamente rigurosa y sea traducida eficientemente para formuladores de políticas y profesionales en los campos de la justicia criminal y juvenil", dijo la Secretaria de Justicia Auxiliar Robinson.
La junta asesora proveerá una revisión extra-dependencias y recomendaciones para programas de investigación, estadísticas y subsidios de la OJP, asegurando que los programas y actividades sean científicamente sólidos y pertinentes a los formuladores de políticas y profesionales. Los miembros de la junta asesora nombrados hoy incluyen:
Presidente: Alfred Blumstein, Ph.D., The H. John Heinz III College, Carnegie Mellon University. El Dr. Blumstein es un ganador del Premio de Estocolmo en Criminología y es el Profesor de J. Erick Jonsson de Sistemas Urbanos e Investigación de Operaciones en el Carnegie Mellon Heinz College.
William J. Bratton, Presidente, Altegrity Risk International. El Sr. Bratton ha sido más recientemente Jefe del Departamento de Policía de Los Ángeles.
Andrea J. Cabral, Alguacil, Condado de Suffolk, Mass. La Alguacil Cabral fue elegida el 30º Alguacil del Condado de Suffolk y es la primera mujer en ocupar este cargo en la historia del estado.
Frank Cullen, Ph.D., Distinguido Profesor Investigador de Justicia Criminal, Universidad de Cincinnati. El Dr. Cullen es ex editor de Justice Quarterly y Journal of Crime and Justice y fue presidente de la Academia de Ciencias de Justicia Criminal.
Tony Fabelo, Ph.D., Director de Investigaciones, Consejo del Centro Judicial de Gobiernos Estatales. El Dr. Fabelo fue miembro del panel del Consejo Nacional de Investigación de la Academia Nacional de Ciencias que emitió dos informes nacionales en 2000 y 2001 sobre la delincuencia juvenil y la justicia juvenil.
James M. Lepkowski, Ph.D., Presidente, Programa de Metodología de Encuestas, Universidad de Michigan. El Dr. Lepkowski es Científico Principal de Investigación del Centro de Investigación de Encuestas y Profesor Adjunto de Bioestadística en la Universidad de Michigan.
Alan I. Leshner, Ph.D., Director General Ejecutivo, Asociación Estadounidense para la Promoción de la Ciencia [American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)]. El Dr. Leshner ha sido el Director General Ejecutivo de la AAAS y Editor Ejecutivo de la publicación, Science, desde diciembre de 2001.
Mark Lipsey, Ph.D., Director, Peabody Research Institute, Vanderbilt University. El Dr. Lipsey es el director del Peabody Research Institute y sus intereses en investigación y enseñanza incluyen políticas públicas, evaluación de programas e intervención social con énfasis en programas para niños y jóvenes.
Colin Loftin, Ph.D., Escuela de Justicia Criminal, Universidad de Albany, Universidad Estatal de Nueva York. El Dr. Loftin es el codirector del Grupo de Investigación sobre la Violencia [Violence Research Group], una colaboración en investigaciones con colegas de la Universidad de Albany y la Universidad de Maryland que realiza investigaciones sobre las causas y las consecuencias de la violencia interpersonal.
El Honorable Theodore A. McKee, Juez Principal, Tribunal de Apelaciones de EE.UU. para el Tercer Circuito. Antes de ser nombrado juez, el Juez McKee fue Fiscal Federal Auxiliar donde se ocupó de la acusación en casos de corrupción, brutalidad policial y violaciones de los derechos civiles.
Tracey L. Meares, J.D., Decana Adjunta y Profesora de Derecho de Walton Hale Hamilton, Universidad de Yale. La investigación y los intereses de enseñanza de la Profesora Meares se concentran en procedimientos criminales y políticas de leyes criminales, con énfasis especial en la investigación empírica de estos temas.
Edward P. Mulvey, Ph.D., Director, Investigación de Derecho y Psiquiatría, Escuela de Medicina de la Universidad de Pittsburgh. El Dr. Mulvey es miembro tanto de la Asociación Psicológica de Estados Unidos como de la Sociedad Psicológica de Estados Unidos.
Joan Petersilia, Ph.D., Codirectora de Docentes, Centro de Justicia Criminal de Stanford
La Dra. Petersilia es autora de 11 libros sobre la delincuencia y políticas públicas y ha llevado a cabo investigaciones sobre la reforma de la libertad bajo palabra, el reingreso de prisioneros en la sociedad y políticas de emisión de sentencias.
Joycelyn Pollock, Ph.D., Departamento de Justicia Criminal, Universidad del Estado de Texas. La Dra. Pollock comenzó su carrera en la justicia criminal como agente de libertad condicional y bajo palabra en el estado de Washington. Sus áreas de investigación principal incluyen prisiones, mujeres en el sistema (como profesionales, delincuentes y víctimas) y asuntos legales.
Richard Rosenfeld, Ph.D., Profesor, Justicia Criminal y Criminología, Universidad de Missouri. El Dr. Rosenfeld es el Profesor de Criminología y Justicia Criminal de los Curadores en la Universidad de Missouri-St. Louis. Recientemente, fue Presidente de la Sociedad Estadounidense de Criminología. El Dr. Rosenfeld es coautor, con Steven Messner, de La delincuencia y el sueño estadounidense [Crime and the American Dream], actualmente en su cuarta edición.
Elizabeth A. Stasny, Ph.D., Profesora de Estadística y Vicepresidente de Estudios de Posgrado en Estadística y Bioestadística, Universidad Estatal de Ohio. La Dr. Stasny ha sido miembro de las juntas de editores de la publicación "Journal of the American Statistical Association and Survey Methodology" [Publicación de la Asociación Estadística Estadounidense y Metodología de Encuestas]. Es una especialista reconocida en el tratamiento de datos faltantes y otros errores de respuesta en encuestas.
Robert J. Sampson, Ph.D., Profesor de Ciencias Sociales, Departamento de Sociología, Universidad de Harvard. El Dr. Sampson es el co destinatario del Premio en Criminología de Estocolmo de 2011. Él y el Dr. John H. Laub, Director del Instituto Nacional de Justicia, son ganadores conjuntos por su labor en comprender cómo y por qué los delincuentes dejan de cometer delitos. Actualmente, el Dr. Sampson se encuentra en un sabático de investigación de un año de la Universidad de Harvard en la Fundación Russell Sage. Los intereses de investigación del Profesor Sampson se concentran en la delincuencia y la violencia, el rumbo de vida, efectos en el vecindario y la sociología de la ciudad moderna.
David Weisburd, Ph.D., Profesor de Derecho y Justicia Criminal, Hebrew University y George Mason University. El Dr. Weisburd es el ganador de 2010 del Premio en Criminología de Estocolmo y uno de los primeros proponentes de la investigación experimental en criminología basada en el lugar.
Delaware Man Sentenced to 60 Months in Prison for Receiving Child PornographyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON– James White, 46, of Wilmington, Del., was sentenced today to 60 months in prison and five years of supervised release for receiving child pornography, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney David C. Weiss of the District of Delaware.
White pleaded guilty on May 18, 2010, to one count of receiving child pornography. According to court documents, White purchased membership access to various commercial child pornography websites over a three-year period. A search of his Wilmington residence on May 5, 2009, resulted in the seizure of computer equipment containing thousands of images and videos of child pornography that depicts the sexual abuse of prepubescent and teenage minors. White has been detained since his May 13, 2009, arrest.
The case arose from a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) nationwide investigation which began in 2005. The investigation focused on commercial websites offering access to videos and images of child pornography. The website alerted would-be subscribers that subscribing to the website was illegal and warned them to be discreet about their purchases. White purchased access to the websites on multiple occasions.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward J. McAndrew of the District of Delaware and Trial Attorney LisaMarie Freitas of CEOS. The case was investigated by ICE.
Attorney General Eric Holder Names 18 Expertsto New Science Advisory BoardRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder today named 18 experts – scholars and practitioners in criminology, statistics, sociology and practitioners in the criminal and juvenile justice fields – to the newly created Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Science Advisory Board. Laurie O. Robinson, OJP’s Assistant Attorney General, recommended the creation of the advisory board as a means of bridging the divide between research and practice in criminal justice fields. The first meeting of the board will take place early in 2011.
“This Administration is committed to using science to help inform and guide policy development. By providing advice and counsel to the Department of Justice, the members of this advisory board will help us focus on evidence-based approaches to prevent and reduce crime,” said Attorney General Holder.
In FY 2010, OJP, which administers grants on behalf of the department, awarded nearly 5,000 grants totaling $2.6 billion to the criminal and juvenile justice field, including federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies, and community organizations. The funding supports a wide range of activities, including research and evaluation programs designed to encourage innovative programs to prevent and control crime, assist victims, and increase the capacity of state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies.
“I look forward to working with this advisory board to ensure that OJP’s research is scientifically rigorous and that it is translated effectively for policymakers and practitioners in the criminal and juvenile justice fields,” said Assistant Attorney General Robinson.
The advisory board will provide an extra-agency review of and recommendations for OJP research, statistics and grant programs, ensuring the programs and activities are scientifically sound and pertinent to policymakers and practitioners. The members of the advisory board named today include:
Chair: Alfred Blumstein, Ph.D., The H. John Heinz III College, Carnegie Mellon University. Dr. Blumstein is a previous winner of the Stockholm Prize in Criminology and serves as the J. Erik Jonsson Professor of Urban Systems and Operations Research at Carnegie Mellon Heinz College.
William J. Bratton, Chairman, Altegrity Risk International. Mr. Bratton most recently served as Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Andrea J. Cabral, Sheriff, Suffolk County, Mass. Sheriff Cabral was elected as the 30th Sheriff of Suffolk County and she is the first female in the commonwealth’s history to hold the position.
Frank Cullen, Ph.D., Distinguished Research Professor of Criminal Justice, University of Cincinnati. Dr. Cullen is the past editor of Justice Quarterly and Journal of Crime and Justice and was president of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences.
Tony Fabelo, Ph.D., Director of Research, Council of State Governments Justice Center. Dr. Fabelo was a member of the National Research Council panel of the National Academy of Sciences that issued two national reports in 2000 and 2001 on juvenile crime and juvenile justice.
James M. Lepkowski, Ph.D., Chair, Program in Survey Methodology, University of Michigan. Dr. Lepkowski is Senior Research Scientist at the Survey Research Center and Associate Professor of Bio-statistics at the University of Michigan.
Alan I. Leshner, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Dr. Leshner has been the Chief Executive Officer of the AAAS and Executive Publisher of the journal, Science, since December 2001.
Mark Lipsey, Ph.D., Director, Peabody Research Institute, Vanderbilt University.
Dr. Lipsey is the director of the Peabody Research Institute and his research and teaching interests include public policy, program evaluation and social intervention with an emphasis on programs for children and youth.
Colin Loftin, Ph.D., School of Criminal Justice, University at Albany, State University of New York. Dr. Loftin is co-director of the Violence Research Group, a research collaboration with colleagues at the University at Albany and the University of Maryland that conducts research on the causes and consequences of interpersonal violence.
The Honorable Theodore A. McKee, Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge McKee served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney where he prosecuted cases of public corruption, police brutality and civil rights violations.
Tracey L. Meares, J.D., Deputy Dean and Walton Hale Hamilton Professor of Law, Yale University. Professor Meares’ research and teaching interests center on criminal procedure and criminal law policy, with a particular emphasis on empirical investigation of these subjects.
Edward P. Mulvey, Ph.D., Director, Law & Psychiatry Research, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Mulvey is a fellow of both the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society.
Joan Petersilia, Ph.D., Faculty Co-director, Stanford Criminal Justice Center
Dr. Petersilia is the author of 11 books about crime and public policy and has conducted research about parole reform, prisoner reintegration, and sentencing policy.
Joycelyn Pollock, Ph.D., Department of Criminal Justice, Texas State University. Dr. Pollock began her career in criminal justice as a probation and parole officer in the state of Washington. Her primary research areas include prisons, women in the system (as professionals, offenders and victims) and legal topics.
Richard Rosenfeld, Ph.D., Professor, Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Missouri. Dr. Rosenfeld is the Curators Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. He recently served as the President of the American Society of Criminology. Dr. Rosenfeld is the co-author with Steven Messner of Crime and the American Dream, now in its fourth edition.
Elizabeth A. Stasny, Ph.D., Professor of Statistics and Vice Chair of Graduate Studies in Statistics and Bio-Statistics, Ohio State University. Dr. Stasny has served on the editor boards of the Journal of the American Statistical Association and Survey Methodology. She is a recognized expert in dealing with missing data and other response errors in surveys.
Robert J. Sampson, Ph.D., Professor of Social Sciences, Department of Sociology, Harvard University. Dr. Sampson is the 2011 co-recipient of the Stockholm Prize in Criminology. He and Dr. John H. Laub, Director of the National Institute of Justice, are joint winners for their work on understanding how and why criminals stop committing crime. Dr. Sampson currently is on a one-year research sabbatical from Harvard University to the Russell Sage Foundation. Professor Sampson’s research interests center on crime and violence, the life course, neighborhood effects and the sociology of the modern city.
David Weisburd, Ph.D., Professor of Law and Criminal Justice, Hebrew University and George Mason University. Dr. Weisburd is the 2010 winner of the Stockholm Prize in Criminology and one of the early proponents of place-based experimental research in criminology.
Justice Department Files Lawsuit in California Against Titan Laboratories Inc. and Its Owner to Enforce the Employment Rights of Army Reserve MemberRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department today announced that it has filed a lawsuit alleging that Titan Laboratories Inc., and its owner Harvey Berger willfully violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) by discriminating against and failing to reemploy U.S. Army reservist Miguel Orozco Garduño (Orozco), of Mountain View, Calif. The suit was filed in federal district court in California.
Under USERRA, an employer is prohibited from discriminating against servicemembers because of their obligation to perform military service. In addition, and subject to certain limitations, USERRA requires that servicemembers who leave their civilian jobs to serve in the military be reemployed promptly by their civilian employers in the same positions, or in positions comparable to the positions they would have held had their employment not been interrupted by military service.
The Justice Department’s complaint alleges that while Orozco was away on military leave, Titan and Berger terminated Orozco’s employment because of his military obligations and hired a permanent replacement who did not have such obligations. The complaint also alleges that when Orozco completed his honorable military service and requested reemployment, Titan and Berger refused to reemploy him because he had been replaced.
"Rather than face discrimination because of their military obligations, our service members should be honored for the sacrifices they make, and they should know they will not have to also sacrifice their jobs to serve our country," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. "The Justice Department is committed to vigorously enforcing federal laws that protect the employment rights of our servicemembers."
The case stems from a referral by the Department of Labor following an investigation by the Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service.
The Justice and Labor Departments place a high priority on the enforcement of servicemembers’ rights under USERRA. "Our two agencies work closely together to ensure that our Service Members are treated right when they return from service" said Ray Jefferson, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans’ Employment and Training.
Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department website: www.servicemembers.gov and www.usdoj.gov/crt/emp, as well as on the Labor Department’s website at www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/main.htm.
El Departamento de Justicia recupera $3 billones de dólares en casos de reclamos falsos en el año fiscal 2010Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - El Departamento de Justicia logró $3 billones de dólares en acuerdos conciliatorios y fallos en casos asociados al fraude contra el gobierno en el año fiscal finalizado el 30 de septiembre de 2010, anunció hoy el Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar de la División Civil, Tony West. Esto incluye $2.5 billones en recuperaciones de fraude de servicios médicos - la mayor de toda la historia - y representa la segunda mayor recuperación anual de reclamos de fraude civil. Asimismo, las sumas recuperadas bajo la Ley de Reclamos Falsos desde enero de 2009 han eclipsado cualquier periodo anterior de dos años con $5.4 billones de dólares de los contribuyentes devueltos a programas federales y al Tesoro. El valor total de recuperaciones desde 1986, cuando el Congreso reforzó significativamente la Ley Civil de Reclamos Falsos, es ahora de más de $27 billones de dólares.
"Bajo el liderazgo del Secretario de Justicia de los Estados Unidos Eric Holder, nuestro enjuiciamiento enérgico del fraude bajo la Ley de Reclamos Falsos ha resultado en la mayor recuperación de dólares de los contribuyentes en un plazo de dos años en la historia del Departamento de Justicia", dijo el Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar West. "En ningún lugar resulta esto más evidente que en nuestro éxito en la lucha contra el fraude de servicios médicos. Desde enero de 2009, la División Civil, junto con las Fiscalías Federales, comenzaron más investigaciones de fraude de servicios médicos, lograron cobrar multas más significativas y más enjuiciamientos, y recuperaron más dólares de los contribuyentes perdidos al fraude de servicios médicos que en cualquier otro periodo de dos años.
La lucha contra el fraude contra programas de servicios médicos públicos es una de las principales prioridades del gobierno de Obama. El 20 de mayo de 2009, el Secretario de Justicia de los Estados Unidos Eric Holder y la Secretaria del Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos [Health and Human Services (HHS)] Kathleen Sebelius, anunciaron la creación de una nueva fuerza de tarea interagencias, el Equipo de Acción, Prevención y Control de Fraude de Servicios Médicos [Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT)] para aumentar la coordinación y mejorar la aplicación legal criminal y civil. Esta labor no solo protege al Fondo Fiduciario de Medicare para personas mayores de edad y el programa Medicaid para los ciudadanos más necesitados del país, sino que también resultan en servicios médicos de más alta calidad a un precio más razonable.
Las recuperaciones civiles récord en fraude de servicios médicos de $2.5 billones de dólares anunciadas hoy representan el 83 por ciento del total de recuperaciones de fraude civil del año. El HHS obtuvo las recuperaciones más importantes, en gran parte debido a sus programas Medicare y Medicaid. También fueron obtenidas recuperaciones por la Oficina de Administración de Personal, la cual administra el Programa de Beneficios de Salud para Empleados Federales, el Departamento de Defensa para su programa de seguro TRICARE y el Departamento de Asuntos de Veteranos, entre otros.
El Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar West observó que desde enero de 2009, la División Civil, junto con las Fiscalías Federales, lograron un récord de labor de control asociada al fraude de servicios médicos para un plazo de dos años, recuperando $4.6 billones de dólares en fondos de los contribuyentes bajo la Ley de Reclamos Falsos de proveedores de servicios médicos y otros en el ramo, y logrando 25 condenas criminales así como más de $3 billones de dólares en multas, confiscaciones, restitución y devolución de ganancias bajo la Ley de Alimentos, Medicamentos y Cosméticos [Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA)].
Los casos de la Ley de Reclamos Falsos resueltos exitosamente este año no solo incluyeron ardides de pago asociados a programas de salud federales, sino también a contratos de compras en tiempos de guerra y otros contratos gubernamentales; subsidios para empresas pequeñas, chalecos antibalas para las fuerzas del orden público, y otras finalidades; hipotecas aseguradas federalmente; alquileres minerales federales e indígenas; y muchos otros programas federales.
El Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar West felicitó a los abogados de carrera de la División Civil, a las Fiscalías Federales, y a las agencias federales y estatales que investigan y trabajan en la acusación en casos de violación de la Ley de Reclamos Falsos por su labor significativa, y comentó que "su dedicación y cooperación nos permiten utilizar todos nuestros recursos en combatir el fraude contra tanto el gobierno federal como los estatales".
La mayoría de los casos que resultaron en recuperaciones fueron presentados al gobierno por denunciantes bajo la Ley de Reclamos Falsos, la principal arma del gobierno federal en la batalla contra el fraude. En 1986, el Senador Charles Grassley y el Diputado Howard Berman realizaron una importante labor en el Congreso para lograr la enmienda de la Ley de Reclamos Falsos de modo a modificar las disposiciones qui tam (o de denunciante) de la ley, las que estimulan a personas a denunciar alegatos de fraude. El Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar West homenajeó a los patrocinadores de las enmiendas de 1986, al decir: "Sin su visión de futuro, estas recuperaciones no hubieran sido posibles". También expresó su gratitud al Senador Patrick J. Leahy, Presidente del Comité Judicial del Senado, y al Senador Grassley y al Representante Berman por su apoyo a la Ley de Recuperación y Control contra el Fraude de 2009, la cual realizó mejoras adicionales a la Ley de Reclamos Falsos y otras leyes asociadas al fraude.
De los $3 billones de dólares en acuerdos conciliatorios y fallos obtenidos en el año fiscal 2010, casi $2.3 billones fueron recuperados en demandas entabladas bajo las disposiciones qui tam de la Ley de Reclamos Falsos. Bajo estas disposiciones, los denunciantes (conocidos como "relatores") - muchos de los cuales enfrentan riesgos personales considerables al presentar sus alegatos de fraude - tienen derecho a recuperar entre el 15 y el 30 por ciento del producto de un enjuiciamiento exitoso. En el año fiscal 2010, denunciantes recibieron $385 millones de dólares. Desde 1986, cuando el Congreso reforzó las disposiciones qui tam, las recuperaciones en estos casos superaron los $18 billones de dólares y los denunciantes han obtenido más de $2.8 billones en recuperaciones.
El Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar West también aplaudió la aprobación por el Congreso este año de la Ley de Servicios Médicos Accesibles [Affordable Care Act (ACA)], la cual incluye disposiciones adicionales para ayudar al gobierno a tratar del fraude contra el sistema de servicios médicos del país y promover incentivos para que personas denuncien fraudes al gobierno. Entre muchos otros cambios, la ACA enmendó la disposición de divulgación pública de la Ley de Reclamos Falsos y reforzó las disposiciones de la Ley Federal contra las Comisiones Ilegales de Servicios Médicos [Anti-Kickback Statute].
En el año fiscal 2010 también se obtuvo un récord para varios tipos de fraude de servicios médicos. Un acuerdo conciliatorio de $2.3 billones con Pfizer Inc. marcó el mayor acuerdo conciliatorio de servicios médicos de la historia. Los $2.3 billones de dólares incluyen $669 millones de dólares recuperados bajo la Ley de Reclamos Falsos, $1.3 billones en multas criminales y confiscaciones, y $331 millones en recuperaciones para programas estatales de Medicaid y el Distrito de Columbia. (Estos dos últimos montos no están incluidos en el total de recuperaciones de fraude de servicios médicos anunciado hoy, los cuales se limitan a recuperaciones civiles del gobierno federal). Además, un acuerdo conciliatorio de $108 millones de dólares con The Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati y uno de sus hospitales ex miembros, The Christ Hospital, fue el mayor acuerdo ya logrado bajo la Ley contra las comisiones ilícitas en servicios médicos por la conducta de un único hospital.
Las mayores recuperaciones por la Ley de Reclamos Falsos para el año fiscal 2010 provino de las industrias farmacéutica y de dispositivos médicos, las cuales fueron responsables por $1.6 billones de dólares en acuerdos conciliatorios, incluidos los $660 millones de dólares de Pfizer Inc., $302 millones de dólares de AstraZeneca, y $182.7 de Novartis Pharmaceutical Corporation.
Además de las recuperaciones civiles por fraude de servicios médicos bajo la Ley de Reclamos Falsos, la Oficina de Litigio de Consumidores [Office of Consumer Litigation (OCL)] de la División Civil entabla demandas civiles y criminales por violaciones de la FDCA. Junto con sus asociados de las Fiscalías Federales de todo el país, la OCL se ocupa de asuntos tales como la comercialización ilícita de medicamentos y dispositivos, fraude asociado a la FDA y la distribución de productos adulterados. En el año fiscal 2010, esas iniciativas resultaron en más de $1.8 billones en multas criminales, confiscaciones, restitución y devolución de ganancias, en la mayor suma asociada a los servicios médicos bajo la FDCA en la historia del Departamento. Desde enero de 2009, la OCL ha entablado casos exitosos que resultaron en 25 condenas criminales y más de $3 billones de dólares en multas, confiscaciones, restitución y devolución de ganancias.
Además, la División Civil sigue ocupando un papel principal en la Fuerza de Tarea de Control contra el Fraude Financiero, creada en noviembre último por el Presidente Obama para mejorar la labor del gobierno federal de investigación y tratamiento del fraude de consumo y financiero. La División Civil, en conjunto con sus asociados en la fuerza de tarea, está atacando toda forma de ardid de fraude financiero, incluido el fraude hipotecario, fraude de compras no asociadas a guerras y fraudes asociados al Programa de Asistencia para Activos en Dificultades, la Ley de Recuperación y Reinversión de Estados Unidos y otros fondos de estímulo económico. Las recuperaciones asociadas a la Ley de Reclamos Falsos en estos casos representaron el 11 por ciento de las recuperaciones del año fiscal 2010, con $327.2 millones de dólares en acuerdos conciliatorios y fallos.
La División Civil también se dedica a reclamos de fraude asociados a contratos en apoyo a las guerras en Irak y Afganistán. Durante el año fiscal 2010, la División Civil recuperó $10.6 millones de dólares en estos casos. Hasta la fecha, los acuerdos conciliatorios y fallos en casos de fraude de compras asociados a guerras en el sudoeste asiático totalizaron $137.2 millones de dólares. De esta suma, $114.7 millones de dólares han sido recuperados desde enero de 2009.
El Departamento de Justicia entabla demanda en California contra Titan Laboratories Inc. y supropietario para hacer valer los derechos laborales de un miembro de lareserva del ejércitoRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha entablado una demanda alegando que Titan Laboratories Inc., y su propietario Harvey Berger deliberadamente violaron la Ley de Derechos de Empleo y Reempleo de los Servicios Uniformados de 1994 [Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA)] al discriminar a, y dejar de recontratar al miembro de la reserva del Ejército de EE.UU. Miguel Orozco-Garduño, de Mountain View, Calif. La demanda fue entablada en el tribunal federal de distrito de California.
Bajo la USERRA, se prohíbe que el empleador discrimine a miembros de las fuerzas armadas debido a su obligación de cumplir con servicio militar. Además, y sujeto a ciertas limitaciones, la USERRA exige que los miembros de las fuerzas armadas que dejen sus empleos civiles para cumplir con el servicio militar sean recontratados de inmediato por sus empleadores civiles en los mismos cargos, o cargos comparables con los que hubieran tenido si su empleo no hubiera sido interrumpido por el servicio militar.
La demanda del Departamento de Justicia alega que mientras Orozco se encontraba cumpliendo con el servicio militar, Titan y Berger cesaron a Orozco en su empleo debido a sus obligaciones militares y contrataron a un reemplazante permanente sin dichas obligaciones. La demanda también alega que cuando Orozco completó su servicio militar honorable y solicitó su recontratación, Titan y Berger se negaron a volver a contratarlo porque había sido sustituido.
"En lugar de enfrentar la discriminación debido a sus obligaciones militares, nuestros miembros del servicio deben ser homenajeados por los sacrificios que realizan, y deben saber que no tendrán que sacrificar también sus empleados para servir al país", dijo Thomas E. Pérez, Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles. "El Departamento de Justicia se compromete a hacer valer las leyes federales enérgicamente y proteger los derechos laborales de quienes cumplan el servicio militar".
El caso se origina en un referido del Departamento del Trabajo, seguida de una investigación del Servicio de Empleo y Capacitación de Veteranos del Departamento del Trabajo.
Los Departamentos de Justicia y del Trabajo dan alta prioridad a los derechos de los miembros del servicio militar bajo USERRA. "Nuestras dos dependencias trabajan estrechamente para asegurar que los Miembros de nuestro Servicio Militar reciban el tratamiento correcto al regresar del servicio militar", dijo Ray Jefferson, Secretario Auxiliar de Trabajo para Empleo y Capacitación de Veteranos.
Para obtener información adicional sobre la USERRA, visite el portal en Internet del Departamento de Justicia: www.servicemembers.gov y www.usdoj.gov/crt/emp, así como el portal del Departamento del Trabajo en www.dol.gov/vets/pro grams/userra/main.htm.
Department of Justice Recovers $3 Billion in False Claims Cases in Fiscal Year 2010Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The Department of Justice secured $3 billion in civil settlements and judgments in cases involving fraud against the government in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2010, Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division, announced today. This includes $2.5 billion in health care fraud recoveries—the largest in history—and represents the second largest annual recovery of civil fraud claims. Moreover, amounts recovered under the False Claims Act since January 2009 have eclipsed any previous two-year period with $5.4 billion in taxpayer dollars returned to federal programs and the Treasury. Recoveries since 1986, when Congress substantially strengthened the civil False Claims Act, now total more than $27 billion.
"Under Attorney General Eric Holder’s leadership, our aggressive pursuit of fraud under the False Claims Act has resulted in the largest two-year recovery of taxpayer dollars in the history of the Justice Department," Assistant Attorney General West said. "Nowhere is this more apparent than in our success in fighting health care fraud. Since January 2009, the Civil Division, together with the U.S. Attorneys’ offices, commenced more health care fraud investigations, secured larger fines and judgments, and recovered more taxpayer dollars lost to health care fraud than in any other two-year period."
Fighting fraud committed against public health care programs is a top priority for the Obama Administration. On May 20, 2009, Attorney General Eric Holder and Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced the creation of a new interagency task force, the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), to increase coordination and optimize criminal and civil enforcement. These efforts not only protect the Medicare Trust Fund for seniors and the Medicaid program for the country’s neediest citizens, they also result in higher quality health care at a more reasonable price.
The record health care fraud civil recoveries of $2.5 billion announced today made up 83 percent of the year’s total civil fraud recoveries. HHS reaped the biggest recoveries, largely attributable to its Medicare and Medicaid programs. Recoveries were also made by the Office of Personnel Management, which administers the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, the Department of Defense for its TRICARE insurance program and the Department of Veterans Affairs, among others.
Assistant Attorney General West noted that since January 2009, the Civil Division, together with the U.S. Attorneys’ offices, set a two-year record for health care fraud enforcement efforts, recovering $4.6 billion in taxpayer funds under the False Claims Act from health care providers and others in the industry, and securing 25 criminal convictions as well as more than $3 billion in fines, forfeitures, restitution and disgorgement under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA).
The False Claims Act cases successfully resolved this year not only included payment schemes implicating federal health care programs, but also wartime and other government procurement contracts; grants for small businesses, bullet-proof vests for law enforcement, and other purposes; federally insured mortgages; federal and Indian mineral leases; and many other federal programs.
Assistant Attorney General West commended the substantial efforts of the Civil Division’s career attorneys, the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, and the federal and state agencies that investigate and support False Claims Act prosecutions, remarking that "their dedication and the cooperation we enjoy allow us to bring all of our resources to bear in combating fraud against both the federal and state governments."
Most of the cases resulting in recoveries were brought to the government by whistleblowers under the False Claims Act, the federal government’s primary weapon in the battle against fraud. In 1986, Senator Charles Grassley and Representative Howard Berman led successful efforts in Congress to amend the False Claims Act to revise the statute’s qui tam (or whistleblower) provisions, which encourage whistleblowers to come forward with allegations of fraud. Assistant Attorney General West paid tribute to the 1986 amendments’ sponsors, saying: "Without their foresight, these recoveries would not have been possible." He also expressed his gratitude to Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Chairman of the Senate’s Judiciary Committee, and to Senator Grassley and Representative Berman for their support of the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009, which made additional improvements to the False Claims Act and other fraud statutes.
Of the $3 billion in settlements and judgments obtained in fiscal year 2010, over $2.3 billion was recovered in lawsuits filed under the False Claims Act’s qui tam provisions. Under these provisions, whistleblowers (known as "relators") – many of whom face considerable personal risk in coming forward with allegations of fraud –are entitled to recover between 15 and 30 percent of the proceeds of a successful suit. In fiscal year 2010, relators were awarded $385 million. Since 1986, when the qui tam provisions were strengthened by Congress, recoveries in qui tam cases have exceeded $18 billion, and relators have obtained more than $2.8 billion in awards.
Assistant Attorney General West also applauded Congress’ passage this past year of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which included additional provisions to aid the Government in redressing fraud on the nation’s health care system, and to promote incentives for whistleblowers to disclose fraud to the government. Among many other changes, the ACA amended the False Claims Act’s public disclosure provision and strengthened the provisions of the federal health care Anti-Kickback Statute.
Fiscal year 2010 also saw records for several types of health care fraud. A $2.3 billion settlement with Pfizer Inc. marked the largest health care fraud settlement in history. The $2.3 billion includes $669 million recovered under the federal False Claims Act, $1.3 billion in criminal fines and forfeitures, and $331 million in recoveries for state Medicaid programs and the District of Columbia. (These latter two amounts are not included in the total health care fraud recoveries announced today, which are limited to the federal government’s civil recoveries.) In addition, a $108 million settlement with The Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati and one of its former member hospitals, The Christ Hospital, was the largest ever under the health care Anti-Kickback Statute for the conduct of a single hospital.
The largest fiscal year 2010 False Claims Act recoveries came from the pharmaceutical and medical device industries, which accounted for $1.6 billion in settlements, including the $669 million from Pfizer Inc., $302 million from AstraZeneca, and $192.7 from Novartis Pharmaceutical Corporation.
In addition to the civil health care fraud recoveries under the False Claims Act, the Civil Division’s Office of Consumer Litigation (OCL) brings civil and criminal actions for violations of the FDCA. Together with their partners in the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices around the country, OCL pursues such matters as the unlawful marketing of drugs and devices, fraud on the FDA, and the distribution of adulterated products. In fiscal year 2010, those efforts yielded more than $1.8 billion in criminal fines, forfeitures, restitution and disgorgement, the largest health care-related amount under the FDCA in department history. Since January 2009, OCL has successfully pursued cases resulting in 25 criminal convictions and more than $3 billion in fines, forfeitures, restitution and disgorgement.
In addition, the Civil Division continues to play a leading role in the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, created last November by President Obama to improve the federal government’s efforts to investigate and redress consumer and financial fraud. The Civil Division, in conjunction with its partners on the task force, is aggressively pursuing all manner of financial fraud schemes, including mortgage fraud, non-war related procurement fraud, and fraud involving the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and other economic stimulus funds. False Claims Act recoveries in these cases accounted for 11 percent of fiscal year 2010 recoveries, with $327.2 million in settlements and judgments.
The Civil Division also pursues fraud claims related to contracts in support of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. During fiscal year 2010, the Civil Division recovered $10.6 million in these cases. To date, settlements and judgments in procurement fraud cases involving the wars in Southwest Asia total $137.2 million. Of this amount, $114.7 million has been recovered since January 2009.
Two Michigan Construction Firms to Pay More Than $1.4 Million to Resolve Alleged False ClaimsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Two Michigan construction companies have agreed to pay the United States $1.407 million to resolve allegations that they knowingly submitted false claims relating to a federally funded construction project at Detroit Wayne County Metropolitan Airport, the Justice Department announced today. The United States alleges that the companies, John Carlo Inc. and Angelo Iafrate Construction Company, falsely claimed that they had used Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs) for part of the work on the project when they had not. The DBE program provides assistance to businesses owned by minorities, women, and other socially and economically disadvantaged individuals to enter federally-funded construction and design industries.
Under their contracts, the two firms were required to comply with the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) DBE regulations and accurately report their DBE contracting to obtain and maintain the construction contracts. The companies claimed BN &M Trucking, a DBE, performed substantial work on the contracts when, in fact, the trucking firm did not and was merely a pass-through used to obtain the appearance of DBE participation.
"Those who contract with the United States must do so fairly and honestly," said Tony West, Assistant Attorney for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. "It is not acceptable for government contractors to take advantage of programs meant to help businesses owned by minorities and women."
In addition to the $1.407 million payment to resolve civil claims, Angelo Iafrate Construction has also entered into a separate administrative agreement with DOT to ensure future compliance with DBE requirements.
"When contractors abuse programs designed to benefit disadvantaged businesses, they are stealing from the legitimate businesses that the law was intended to help," said Barbara L. McQuade, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. "We are very grateful to the Wayne County Airport Authority, whose help was instrumental in this case."
The government’s claims were based upon an investigation conducted by the Civil Division of the Justice Department, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, DOT’s Office of Inspector General and the Federal Aviation Administration, as well as the Wayne County Airport Authority. The Wayne County Airport Authority first brought the case to the government’s attention and provided substantial assistance throughout the investigation and resolution of the matter.
Senior U.S. District Court Judge Pleads Guilty to Possession of Controlled Substances and Conversion of Government PropertyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Senior U.S. District Judge Jack T. Camp Jr., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Atlanta to possession of controlled substances and conversion of government property, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge Brian D. Lamkin of the FBI’s Atlanta office and Director Vernon Keenan of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Camp, 67, a Senior U.S. District Judge in the Northern District of Georgia, pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful possession of controlled substances and one count of conversion of government property. Camp’s guilty plea was accepted by Senior U.S. District Judge Thomas J. Hogan for the District of Columbia, who was sitting by designation in the Northern District of Georgia. Sentencing has been scheduled for March 4, 2011, at 11:00 a.m.
As part of his guilty plea, Camp admitted that between May 2010 and Oct. 1, 2010, he unlawfully possessed and used cocaine, marijuana and Roxycodone, a Schedule II controlled substance. Camp also admitted to giving an individual, whom he knew had a prior felony drug conviction, money to purchase cocaine, Roxycodone and marijuana. Camp admitted that he unlawfully gave the individual a U.S. District Court laptop computer for her personal use. Camp was arrested on Oct. 1, 2010, after attempting to purchase drugs from an undercover FBI agent posing as a drug dealer.
The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Deborah Sue Mayer and Tracee Joy Plowell of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. The case was investigated by the FBI Atlanta’s Public Corruption Squad. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation provided substantial assistance in this case.
Massachusetts Man Convicted for Trafficking in Illegally-Imported Sperm Whale Teeth and Narwhal TusksRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON—A Massachusetts man was convicted today by a jury in federal court in Boston of seven felonies related to the illegal importation and illegal trafficking of sperm whale teeth and narwhal tusks, the Department of Justice announced today.
The federal jury in Boston found David L. Place, 57, of Nantucket, Mass., guilty on seven felony counts of conspiracy, Lacey Act, and smuggling violations for buying and illegally importing sperm whale teeth and narwhal tusks into the United States, as well as selling the teeth after their illegal importation.
The evidence showed that from 2001 to 2006, Place knowingly purchased and imported sperm whale teeth and narwhal tusks into the United States in violation of federal law. Sperm whales are classified as "endangered" under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and are listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. It is illegal to import parts of sperm whale teeth into the United States without the requisite permits/certifications, and without declaring the merchandise at the time of importation to U.S. Customs and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Place conspired with persons located in Ukraine to illegally import the protected whale teeth for resale in the United States. Place owns Manor House Antiques Cooperative in Nantucket. Sperm whale teeth are commonly used for scrimshaw and can fetch large sums of money from collectors and tourists. Scrimshaw, as defined by the ESA, is any art form which involves the substantial etching or engraving of designs upon, or the substantial carving of figures, patterns, or designs from, any bone or tooth of any whale, dolphin or porpoise.
Place faces up to 20 years in prison as well as fines of up to $250,000 on smuggling charges. He also faces up to five years on each of five counts of Lacey Act violations and related conspiracy charges.
The case was investigated by agents from the Law Enforcement Offices of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as well as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Gary N. Donner and James B. Nelson of the Department of Justice’s Environmental Crime Section.
Former New York Con Edison Manager Pleads Guilty to Fraud, Bribery and Tax ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — A former Consolidated Edison of New York (Con Edison) manager pleaded guilty today to charges that he accepted and agreed to accept approximately $807,000 in bribes from two Con Edison industrial pipe supply vendors, the Department of Justice announced today.
James M. Woodason of Edison, N.J., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, to participating in two separate conspiracies to defraud Con Edison. According to a four-count felony charge, Woodason, a former department manager of purchasing at Con Edison, accepted bribe payments from two industrial pipe supply vendors, in exchange for steering contracts to each of those vendors. The department said that Woodason was responsible for purchasing and awarding contracts for millions of dollars in goods and services and managing inventory on behalf of Con Edison.
According to court documents, Woodason accepted approximately $297,000 from one vendor in a bribery scheme that took place from approximately November 2003 through approximately August 2008. Woodason accepted approximately $45,000 in bribe payments from another vendor in a bribery scheme that took place from approximately January 2009 until approximately August 2010. He had also agreed to take an additional $465,000 in bribes from that vendor.
On Aug. 5, 2010, Woodason was arrested in connection with this investigation by special agents of the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation.
According to court documents, in addition to two separate conspiracies, Woodason also pleaded guilty to one count of bribery for receiving a $20,000 cash bribe payment related to the 2009-2010 conspiracy and to one count of income tax evasion for failing to report bribes he received as income in the tax years 2004 through 2008.
According to the plea agreement, which is subject to court approval, Woodason agreed not to contest forfeiture of the $20,000 bribe payment found at his residence on the date of his arrest. As part of his plea agreement, Woodason also agreed to put $322,000 in escrow to pay restitution to Con Edison.
Con Edison is a regulated utility headquartered in Manhattan. It provides electric service to approximately 3.2 million customers and gas service to approximately 1.1 million customers in New York City and Westchester County, N.Y. Con Edison received more than $10,000 in federal funding each year between 2003 through 2010.
Woodason is charged with two counts of conspiracy, each of which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Woodason is also charged with income tax evasion, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The bribery count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The maximum fine on each count 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.
These charges arose from an ongoing federal antitrust investigation of bid rigging, bribery, fraud and tax-related offenses in the power generation industry. The investigation is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office, with the assistance of the FBI and the IRS Criminal Investigation. Con Edison cooperated with the department’s investigation.
Anyone with information concerning bid rigging, bribery, tax offenses or fraud in the power generation industry should contact the FBI’s New York Division at 212-384-3720, or the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office at 212-264-9308 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm.
El Secretario de Justicia de los Estados Unidos Holder y el Vice presidente Biden anuncian nuevas iniciativas para ayudar a los propietarios de viviendas, veteranos y trabajadores a obtener servicios legalesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON, DC – El Secretario de Justicia de los Estados Unidos Eric Holder y la Iniciativa de Acceso a la Justicia del Departamento de Justicia organizaron un evento de la Fuerza de Tarea para la Clase Media hoy con el Vicepresidente Joe Biden para anunciar una serie de medidas creadas para ayudar a familias de clase media y baja a ejercer sus derechos legales. Estas medidas incluyen fortalecer programas de mediación en ejecuciones, ayudar a veteranos a obtener la ayuda legal que necesitan y facilitar el acceso de los trabajadores a un abogado calificado cuando creen que se han violado sus derechos.
“En períodos económicos difíciles, queremos asegurarnos de que todos los estadounidenses—sin importar sus ingresos o su estatus social—tengan acceso a los recursos que necesitan para buscar justicia”, dijo el Vicepresidente Joe Biden. “Las iniciativas que estamos anunciando hoy representan un paso importante hacia ese objetivo y ayudarán a miles de estadounidenses a obtener la asistencia legal que necesitan”.
El anuncio de hoy es la culminación del trabajo entre la Iniciativa de Acceso a la Justicia del Departamento de Justicia [Department of Justice (DOJ)] y agencias federales como el Departamento de Trabajo [Department of Labor (DOL)], el Departamento de Vivienda y Desarrollo Urbano [Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)], el Departamento de Asuntos de Veteranos [Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)], así como también asociados en la comunidad de defensa.
Como fiscal y ex juez, sé que la integridad fundamental de nuestro sistema de justicia criminal, y nuestra fe en el mismo, depende de una representación legal eficaz en ambos lados del tribunal”, dijo el Secretario de Justicia de los EE.UU. Holder. “Con los avances que hemos hecho – y con las medidas adicionales que están por venir – confío en que podemos construir un sistema de justicia más justo y eficaz”.
La vida de muchas personas se puede mejorar sin realizar grandes inversiones, y de hecho con ahorros reales, si simplemente los ayudamos a obtener los derechos legales y beneficios que les corresponden. Es por eso que la Iniciativa de Acceso a la Justicia del Departamento se complace en trabajar con el Vicepresidente, el HUD, el DOL y el VA para hacer que la justicia sea una realidad”, dijo el Consejero Principal de Acceso a la Justicia del DOJ Laurence Tribe.
Apoyo legal para los trabajadores
El Departamento de Trabajo y el Colegio de Abogados de los EE.UU. [American Bar Association (ABA)] anunciaron hoy que colaborarán para ayudar a los trabajadores a resolver denuncias recibidas por la División de Salarios y Horas del DOL, como no percibir el salario mínimo o no recibir paga por las horas extra, o sufrir la denegación de una licencia médica familiar. A partir del 13 de diciembre de 2010, los denunciantes con casos que no hayan podido ser resueltos por el DOL por capacidad limitada recibirán un número de llamadas gratuitas a un nuevo sistema en el que son conectados a un proveedor de referidos a abogados aprobados por la ABA si existen abogados participantes en su zona.
Además, si el DOL ha realizado una investigación, el denunciante recibirá información sobre los hallazgos para entregársela al abogado que podría tomar el caso. Esta información incluye las violaciones en cuestión y todos los salarios retroactivos debidos. El DOL también ha desarrollado un proceso especial para que los denunciantes y los abogados que los representan obtengan información y documentos relevantes del caso cuando estén disponibles.
La Secretaria de Trabajo Hilda Solís dijo,“Los trabajadores de nuestro país merecen una compensación plena y justa, y este gobierno está comprometido a garantizar que la reciban. La colaboración anunciada hoy con el Colegio de Abogados de los Estados Unidos mejora el acceso de los trabajadores a recursos legales adicionales y las iniciativas constantes del Departamento de Trabajo para asegurarse de que los empleados cumplan con las leyes laborales de los Estados Unidos”.
Acceso de los veteranos a la asistencia legal
El Vicepresidente anunció hoy que el Departamento de Asuntos de Veteranos (VA) y la Corporación de Servicios Legales [Legal Services Corporation (LSC)] han lanzado una campaña de concienciación entre los Centros de Veteranos comunitarios del VA y proveedores locales de servicios de asistencia legal de la LSC para ayudar a los veteranos a enfrentar mejor disputas legales como ejecución hipotecaria, fraude contra consumidores y problemas laborales. La primera etapa de la nueva campaña de concienciación ya está en curso.
Los programas financiados por la LSC han ayudado a 51 Centros de Veteranos operados por el Departamento de Asuntos de Veteranos en la región del Atlántico central, Maine y Arkansas para compartir información sobre servicios legales y crear sistemas correctos de referidos para minimizar la frustración de los veteranos a la hora de obtener asesoría y representación en problemas legales civiles.
En apoyo a esta iniciativa, la LSC anunció el lanzamiento de un nuevo portal, www.StatesideLegal.org , para ayudar a los veteranos a obtener información en línea. El sitio fue desarrollado para explicar términos jurídicos y militares de manera sencilla e incluye videos y formularios interactivos para ayudar a los veteranos a defenderse. La información contenida en el portal abarca temas como beneficios por discapacidad, empleo y protecciones legales para miembros del ejército que enfrentan medidas de ejecución hipotecaria.
Programas de mediación en ejecuciones hipotecarias
Los programas de mediación en ejecuciones hipotecarias están diseñados para detectar alternativas a la ejecución que beneficien tanto al propietario de la vivienda como al prestamista. Hoy el Vicepresidente anunció diversas iniciativas para fortalecer estos programas de mediación.
La Iniciativa de Acceso a la Justicia del DOJ y el HUD anunciaron un informe conjunto que identifica estrategias emergentes para programas eficaces de mediación en ejecuciones hipotecarias, como consejeros de vivienda bien capacitados y abogados voluntarios que pueden asesorar y apoyar a los propietarios durante todo el proceso de mediación. Para asistir a jurisdicciones que están desarrollando o expandiendo programas de mediación, el informe describe diversas características que tienen un impacto positivo en la eficacia de los programas. El informe también da listas de programas existentes de mediación en ejecuciones interesados en compartir sus experiencias con otras partes interesadas en estos programas de todo el país. Para ver el informe, visite h ttp://www.justice.gov/atj/effective-mediation-prog-strategies.pdf
Además,el HUD anunció un nuevo seminario de capacitación en Internet que destacará estrategias y recursos para evitar la ejecución hipotecaria. La capacitación, que está dirigida a una gran variedad de audiencias, que incluye a los propietarios, consejeros de vivienda, abogados voluntarios y mediadores, abordará temas como el acceso a recursos de asesoría de vivienda, cómo encontrar recursos de prevención de ejecuciones hipotecarias específicos de cada estado, cómo evitar ardides de rescate de ejecuciones hipotecarias y de comprensión de programas federales de prevención de ejecuciones hipotecarias.
El HUD también brindó orientación sobre el uso del Subsidio en Bloque de Desarrollo Comunitario y Fondos de Estabilización de Vecindarios para asesoría sobre vivienda, un recurso que puede incrementar la eficacia de programas de mediación en ejecuciones hipotecarias. Para ver este material, visite www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/communitydevelopment/programs/pdf/housing_counseling .pdf
Además de estas iniciativas, NeighborWorks®, una organización sin fines de lucro creada por el Congreso y financiada por asignaciones del Congreso, estrenará un taller de mediación en ejecuciones hipotecarias en el Instituto de Capacitación NeighborWorks en diciembre. Se espera que más de 2,000 consejeros y otros profesionales de organizaciones sin fines de lucro asistan al Instituto de Capacitación. NeighborWorks es uno de los principales financiadores de programas de asesoría de mitigación de ejecuciones hipotecarias del país y es administrador del Programa Nacional de Asesoría de Mitigación de Ejecuciones Hipotecarias.
Por último, la Comisión Federal de Comercio [Federal Trade Commission (FTC)] anunció hoy una nueva norma y diversas acciones de control para proteger a los propietarios vulnerables contra el fraude de rescate hipotecario. Para ver el comunicado de prensa de la FTC, visite http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2010/11/mars.shtm
Para obtener más información sobre la Iniciativa de Acceso a la Justicia del Departamento de Justicia, visite: www.justice.gov/access .
Attorney General Holder, Vice President Biden Announce New Initiatives to Help Homeowners, Veterans and Workers Access Legal ServicesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON , DC – Attorney General Eric Holder and the Department of Justice’s Access to Justice Initiative co-hosted a Middle Class Task Force event today with Vice President Joe Biden, announcing a series of steps designed to help middle class and low-income families secure their legal rights. These actions include strengthening foreclosure mediation programs, helping veterans secure the legal help they need, and making it easier for workers to find a qualified attorney when they believe their rights have been violated.
“In difficult economic times, we want to make sure all Americans—regardless of income or status—have access to the resources they need to pursue justice,” said Vice President Joe Biden. “The initiatives we are announcing today represent an important step toward that goal and will help thousands of Americans get the legal assistance they need.”
Today’s announcement is the culmination of work between the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Access to Justice Initiative and federal agencies like the Department of Labor (DOL), the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), as well as partners in the advocacy community.
“As a prosecutor and former judge, I know that the fundamental integrity of our justice system, and our faith in it, depends on effective representation on both sides of the courtroom ,” said Attorney General Holder. “With the strides we have made – and with the additional steps soon to come – I am confident that we can build a fairer and more effective justice system.”
“Many people’s lives can be improved without major new investments, and in fact with real savings, if we simply help them access the legal rights and benefits that are theirs. That’s why the Department's Access to Justice Initiative is honored to work with the Vice President, HUD, the Labor Department, and the VA to make justice a reality. ” said DOJ Senior Counselor for Access to Justice Laurence Tribe.
Legal Support for Workers
The Department of Labor and the American Bar Association (ABA) today announced a collaboration to help workers resolve complaints received by DOL’s Wage and Hour Division, such as not getting paid the minimum wage or not being paid overtime, or being denied family medical leave. Beginning on December 13, 2010, complainants whose cases cannot be resolved by DOL because of limited capacity will be given a toll-free number to a newly created system where they are connected to an ABA-approved attorney referral provider if there are participating attorneys in their area.
In addition, if DOL has conducted an investigation, the complainant will be given information about the findings to provide to an attorney who may take the case, including the violations at issue and any back wages owed. DOL has also developed a special process for complainants and representing attorneys to obtain relevant case information and documents when available.
Said Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, “Our nation’s workers deserve full and fair compensation, and this Administration is committed to ensuring that they receive it. Today’s announced collaboration with the American Bar Association streamlines worker access to additional legal resources and builds on the Department of Labor’s continued efforts to ensure that employers comply with America’s labor laws.”
Veterans’ Access to Legal Help
Today the Vice President announced that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) have launched an awareness campaign between the VA’s community-based Vet Centers and local LSC legal aid service providers to help veterans better address legal challenges in areas such as foreclosure, consumer fraud, and employment issues. The first phase of the new awareness campaign is already underway.
LSC-funded programs have reached out to 51 Vet Centers operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs in the mid-Atlantic region, Maine, and Arkansas to share information about legal services and to create appropriate referral systems to minimize veterans’ frustration in obtaining advice and representation on civil legal problems.
In support of this effort, the LSC announced the launch of a new website, www.StatesideLegal.org , to help veterans access information online. The site was developed to explain legal and military terms in a straightforward way, and includes videos and interactive forms to help veterans advocate for themselves. Information on the website covers such topics as disability benefits, employment, and legal protections for service members confronted with foreclosure actions.
Foreclosure Mediation Programs
Foreclosure mediation programs are designed to identify alternatives to foreclosure that benefit both the homeowner and the lender. Today, the Vice President announced a number of initiatives to strengthen these mediation programs.
DOJ’s Access to Justice Initiative and HUD issued a joint report identifying emerging strategies for effective foreclosure mediation programs, such as well-trained housing counselors and pro bono attorneys who can counsel and support homeowners throughout the mediation process. To assist jurisdictions that are developing or expanding mediation programs, the report describes several features that have a positive impact on program effectiveness. The report also lists existing foreclosure mediation programs that are interested in sharing their experiences with other program stakeholders throughout the country. To view the report, visit http://www.justice.gov/atj/effective-mediation-prog-strategies.pdf
Additionally,HUD announced a new training webinar that will highlight strategies and resources for avoiding foreclosure. The training, which is aimed at a wide variety of audiences including homeowners, housing counselors, pro bono attorneys and mediators, will include topics such as accessing housing counseling resources, finding state-specific foreclosure prevention resources, avoiding foreclosure rescue scams, and understanding Federal foreclosure prevention programs.
HUD also provided guidance on the use of Community Development Block Grant and Neighborhood Stabilization Funds for housing counseling, a resource that can increase the effectiveness of foreclosure mediation programs. To view the guidance, visit www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/communitydevelopment/programs/pdf/housing_counseling.pdf
In addition to these efforts, NeighborWorks®, a national non-profit created by Congress and funded by Congressional appropriations, will debut a foreclosure mediation workshop at the NeighborWorks Training Institute in December. More than 2,000 counselors and other nonprofit professionals are expected to attend the Training Institute. NeighborWorks is one of the largest funders of foreclosure-mitigation counseling in the nation, and is the administrator of the National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling program.
Finally, the Federal Trade Commission today announced a new rule and several enforcement actions to protect vulnerable homeowners from mortgage rescue fraud. To view the FTC’s press release, visit http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2010/11/mars.shtm
More information about the Department of Justice’s Access to Justice Initiative can be found at: www.justice.gov/access .
Two Defendants Each Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Two defendants were sentenced to prison today for their participation in an online child pornography conspiracy and for child pornography production charges, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Hogsett of the Southern District of Indiana, U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler of the District of Alaska, and U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag of the Northern District of California.
Charles Neyhart, 34, of Chugiak, Alaska, was sentenced today to 30 years in prison for his role in the child pornography conspiracy and for charges of child pornography production. Richard Schweich, 40, of San Jose, Calif., was sentenced to 30 years in prison for his participation in the conspiracy and for producing child pornography. Each defendant also was sentenced to lifetime supervised release following their respective prison terms. Both defendants were sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge William T. Lawrence in Indianapolis.
Neyhart pleaded guilty on April 7, 2010, to one count of conspiracy to advertise child pornography, one count of conspiracy to distribute child pornography, 13 counts of advertising child pornography and two counts of distributing child pornography. Neyhart also pleaded guilty to a criminal information charging him with three counts of producing child pornography between February and June 2009. According to the criminal information filed in the District of Alaska, Neyhart produced sexually explicit photographs of a 10 year-old girl in West Virginia and transported the photographs to his home in Alaska,.
On June 15, 2010, Schweich pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to advertise child pornography, one count of conspiracy to distribute child pornography, 13 counts of advertising child pornography and two counts of distributing child pornography in conjunction with the child pornography conspiracy. Schweich also pleaded guilty to a criminal information filed in the Northern District of California, charging him with one count of producing child pornography. According to the criminal information, Schweich produced sexually explicit photographs of an 11 year-old girl in January 2008.
The charges against Neyhart, Schweich and 24 co-defendants are a result of “Operation Nest Egg,” an ongoing and joint investigation led by the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Operation Nest Egg, launched in February 2008, targeted 26 defendants charged in the Southern District of Indiana, as well as approximately 500 additional individuals located throughout the world for their involvement in an online group dedicated to trading images of child pornography.
According to court documents filed in the Southern District of Indiana, the 26 co-conspirators participated in a sophisticated, password-protected Internet bulletin board group, which existed to allow members to meet like-minded individuals with a sexualized interest in children, to discuss that interest and to trade images of child pornography. The defendants are charged with conspiring to advertise and distribute child pornography, along with substantive counts of advertising and distributing child pornography. Twenty-two of the 26 defendants charged in the conspiracy have been arrested and 20 of the 22 individuals arrested have been convicted or have pleaded guilty. Seventeen defendants have been sentenced to prison on previous dates.
Four of the 26 individuals charged in the conspiracy remain at large and are known only by their online identities. Efforts to identify and apprehend these four individuals continue.
To date, as a result of Operation Nest Egg, more than 80 searches have been conducted in the United States. In total, more than 50 individuals have been arrested and 43 individuals have been convicted. The investigation is ongoing. Numerous members of the Internet-based bulletin board were found to have been personally sexually abusing children and to date, 16 child victims have been identified through Operation Nest Egg. For example, the 10 year-old child depicted in the sexually explicit photographs recovered from Charles Neyhart’s home was identified through an extensive investigation conducted by ICE, the Anchorage Police Department, the Alaska State Troopers and the West Virginia State Police. An extensive investigation conducted by USPIS and the San Jose Police Department led to the identification of the 11 year-old girl depicted in the sexually explicit photographs produced by Richard Schweich.
Additionally, lead administrator Delwyn Savigar of the United Kingdom, was identified and arrested in partnership with the U.K.’s Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre, for his involvement in the conspiracy. After his initial arrest, Savigar was identified through DNA testing as the perpetrator of a previously unsolved sexual assault against a minor female in Great Britain, to which he pleaded guilty. Following this discovery, Savigar was linked to additional incidents of sexual assaults. Ultimately, he pleaded guilty to either abusing or attempting to abuse three minors from 1999 to 2002. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison in the United Kingdom.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven D. DeBrota of the Southern District of Indiana, Assistant U.S. Attorney Audrey J. Renschen of the District of Alaska, Assistant U.S. Attorney Hanley Chew of the Northern District of California and CEOS Trial Attorney Alecia Riewerts Wolak. The investigation was conducted jointly by CEOS’ High Technology Investigative Unit, USPIS and ICE, with assistance provided by the Indiana Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Taskforce, Indiana State Police, the Anchorage Police Department, the Alaska State Troopers, the West Virginia State Police, the San Jose Police Department and numerous local and international law enforcement agencies across the United States and Europe.
Operator of Miami HIV Clinic Sentenced to 57 Months in Prison for Role in Medicare Fraud RingRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jose Garcia, 55, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Miami to 57 months in prison for his participation in a Medicare fraud scheme involving a Miami-area HIV clinic, the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS) announced.
U.S. District Judge Adalberto Jordan also ordered Garcia to serve three years of supervised release and ordered him to pay, jointly and severally with his co-conspirators, restitution of $7,992,391.
Garcia was indicted in 2008 and was a fugitive for nearly two years before surrendering to FBI agents in May 2010. Garcia pleaded guilty in August 2010 to one count of conspiracy to cause the submission of false claims to the Medicare program and to pay health care kickbacks; and one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.
According to court documents, Garcia operated Global Med-Care Corp. Inc., a medical clinic in Miami that purported to specialize in treating patients with HIV. Garcia, his co-defendant Nayda Freire and others caused Global Med-Care to submit claims to the Medicare program for expensive HIV medication that was medically unnecessary or never provided. In return for a share of Global Med-Care’s profits, Garcia and Freire agreed with their co-conspirators to oversee the staff necessary to operate Global Med-Care; the Medicare patients whom Global billed to the Medicare program; and the transportation for the patients. Garcia admitted he knew that Global Med-Care would need to pay kickbacks to its patients and that Global Med-Care could bill Medicare for HIV infusion services three times a week, for up to three months, for each patient. Garcia also admitted that from April 2003 through August 2003, Global Med-Care submitted approximately $10.9 million in claims to the Medicare program for HIV infusion services that were never provided and/or medically unnecessary.
Freire pleaded guilty in August 2008 to one count of conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program, and was sentenced by Judge Jordan on Nov. 12, 2008, to 30 months in prison.
Freire admitted that after payments from Medicare were made into the bank accounts of Global Med-Care, she and others transferred approximately $6 million of the fraud proceeds to sham management, marketing and investment companies owned and operated by co-conspirators Carlos, Luis and Jose Benitez. Carlos, Luis and Jose Benitez and Thomas McKenzie were charged separately with health care fraud and other related crimes in an indictment unsealed on June 11, 2008. According to the separate indictment, these co-conspirators allegedly provided the money and staff necessary to open Global Med-Care; the Medicare patients whom the clinic would bill to the Medicare program; and transportation for the HIV patients who visited the clinic. That indictment also alleges that Carlos and Luis Benitez were the true owners of Global Med-Care.
The three Benitez brothers and McKenzie were charged with participating in the commission of approximately $109 million in HIV infusion fraud and money laundering through Global Med-Care and 10 other HIV infusion clinics. On Sept. 18, 2008, McKenzie pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of submitting false claims to the Medicare program, and also admitted his role in a $119 million HIV infusion fraud scheme. McKenzie was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Alan S. Gold on Dec. 18, 2008, to 14 years in prison in connection with his role in the HIV infusion Medicare fraud scheme. In addition to the prison sentence, McKenzie was ordered to pay $84 million in restitution to the Medicare program. The Benitez brothers remain fugitives. An indictment is merely an accusation and the Benitez brothers remain innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Today’s sentence was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer of the Southern District of Florida; John V. Gillies, Special Agent-in-Charge of the FBI’s Miami field office; and Special Agent-in-Charge Christopher Dennis of the HHS Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), Office of Investigations Miami office.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy Chief Hank Bond Walther and Trial Attorney N. Nathan Dimock of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, and was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG. The case was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
Since their inception in March 2007, Strike Force operations in seven districts have obtained indictments of more than 825 individuals who collectively have falsely billed the Medicare program for approximately $2 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov .
Operador de clínica de VIH de Miami fue sentenciado a 57 meses en prisiónpor su papel en una red de fraude contra MedicareRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – José García, 55, fue sentenciado hoy en el Tribunal Federal de Distrito en Miami a 57 meses en prisión por su participación en un ardid de fraude contra Medicare asociado a una clínica para el VIH en el área de Miami, anunciaron los Departamento de Justicia y de Salud y Servicios Humanos [Health and Human Services (HHS)].
El Juez Federal de Distrito Adalberto Jordàn también ordenó a García cumplir con tres años de libertad bajo supervisión y a pagar, en forma individual y mancomunadamente con sus coconspiradores, una restitución de $7,992,391 dólares.
García fue acusado formalmente en 2008 y estuvo fugitivo por casi dos años antes de entregarse a agentes del Buró Federal de Investigaciones [Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)] en mayo de 2010. García se declaró culpable en agosto de 2010 a un cargo de conspiración para causar la presentación de reclamos falsos al programa Medicare y pagar comisiones ilícitas asociadas a los servicios médicos; y un cargo de conspiración para cometer fraude de servicios médicos.
De acuerdo con el expediente judicial, García administraba la empresa Global Med-Care Corp. Inc., una clínica médica en Miami supuestamente especializada en el tratamiento de pacientes con VIH. García, su codemandada Nayda Freire y otros causaron la presentación por Global Med-Care de reclamos falsos al programa Medicare por medicamentos costosos para el VIH que eran médicamente innecesarios o nunca fueron provistos. A cambio por una participación en las ganancias de Global Med-Care, García y Freire acordaron con sus coconspiradores supervisar al personal necesario para las operaciones de Global Med-Care, pacientes de Medicare facturados al programa Medicare por Global y el transporte de los pacientes. García admitió que sabía que Global Med-Care debería pagar comisiones ilícitas a sus pacientes y que Global Med-Care podría facturarle a Medicare por servicios de infusión para el VIH tres veces a la semana, por hasta tres meses, por cada paciente. García también admitió que entre abril de 2003 y agosto de 2003, Global Med-Care presentó aproximadamente $10.9 millones de dólares en reclamos al programa Medicare por servicios de infusión para VIH que nunca fueron provistos y/o eran médicamente innecesarios.
Freire se declaró culpable en agosto de 2008 de un cargo de conspiración para defraudar al programa Medicare, y fue sentenciada por el Juez Jordan el 12 de noviembre de 2008 a 30 meses en prisión.
Freire admitió que, después de que se realizaron pagos de Medicare a las cuentas bancarias de Global Med-Care, ella y otros transfirieron $6 millones de dólares del producto del fraude a empresas de administración, mercadeo e inversión falsas pertenecientes a y operadas por los coconspiradores Carlos, Luís y José Benítez. Carlos, Luis y José Benítez y Thomas McKenzie fueron acusados separadamente de fraude de servicios médicos y otros delitos relacionados en una acusación formal relevante el 11 de junio de 2008. De acuerdo con la acusación formal separada, se alega que estos coconspiradores proporcionaron el dinero y el personal necesario para abrir Global Med-Care; los pacientes de Medicare por los que las clínicas facturarían al programa Medicare y transporte para los pacientes con VIH que visitaban la clínica. Dicha acusación formal también alega que Carlos y Luis Benítez eran los verdaderos propietarios de Global Med-Care.
Los tres hermanos Benítez y McKenzie fueron acusados de participar en un fraude de infusión para el VIH y lavado de dinero de aproximadamente $109 millones de dólares a través de Global Med-Care y 10 otras clínicas de infusión del VIH. El 18 de septiembre de 2008, McKenzie se declaró culpable de un cargo de conspiración para cometer fraude de servicios médicos y un cargo de presentación de reclamos falsos al programa Medicare, y admitió su papel en un ardid de fraude de infusión para el VIH de $119 millones de dólares. McKenzie fue sentenciado por el Juez Federal de Distrito Alan S. Gold el 18 de diciembre de 2008, a 14 años en prisión en conexión con su papel en el ardid de fraude contra Medicare asociado a infusiones para el VIH. Además de la sentencia en prisión, se le ordenó a McKenzie pagar $84 millones de dólares en restitución al programa Medicare. Los hermanos Benítez se encuentran fugitivos. Una acusación formal es apenas una acusación y los hermanos Benítez son considerados inocentes hasta que se pruebe lo contrario en un tribunal de justicia.
La sentencia de hoy fue anunciada por el Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar Lanny A. Breuer de la División Criminal; el Fiscal Federal Wifredo A. Ferrer del Distrito Sur de Florida; John V. Gillies, Agente Especial a Cargo de la Oficina Local de Miami del FBI; y el Agente Especial a Cargo Christopher Dennis de la Oficina de Investigaciones de Miami de la Oficina del Inspector General [Office of the Inspector General (OIG)] del HHS.
El caso fue enjuiciado por el Jefe Adjunto Hank Bond Walther y el Abogado Litigante N. Nathan Dimock de la Sección de Fraude de la División Criminal, y fue investigado por el Buró Federal de Investigaciones [Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)] y la Oficina del Inspector General del HHS (HHS-OIG). La demanda fue entablada como parte de la Fuerza de Ataque al Fraude contra Medicare, supervisada por la Sección de Fraude de la División Criminal y la Fiscalía Federal para el Distrito Sur de Florida.
Desde su creación en marzo de 2007, las operaciones de las Fuerzas de Ataque en siete distritos obtuvieron las acusaciones formales de más de 825 individuos que, en conjunto, facturaron de manera fraudulenta al programa Medicare aproximadamente $2 billones de dólares. Además, los Centros para Servicios de Medicare y Medicaid del HHS, trabajando en conjunto con la HHS-OIG, están tomando medidas para aumentar la responsabilización y reducir la presencia de proveedores fraudulentos.
Para obtener màs información sobre el Equipo de Acción, Prevención y Control de Fraude de Servicios Médicos [Healthcare Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.
New Jersey Man Convicted on Tax ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Following a jury trial that began on Nov. 9, 2010, a federal jury in Trenton, N.J., convicted James and Theresa Demuro, of Bridgewater, NJ, of one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and twenty-one counts of failure to pay over employment taxes, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
According to the indictment and evidence introduced during trial, James and Theresa Demuro co-owned and operated an engineering and surveying firm called TAD Associates LLC, dba DeMuro Associates. From 2002 through 2008, the Demuros withheld employment taxes from their employees’ paychecks but failed to pay more than $546,247 of those withholdings to the IRS. In addition, the Demuros operated under a prior entity name, DA Resources Inc., which they ceased operating in an effort to thwart the ability of the IRS to collect unpaid employment taxes related to that entity.
At trial, the government introduced evidence that beginning with the first quarter of 2007 through the last quarter in 2008, the defendants paid employees’ wages and withheld employment taxes from their paychecks but did not pay over any of the employee withholdings to the IRS. In addition, the Demuros withheld funds from their employees’ pay checks for health insurance, child support, and retirement savings accounts, and failed to pay these funds over to the appropriate entities.
Evidence was also introduced that the Demuros used the withholdings for their business and personal use, including more than $280,000 in purchases from QVC, Home Shopping Network and Jewelry Television.
U.S. District Judge Garrett E. Brown Jr. scheduled sentencing for Feb. 21, 2010. James and Theresa Demuro face a maximum of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count of conviction.
Acting Assistant Attorney General John A. DiCicco of the Justice Department’s Tax Division commended the IRS Criminal Investigation special agents who investigated the case as well as Tax Division trial attorneys Tino M. Lisella and Jessica L. Nuzzelillo who prosecuted the case. Acting Assistant Attorney General DiCicco also thanked United States Attorney Paul J. Fishman and his entire office for their assistance.
Justice Department Announces Settlement of Litigation with AMC Entertainment Inc.Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The Justice Department today announced a settlement agreement with AMC Entertainment Inc. to resolve a lawsuit filed under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The suit challenged, among other things, the design of stadium-style movie theaters that fail to provide persons who use wheelchairs with comparable lines of sight to those of other moviegoers. AMC is the second largest movie theater chain in the country with about 5,300 screens.
"Going to the movies is an archetypal American leisure activity," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. "We are pleased that AMC is taking steps to provide persons who use wheelchairs with access to the enhanced viewing experience of stadium-style theaters."
Today’s settlement agreement will improve the movie-going experience for people who use wheelchairs and their companions at AMC stadium-style theaters nationwide. All stadium-style theaters opened by AMC after entry of the decree will be constructed in accordance with design requirements that place accessible seating near the middle of the auditorium. During the course of the lawsuit, AMC, with the approval of the Department of Justice, made changes to its stadium theater design template that provided full accessibility to its newly constructed theaters. Additionally, at nearly 250 existing stadium-style theaters across the country, AMC has agreed to make sure that a specified percentage of auditoriums provide wheelchair spaces and companion seating in the stadium section. AMC also will move wheelchair seating from the front row to locations further back from the screen and otherwise ensure that movie patrons who use wheelchairs enjoy an unobstructed view of the screen. Additionally, stadium-style theaters acquired by AMC during the five-year term of the order also will be required to provide enhanced lines of sight and improved accessibility for patrons who use wheelchairs.
Stadium-style theaters offer superior lines of sight and a superlative movie-going experience. However, in early stadium theater designs, accessible seating wasoften located at or near the very front of the auditoriums. Today’s agreement will afford movie patrons who use wheelchairs and their companions the opportunity to enjoy the same product as other moviegoers.
The Justice Department filed suit to enforce the ADA in January 1999 in federal court in Los Angeles. The suit was based upon private complaints filed with the Justice Department and its own investigation. Today’s settlement agreement has been submitted to the federal district court in the Central District of California and is subject to the review and approval by Judge S. James Otero.
People interested in finding out more about the ADA can call the Justice Department’s toll-free Information Line at 800-514-0301 or 800-514-0383 (TDD), or access the ADA homepage at: www.ada.gov
California UBS Client Charged with Hiding Assets in Secret Swiss Bank AccountRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Jeffrey Chatfield of San Diego pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nita Stormes to a criminal information charging him with filing a false tax return related to a Swiss bank account that he maintained at UBS, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.
The guilty plea is subject to final acceptance by U.S. District Judge Michael M. Anello. Sentencing has been set for Feb. 7, 2011. Chatfield remains free on bail pending sentencing, where he faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Chatfield pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return for 2003 in which he failed to report that he had an interest in or a signature authority over a Swiss financial account at UBS. He also failed to report income earned on this UBS Swiss bank account. In or about 2000, with the assistance of a UBS banker, Chatfield opened a bank account at UBS Bahamas Ltd., in the name of nominee entity Alder West. Chatfield deposited into the account approximately $900,000 in untaxed securities and cash that he received in 2000 from his consulting work, which included advising private companies seeking to go public.
In August 2002, Chatfield closed the Alder West account and with the assistance of his UBS banker and others, formed Iberia West Ltd., a Bahamian nominee entity. Chatfield then opened a new Swiss account at UBS in the name of Iberia West and transferred into that account securities and cash previously held at UBS Bahamas Ltd. In August 2004, Chatfield closed his Iberia West account and transferred all remaining assets to an account at another large global Swiss bank headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, also held in the name of the nominee entity Iberia West. In 2008, this other Swiss bank told Chatfield that it was closing all accounts held by U.S. taxpayers. Chatfield closed this account in 2008.
Chatfield admitted to filing false tax returns from 2000 to 2008 that concealed his interest in these various offshore accounts and failing to report any income earned from these accounts. Chatfield also admitted that he never filed any reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts
(FBARs) disclosing his interest in any offshore financial accounts. As part of his plea agreement, Chatfield agreed to pay a 50 percent penalty for the one year with the highest balance in his Swiss UBS account in order to resolve his civil liability for failing to file FBARs, Forms TD F 90-22.1.
"This is part of a continuing effort by the IRS and Justice Department to combat international tax evasion," said IRS Deputy Commissioner Steven T. Miller. "These actions send a clear, unmistakable message to anyone who tries to use international borders to evade federal taxes."
In February 2009, UBS entered into a deferred prosecution agreement under which the bank admitted to helping U.S. taxpayers hide accounts from the IRS. As part of their agreement, UBS provided the United States government with the identities of, and account information for, certain U.S. customers of UBS’s cross-border business, including Chatfield.
Acting Assistant Attorney General John A. DiCicco and U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California Laura E. Duffy commended the investigative efforts of the IRS Criminal Investigation agents who investigated the case and Tax Division trial attorney Timothy J. Stockwell and Assistant U.S. Attorney Yesmin Saide, who are prosecuting the case.
Additional information about the Justice Department’s Tax Division and its enforcement efforts is available at www.usdoj.gov/tax.
Attorney General Issues Memoranda to Improve Use of DNA EvidenceRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder issued two memoranda today – on the collection of DNA evidence and the use of DNA waivers when defendants plead guilty – to ensure the Department of Justice uses DNA evidence to the greatest extent possible to convict the guilty and exonerate the innocent.
The memorandum on sample collection provides guidance concerning the requirements and procedures for DNA sample collection, the treatment of cases in which DNA has not been collected from a defendant prior to his appearance in court, and the status of and response to litigative challenges to DNA sample collection. It notes that the regular collection of DNA samples from federal arrestees must be a priority, as DNA provides a powerful tool in the enforcement of federal and state criminal laws and the administration of justice.
The memorandum on the use of DNA waivers establishes as general department policy that prosecutors will not require as part of plea agreements that defendants waive their rights to testing under the Innocence Protection Act. Under exceptional circumstances, prosecutors may obtain such waivers.
"DNA evidence is one of the most powerful tools available to the criminal justice system, and these new steps will ensure the department can use DNA to the greatest extent possible to solve crimes and ensure the guilty are convicted," Attorney General Holder said. "Improving both the collection and the use of DNA evidence will help law enforcement and prosecutors keep communities safe."
Congress enacted the Innocence Protection Act in 2004 to allow convicted individuals access to DNA testing if they met certain conditions such as the possibility that testing could produce new material evidence that would raise a reasonable probability that the individual did not commit the offense. Among other restrictions, it limits new testing to evidence that was not previously tested and generally requires it to be done within 36 months of conviction.
Federal law since 2004 has also required the collection of DNA samples from most persons convicted of federal crimes, and regulations implemented by the department in January, 2009 extended DNA collection to include arrestees and defendants in federal jurisdiction.
Viktor Bout extraditado a los Estados Unidos para ser enjuiciado por cargos de terrorismoRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Después de más de dos años de procesos judiciales, el supuesto traficante internacional de armas Viktor Bout ha sido extraditado al Distrito Sur de Nueva York de Tailandia para ser enjuiciado por cargos de terrorismo, anunció hoy el Departamento de Justicia.
Bout llegó esta noche en un avión fletado de la Administración de Control de Drogas [Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)] y fue llevado a una prisión de alta seguridad en Manhattan, donde quedará detenido a la espera de su enjuiciamiento. Bout, también conocido por otros nombres, incluidos "Boris," "Víctor Anatoliyevich Bout," "Víctor But," "Viktor Budd," "Viktor Butt," "Viktor Bulakin," y "Vadim Markovich Aminov," deberá presentarse en el tribunal federal de Manhattan mañana a la tarde ante la Juez Federal de Distrito Shira A. Scheindlin, a quien se le ha asignado el caso.
"Viktor Bout ha sido acusado formalmente en los Estados Unidos; sin embargo, su supuesta actividad de tráfico de armas y apoyo a conflictos armados en África ha sido causa de inquietud en todo el mundo. Su extradición es una victoria para los Principios de la Ley mundial", dijo el Secretario de Justicia de los Estados Unidos Eric Holder. "Considerado hace mucho tiempo uno de los traficantes de armas más prolíficos, el Sr. Bout comparecerá ante el tribunal federal en Manhattan para responder por los cargos de conspiración para vender millones de dólares en armas a una organización terrorista para ser usadas para matar a ciudadanos estadounidenses".
El Fiscal Federal de Manhattan Preet Bharara dijo, "Viktor Bout supuestamente aprovechó la oportunidad de armar a narcoterroristas con la intención de matar a ciudadanos estadounidenses con un arsenal de armas de tipo militar. La extradición exitosa de hoy destaca nuestro compromiso de proteger a nuestros ciudadanos en nuestra propia tierra y en todo el mundo. La operación histórica que culminó en la extradición de hoy no hubiera sido posible sin el trabajo valiente e innovador de nuestros asociados de la DEA".
"Con Viktor Bout detrás de las rejas en los Estados Unidos, este demandado finalmente enfrentará la consecuencia que más temía: será responsabilizado por sus supuestos delitos en un tribunal de derecho", dijo Michele M. Leonhart, Administradora Interina de la DEA. "Se alega que durante más de una década el Sr. Bout realizó un comercio mortífero de misiles de superficie a aire, minas terrestres, balas, muerte y destrucción. Afortunadamente, con su arresto, extradición y su enjuiciamiento pendiente en el Distrito Sur de Nueva York, su último supuesto intento de realizar negocios con la muerte significa que finalmente enfrentará la justicia".
De acuerdo con la acusación formal y los demás documentos judiciales:
Hasta su arresto en marzo de 2008, Bout era un supuesto traficante internacional de armas. Para llevar a cabo su negocio de tráfico de armas, Bout creó una flota de aviones de carga capaces de transportar armas y equipos militares a diversas partes del mundo, incluidos África, América del Sur y el Medio Oriente. En 2004, como resultado de sus actividades de tráfico de armas en Liberia, la Oficina de Control de Activos [Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)] del Departamento del Tesoro, colocó a Bout en la lista de Ciudadanos Especialmente Designados, la cual prohíbe toda transacción entre Bout y cualquier ciudadano estadounidense, y congela todos los activos de Bout dentro de la jurisdicción de los Estados Unidos.
Entre noviembre de 2007 y marzo de 2008, Bout aceptó vender a la organización narcoterrorista colombiana, las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) millones de dólares en armas -- incluidos sistemas de misiles de superficie a aire [surface-to-air missile systems (SAMs)], lanzadores de cohetes perforadores, armas de fuego AK-47, millones de municiones, repuestos rusos para rifles, minas terrestres antipersonal, explosivos plásticos C-4, equipos de visión nocturna, aviones "ultraleves" que podían ser equipados con lanzadores de granadas y misiles, y vehículos aéreos sin tripulación.
Las FARC se dedican al derrocamiento violento del gobierno democráticamente electo de Colombia y es, también, el mayor proveedor de cocaína del mundo. Bout acordó vender las armas a dos fuentes confidenciales que trabajan para la DEA, quienes alegaron estar adquiriendo las armas para las FARC, con el entendimiento específico de que las armas serían utilizadas para atacar a helicópteros estadounidenses en Colombia.
Durante una reunión secretamente grabada en Tailandia el 6 de marzo de 2008, Bout informó a las fuentes confidenciales que haría arreglos para arrojar las armas a las FARC en Colombia desde un avión, y ofreció vender dos aviones de carga a las FARC que podrían usarse para entregas de armas. Asimismo, Bout proveyó un mapa de América del Sur y pidió a las fuentes confidenciales que le indicaran las ubicaciones de radar estadounidenses en Colombia.
Bout indicó que entendía que las fuentes confidenciales querían las armas para usarlas contra personal estadounidense en Colombia, y declaró que los Estados Unidos también eran su enemigo, indicando que la lucha de las FARC contra los Estados Unidos también era su batalla. Durante la reunión, Bout también ofreció proveer gente para capacitar a las FARC en el uso de las armas. Después de esta reunión, Bout fue arrestado por autoridades de las fuerzas del orden público tailandesas.
La acusación formal acusa a Bout de cuatro delitos de terrorismo distintos:
- Primer cargo: conspiración para matar a ciudadanos estadounidenses,
- Segundo cargo: conspiración para asesinar a autoridades o empleados estadounidenses;
- Tercer cargo: conspiración para adquirir y utilizar un misil antiaéreo; y
- Cuarto cargo: conspiración para proveer apoyo material o recursos a una organización terrorista extranjera designada.
Si se le condena por todos los cargos, Bout enfrenta una sentencia obligatoria mínima de 25 años en prisión y una máxima de prisión perpetua.
Esta investigación fue conducida por la DEA y su éxito es el resultado de la labor cooperativa de las fuerzas del orden público internacionales alrededor del mundo. Están a cargo del caso la Unidad de Terrorismo y Narcóticos Internacional del Distrito Sur de Nueva York. Los Fiscales Federales Auxiliares Anjan Sahni y Brendan R. McGuire están a cargo de la acusación. También brindaron asistencia significativa la Oficina de Asuntos Internacionales y la División de Seguridad Nacional del Departamento de Justicia, así como el Departamento de Estado de EE.UU.
Los cargos enunciados en esta acusación formal son solo acusaciones y se supone que el demandado es inocente hasta que se pruebe lo contrario.
Viktor Bout Extradited to the United States to Stand Trial on Terrorism ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – After more than two years of legal proceedings, alleged international arms dealer Viktor Bout has been extradited to the Southern District of New York from Thailand to stand trial on terrorism charges, the Justice Department announced today.
Bout arrived this evening on a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) charter plane and was brought to a high-security prison in Manhattan, where he will be held pending trial. Bout, who also goes by many other names, including "Boris," "Victor Anatoliyevich Bout," "Victor But," "Viktor Budd," "Viktor Butt," "Viktor Bulakin," and "Vadim Markovich Aminov," is scheduled to be presented in Manhattan federal court tomorrow afternoon before U.S. District Judge Shira A. Scheindlin, to whom the case has been assigned.
"Viktor Bout has been indicted in the United States, but his alleged arms trafficking activity and support of armed conflicts in Africa has been a cause of concern around the world. His extradition is a victory for the rule of law worldwide," Attorney General Eric Holder said. "Long considered one of the world’s most prolific arms traffickers, Mr. Bout will now appear in federal court in Manhattan to answer to charges of conspiring to sell millions of dollars worth of weapons to a terrorist organization for use in trying to kill Americans."
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said, "Viktor Bout allegedly jumped at the chance to arm narco-terrorists bent on killing Americans with an arsenal of military grade weapons. Today’s successful extradition underscores our commitment to protect Americans on our own soil and throughout the world. The historic operation culminating in today’s extradition would not have been possible without the courageous and groundbreaking work of our partners at the DEA."
"With Viktor Bout now behind bars in the United States, this defendant will finally face his most feared consequence: accountability for his alleged crimes in a court of law," said Michele M. Leonhart, Acting Administrator of the DEA. "For more than a decade, Mr. Bout is alleged to have plied a deadly trade in surface-to-air missiles, land mines, bullets, death and destruction. Fortunately, with his arrest, extradition, and pending prosecution in the Southern District of New York, his last alleged attempt to deal in death means that he will finally face justice."
According to the indictment and other court documents:
Until his arrest in March 2008, Bout was an alleged international weapons trafficker. To carry out his weapons trafficking business, Bout assembled a fleet of cargo airplanes capable of transporting weapons and military equipment to various parts of the world, including Africa, South America and the Middle East. In 2004, as a result of his weapons trafficking activities in Liberia, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) placed Bout on the Specially Designated Nationals list, which prohibits any transactions between Bout and any U.S. nationals, and freezes any of Bout’s assets that are within the jurisdiction of the United States.
Between November 2007 and March 2008, Bout agreed to sell to the Colombian narco-terrorist organization, the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), millions of dollars worth of weapons -- including surface-to-air missile systems; armor piercing rocket launchers; AK-47 firearms; millions of rounds of ammunition; Russian spare parts for rifles; anti-personnel land mines; C-4 plastic explosives; night-vision equipment; "ultralight" aircraft that could be outfitted with grenade launchers and missiles; and unmanned aerial vehicles.
The FARC is dedicated to the violent overthrow of the democratically-elected government of Colombia and is also the world’s largest supplier of cocaine. Bout agreed to sell the weapons to two confidential sources working with the DEA (the "CSs"), who represented that they were acquiring these weapons for the FARC, with the specific understanding that the weapons were to be used to attack U.S. helicopters in Colombia.
During a covertly-recorded meeting in Thailand on March 6, 2008, Bout stated to the CSs that he could arrange to airdrop the arms to the FARC in Colombia, and offered to sell two cargo planes to the FARC that could be used for arms deliveries. Bout also provided a map of South America, and asked the CSs to show him American radar locations in Colombia.
Bout indicated that he understood that the CSs wanted the arms for use against American personnel in Colombia, and advised that the United States was also his enemy, stating that the FARC’s fight against the United States was also his fight. During the meeting, Bout also offered to provide people to train the FARC in the use of the arms. Following this meeting, Bout was arrested by Thai law enforcement authorities.
The indictment charges Bout with four separate terrorism offenses:
- Count one: conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals,
- Count two: conspiracy to kill U.S. officers or employees,
- Count three: conspiracy to acquire and use an anti-aircraft missile, and
- Count four: conspiracy to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization
If convicted of all counts, Bout faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison.
This investigation was conducted by the DEA and its success is the result of international law enforcement cooperation efforts spanning the globe. The case is being handled by the Southern District of New York’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anjan Sahni and Brendan R. McGuire are in charge of the prosecution. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and National Security Division, as well as the U.S. State Department, also provided substantial assistance.
The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Statement of Matthew Miller, Director of Public Affairs, on the Conviction of Ahmed GhailaniRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – "We respect the jury’s verdict and are pleased that Ahmed Ghailani now faces a minimum of 20 years in prison and a potential life sentence for his role in the embassy bombings."
Pennsylvania Contractor Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — The owner of a Langhorne, Penn., asbestos abatement company pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of Justice announced today.
Andrzej Gosek pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Manhattan to one count of a three-count indictment, originally filed under seal on Feb. 18, 2010. The indictment charges Gosek and David Porath, a former owner of a maintenance and insulation company, with participating in a conspiracy to defraud the IRS. This was the only count of the indictment in which Gosek was charged.
According to the indictment, between October 2000 and February 2005, Gosek conspired with Porath to defraud the IRS and to subscribe to false tax returns. Porath gave Gosek checks made out to companies in Brooklyn, N.Y., purportedly for work done at New York Presbyterian Hospital (NYPH) by the Brooklyn companies as sub-contractors to Porath’s company. However, the companies had not performed the work. The checks totaled approximately $229,100 in 2000; $1.19 million in 2001; $760,000 in 2002; $50,000 in 2003; and $125,000 in 2004.
The Brooklyn companies cashed the checks and Gosek delivered the cash back to Porath, less approximately five percent. Based upon these checks to the Brooklyn companies, Porath took false deductions on his company’s and his personal federal tax returns, allowing Porath to fraudulently reduce his taxable income. Count one of the indictment charges Porath with participating in a bid rigging conspiracy at NYPH and count three of the indictment charges Porath with filing a false federal tax return on or about Feb. 17, 2005, which substantially understated his income. Porath is currently under indictment and remains at large.
The tax fraud conspiracy violation that Gosek is charged with carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. 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. Sentencing for Gosek is scheduled for March 18, 2011.
Including Gosek, nine individuals and three companies have pleaded guilty to charges arising out of an ongoing federal antitrust investigation of fraud, bribery, tax-related offenses and bidding irregularities relating to the award of contracts by the Engineering Department of NYPH. Nine others have been indicted and are awaiting trial.
The investigation is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office with the assistance of the FBI and the IRS Criminal Investigation’s New York Field Office. Anyone with information concerning bid rigging, bribery, tax offenses or fraud related to contracts administered by the Facilities Operation Department or the Engineering Department at NYPH or the Engineering Department at Mount Sinai should contact the Antitrust Division’s New York Field Office at 212-264-9308 or the FBI’s New York Division at 212-384-1000 or visit http://www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm.
Michigan Software Salesman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Defraud the GovernmentRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Theodore R. Kramer pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States before U.S. District Court judge John Corbett O'Meara in Detroit, the Department of Justice and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. The court set sentencing for March 15, 2011.
According to court documents, Kramer was a self-employed computer software salesman. Kramer sold a computer software program called Journal Sales Remover (JSR) to business, including two Detroit-area strip clubs. JSR's design was to remove a portion of a business's sales from the business's computerized books. JSR thus created the appearance that a business received less income than it actually did.
In 2001, the owner of two Detroit-area strip clubs requested that Kramer load the JSR program onto his clubs' computer systems so that the club owner could report less income to the IRS. From about 2001 to about 2004, Kramer periodically visited the clubs to run the JSR program to remove a substantial amount of the clubs' sales from their computers. The club owner then provided the reduced sales figures to his accountant. With Kramer's assistance, the club owner understated his clubs' gross receipts by more than $500,000.
Kramer faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
John A. DiCicco, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice, Tax Division, and Barbara L. McQuade, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, commended the IRS Special Agents who investigated the case and Tax Division Trial Attorneys Kenneth C. Vert and Tiwana L. Wright, who are prosecuting the case.
Miami Man Sentenced to 121 Months in Prison for Purchasing, Selling and Using Stolen Credit Card InformationRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Juan Javier Cardenas of Miami was sentenced today in the Southern District of Florida to 121 months in prison for buying, trafficking and possessing stolen credit card information, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer for the Southern District of Florida; Special Agent in Charge Michael K. Fithen of the U.S. Secret Service, Miami Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Kenneth T. Jenkins Jr., of the U.S. Secret Service, Criminal Investigative Division.
U.S. District Court Judge K. Michael Moore also ordered Cardenas to serve 3 years of supervised release following his prison term, pay restitution in the amount of $106,915, and pay a money judgment of $350,000.
At his plea hearing before Judge Moore on Sept. 1, 2010, Cardenas, 45, admitted that from February 2008 through May 2009, he purchased stolen credit card information from a co-conspirator using the Internet. Cardenas resold that information, also using the Internet, to others who used it to make fraudulent credit card purchases. On May 27, 2009, when U.S. Secret Service agents searched his house, Cardenas had 26,669 credit card numbers stored on his computer.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Osborne of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Joseph E. Springsteen of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section. The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service.
Medical Assistant Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison for His Role in a Fraudulent Home Health SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A medical assistant was sentenced today to 46 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program, the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services (HHS) announced. Mohammed El-Fallal was also sentenced by U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood in the Eastern District of Michigan to two years of supervised release following his prison term and was ordered to pay $2.8 million in restitution.
El-Fallal, 56, pleaded guilty in June 2010 to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. El-Fallal admitted that he was responsible for submitting or causing the submission of approximately $2.8 million in false or fraudulent claims to the Medicare program between July 2008 and April 2009. According to court documents, El-Fallal, an unlicensed physician, was approached in July 2008 by co-defendant Muhammad Shahab, the owner and/or operator of two home health agencies, Patient Choice Home Healthcare Inc. and All American Home Care Inc. Patient Choice and All American purported to provide home health services, including physical and occupational therapy services, to Medicare beneficiaries, which were then billed to Medicare.
To bill Medicare for home health services, a home health agency must have a physician’s order. El-Fallal admitted in court documents that he entered into an agreement with Shahab under which El-Fallal would sign physician’s orders for Patient Choice and All American using the identity of a licensed physician. El-Fallal worked as a medical assistant with the physician who was suffering from mental illness at the time. According to court documents, El-Fallal was paid approximately $100 by Shahab for therapy orders he signed as the licensed physician. By signing the orders using the physician’s identity, El-Fallal facilitated the ability of Patient Choice and All American to bill Medicare for home health visits that either were not done or were medically unnecessary.
According to court documents, El-Fallal, using the physician’s identity, signed orders that caused approximately $2,802,461 in home health claims by Patient Choice and All American.
Today’s sentence was announced by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Barbara L. McQuade; Special Agent in Charge Andrew G. Arena of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office; and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the HHS Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) Chicago Regional Office.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant Chief John K. Neal and Trial Attorney Gejaa T. Gobena of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The case was investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG, and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, supervised by the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Since its inception in March 2007, Medicare Fraud Strike Force operations in seven districts have obtained indictments of more than 825 individuals and organizations that collectively have billed the Medicare program for more than $2 billion. In addition, HHS’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov/.
Hombre de Miami fue sentenciado a 121 meses en prisión por comprar, vender y utilizar información de tarjetas de crédito robadaRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Juan Javier Càrdenas de Miami fue sentenciado hoy en el Distrito Sur de Florida a 121 meses en prisión por comprar, traficar y poseer información robada de tarjetas de crédito, anunciaron el Secretario de Justicia Auxiliar Lanny A. Breuer de la División Criminal; el Fiscal Federal Wifredo A. Ferrer del Distrito Sur de Florida; el Agente Especial a Cargo Michael K. Fithen del Servicio Secreto de EE.UU., Oficina Local de Miami; y el Agente Especial a Cargo Kenneth T. Jenkins Jr., del Servicio Secreto de EE.UU., División de Investigaciones Criminales.
El Juez Federal de Distrito K. Michael Moore también ordenó que Càrdenas cumpliera 3 años de libertad bajo supervisión después de haber cumplido su sentencia en prisión, pagara una restitución de $106,915 dólares, y pagarà un fallo monetario de $350,000 dólares.
En su audiencia de declaración de culpabilidad ante el Juez Moore el 1º de septiembre de 2010, Càrdenas, 45, admitió que de febrero de 2008 a mayo de 2009, compró información robada de tarjetas de crédito de un coconspirador a través del Internet. Càrdenas revendió dicha información a terceros, también a través del Internet, y los terceros la utilizaron para realizar compras fraudulentas con las tarjetas de crédito. El 27 de mayo de 2009, cuando agentes del Servicio Secreto de EE.UU. allanaron su domicilio, Càrdenas tenía 26,669 números de tarjeta de crédito almacenados en su computadora.
Están a cargo de la acusación en el caso el Fiscal Federal Auxiliar Marc Osborne de la Fiscalía Federal para el Distrito Sur de Florida y el Abogado Litigante Joseph E. Springsteen de la Sección de Delitos de Informática y Propiedad Intelectual de la División Criminal. El caso fue investigado por el Servicio Secreto de EE.UU.
Four Student Aid Lenders Settle False Claims Act Suit for Total of $57.75 MillionRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Four student aid lenders have paid the United States a total of $57.75 million to resolve allegations that they improperly inflated their entitlement to certain interest rate subsidies from the U.S. Department of Education in violation of the False Claims Act, the Justice Department announced today.
The settlements resolve allegations brought in a whistleblower action filed in the Eastern District of Virginia under the False Claims Act, which permits private citizens to bring lawsuits alleging violations of the Act on behalf of the United States and to share in any recovery. The whistleblower suit was filed by Dr. Jon Oberg, a former employee of the Department of Education, who alleged that several lenders participating in the federal student financial aid programs created billing systems that allowed them to receive improperly inflated interest rate subsidies from the Department of Education. The United States did not intervene in this action, which was litigated by the whistleblower, but it provided assistance at many stages of the case, including during the settlement process.
Nelnet Inc. and Nelnet Educational Loan Funding Inc. have paid $47 million to the United States. Southwest Student Services Corp. has paid $5 million. Brazos Higher Education Authority and Brazos Higher Education Service Corp. have paid $4 million. Panhandle Plains Higher Education Authority and Panhandle Plains Management and Servicing Corp. have paid $1.75 million. Dr. Oberg will receive a total of $16.65 million from these settlements.
"Collaboration between the federal government and citizens with knowledge of fraud is important to the successful enforcement of the False Claims Act," said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. "Whistleblowers like Dr. Oberg are critical to our efforts to recover taxpayer money lost to waste, fraud, and abuse."
"The U.S. Attorney’s Office remains committed to assisting ordinary citizens who blow the whistle on wrongdoing by companies that take taxpayer dollars," said Neil MacBride, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. "Through the efforts of one citizen and the government, these lenders will be paying millions back to the government."
This case was handled on behalf of the United States by the Civil Division of the Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, with the assistance of the Department of Education Office of General Counsel.
Department of Justice Moves Forward on President’s Hiring Reform InitiativeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Department of Justice joined representatives from across the federal government to mark the progress made in modernizing the federal workforce hiring process over the past six months. In May, President Obama issued a memorandum that directed federal agencies to modernize how they hire employees by directing agencies to reduce the time it takes to hire an applicant, to begin accepting resumes and to simplify the overall hiring process.
As part of meeting the requirements outlined in the President’s memo, the Department of Justice is providing managers and supervisors with new tools to help them in the hiring process, including online and classroom training for hiring managers. This will enable managers to be better equipped to hire quality candidates, the department said.
"The Department of Justice fully supports the President’s effort to streamline and improve the hiring process," said Mari Barr Santangelo, Chief Human Capital Officer and Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the department’s Justice Management Division. "Through a more efficient and user friendly hiring process, the Department of Justice will be better able to hire quality mission critical personnel such as those who carry out the department’s important law enforcement mission."
The Department of Justice has a wide variety of employment opportunities, including crime lab technicians, prison guards, law enforcement agents, attorneys, secretaries, statisticians and budget analysts.
"Department of Justice hiring managers have worked aggressively with human resources to streamline vacancy announcements across all components. The streamlined announcements are the foundation to improving the federal recruitment and hiring process," said Karin O’Leary, Budget Director of the Department of Justice. "Applicants must understand the process and the qualification requirements—it’s that simple. The new announcements provide an easy platform for our candidates to successfully compete for our positions."
Over the upcoming months, the department will continue to work with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management and the Office of Management and Budget to implement reforms in the hiring process.
California Woman Sentenced to More Than Three Years in Prison for Human Trafficking ChargeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON– Fang Ping Ding was sentenced in federal court late yesterday to 37 months in prison for confiscating the passport, visa and other documents of a woman from the People’s Republic of China in order to maintain control over the victim and force her to work as an unpaid, live-in domestic servant. During the same hearing, Ding’s daughter, Wei Wei Liang, and her son-in-law, Bo Shen, were sentenced to home confinement and probationary sentences, respectively, on related immigration charges of harboring the victim, who entered and remained in the United States illegally, in their Fremont, Calif., home. The court also ordered that the defendants jointly pay the victim $83,866.61 and that Liang and Shen also forfeit $346,000 to the government.
The defendants pleaded guilty on Nov. 1, 2010. Ding admitted that she forced the victim to work without pay by physically abusing her, threatening to falsely report her to law enforcement and maintaining control of her visa and passport. Ding began recruiting the victim in China in December 2007, and eventually brought the victim to the United States in April 2008. All three defendants admitted to harboring the victim in their Fremont home until April 2009. The victim provided cooking, cleaning and child care services. Ding gave the victim’s identity documents to Liang, who kept the documents locked in a bedroom. Ding and Liang also admitted to telling the victim that she needed to remain inside the house because she was an illegal alien. The sentences were handed down by U.S. District Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong in the Northern District of California.
"The defendants deprived the victim of her freedom through physical abuse and psychological intimidation for their own financial benefit," said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. "Their conduct created a condition of modern-day slavery for the victim within the walls of their home. The Department of Justice is committed to vigorously prosecuting cases of human trafficking."
"By being forced to work without pay for more than a year, physically abused and having her visa and passport taken from her, the victim in this case was denied a basic constitutional right that American’s take for granted – freedom," said Melinda Haag, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California. "Not since 1865, when the Thirteenth amendment to the Constitution was ratified, has slavery been tolerated in this country. My office will continue to work diligently to uphold the laws of the United States and ensure everyone’s rights are protected."
"No one should be forced to live in a world of isolation and servitude as this victim was, particularly in a country that prides itself on its freedoms," said Mark Wollman, Special Agent in Charge for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations. "It’s a sad reflection on human greed and heartlessness, that people believe they can engage in this kind of egregious exploitation with impunity. These sentences should send a message to those who traffic in human beings that ICE Homeland Security Investigations and its federal law enforcement partners are committed to protecting those who cannot protect themselves."
The U.S. Attorney filed charges in a superseding information against Ding, 62, Liang, 36, and Shen, 43, all of Fremont, on May 27, 2010. Ding was charged with and pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful conduct regarding documents in furtherance of forced labor. Liang and Shen were each charged with and pleaded guilty to one count of harboring an illegal alien for purposes of private financial gain.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew S. Huang of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California and Trial Attorney Karen Ruckert Lopez of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division prosecuted the case with the assistance of legal assistant Jeanne Carstensen. This case was the result of a joint investigation between the FBI and ICE Homeland Security Investigations that arose from a referral by the Fremont Police Department in coordination with the San Jose Police Department Human Trafficking Task Force.
Combating human trafficking is a top priority of the Department of Justice. In each of the past two fiscal years, the Civil Rights Division, in partnership with U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, has brought record numbers of human trafficking prosecutions. Anyone who suspects instances of human trafficking are encouraged to call the Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-3737-888. Anonymous calls are welcome.
Attorney General Holder Announces Establishment of Office of Tribal Justice as Separate Component Within the Department of JusticeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder today announced the establishment of the Office of Tribal Justice as a separate component within the organizational structure of the Department of Justice. The action underscores the department’s commitment to tribal issues, and is required by the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010, which was signed into law by the president on July 29, 2010. The statute was adopted with the support of the department and the administration.
President Obama declared November 2010 National Native American Heritage Month.
“I am proud to say today we have formally established the Office of Tribal Justice (OTJ) as a component of the Justice Department,” said Attorney General Holder. “In the coming years, OTJ will play an important role in continuing the critical dialogue between the department and tribal governments on matters including public safety. The establishment of OTJ as a permanent component in the department has been a priority for me and this administration, and it is a critical step in our work to improve coordination and collaboration with tribal communities.”
The Office of Tribal Justice was originally established in 1995 as a unit within the Office of the Deputy Attorney General in response to tribal concerns. Since that time, the Office of Tribal Justice has served as the primary channel for tribes to communicate their concerns to the department, helped coordinate policy on Indian affairs both within the department and with other federal agencies, and sought to ensure that the department and its components work with tribes on a government-to-government basis.
The Office of Tribal Justice takes its place today as a standalone, permanent component within the department’s organizational structure, with internal managerial authority and an established reporting structure through the associate and deputy attorneys general. Over the course of the last 15 years, the Office of Tribal Justice has gained wide acceptance and support throughout the government and among Indian tribes. It is recognized by many as the expert within the federal government on a wide variety of legal issues affecting Indian country.
In addition to fulfilling its historical mission, the Office of Tribal Justice continues to play a key role in the department’s ongoing initiative to improve public safety in Indian country. In September, hundreds of American Indian and Alaska Native communities received almost $127 million to enhance law enforcement, bolster justice systems, prevent youth substance abuse, serve sexual assault and elder victims, and support other efforts to combat crime. These grants are the first under the Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation, a new effort combining 10 different Department of Justice grant programs into a single solicitation.
In January 2010, the deputy attorney general directed all U.S. Attorneys’ Offices with districts containing Indian Country (44 out of 93) to: meet and consult with tribes in their district annually; develop an operational plan addressing public safety in Indian country; work closely with tribal law enforcement on improving public safety in tribal communities, and to pay particular attention to violence against women in Indian country and make prosecuting these crimes a priority.
The Office of Tribal Justice continues to fulfill the department and administration’s commitment to a consultation and coordination policy that ensures effective communication with Indian tribes. The director of the office is the official designated to ensure departmental compliance with Executive Order 13175, Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments. The office frequently engages in tribal consultations and related government-to-government communications with leaders from Indian tribes. This engagement has involved representatives from a variety of components including: U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Explosives, the Office of Justice Programs, Office on Violence Against Women and Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.
The Office is currently staffed by a director, Tracy Toulou, two deputy directors and a special assistant, all of whom are serving on detail from other Department components, and its operating expenses are borne by those components. The president’s FY 2011 Budget Request includes additional staff and direct funding for the office. The department intends to consult with tribal leaders in the coming year on the functions and operation of the Office.
The Federal Register announcement, published today, can be found at: www.federalregister.gov/articles/2010/11/17/2010-28947/office-of-tribal-justice .
Virginia Man Sentenced to 96 Months in Prison for Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – A Bedford, Va., man was sentenced today to 96 months in prison and lifetime supervised release for transporting, receiving and possessing child pornography, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Heaphy of the Western District of Virginia.
John Michael Carter, 42, pleaded guilty on Aug. 5, 2010, in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Virginia to one count of transportation of child pornography, one count of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.
At the plea hearing, Carter admitted that he was a member of two online bulletin boards dedicated to the trading of child pornography. After he was identified by law enforcement authorities, Carter admitted to viewing child pornography on his computer, including still pictures and movies that featured young girls having sex with adult males. Forensic examination of Carter’s computer revealed the presence of files containing images of child pornography and search terms associated with child pornography websites.
Carter was identified through "Operation Joint Hammer," the U.S. component of an ongoing global enforcement operation targeting transnational rings of child pornographers. The operation has led to the arrest of more than 60 people in the United States involved in the trade of child pornography. Operation Joint Hammer was initiated through evidence developed by European law enforcement and shared with U.S. counterparts by Europol and Interpol. The European portion of this global enforcement effort, "Operation Koala," was launched after the discovery of the activities of several people in Europe who were abusing children and producing photographs of the abuse for commercial gain. Further investigation unveiled a number of online child pornography rings.
The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.
This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Anitha S. Ibrahim of CEOS and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy Healey of the Western District of Virginia. The investigation is being handled by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Former Humanitarian Workers Convicted for International Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Two former humanitarian aid workers were convicted today for defrauding the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) of $1.9 million, announced Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division Lanny A. Breuer and U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. of the District of Columbia.
Morris B. Fahnbulleh, 40, and Joe O. Bondo, 39, both of Monrovia, Liberia, were each convicted on one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, four counts of mail fraud, two counts of wire fraud and four false claims counts. Fahnbulleh was also convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Bondo was also convicted of two counts of witness tampering. Fahnbulleh and Bondo have been in custody since their arrests in 2009. U.S. District Court Judge Reggie B. Walton scheduled sentencing for Feb. 3, 2011. At sentencing, the defendants face up to 20 years in prison.
“Rather than help their fellow citizens in need, these defendants sold food intended as aid and pocketed the proceeds,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer. “But their criminal scheme was uncovered, due in large part to the cooperation provided by World Vision, and today they have been held accountable. Fraud involving taxpayer funds, whether in the United States or abroad, will not go unpunished.”
“Corruption is a disease and this case has ramifications far beyond its dollar amount,” U.S. Attorney Machen said. “The work of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Department of Justice and USAID’s Office of Inspector General demonstrates the United States’ commitment to ensure that humanitarian aid worldwide is delivered to its intended recipients. Crimes like these leave behind thousands of victims and a legacy of cynicism and distrust. Today, hopefully we have redeemed some of that trust and sent a message that if you engage in this sort of corruption, you will be held accountable.”
After Liberia’s 14-year civil war, USAID awarded a grant in 2005, through Catholic Relief Services, to World Vision, an international non-profit Christian humanitarian foundation. The grant was a two-year humanitarian project in Liberia for community reconstruction projects. Under the agreement, Fahnbulleh and Bondo were assigned to supervise World Vision employees as they assisted Liberian communities with infrastructure projects, including road, latrine and water well construction. In return for their labor, USAID, through World Vision, was supposed to then distribute food to the residents of these communities.
However, in 2008, an internal audit conducted by World Vision revealed that up to 91 percent of the food never reached its intended beneficiaries. According to the trial evidence, the defendants sold the food and pocketed the proceeds; they then instructed World Vision employees to falsify the documents used to track food distributions. The defendants also directed USAID-salaried employees to perform work on their personal compounds and further concealed these activities from World Vision headquarters, Catholic Relief Services and USAID by intimidating the World Vision employees with threats of job loss and by paying some subordinates “hush money” to cement their silence and cooperation.
“USAID entrusted World Vision to carry out this important humanitarian assistance and unfortunately some of its employees violated that trust,” said Howard “Ike” Hendershot, USAID Assistant Inspector General for Investigations. “The convictions are an outstanding accomplishment for our office and an example of the positive relationship that we have with the Department of Justice.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Borchert of the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Liam Brennan of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs assisted in the case. The investigation was conducted by USAID Office of the Inspector General. World Vision also provided assistance.
Former Executives from Two Japanese Airlines Indicted in Conspiracy to Fix Rates on Air Cargo ShipmentsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON — An Atlanta grand jury returned an indictment today against a former executive of Japan Airlines International Co. Ltd. (JAL) and two former executives of Nippon Cargo Airlines Co. Ltd. for participating in a conspiracy to fix and coordinate components of rates for air cargo shipments to and from the United States, the Department of Justice announced today.
The indictment, returned today in U.S. District Court in Atlanta, charges Takao Fukuchi, former president of JAL Cargo Sales, and Yoshio Kunugi and Naoshige Makino, both former senior executives for Nippon Cargo Airlines, with conspiring with others to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing and coordinating certain components of cargo rates charged to customers for international air shipments to and from the United States. Fukuchi and Kunugi are charged with entering into and participating in the conspiracy from at least as early as December 1999 until at least February 2006. Makino is charged with joining and participating in the conspiracy from at least as early as June 2001 until at least February 2006.
Air cargo carriers transport a variety of cargo shipments, such as heavy equipment, perishable commodities and consumer goods, on scheduled international flights.
According to the indictment, Fukuchi, Kunugi, Makino and co-conspirators participated in meetings, conversations and communications to discuss and fix certain components of cargo rates and coordinated the timing of changes to those rates. As part of the conspiracy, Fukuchi, Kunugi, Makino and co-conspirators implemented collusive cargo rates in accordance with the agreements reached, and accepted payments for shipments at collusive and noncompetitive rates.
Fukuchi, Kunugi and Makino are charged with price fixing in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum penalty for each individual of 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine. 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.
A total of 19 airlines and 17 executives, including Fukuchi, Kunugi and Makino, have been charged in the Justice Department’s ongoing investigation into price fixing in the air transportation industry. To date, more than $1.7 billion in criminal fines have been imposed and four executives have been sentenced to serve prison time. Charges are pending against 13 executives, including Fukuchi, Kunugi and Makino.
Today’s charge is the result of a joint investigation into the air transportation industry being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section and Atlanta Field Office, the FBI’s field offices in Washington and Atlanta, the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General. Anyone with information concerning price fixing or other anticompetitive conduct in the air transportation industry is urged to call the Antitrust Division’s National Criminal Enforcement Section at 202-307-6694 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.htm, or call the FBI’s Washington Field Office at 202-278-2000.
Alabama Man Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud and Identity TheftRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Jeffery Leon Ceaser, a resident of Montgomery, Ala., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to defraud the United States and one count of identity theft, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today. The guilty plea took place in U.S. District Court in Montgomery.
According to charging documents, between March 2009 and September 2009, Ceaser conspired with others to defraud the United States by filing 158 false federal income tax returns. Ceaser fraudulently obtained names and social security numbers of individuals, and provided that information to a co-conspirator who filed the false tax returns without authorization from the individuals. The tax returns falsely claimed the first-time home buyer’s tax credit and fuel tax credits. The refunds from the false returns were deposited into bank accounts controlled by Ceaser and other co-conspirators. In total, the IRS disbursed $621,738 in false tax refunds.
No sentencing date has been scheduled. Ceaser faces a maximum of 25 years in prison.
The case was investigated by Special Agents of the IRS, Criminal Investigation. Trial Attorneys Jason Poole and Michael Boteler of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
More information about the Justice Department’s Tax Division and its enforcement efforts is available at HYPERLINK " http://www.usdoj.gov/tax/ " www.usdoj.gov/tax.
Rochester, New York, Contractor Convicted of Illegal Asbestos Removal and False Statements to OSHARead the Press Release
WASHINGTON -A jury in Rochester, N.Y., convicted Keith Gordon-Smith, and his Rochester-based asbestos abatement company, Gordon-Smith Contracting, Inc. (GSCI) of eight counts of knowing violations of the Clean Air Act asbestos work practice standards. The jury also convicted Gordon-Smith and GSCI of lying to hide the violations at a demolition site in Rochester.
“Gordon-Smith knowingly exposed workers and public areas to the toxic air pollutant asbestos,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice. “The verdict should send a strong message to those in the asbestos abatement industry. We have zero tolerance for violations of the Clean Air Act asbestos work practice standards.”
After a three-week trial, the jury convicted Gordon-Smith of two counts of causing GSCI workers to violate asbestos work practice standards at the west wing of the Genesee Hospital complex located in Rochester. The west wing was scheduled to be demolished in summer 2009. The first violations took place between January and May 2007, when Gordon-Smith ordered GSCI workers to tear out copper pipes, ceiling tiles and scrap metal from the west wing, a six-story structure that contained over 70,000 square feet of asbestos. Gordon-Smith had a contract with the site owner that provided him with 50 percent of the salvage value of all copper pipe and scrap metal. When the workers removed the pipes and scrap metal, they were repeatedly exposed to asbestos, described to the jurors as falling on them “like snow.” The workers were not wearing any protective clothing and would often wear the asbestos-contaminated clothing back to their homes after work.
The jury convicted Gordon-Smith and the company of making false statements to an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspector who had received complaints from GSCI workers. The OSHA inspector visited the site three times in September and October 2007, and on each occasion Gordon-Smith lied and told her that GSCI workers had not removed any copper pipes or other materials from the west wing.
The jury also convicted Gordon-Smith and his company of causing GSCI workers to illegally remove and dispose of asbestos during the actual asbestos abatement at the west wing, from May 2007 until February 2009. Francis Rowe, a former project manager for GSCI, had been charged with one count of causing illegal asbestos removal and disposal from March 2008 until February 2009, and was acquitted of that charge.
“Exposure to asbestos can be fatal and the government will not tolerate illegal activity that puts the public at risk of cancer or other serious respiratory diseases,” said William V. Lometti, Special Agent-in-Charge for EPA Office of Criminal Enforcement in the New York region. “The message is clear that those who endanger human health and the environment will be vigorously prosecuted.”
During the illegal removal, the asbestos was allowed to flow from upper floors through drains and holes in containment. Large amounts of asbestos were left hidden in the west wing and were never disposed off-site at an EPA-approved site. Gordon-Smith was fired from the site in February 2009. A special agent from EPA Criminal Investigation Division inspected the west wing in April 2009 and shut the site down immediately. The building was subsequently abated properly by another contractor and demolished in September 2010.
Gordon-Smith and the company were also convicted of six counts of failing to provide required notice to EPA prior to commencing asbestos abatement projects at six different sites in the Rochester area, between 2005 and June 2008. The sites included the west wing of the Genesee Hospital Complex, Cobbles Elementary School in Penfield, Bloomfield Elementary School in East Bloomfield, the Al Sigl Center in Rochester, and the Hillside Children’s Center in Varick.
Asbestos work practice standards under the Clean Air Act require that all asbestos be removed from any structure where it may be disturbed, such as the areas of the west wing where GSCI workers were ordered to remove pipes contaminated with asbestos. While asbestos is removed during abatement, it must be wetted and kept adequately wet at all times and disposed of as soon as practical at an EPA-approved site.
Gordon-Smith faces criminal penalties of up to five years imprisonment for each count and as well as criminal fines up to $250,000 per count. GSCI faces a criminal fine of up to $500,000 per count.
The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York with the Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice. The case was investigated by the U.S. EPA Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General. Criminal investigators were assisted by OSHA and the New York Department of Labor Asbestos Control Bureau.
Any person who was, at some time, present in the west wing of the former Genesee Hospital during the time period Jan. 1, 2007, to present may have been exposed to the asbestos therein. Affected persons have the right to attend any public court proceedings. For more information, please refer to the website of the U.S. Attorney's Office at www.usdoj.gov/usao/nyw or call 1-800-799-6033.
Justice Department Makes the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design Available to Online Viewers NationwideRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today made available online the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design (2010 Standards or Standards). These standards were adopted as part of the revised regulations for Title II and Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). The standards can be found at www.ada.gov/2010ADAstandards_index.htm.
When the standards go into effect on March 15, 2012, they will set minimum requirements – both scoping and technical – for new construction and alterations of the facilities of more than 80,000 state and local governments and over seven million businesses. Until the 2012 compliance date, entities have the option to use the revised standards to plan current and future projects so that their buildings and facilities are accessible to more than 54 million Americans with disabilities.
“To protect the right of people with disabilities to participate in everyday life with family, friends, and colleagues, we must ensure access to buildings and facilities,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division. “This online version of the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design will enable architects, contractors, local government service providers, small business owners, disability rights advocates, and others to find in one place the information they need to provide that accessibility. Whether they search the standards on laptops, desktops or smart phones, in offices, in the field or at home, they can find answers to their questions quickly and efficiently.”
On July 26, 2010, the 20th anniversary of the ADA, President Obama announced newly revised ADA regulations. The final regulations were published in the Federal Register on Sept. 15, 2010. The 2010 Standards, which were adopted as part of the revised regulations, consist of regulatory text and the 2004 ADA Accessibility Guidelines, originally published in the Federal Register as 36 CFR part 1191, appendices B and D. To make it easier for readers to find the necessary requirements for their projects, the department assembled this online version that brings together the information in one easy-to-access location and enables viewers to search the text efficiently with their Internet browsers.
In addition to the official version of the 2010 Standards, the department has also posted on the website important guidance about the standards that is compiled from material in the Title II and Title III regulations. This guidance provides detailed information about the department’s adoption of the 2010 Standards, including changes to the standards, the reasoning behind those changes, and response to public comments received on these topics.
Title II of the ADA applies to state and local government entities and protects qualified individuals with disabilities from discrimination on the basis of disability in services, programs, and activities provided by state and local government entities.
Title III prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in the activities of places of public accommodation (businesses that are generally open to the public and that fall into one of twelve categories listed in the ADA, such as restaurants, movie theaters, schools, day care facilities, recreational facilities and doctors’ offices) and requires newly constructed or altered places of public accommodation—as well as commercial facilities (privately owned, nonresidential facilities like factories, warehouses or office buildings)—to comply with the ADA Standards.
People interested in finding out more about the ADA or the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design can call the toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (Voice) or 800-514-0383 (TTY), or access the ADA website at www.ada.gov.
Former U.S. Air Force Airman Convicted of Second Degree Murder of Army Sergeant in GermanyRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Rico Rodrigus Williams, 33, a former Air Force senior airman, was convicted today of second degree murder and witness tampering charges in connection with the death of Army Sergeant Juwan Johnson in Hohenecken, Germany, in 2005, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. of the District of Columbia and Brigadier General Kevin J. Jacobsen, Commander of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
Following a 16-day trial in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, a jury convicted Williams of one count of second degree murder and one count of witness tampering. Williams was acquitted of a second count of witness tampering. U.S. District Judge Paul L. Friedman has not yet scheduled a sentencing date. The defendant faces up to life in prison.
According to the government’s evidence, Williams was the leader of a gang, the Gangster Disciples sect, in Ramstein, Germany. On July 3, 2005, Williams and others gathered in the small town of Hohenecken near the Ramstein Air Base, and killed 25-year-old Johnson in a gang initiation ceremony.
Evidence presented at trial showed that the defendant and others struck Johnson with their fists and kicked him. Johnson died the following day from blunt force trauma injuries, including hemorrhaging to the brain and heart.
According to evidence presented at trial, Williams later attempted to intimidate and made threats to another witness with the intent to hinder communication to law enforcement regarding Johnson’s death.
Williams is the sixth person to be convicted of charges in the investigation into Johnson’s death. Airman Nicholas Sims, Army Private Terrance Norman and Army Sergeant Rodney Howell were convicted in military court proceedings of involuntary manslaughter. Airman Jerome Jones was convicted in military court proceedings of conspiracy to commit assault, obstruction of justice, gang participation and other charges. Army Specialist Bobby Morissette was convicted in military court proceedings of gang participation and other charges.
“Today, a federal jury has held Rico Williams accountable for his role in the senseless and tragic death of Army Sergeant Johnson,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer. “Gang-related violence shatters the lives of far too many Americans, including those abroad. The Justice Department is committed to ensuring that criminals who participate in such heinous acts are punished for their crimes.”
“Rico Williams led the Gangster Disciples in a savage gang-initiation ritual that led to the beating death of Army Sergeant Johnson,” U.S. Attorney Machen stated. “These guilty verdicts make him the sixth person to be convicted in connection with his brutal beating death. We hope this conviction brings some measure of justice for Sergeant Johnson and his family.”
The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Christine Duey of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Debra Long-Doyle of the District of Columbia. The case was investigated by the Air Force Office of Special Investigations and the Chesapeake Police Department.
Former Abramoff Colleague Kevin Ring Convicted of Conspiracy, Honest Services Fraud and Paying Gratuities Related to Illegal Lobbying SchemeRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – Today a federal jury in Washington convicted Kevin A. Ring, a former lobbyist who worked with Jack A. Abramoff, on five counts related to a scheme to corrupt public officials by providing a stream of things of value, the Department of Justice announced.
The jury found Ring guilty on one count of conspiring to corrupt congressional and executive branch officials by providing things of value to them and their staff in order to induce or reward those who took official actions benefitting Ring and his clients. In addition, Ring was convicted of one count of paying a gratuity to a public official and three counts of honest services wire fraud for engaging in a scheme to deprive U.S. citizens of their right to the honest services of certain public officials. The jury acquitted Ring on three counts of honest services fraud. A previous federal jury failed to reach a verdict in the case and the court declared a mistrial.
“Through the talent and hard work of prosecutors from the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity and Fraud Sections, another member of ‘Team Abramoff’ has been held accountable for his actions. For years, this team of lobbyists schemed to corrupt public officials, and, because of their actions, Americans were denied the honest services of public servants,” said Mythili Raman, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division. “Through the continued vigilance of our prosecutors and our law enforcement partners, we are committed to bringing to justice those who seek to corrupt our democratic process.”
“The public trusts that government processes will be untainted by those who would seek to corrupt them,” said John G. Perren, Acting Assistant Director of the FBI’s Washington Field Office. “The FBI will vigorously investigate those who seek to disregard the laws that our country was built on and illegally influence those in office.”
“The Office of the Inspector General is committed to holding accountable those who engage in illegal conduct as part of schemes to corrupt public officials,” said Glenn A. Fine, Inspector General for the Department of Justice.According to evidence presented at trial, as a lobbyist working in Washington, Ring solicited and obtained business throughout the United States, including with Native American tribal governments operating and interested in operating gambling casinos. Trial testimony established that Ring sought to further his clients’ interests by lobbying public officials in the legislative and executive branches of the federal government.
Ring and his co-conspirators identified public officials who would perform official actions that would assist Ring and his clients, and then groomed those public officials by providing things of value with the intent of making those public officials more receptive to requests on behalf of their clients in the future. Evidence presented at trial showed that Ring and his co-conspirators provided things of value as a means of influencing, inducing and rewarding official actions, and in exchange for official actions. These things of value included all-expenses-paid travel, meals, drinks, golf outings, tickets to professional sporting events, concerts and other events, and an employment opportunity for the wife of a congressman. According to evidence introduced at trial, these things of value were often billed to Ring’s and Abramoff’s clients. Evidence established that Ring and his co-conspirators engaged in this illegal conduct with current and former congressional staff members, including chiefs of staff, as well as officials at the Department of Justice and the White House.
Evidence at trial demonstrated the nature of Ring’s lobbying efforts and his attempts to corrupt and reward public officials. In one e-mail message, Ring instructed his co-conspirators to “thank your friends on the Hill and in the Administration. In fact, thank them over and over again this week – preferably for long periods of time and at expensive establishments.” On another occasion, Ring described to a co-conspirator lobbyist what he expected of a public official who had attended a sporting event: “Glad he got a chance to relax. Now he can pay us back.” Similarly, Ring e-mailed a co-conspirator public official and stated: “You are going to eat free off our clients. Need to get us some [appropriations] money.” Testimony at trial from Ring’s co-conspirators described Ring joking about things of value he used to corrupt public officials by saying, “Hello quid, where’s the pro quo.”
Evidence presented at trial demonstrated that Ring corruptly sought assistance from public officials on numerous client projects, such as appropriations and authorizations, congressional letters to executive branch entities, as well as meetings and other legislative and official actions. Evidence at trial showed that Ring’s corrupt actions resulted in his clients receiving, among other actions, $14 million in congressional transportation appropriations and an additional $7 million from the Department of Justice to build a jail.
Ring faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison for conspiracy, two years in prison for payment of a gratuity and 20 years in prison for each of the three counts of honest services wire fraud. Ring could also be ordered to pay a fine of up to $250,000 on each count of conviction. U.S. District Judge Ellen S. Huvelle scheduled sentencing for Mar. 1, 2011, at 2 p.m.
Ring remains charged with an additional two counts of obstructing justice. Those charges stem from alleged efforts by Ring to thwart a grand jury and congressional investigation by preventing the reporting of his criminal conduct to federal authorities. The court severed those two counts and Ring is scheduled to stand trial at a later date. Ring is presumed innocent of these charges until proven guilty in a court of law.
To date, 20 individuals, including lobbyists and public officials, have pleaded guilty, been convicted at trial, or are awaiting trial in connection with the ongoing investigation into the activities of Abramoff and his associates. Abramoff pleaded guilty in January 2006 to conspiracy to commit honest services fraud, honest services fraud and tax evasion. He was sentenced in September 2008 to 48 months in prison.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Chief Nathaniel B. Edmonds of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Trial Attorney Peter Koski of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section. The investigation of this case is being conducted by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General.
Department of Justice and USDA Announce Registration for Competition Workshop in Washington, D.C.Read the Press Release
WASHINGTON — The Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced additional details for the Dec. 8, 2010, public workshop in Washington, which will examine the issue of margins at various levels of the agricultural supply chain. The workshop will be held in the Jefferson Auditorium at USDA, which is accessible through a designated entrance on Independence Avenue between 12th and 14th Streets, S.W.
This is the fifth in a series of five workshops intended to promote dialogue among interested parties and foster learning with respect to competition and regulatory issues in agriculture. The first workshop was held in March in Ankeny, Iowa, with a focus on row crops and hogs. Held in Normal, Ala, in May, the second workshop addressed issues in the poultry industry. The third workshop focused on issues in the dairy industry and was held in Madison, Wis., in June. The fourth workshop, held in August in Fort Collins, Colo., looked at the livestock industry.
The workshops, which were first announced by Attorney General Eric Holder and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Aug. 5, 2009, are the first joint Department of Justice/USDA workshops ever to be held to discuss competition and regulatory issues in the agriculture industry.
Attendance at the workshops is free and open to the public. The general public and media interested in attending the Washington workshop on Dec. 8, 2010, should register at www.surveymonkey.com/s/marginsworkshop.
The workshop will begin with opening remarks from U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division Christine Varney. The workshop will then move on to a series of panels discussing topics such as supply chain dynamics, issues in food retailing and margins in the beef, pork, poultry and dairy industries. Each panel will feature producers and industry representatives as well as academics with extensive research experience in the relevant field. Additionally, there will be two opportunities for public testimony from those attending the workshop.
Additional details on the schedule and panelists will be provided at a later date. For further information, including submitted public comments, transcripts and videos for past workshops, please visit the Antitrust Division’s agriculture workshop website at www.justice.gov/atr/public/workshops/ag2010/index.htm or contact [email protected].