District Not Recorded
The source did not name an office we could identify. These records remain unassigned rather than guessed.
Former General Manager for U.S. Defense Contractor Sentenced to 87 Months for Selling Stolen Trade Secrets to Russian BrokerRead the Press Release
Today, Peter Williams, 39, an Australian national, was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to 87 months in prison for selling his employer’s trade secrets — sensitive and protected cyber-exploit components — to a Russian cyber-tools broker, announced the Department of Justice. In addition to the 87-month prison term, U.S. District Court Judge AliKhan for the District of Columbia ordered Williams to serve three years of supervised release with special conditions, to forfeit a money judgment of $1.3 million, cryptocurrency and property to include a house, and luxury items such as watches and jewelry. The Court also set a restitution hearing for May 12, 2026.
“Williams exploited his senior role at a U.S. defense contractor to enrich himself at the expense of the United States and his employer,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “The tools he compromised were intended to protect this Nation; instead, he auctioned them off to a Russian bidder. We are committed to ensuring that those who abuse their access to sensitive information and thereby harm our national security face severe consequences.”
“Peter Williams stole a U.S. defense contractor’s trade secrets about highly sensitive cyber capabilities and sold them to a broker whose clients include the Russian government, putting our national security and countless potential victims at risk,” said Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division. “The FBI and our partners remain unwavering in our commitment to protecting America’s critical technologies, and we will ensure any who attempt to profit at our nation’s expense face the full weight of the criminal justice system. Let this be a clear warning to all who consider placing greed over country: If you betray your position of trust and sell sensitive American technology to our foreign adversaries, the FBI will not rest until you’re brought to justice.”
“Williams took trade secrets comprised of national security software and sold them for up to $4 million in crypto currency. These incredibly powerful tools would have allowed Russia to access millions of digital devices,” said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro for the District of Columbia. “By betraying a position of trust and selling sensitive American technology, Williams’ crime is not only one of theft, it is a crime of national security. Our nation’s defense capabilities are not commodities to be auctioned off. People like Williams who endanger our national security will be met with swift and decisive consequences.”
On Oct. 29, 2025, Williams pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to two counts of theft of trade secrets. As part of his plea agreement, Williams admitted that he stole eight cyber-exploit components over a three-year period from the U.S. defense contractor where he worked. This national-security focused software was meant to be sold exclusively to the U.S. government and select allies. Williams admitted that he sold the trade secrets to a Russian cyber-tools broker in exchange for cryptocurrency payments, which he used to buy valuable items, such as luxury vacations, jewelry, watches, clothing, and properties.
To effectuate these sales, Williams entered into multiple written contracts with the Russian broker, which involved payment for the initial sale of the components, and additional periodic payments for follow-on support. Williams transferred the eight components and trade secrets to the Russian broker through encrypted means. This cyber-tools broker publicly advertises itself as a reseller of cyber exploits to various customers, including the Russian government. Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Department of State took separate actions to disrupt a Russian cyber-tools broker and its operators.
Williams admitted that his actions cost the government contractor a financial loss of $35 million dollars. Williams’ conduct also had significant impact on the government contractor’s customers, to include U.S. government and allied government customers. In issuing her sentence today District Court Judge AliKhan stated, “Theft of trade secrets from a company that sells national security-focused cyber and intelligence software to the U.S. government and allied governments necessarily implicates national security, and Mr. Williams indeed acknowledges that his actions caused harm to the intelligence communities, both in the U.S. and Australia.”
This case was investigated by the FBI Baltimore Field Office. The matter is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tejpal Chawla and Jason McCullough for the District of Columbia, Trial Attorney Prava Palacharla for the National Security Division’s (NSD) National Security Cyber Section, and Trial Attorney Nicholas Hunter for NSD’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.
Substantial assistance was also provided by U.S. Attorney Scott Bradford for the District of Oregon prior to his current appointment, and by paralegal Mariela Andrade.
Federal Court Sentences Guam Brothers and a Mexican Illegal Alien for Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Hagåtña, Guam – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announces that the U.S. District Court of Guam has imposed sentences on defendants involved in a multi‑state drug‑trafficking and money‑laundering conspiracy operating between Guam and the U.S. mainland.
Jeremy Laitan Cruz, age 40, from Dededo, Guam was sentenced on February 23, 2026 to 120 months imprisonment for his role. He was convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute Fifty or More Grams of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841(a)(1), and (b)(1)(A)(viii), and Conspiracy to Engage in Monetary Transactions with Proceeds of Specified Unlawful Activity, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1956(h) and 2. The Court also imposed five years of supervised release, 50 hours of community service, and $200 special assessment fee.
Eric Shawn Cruz, age 35, of Dededo, Guam, previously pleaded guilty and sentenced on October 9, 2025, to 120 months imprisonment for Conspiracy to Distribute Fifty (50) or More Grams of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride (Count 1), in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846, 841 (a)(1) and (b)(1)(A)(viii) and Conspiracy to Engage in Monetary Transactions with Proceeds of Specified Unlawful Activity (Count 34), in violation of 18 U.S.C § 1956(h) and 2. The Court also imposed five years of supervised release, 50 hours of community service, and $200 special assessment fee.
Jonovan Michael Cruz, age 33, from Dededo, Guam, was a co‑defendant and sibling of Jeremy and Eric. His case was dismissed due to his untimely passing.
Jose Quevedo Salazar, age 33, a citizen of Mexico and an illegal alien in the United States, residing in Florida, previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced on October 9, 2025, to 24 months imprisonment, with credit for time served, for Conspiracy to Engage in Monetary Transactions with Proceeds of Specified Unlawful Activity, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1956(h) and 2. The Court also imposed one year of supervised release, 50 hours of community service, and $100 special assessment fee.
From at least September 3, 2023, to September 12, 2023, Jeremy Cruz and his brothers Jonovan and Eric conspired to distribute methamphetamine on Guam. The brothers coordinated the purchase of methamphetamine from the U.S. mainland, arranged for its shipment to Guam, and planned to distribute the drugs locally while sharing the proceeds.
Investigators found that the conspirators used Facebook Messenger to coordinate shipment, pricing, and distribution. In early September 2023, Eric Cruz—then residing in Florida—mailed a parcel containing approximately 228 grams of methamphetamine to a Guam address provided by Jeremy Cruz. Jonovan and Jeremy exchanged tracking information, and a screenshot of the tracking number was inadvertently posted publicly on social media.
On September 12, 2023, federal agents located the parcel upon its arrival in Guam, obtained a search warrant, and seized the methamphetamine before delivery. The brothers exchanged messages afterward expressing concern that the shipment had been intercepted.
From at least July 2023 through October 23, 2023, Jeremy Cruz, his brothers, and Salazar engaged in a money‑laundering scheme designed to conceal the source and ownership of proceeds from methamphetamine distribution. Cruz, his brothers, and Salazar used multiple intermediaries and methods to move funds between Guam, Florida, and California, disguising the illicit nature of the transactions.
“We will continue our aggressive enforcement efforts against drug traffickers who use our mail system to facilitate their illegal activity,” stated United States Attorney Anderson. “Anyone involved with the shipment of drugs in the mail can become the target of an investigation and face substantial time in a federal prison. This case demonstrates effective law enforcement in combatting drug trafficking across multiple jurisdictions. I applaud the efforts of our agency partners in this successful operation.”
“Today’s sentencing sends a stern warning to all drug traffickers who peddle drugs and endanger the safety and wellbeing of our island communities. There will be accountability for your actions, and these types of illicit activities will not be tolerated,” said Anthony Chrysanthis, Special Agent in Charge for the DEA Los Angeles Field Division, which oversees Guam. “Our successful partnerships and collaboration with federal, state and local agencies underscore DEA’s unwavering commitment to protect the United States by disrupting the illicit methamphetamine supply chain, reducing its availability, and saving lives.”
“Our message with the sentencing of Jeremy Laitan Cruz is clear: We will aggressively investigate and bring to justice every individual using the U.S. Mail to transport crystal methamphetamine into Guam,” said Stephen Sherwood, Postal Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s San Francisco Division. “Achieving successful case resolutions in Guam such as with U.S. v. Cruz, et al., is only possible due to our strong partnerships with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Guam, members of the Guam Interdictions and Anti-Narcotics Trafficking (GIANT) Task Force, and our federal law enforcement partners. The GIANT Task Force Members include the Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency, Guam Police Department, and Guam Army National Guard Counter Drug Program.”
The investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Postal Inspection Service, with assistance from the Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency and the Guam Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorney Benjamin K. Petersburg prosecuted the case in the District of Guam.
Arizona Surgical Hospital Agrees to Pay $5.6M to Resolve Alleged False Claims Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
Southwest Orthopedic and Spine Hospital LLC doing business as OASIS Hospital (OASIS), United Surgical Partners International Inc. (USPI), and Dignity/USP Phoenix Surgery Centers LLC, have agreed to pay $5.6 million to resolve alleged False Claims Act violations relating to improper financial relationships between OASIS and Southwest Orthopedic and Spine Hospital Physicians Group LLC (Southwest Physicians). OASIS is a surgical hospital located in Phoenix, Arizona. USPI disclosed the arrangements at issue to the government following a 2019 internal compliance review and independent investigation.
The settlement resolves allegations that from 2011 through 2018 OASIS made improper financial contributions to Southwest Physicians, a physician group that referred patients to OASIS. Those financial contributions allegedly took the form of interest payments on convertible bonds issued to the physicians’ group. The United States alleged that these arrangements violated both the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) and the Physician Self-Referral Law, commonly known as the Stark Law. The AKS prohibits the provision of remuneration to induce the referral of services or items that are paid for by a federal health care program. The Stark Law prohibits hospitals from billing for certain services referred by physicians with whom the hospital has a financial relationship, unless that relationship satisfies one of the law’s statutory or regulatory exceptions. A claim submitted in violation of the AKS or the Stark Law can also violate the False Claims Act.
“The AKS and Stark Law are designed to ensure that decisions about patient care are not influenced by physicians’ personal financial interest,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “As this settlement reflects, we will hold accountable those who violate these important safeguards, but we will also give credit when resolving such misconduct to those who fully disclose their mistakes, take appropriate remedial actions, and meaningfully cooperate with the government’s investigation.”
“Kickback schemes undermine the medical decision-making of medical professionals – including physicians – when such professional judgements should only serve the health and well-being of patients,” said Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Scott J. Lampert at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Both those who pay and those who receive kickbacks enrich themselves from such deals, but these schemes are corrosive to the integrity of our health care system and drive up the cost of health care for all of us. HHS-OIG will continue to collaborate with our law enforcement partners to protect taxpayer-funded health care programs and the millions of people in our country who rely on them.”
In connection with the settlement, the United States acknowledged that OASIS and USPI took a number of significant steps entitling them to credit for cooperating with the government. Following an internal compliance review and independent investigation, OASIS and USPI promptly took remedial actions and disclosed the relevant arrangements to the government. OASIS and USPI also provided the government with a detailed and thorough written disclosure and cooperated with the government throughout its investigation.
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.
The investigation and resolution of this matter illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).
The matter was handled by Fraud Section Senior Trial Counsel David Finkelstein.
The claims resolved by the United States in the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission Seek Public Comment for Guidance on Business CollaborationsRead the Press Release
Today, the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) launched a joint public inquiry regarding potential additional guidance on collaborations among competitors. The joint inquiry seeks input on the value and potential content of guidance concerning the range of collaborations utilized to drive innovation and promote competition in the modern economy.
This public inquiry will help the Antitrust Division and FTC (together, the Agencies) with their effort to develop up-to-date guidance to the business community, building on the previous 2000 Antitrust Guidelines for Collaborations Among Competitors (2000 Collaboration Guidelines). The guidelines explain how the Agencies analyze various antitrust issues raised by such collaborations. The 2000 Guidelines were withdrawn in December 2024.
“Vigorous and effective enforcement can only exist when the rules of the road are clearly outlined,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Omeed A. Assefi of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Procompetitive collaborations are not only permissible but also encouraged in a complex and dynamic economic environment. The abrupt withdrawal of the prior guidelines left stakeholders without guidance in this important area. Replacing the withdrawn guidelines is key to promoting certainty, allowing American businesses to work together effectively and lawfully, and enabling the private antitrust bar to enhance compliance in this area.”
“In an everchanging economy, businesses need transparency and predictability from enforcers more than ever. These times may require the federal government to update its guidelines,” said FTC Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson. “The previous administration decided, at the 11th hour, however, to withdraw the 2000 Antitrust Guidelines for Collaborations Among Competitors. This decision, made entirely out of spite and resentment, left millions of businesses in the dark.”
Many collaborations and joint ventures among competitors are procompetitive and benefit the economy and consumers by allowing expansion into new markets, enabling investment into innovation, and lowering production and other costs. However, some collaborations carry potential risk to competition. The 2024 withdrawal of the prior guidelines left the industry without guidance in this important area.
In recent years, new types of competitor collaborations, joint ventures, and alliances, including those facilitated by new technologies, have led to increased requests for clarity regarding their treatment under the antitrust laws.
Some of the specific areas of inquiry on which the Agencies are seeking public input and information include:
- What topics would benefit from additional guidance — for example, joint licensing arrangements? Conditional dealing with competitors? Other topics?
- What new technologies and business models would benefit from additional guidance — for example, algorithmic pricing, information and data sharing, or labor collaborations?
- What significant legal, economic, or technological developments should be considered in any revisions to the prior competitor collaboration guidelines?
The public comments will help enforcers to consider reintroducing guidance built on the prior guidelines. Such guidance will provide businesses with the predictability and confidence they need to collaborate and grow while avoiding anticompetitive conduct that risks raising prices or stifling innovation. The guidance will help increase antitrust compliance by guiding the market on antitrust law and policy in this important area. An unfettered free market safeguards competition to the benefit of the American people.
Comments, no longer than 18 pages each, can be submitted at www.regulations.gov/docket/ATR-2026-0001/document and must be received no later than April 24, 2026. The information will be used by the Agencies to consider updated guidance.
Justice Department Finds the Special School District of St. Louis’s Seclusion and Restraint Practices Discriminate Against Students with DisabilitiesRead the Press Release
Today, the Justice Department (“the Department”) notified the Special School District of St. Louis, Missouri (“the District”) that it found the District’s seclusion and restraint practices violate Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. After a twenty-one month investigation, the Department concluded that the District discriminates against students with disabilities by routinely subjecting them to ineffective seclusion practices that are highly susceptible to abuse and restraints without justification, rather than providing the interventions and supports they need to receive the education they are guaranteed by federal law.
During the two-year period covered by the investigation, the District secluded over 300 students almost 4,000 times and restrained almost 150 students 777 times. One District school that enrolled less than 100 students used seclusion 1,667 times. Every student who attended that school was secluded or restrained at least once during the investigative period. At another school a student spent 101 hours, or the equivalent of 17 school days, in seclusion during a single school year.
“The Justice Department will not tolerate the abuse of our most vulnerable students,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Parents should not have to worry that their children could be subjected to solitary confinement and dangerous restraint techniques at school because of their disabilities. This Civil Rights Division will put an end to these unlawful practices everywhere we find them.”
These numbers demonstrate that the use of restraint and seclusion is routine, not a crisis response to be used in rare emergencies that pose a safety threat—the only time they are allowed under Missouri law. For example, students were secluded for knocking over a teacher’s coffee, refusing to go into music class, or being “disrespectful.” The Department also found that the District routinely uses seclusion in cases where students engage in self-harm and other concerning behaviors, putting students at serious risk of physical and mental harm. The full findings letter can be found here.
The Department is hopeful the District will agree to the reforms needed to remedy these gross violations of federal law. To that end, the Department has proposed a settlement agreement to the District in conjunction with issuing its findings.
Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt, and additional information about the Civil Rights Division’s Educational Opportunities Section’s work to combat disability discrimination including by improper seclusion and restraint is available at www.justice.gov/crt/educational-opportunities-section.
Members of the public may report possible civil rights violations at www.civilrights.justice.gov/.
Nuclear Weapons Engineer Sentenced for Orchestrating 15-Year Kickback SchemeRead the Press Release
A Kansas man was sentenced yesterday to 29 months in prison for conspiring to fraudulently steer and award subcontracts by a major engineering firm for work on nuclear weapons manufacturing projects for the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Kansas City National Security Campus (KCNSC).
“For more than a decade, the defendant exchanged his integrity and his employer’s trust for kickbacks from a dishonest contractor,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “To satisfy his greed, he corruptly steered contracts that were essential to ensuring the integrity of the nation’s nuclear weapons. Yesterday’s sentence reaffirms the Criminal Division’s commitment to rooting out fraud and corruption related to the procurement and manufacture of critically important products and services for the federal government and, ultimately, for United States taxpayers and to holding those accountable who commit these acts.”
“The Department of Energy Office of Inspector General (DOE-OIG) is committed to ensuring the integrity of Departmental contracts and programs,” said Department of Energy Assistant Inspector General for Investigations Lewe Sessions. “We take allegations of fraud and kickbacks very seriously and will aggressively investigate these matters to ensure integrity throughout DOE programs. We appreciate the efforts of the DOJ in pursuing these allegations and will continue our collaboration with the DOJ to investigative those engaged in fraud or corruption in Department programs.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Michael Clinesmith, 70, of Overland Park, Kansas, solicited and received kickbacks and bribes from Richard Mueller, 65, of St. Charles, Missouri, in exchange for steering subcontracts from Clinesmith’s employer to Mueller’s company (Subcontractor 1). Clinesmith, a long-tenured employee of a major engineering firm (Company 1) working at the KCNSC, was responsible for designing and procuring gages that were specially designed and manufactured to measure the components of nuclear weapons.
Mueller paid Clinesmith over $1 million for surreptitiously performing some or all of the work and, in exchange, Clinesmith used his position and authority at Company 1 to steer gage subcontracts to Subcontractor 1. Clinesmith told Mueller how much money he wanted to perform work under the gage subcontracts, and Subcontractor 1 included those amounts in its bids to Company 1. Clinesmith then approved those bids and told his employer, Company 1, that those bids were fair and reasonable without disclosing that, in exchange for the subcontracts, Mueller would secretly funnel to Clinesmith money awarded to Subcontractor 1. In addition, Clinesmith provided Mueller with insider information, like Company 1’s budget for the gage subcontracts, that Subcontractor 1 used to its advantage when bidding on the subcontracts. In total, Clinesmith accepted over $1.2 million in kickbacks over the course of approximately 15 years.
In October 2025, Clinesmith was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud and honest services wire fraud.
The DOE-OIG investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Andrew Jaco and Shy Jackson of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case.
Justice Department Sues OhioHealth for Anticompetitive Healthcare Contracts That Increase Costs for Ohio PatientsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, together with the Attorney General of Ohio, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today challenging OhioHealth Corporation’s (OhioHealth) anticompetitive contract restrictions that force Ohio patients to pay higher prices for healthcare.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, seeks to enjoin OhioHealth, the largest healthcare system in central Ohio, from enforcing its anticompetitive contractual terms and continuing to suppress healthcare competition.
“Americans deserve low-cost, high-quality healthcare – not anticompetitive hospital system contracts that make healthcare less affordable,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Under President Trump’s leadership, this Department of Justice will continue taking legal action to protect consumers and drive down healthcare costs across America."
“Competition for healthcare is vital to all Americans,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Omeed A. Assefi of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “This lawsuit challenges anticompetitive contract restrictions that prevent consumers from choosing lower-cost health plans and severely limit consumers’ access to price information. These restrictions cause many Columbus residents to pay more for lower-quality healthcare. American families and consumers deserve better. I appreciate the partnership with Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost to challenge these restrictions as we work together to open this important market to the very real benefits of open competition.”
As alleged in the complaint, OhioHealth uses its market power to impose contractual restrictions that impede or completely prevent insurers from offering innovative and money-saving health-insurance plans or plan features. OhioHealth generally forces insurers to include OhioHealth in all of the networks for the commercial insurance products they offer, regardless of how OhioHealth’s prices compare to its competitors, preventing the development of budget-conscious plans in the Columbus area. Without these lower cost and innovative plan options that empower patients to save money by selecting lower-cost providers who still provide high-quality care, patients and employers are faced with fewer health plan choices and higher costs.
OhioHealth owns or manages 16 hospitals and outpatient facilities throughout the State of Ohio.
Former NFL Player and Laboratory Owner Convicted in $328M Genetic Testing Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A federal jury in Dallas convicted a Texas laboratory owner and former NFL player yesterday for his role in a $328 million cardiovascular genetic testing fraud scheme.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Keith J. Gray, 39, of McKinney, Texas, orchestrated a scheme to bill Medicare for medically unnecessary genetic tests designed to evaluate the risk of various cardiovascular diseases and conditions. Gray, the owner and operator of two clinical laboratories, Axis Professional Labs LLC (Axis), and Kingdom Health Laboratory LLC (Kingdom), offered and paid kickbacks to marketers in exchange for their referral of Medicare beneficiaries’ DNA samples, personally identifiable information (including Medicare numbers) and signed test orders from medical providers authorizing the medically unnecessary genetic tests. As part of the scheme, the marketers engaged other companies to solicit Medicare beneficiaries through telemarketing and to engage in “doctor chase,” i.e., to obtain the identity of beneficiaries’ primary care physicians and pressure them into approving genetic testing orders for patients who purportedly had already been “qualified” for the testing during telephone calls conducted by non-medical personnel at one of the companies retained by the marketers — not by their physicians.
In an effort to conceal the kickback payments, Gray used sham contracts and invoices that purported to charge for “marketing” hours but that in reality were reverse-engineered to match the amounts agreed to under the illegal per-sample kickback arrangement. Gray also sought to conceal the scheme by, among other things, referring to the payments as being for “software” and loans that never existed. Evidence at trial included text messages between Gray and his co-conspirator becoming giddy over the amount of money they were making from Medicare. For example, Gray’s co-conspirator stated, “$ent, you should have it any minute if you don’t already. Get it?” Gray responded, “Sorry I was filling my bathtub with ones. Yes lol.”
Axis and Kingdom billed Medicare approximately $328 million for the false, fraudulent and kickback-tainted genetic testing claims, of which Medicare paid approximately $54 million. Gray laundered some of the proceeds by purchasing expensive luxury vehicles, including a Dodge Ram truck worth more than $142,000 and a Mercedes Benz SUV worth more than $145,000.
The jury convicted Gray of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks, five counts of violating the Anti-Kickback Statute and three counts of money laundering. He is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date. Gray faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock of the FBI Dallas Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Jason E. Meadows of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Dallas Region; Chief William Marlowe of the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU); and Special Agent in Charge Kris Raper of the Department of Veteran’s Affairs Office of Inspector General (VA-OIG), South Central Field Office, made the announcement.
The FBI, HHS-OIG, MFCU and VA-OIG investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Ethan Womble and Adam Tisdall of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of eight strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
Florida Man Charged with Shooting at Uber Driver and Possession of Illegal Firearms and NarcoticsRead the Press Release
A Miami man made his first appearance in federal court today after a grand jury in Miami charged him with drug crimes, using and firing a gun as part of the drug crime, and illegal firearm possession by a prior felon relating to his prior felony conviction.
“This defendant shot repeatedly at an innocent man who stopped a crime as it was happening,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “It was through the bravery of the Uber driver that police were alerted and able stop the movement of almost a kilogram of pure cocaine from hitting the streets of Miami. The Criminal Division will pursue violent drug dealers in every city in America.”
“There is a real and dangerous link between drug trafficking and gun violence,” said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida. “According to the indictment, this defendant arranged a drug deal and then fired multiple shots at a rideshare driver. That kind of alleged conduct turns a drug crime into a life-threatening situation in seconds. Federal law treats that combination seriously, with a mandatory minimum sentence of fifteen years if convicted.”
According to court documents, on or about Oct. 29, 2024, the defendant Lester Leon Sanders, 47, of Miami Gardens, allegedly reserved an Uber ride share. When the driver arrived, the defendant and another man loaded three suitcases in the Uber. While this was happening, the Uber driver saw a firearm magazine fall out of Sanders’s clothing.
Sanders got into the Uber and he and the driver drove off. Shortly thereafter, Sanders ordered the driver to stop the car. Sanders got out of the vehicle and began shouting. The driver, concerned with what he had observed, drove off without Sanders but with the luggage and other belongings still in the car. Sanders shouted at the Uber driver and fired a gun approximately five times as the Uber driver sped away.
The driver then flagged down police and relayed what had happened. Law enforcement arrested Sanders a short time later. Inside of the Uber, police recovered a loaded, large-capacity firearm magazine, 929 grams of almost pure cocaine, six pounds of marijuana, and more ammunition, as well as drug paraphernalia, such as a weight scale and multiple small transparent bags. They also found shell casings in the vicinity of where Sanders fired at the Uber.
If convicted, Sanders faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison.
The FBI Miami Field Office is investigating the case with assistance provided by the Miami Gardens Police Department.
Trial Attorneys Jennifer Burns and Jinah Chang of the Justice Department’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section are prosecuting the case.
This case is part of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime Initiative to prosecute violent crimes in Miami. The Criminal Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida have partnered, along with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, to confront violent crimes committed by gang members and associates through the enforcement of federal laws and use of federal resources to prosecute offenders and prevent violence.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel Concludes Immigrant Welfare Eligibility Rules Apply to Public HousingRead the Press Release
Today, the Department of Justice released an opinion for the Department of Housing and Urban Development which addresses the relationship between the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) and Section 214 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980. The Office of Legal Counsel’s interpretation finds that in order to receive housing benefits administered under Section 214, an alien must satisfy the eligibility requirements of both PRWORA and Section 214.
Under this finding, certain categories of aliens currently deemed eligible -- such as Haitian entrants and many parolees -- are in fact ineligible to take advantage of these HUD benefits. Even those categories of aliens who remain eligible must now satisfy further requirements before applying for such benefits. This finding creates further safeguards to protect American taxpayer resources, specifically in government-funded housing, from abuse by non-American citizens.
“Today’s opinion will prohibit ineligible aliens from draining funds for housing programs that are meant to help AMERICAN citizens,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “The current inadequate safeguards in place incentivize illegal immigration and make housing less affordable – this Department of Justice will continue working with HUD to put the American people first.”
“For far too long, the left abused the law, twisted interpretations, and helped illegals and ineligibles at the expense of taxpayers,” said HUD Secretary Scott Turner. “Meanwhile, millions of Americans languished on housing waitlists across the country. Today’s Department of Justice opinion upholds the law and reaffirms the Trump administration’s commitment to putting the American people first.”
This action comes as a follow-on to the Office’s December opinion about the meaning of “Federal means-tested public benefits” in PRWORA, which reversed a Clinton-era interpretation that had allowed ineligible aliens to receive federal welfare benefits.
Read the full opinion here.
Justice Department Opens Investigations into Three Michigan School Districts for Required Instruction on Sexual Orientation and Gender Ideology in Pre-K-12 SchoolsRead the Press Release
Today, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division launched investigations into three Michigan public school districts: the Detroit Public Schools Community District, Godfrey-Lee Public Schools, and the Lansing School District (the Michigan School Districts), to determine whether they have included sexual orientation and gender ideology (SOGI) content in any class for grades pre-K-12. If they are teaching SOGI-related content, the investigations will examine whether the schools have notified parents of their right to opt their children out of such instruction. The investigation will also assess whether the Michigan School Districts limit access to single-sex intimate spaces, such as bathrooms and locker rooms, based on biological sex.
“This Department of Justice is fiercely committed to ending the growing trend of local school authorities embedding sexuality and gender ideology in every aspect of public education,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Supreme Court precedent is clear: parents have the right to direct the religious upbringing of their children, which includes exempting them from ideological instruction which conflicts with their families’ sincerely held religious beliefs. And Title IX demands that we guard the safety, dignity, and innocence of our youngest citizens—our children—by ensuring that they have unfettered access to bathrooms and locker rooms of their biological sex.”
The investigations will examine whether these Michigan School Districts, which are recipients of hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer funding are adhering to Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and the Supreme Court’s decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor, 606 U.S. 522 (2025).
The Civil Rights Division has not reached any conclusions about the subject matter of the investigations.
Justice Department Joins Lawsuit Against Racial Discrimination in Los Angeles Public SchoolsRead the Press Release
Today, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division sought intervention in a lawsuit against the administrators of the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) over the Predominately Hispanic, Black, Asian, and Other (PHBAO) Program. This program categorizes students by race and by the race of their neighbors in order to determine school funding and magnet school admissions. The lawsuit was brought by the 1776 Project Foundation, a nonprofit focused on public education.
“Treating Americans equally is not a suggestion — it is a core constitutional guarantee that educational institutions must follow,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “This Department of Justice will never stop fighting to make that guarantee a reality, including for public-school students in Los Angeles.”
“Los Angeles County students should never be classified or treated differently because of their race. Yet this school district is doing exactly that by providing benefits that treat students — based on their race — as though they have learning disabilities,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Racial discrimination is unlawful and un-American, and this Civil Rights Division will fight to ensure that every LAUSD student is treated equally under the law.”
“Now in its sixth decade, LAUSD’s desegregation program has outlived its usefulness to the point of being unconstitutional,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California. “School districts must treat their students equally and no longer discriminate on the basis of race.”
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, notes that the PHBAO Program first separates everyone in the LAUSD area by race into either the “Anglo,” meaning White group, and everyone else. School neighborhoods with less than 30% Whites are treated as disadvantaged with “Predominately” non-White racial groups. Most schools are PHBAO in the majority Hispanic area served by LAUSD.
The United States’ complaint notes that LAUSD provides extra funding to the PHBAO schools to lower the student/teacher ratio by 5.5 students, and increase parent-teacher conferences. It also gives students wishing to transfer to a magnet program an admissions preference equal to that for an overcrowded school. LAUSD treats attending school with non-Whites as a disadvantage equal to attending an overcrowded school.
This case is brought by the Educational Opportunities Section of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division.
You can view the motion to intervene here and the proposed complaint here.
Attorney General Bondi Announces Department of Justice Prioritization of Animal Welfare EnforcementRead the Press Release
Attorney General Pamela Bondi announced today a historic plan to combat animal welfare crimes and to strengthen coordination and enforcement efforts between federal agencies, including the Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Executive Office for United States Attorneys, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshals Service, and Homeland Security Investigations.
The plan consists of five parts: (1) A one-week Animal Welfare Summit at the Department’s National Advocacy Center to train federal prosecutors and federal agents from across the country in prosecuting animal welfare crimes; (2) the creation of a multi-agency Animal Welfare Executive Strategy Committee to develop and implement a National Strategy for Combatting Animal Welfare Crimes, to be chaired by Adam Gustafson, who leads the Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division; (3) the creation of a law enforcement “Tiger Team” to participate in and assist with the execution of search warrants and seizures in animal welfare cases; (4) the continued use of the Asset Forfeiture Fund to help pay for the evaluation, care, and feeding of animals seized in the course of animal welfare investigations; and (5) the offering of grants, through the Office of Justice Programs, to animal welfare groups, and state and local law enforcement agencies that are taking action to combat animal cruelty. The plan was announced through a memorandum to all Department of Justice employees.
“Animals are part of our families: we will always fight to protect the pets we love,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “I have fought against animal abuse my entire career and will never stop working to prosecute the sick individuals who prey upon innocent animals. Since taking office, this Department of Justice has already rescued nearly 300 dogs from horrific circumstances. Our work has only just begun, and this cabinet is committed to a whole of government approach to swiftly ending this horrific behavior.”
Attorney General Bondi also announced that the Department will partner with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to strengthen enforcement efforts under the Animal Welfare Act by using all available enforcement options to target the worst offenders and remove chronic violators from the industry. The Attorney General’s announcement was made in conjunction with the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture (USDA) Brooke L. Rollins.
ATF Seizes Thousands of Illegal Firearms Bound for Cartels in MexicoRead the Press Release
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) today announced that since January 20, 2025, it has seized 36,277 illegal crime guns and 2,317,999 rounds of ammunition from prohibited persons, gang members, and suppliers for transnational criminal organizations.
4,359 of these seized firearms were bound for Mexico, where they would have been used by violent drug cartels and gangs. 648,975 rounds of the seized ammunition were bound for Mexico, which averages to over 1,600 rounds per day.
Since President Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2025, ATF has led an aggressive nationwide effort to dismantle the domestic and international networks that arm violent criminals.
“Illegal crime guns increasingly originate from every state in the country. This is not a southwest border problem, it is a national threat,” said ATF Deputy Director Robert Cekada. “ATF agents are aggressively targeting gangs, cartels, and transnational criminal organizations that illegally traffic firearms and turn American streets into war zones. We will dismantle these networks at every level, cut off their access to weapons, and hold every criminal fully accountable under the law”.
ATF protects America’s communities by confronting violent crime driven by the illegal use of firearms, explosives and acts of arson. Our special agents concentrate on identifying and dismantling illegal firearms traffickers who fuel violence by arming prohibited persons, gang members, drug cartels, illegal aliens and terrorist organizations.
Through advanced Crime Gun Intelligence (NIBIN, firearms tracing, and touch DNA), ATF partners with state and local law enforcement to investigate, identify, and prosecute violent offenders. At the same time, we safeguard lawful commerce and uphold the Constitution.
More information about ATF and its programs is available at www.atf.gov.
Expelled Mexican national sentenced for role in large-scale international cocaine trafficking offenseRead the Press Release
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Mexican national was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for his role in a conspiracy to import approximately 1,900 kilograms of cocaine into the United States.
According to court documents, Jose Francisco Mendoza-Gomez, aka Braulio Jelipe, was a member of a Mexico-based drug trafficking organization (DTO) responsible for importing multi-hundred kilogram quantities of cocaine into the United States for years. The DTO, which had operations in New York, Texas, and elsewhere in the United States, sourced its cocaine from suppliers in Colombia and provided logistical and financial support to coordinate the narcotics’ passage through Central America and Mexico and, ultimately, into the United States. During the investigation, law enforcement made several cocaine seizures, including approximately 971 kilograms of cocaine on April 21, 2017, and 500 kilograms of cocaine on May 6, 2017, nearly all of which was attributable to the DTO. The investigation revealed the DTO conspired to import at least 1,900 kilograms of cocaine into the United States.
In addition to cocaine trafficking, the DTO was involved in transporting substantial illicit proceeds earned from its operations back to Mexico and elsewhere. DTO members engaged in bulk money transfers with cocaine suppliers and utilized a Chinese money laundering network to repatriate bulk narcotics proceeds out of the United States.
The DTO engaged in bribery of Mexican officials, including to gain access to information useful to its cocaine trafficking operations, and planned and attempted to execute multiple kidnappings related to rival drug traffickers and in efforts to secure outstanding debts.
Mendoza-Gomez assisted in coordinating and transporting cocaine for distribution in the United States, handled hundreds of thousands worth of narcotics proceeds, provided advice to the DTO’s leader, and participated in the DTO’s efforts to plan kidnappings and obtain information from corrupt Mexican officials.
On Aug. 12, 2025, Mendoza-Gomez, along with 25 other fugitives, were expelled from Mexico to the United States.
Two of Mendoza-Gomez’s co-conspirators, Marisela Flores-Torruco, aka La Dama de Hierro, and Qiyun Chen, have already been convicted for their roles in the DTO, as have several individuals involved in the related Chinese money laundering network. Flores-Torruco pled guilty on Oct. 9, 2018, and was sentenced on Feb. 1, 2019, to 16 years and eight months in prison. Chen pled guilty on Nov. 8, 2017, and was sentenced on Feb. 23, 2018, to 10 years in prison.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Special Operations Division, Bilateral Investigations Unit, with assistance from DEA’s offices in Cartagena, Colombia; Bogota, Colombia; Panama City, Panamá; Mexico City; and Guatemala City. U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service also provided substantial assistance in the investigation.
Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher M. Carter and Edgardo J. Rodriguez for the Eastern District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Caylee E. Campbell of the Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:17-cr-147.
Court Orders EES Coke Battery to Comply with Clean Air Act and Pay $100 Million Civil PenaltyRead the Press Release
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan ordered DTE Energy Company and three of its subsidiaries to comply with the Clean Air Act and pay a penalty of $100 million in a decision issued today concerning a coke battery in River Rouge, Michigan.
The EES Coke facility (Facility) is located on Zug Island, between River Rouge and Detroit, in an area that fails to meet federal standards for sulfur dioxide in the air. The Facility uses coal and other raw materials to produce metallurgical coke, an input for making steel. The court found that the Facility increased its sulfur dioxide pollution as a result of changes the company sought to its state air permit in 2014. For example, the Facility emitted over 3,200 tons of sulfur dioxide pollution in 2018, compared to permitted baseline sulfur dioxide levels of under 2,100 tons per year.
In an August 2025 order, the court found that the Facility violated the Clean Air Act. The court then held a two-week trial in September to determine which DTE Energy Company entities were liable and the appropriate relief for the violations.
“This decision demonstrates that the Department of Justice will seek relief against companies that fail to comply with the nation’s environmental laws,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “This ensures a level playing field for all businesses and advances the Administration’s initiative to Make America Healthy Again.”
“Our goal in this litigation has been to secure compliance with the clear mandates of the law and stop unlimited emission of a criteria air pollutant. The court’s judgement achieves that,” said Assistant Administrator Jeffrey A. Hall of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Even as this Administration grows American industry, we will ensure that uncontrolled pollution does not follow and that Americans have clean air. We will be ready to pursue judicial action from the outset of a case.”
In today’s decision, the court found that emissions from the Facility caused asthma attacks, heart attacks, strokes, increased blood pressure, and increased risk of cancer, asthma, Alzheimer’s disease, and early deaths.
The court found that DTE Energy Company, DTE Energy Resources LLC, and DTE Energy Services Inc. were all liable as operators of the EES Coke facility. The court found each entity “exhibit[ed] a high degree of control over the Facility, including over environmental decision-making and operations.” In addition, the court had previously found that EES Coke Battery LLC was liable as an owner and operator of the Facility.
Turning to civil penalty, the court found that a penalty of $100 million was appropriate for the primary claim. The court found that the evidence showed that defendants saved about $70 million by failing to comply with the Clean Air Act as required, and were thus able to use that money in other ways. The court also found that the DTE Defendants each had a “substantial” ability to pay for relief ordered by the court.
Next the court ordered defendants to seek New Source Review permits from the Michigan Department of the Environment and Great Lakes (EGLE) within 250 days. The required permit applications will include proposals for stringent pollution controls consistent with the lowest achievable emissions rate and best available control technology, as determined by EGLE. The Court noted that the desulfurization technology described at trial for potential use at the Facility was “mature and well-established in the coking industry.”
The EPA investigated the case.
Attorneys Tom Benson, Samantha Ricci, and Sasha Alvarenga of ENRD’s Environmental Enforcement Section handled the case, with assistance from Geoffrey Stewart and Ada Baser of ENRD.
Orlando Area Tax Return Preparers Preliminarily Enjoined from Preparing Returns for OthersRead the Press Release
Note: View order here.
Today, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida issued a preliminary injunction against Orlando area tax return preparers Juan Humberto Garcia, Marcos Yariel Figueroa, and Garcia’s tax return preparation business, The Tax Master of BVL Inc. (Defendants).
The court issued the injunction following a hearing where the government presented evidence that showed the Defendants engaged in a pattern of preparing and filing false returns that understated their customers’ federal income tax liabilities and claimed inflated tax refunds by:
- Fabricating medical expenses, charitable donations, and personal property taxes as deductions on Form 1040 Schedule A; and
- Fabricating or inflating business losses on Form 1040 Schedule C.
In granting the government’s motion, the court primarily relied on the deposition testimony from over a dozen of the Defendants’ customers who all testified that they did not know about the fraudulent deductions claimed by the Defendants. In addition to finding strong proof that the Defendants fabricated deductions and losses, the court determined that the government would face irreparable harm absent an injunction. The court noted in this regard that the Defendants continued to prepare fraudulent returns even after they were served with a copy of the government’s complaint.
The injunction bars Garcia, Figueroa, and The Tax Master from preparing and filing tax returns for others, working for or having an ownership stake in any tax return preparation business, and advising anyone about the preparation of a tax return.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joshua Wu of the Civil Division’s Tax Litigation Branch made the announcement.
Attorney Franklin D. Sandrea-Rivero of the Tax Litigation Branch is handling this matter.
Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. The IRS also offers 10 tips to avoid tax season fraud and ways to safeguard their personal information.
In the past decade, the Department of Justice has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Civil Division, Tax Litigation Branch with details.
Garcia et al PI Order_0.pdfJustice Department Sues Harvard University for Withholding Race-Related Admissions DocumentsRead the Press Release
Note: View complaint here. The release has been updated to reflect that the action took place today, February 13.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division (DOJ) filed a lawsuit today against Harvard University (Harvard), accusing Harvard of unlawfully withholding from the United States admissions data information necessary to determine whether Harvard is continuing to discriminate in its admissions process, even after the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling in Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, this Department of Justice is demanding better from our nation’s educational institutions,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Harvard has failed to disclose the data we need to ensure that its admissions are free of discrimination — we will continue fighting to put merit over DEI across America.”
“The Justice Department will not allow universities to flout our nation’s federal civil rights laws by refusing to provide the information required for our review,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Providing requested data is a basic expectation of any credible compliance process, and refusal to cooperate creates concerns about university practices. If Harvard has stopped discriminating, it should happily share the data necessary to prove it.”
The lawsuit alleges that Harvard repeatedly slow-walked the pace of production and refused to produce pertinent data and documents requested by the DOJ, including individualized applicant admissions data, admissions policies, and correspondence related to race; ethnicity; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and Students for Fair Admissions. The suit alleges that Harvard — a recipient of DOJ funding — violated Title VI by failing to comply with the DOJ’s request for sufficient document production for compliance review. The suit also notes that by failing to make timely and complete document productions or otherwise permitting the DOJ to access Harvard’s applicant-level admissions data, Harvard breached a material term of DOJ federal financial assistance.
The lawsuit seeks only to compel Harvard to produce documents related to any consideration of race in admissions and does not accuse Harvard of racial discrimination.
2026.2.13 Harvard Access Complaint-v.pdfJustice Department Opens Investigation into Lincoln Memorial University for Discrimination Against Jewish StudentsRead the Press Release
Yesterday, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, launched an investigation into Lincoln Memorial University to determine whether the university is engaged in discrimination against its Jewish students. Among other concerns, the investigation will determine whether the university’s DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine is intentionally preventing Jewish students from completing their exams during the Spring semester.
“This Department of Justice is fiercely committed to shutting down the concerning outbreak of antisemitism that has been spreading on college campuses since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “When colleges and universities single Jewish students out for adverse treatment, they are in clear violation of our civil rights laws and of this nation’s promise of equal opportunity for all Americans.”
“All students should be free to learn and train in environments free from discrimination,” said Paula M. Stannard, Director of the Department of Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR). “Antisemitism has no place in our nation’s educational or medical training institutions, and OCR will work to ensure that federal civil rights laws are fully enforced.”
This investigation will be conducted pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act. Lincoln Memorial University receives substantial federal financial assistance and is therefore subject to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and Section 1557. Title VI and Section 1557 prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin. Antisemitism can be a form of discrimination on the basis of race or national origin, according to federal precedent. Lincoln Memorial University is based in Harrogate, Tennessee, and its DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine has campuses in Knoxville, Harrogate, and Orange Park, Tennessee.
Neither the Civil Rights Division nor the Office for Civil Rights has reached any conclusions about the subject matter of the investigations.
Religious Liberty Commission Hosts Fifth Hearing on Anti-Semitism and Religious Liberty in the Private SectorRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – This week, the Religious Liberty Commission (RLC) held a hearing to discuss the dangers of rising anti-Semitism from the perspectives of students, teachers, and Jewish leaders. The hearing included panels with testimony from graduate students, coaches, university administrators, and relatives of Holocaust survivors, as well as individuals who experienced religious liberty issues in the private sector and employment contexts. It also included testimony from Justice Department and Civil Rights leaders on the front lines of combatting anti-Semitism through the legal system. The hearing’s objectives aimed to understand the ideologies behind anti-Semitism, recognize present threats to religious liberty in the private sector and employment, and identify opportunities to secure religious liberty in these contexts for the future.
"Religious liberty is our first and foundational freedom," said Chairman Dan Patrick. "Physical violence is the ultimate deprivation of this freedom. In recent years, our Jewish brothers and sisters have increasingly been faced with hostility and physical violence in their houses of worship and communities—as recently as this weekend, when a driver repeatedly rammed his car into a peaceful gathering at a Brooklyn Chabad. This is un-American and unacceptable. Following President Trump’s lead, the Religious Liberty Commission will be fully considering this issue to ensure that all Americans enjoy the full freedoms guaranteed by the First Amendment."
The witnesses included:
Yitzchok Frankel: Plaintiff in Frankel v. Regents of the University of California
In the wake of the October 7, 2023, terrorist attack on Israel, anti-Jewish protests emerged on college campuses nationwide. At UCLA, activists set up an encampment and enforced a “Jew Exclusion Zone,” segregating Jewish students and faculty and preventing them from attending class or accessing campus spaces. UCLA’s administration ordered police to stand down allowing the activists to wreak havoc on campus through the 2024-25 academic year. Three Jewish UCLA students and a Jewish UCLA professor sued UCLA in federal court. After battling the suit for more than a year, UCLA ultimately agreed to a permanent court order and paid more than $6 million in damages and fees.
Shabbos Kestenbaum: American Jewish Activist, Political Commentator
Kestenbaum is an American Jewish activist who filed a lawsuit against Harvard University over accusations that the school had failed to protect Jewish students from anti-Semitic harassment and discrimination.
Rabbi Ari Berman: President, Yeshiva University
Berman is a global faith leader, distinguished scholar, and educational visionary who is shaping contemporary discourse at the intersection of faith, ethics, and higher education. As the fifth president of Yeshiva University, Dr. Berman has anchored the university on the twin pillars of academic excellence and values-based education, guiding it into a new era of growth and innovation as a global leader in higher education.
Coach Bruce Pearl: Founder, Jewish Coaches Association
The all-time winningest coach in Auburn men’s basketball history, head coach Bruce Pearl has made the program into a national power by leading the Tigers to a pair of Final Fours, five Southeastern Conference Championships and six NCAA Tournament appearances in 11 seasons. Pearl is a Founder and Senior Advisor of the Jewish Coaches Association, a non-profit organization working to foster the growth and development of individuals of the Jewish faith at all levels of sports, both nationally and internationally.
Leo Terrell: Chair of DOJ’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights
Terrell is an American civil rights attorney and former talk radio host who has frequently appeared on Fox News programs. Previously a Democrat, in a July 2020 interview, he declared his support for President Donald Trump—the first time he declared support for a Republican Party presidential candidate. In January 2025, President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to appoint Terrell as Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division in the United States Department of Justice, where he currently serves as the Chair of the Department’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism.
Dr. Elizabeth Spalding: Author, Lifelong Educator, and Religious Liberty Advocate
A lifelong educator and frequent public speaker, Spalding is a Visiting Fellow at Hillsdale College’s Van Andel Graduate School of Government in Washington, D.C. She is a Senior Fellow at the Pepperdine University School of Public Policy and serves as the Chairman of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation where she is also Founding Director of the Victims of Communism Museum. Spalding has taught on subjects ranging from the American presidency, religion and politics, and comparative ideologies to U.S. foreign policy, national security, and international relations. Her expertise is regularly sought for documentaries, podcasts, and other media outlets. She also serves on the Board of the Institute on Religion and Democracy.
Dr. Moshe Glick: Member of Congregation Ohr Torah in West Orange, New Jersey
Glick is a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and respected community leader in West Orange, New Jersey, who was unfairly charged with assault after coming to the aid of someone attacked by pro-Hamas protestor in November 2024. Last month, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy pardoned Glick, wiping away state charges and ending his baseless prosecution. The Justice Department filed a civil complaint under the FACE Act against entities and individuals who targeted Ohr Torah synagogue in West Orange, New Jersey, during the November 2024 incident that escalated into violence.
Liat Cohen-Reeis: Founder, The Jewish-Christian Alliance
Cohen-Reeis is a Jewish leader in the San Diego area who founded an interfaith organization to bring together Christians and Jews for worship and fellowship.
Pastor JC Cooper: Pastor, The Mission Church, San Diego
Cooper is the Associate Pastor of the Mission Church, which has locations in Carlsbad, Encinitas, Cardiff, Del Mar, and Rancho Santa Fe. His church community was targeted by violent protests after hosting joint Jewish-Christian worship events.
Seth Dillon: CEO, The Babylon Bee
Dillon is the CEO of The Babylon Bee, a fast-growing news satire site that has overtaken The Onion in traffic and engagement. Taking on the tone of a traditional news media publication, the Bee satirizes real-world events and public figures. Dillon's experience with censorship and deplatforming has placed him on the front lines of the battle for free speech in the public square. He now speaks on college campuses and at conferences across the country about the effectiveness of humor, the moral imperative of mockery, and the dangers of censorship.
John Mertens: Acting Deputy Chief, Education Section for the Civil Rights Division, Department of Justice
John P. Mertens joined the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice in September 2025, after nearly twenty years as a litigator in private practice. He has represented civil rights plaintiffs on issues from political expression to freedom of consciousness. In July 2025, he completed a second term as president of the Board of Trustees of the largest synagogue by membership in the State of Utah.
Fr. Thomas Ferguson: Pastor, Good Shepard Parish
Father Thomas Ferguson is the pastor of Good Shepherd Parish in Alexandria, Virginia. He is the author of Catholic and American: The Political Theology of John Courtney Murray.
Rabbi Meir Soloveichik: Rabbi, Congregation Shearith Israel
Meir Y. Soloveichik is Rabbi of Congregation Shearith Israel- the oldest Jewish congregation in the United States, the Director of the Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University, and a Senior Scholar at the Tikvah Fund. He graduated summa cum laude from Yeshiva University, and received his Phd in religion from Princeton University. Rabbi Soloveichik's recent book is Providence and Power: Ten Portraits in Jewish Statesmanship. Much of his writing and academic work focuses on the American Founding, and the unique story and role of religion in the United States. His podcasts include Bible365, a daily study of the Hebrew Bible that completes all of Jewish scripture in a year, and Jerusalem365, which tells the 4,000 year history of Jerusalem. In 2018 Rabbi Soloveichik was awarded the Canterbury Medal for his work on behalf of religious liberty by the Becket Fund.
Ambassador Sam Brownback: Former Ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom, Former Governor of Kansas
Sam Brownback formerly served as Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom and continues to work with coalitions around the globe to promote and protect the fundamental human right to religious liberty. Brownback was the 46th Governor of Kansas. He was first elected in 2010 and re-elected in 2014. He left office after being confirmed to the position of Ambassador-at-Large in January 2018. Prior to becoming governor, Brownback served in a number of elected government offices in Kansas. After one term in the House of Representatives, he served as Senator for Kansas from 1996-2011, having first won a special election to fill the seat left vacant by Bob Dole (R). Brownback began his political career in 1986 when he became the youngest individual to be the Secretary of Agriculture in the state's history. During his tenure as Secretary, Brownback did double duty as a White House Fellow under the administration of George H.W. Bush. Brownback is a licensed attorney, having graduated from the University of Kansas School of Law.
Lacey Smith: Former Alaska Airlines Employee
In February 2021, Alaska Airlines posted an internal company message announcing its support for the “Equality Act,” a controversial bill that, among other things, would gut protection for people of faith under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Employees were invited to comment on the post, to which Smith respectfully expressed her concerns with the bill. Her post was swiftly deleted, work schedule paused, and within a month, Smith was fired. Since then, Smith has chosen to speak out and continue the fight for religious freedom.
Hermione Susana: Hospitality Worker, New York City
Susana is lifelong New Yorker who built a career as a hospitality industry worker. She was working in three different premium stadium and arena venues when her living was jeopardized because her religious beliefs were not accommodated in the face of corporate and city vaccine mandates.
Watch the hearing HERE.
The Religious Liberty Commission was established by President Trump under Executive Order 14291 and is tasked with producing a comprehensive report on the foundations of religious liberty in America, increasing awareness of and celebrating America’s peaceful religious pluralism, highlighting current threats to religious liberty, and developing strategies to preserve and enhance protections for future generations.
Justice Department Secures Agreement Reforming Alabama’s System for Educating Students with Disabilities in Foster CareRead the Press Release
Today, the Justice Department announced that it reached a landmark agreement with the State of Alabama to address allegations of discrimination against children in foster care with disabilities, in violation of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This first-of-its-kind agreement ensures that young Alabamians in or transitioning out of the foster care system have the tools they need to be successful as adults and advances the commitment of this Administration to foster children and families set forth in President Donald J. Trump’s Executive Order 14359, entitled, “Fostering the Future for American Children and Families.”
“Children in foster care should not be treated differently because of their circumstances,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We applaud Alabama for reaching this agreement so that all students may benefit from an education that equips them for a promising future.”
The settlement agreement requires that students with disabilities in foster care who are placed in psychiatric residential treatment facilities (PRTFs) attend school in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs and that students educated on site at PRTFs are provided with equal educational opportunities.
Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt, and additional information about the Civil Rights Division’s Educational Opportunities Section’s work to combat disability discrimination is available at www.justice.gov/crt/educational-opportunities-section.
Members of the public may report possible civil rights violations at www.civilrights.justice.gov/.
Four East Alabama Residents Sentenced for Gun Store Theft in GeorgiaRead the Press Release
COLUMBUS, Ga. – Four defendants guilty of smashing a stolen truck into a Harris County, Georgia, gun shop and stealing 31 firearms, then attempting to sell them, were sentenced for their crimes in federal court this week.
“Stealing and selling firearms online poses a serious threat to community safety and will not be tolerated by our office and law enforcement,” said U.S. Attorney William R. “Will” Keyes. “Thanks to local and federal collaboration, these defendants are being held accountable for trafficking illegal firearms into our community.”
“Criminals who engage in the theft and illegal sale of firearms are not only violating the law; they are endangering the safety of our communities. The ATF is committed to pursuing these individuals relentlessly,” said ATF Atlanta Assistant Special Agent in Charge Beau Kolodka.
“Harris County Sheriff’s Office was proud to partner up with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and ATF to obtain a successful outcome to this type of investigation and prosecution. It is gratifying to take criminals off the street and place them behind bars,” said Harris County Sheriff Mike Jolley.
The following defendants were sentenced to prison on Feb. 10:
Jareco Green, 27, of Eufala, Alabama, was sentenced to serve 120 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to one count of theft of firearms from a federal firearms licensee on July 23, 2025;
Darious McCall, 22, of Eufala, was sentenced to serve 60 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to one count of theft of firearms from a federal firearms licensee on Oct. 27, 2025;
Zyrion Fryer, 23, of Eufala, was sentenced to serve 37 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to one count of theft of firearms from a federal firearms licensee on July 23, 2025; and
Shamonica Davis, 25, of Phenix City, Alabama, was sentenced to serve five years of probation after she pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a stolen firearm on Nov. 18, 2025.
U.S. District Judge Clay Land presided over the case. There is no parole in the federal system.
According to court documents and statements in court, a stolen truck smashed through the front door of Alan’s Armory, a federal firearms licensee, in Harris County, in the early morning of Sept. 16, 2022. Co-defendants Green, McCall and Fryer, all wearing ski masks, were filmed by security cameras emerging from the truck and stealing 31 pistols and rifles from the gun store. Harris County Sheriff’s Office investigators recovered evidence at the scene and confirmed the stolen truck. Using the Flock camera system, police in Troy, Alabama, alerted the stolen truck in their jurisdiction on Sept. 22, 2022. Law enforcement found the vehicle parked near the Family Firearms gun shop, then observed the truck drive to a nearby apartment complex, where Green then ran from the truck into the woods.
Inside the truck, officers found a black sweatshirt, two camouflage gloves, a pack of cigarettes, a black ski mask and a red Apple iPhone directly behind the truck. They seized a gym bag matching the description of a bag carried by one of the Alan’s Armory burglars. Inside was a semi-automatic pistol stolen from Alan 's Armory. A search warrant executed on the iPhone, belonging to McCall, found a plethora of evidence, including searches for pawn shops; pistols; gun shops; directions to Alan’s Armory 20 minutes before the burglary; missed calls from Green’s girlfriend, codefendant Davis, during the burglary; photos of McCall brandishing a stolen firearm the day after the burglary; and more. Green’s DNA was found on the black ski mask found outside the stolen truck. Law enforcement discovered the defendants were selling the guns online, with codefendant Davis referring to them as “shoes” and sharing photos of the stolen firearms when asked for images of the “shoes.”
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, the Eufala, Alabama, Police Department and the Troy, Alabama, Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tamara Jarrett prosecuted the case for the Government.
Chicago Area Tax Return Preparer Enjoined from Preparing Returns for OthersRead the Press Release
On Monday, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois issued a permanent injunction against Chicago area tax return preparer Stacy Thomas, formerly known as Stacy Sorrel, both individually and doing business as Rapid Tax Refunds LLC, Rapid Tax Refund Pros LLC, and Rapid Refunds Income Tax Service Inc. The injunction bars Thomas from preparing tax returns for others, working for or having any ownership stake in any tax preparation business, and advising anyone about the preparation of a tax return or setting up business as a preparer. Thomas agreed to the terms of the injunction.
According to the complaint, Thomas prepared and filed tax returns that falsely understated her customers’ federal income tax liabilities by fabricating, among other things:
- Fictitious residential energy credits;
- Fictitious or inflated Schedule C business expenses; and
- Exaggerated or completely fabricated charitable deductions.
As a result of the court’s order, Thomas must post a copy of the injunction at all locations where she conducts business and post a link to the injunction on her business’s website.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joshua Wu of the Civil Division’s Tax Litigation Branch made the announcement. Tax Litigation Branch attorney Kimberly Parke handled this matter.
Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. The IRS also offers 10 tips to avoid tax season fraud and ways to safeguard their personal information.
In the past decade, the Department of Justice has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Civil Division, Tax Litigation Branch with details.
Justice Department Sues to Shut Down Miami Gardens-Based Return Preparer and BusinessRead the Press Release
Yesterday, the Justice Department filed a complaint seeking to bar a Miami Gardens-based return preparer, Christopher Brown, and his business, Superior Taxes LLC, from owning or operating a tax return preparation business and preparing tax returns for others.
The United States filed its civil complaint against Brown and Superior Taxes in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. The complaint alleges that Brown and Superior Taxes prepare federal income tax returns on which he claims fraudulent credits and deductions to purposely underreport the tax his customers owe and claim inflated refunds. Specifically, the complaint alleges that Brown prepared returns that claimed incorrect “head of household” filing status, false or inflated business expenses and losses, as well as false residential energy credits and education credits. Brown also, according to the complaint, claimed the false filing status, expenses, and credits to maximize his customers’ earned income tax credit (EITC), and he failed to follow the IRS’s EITC due diligence requirements.
The government alleges in the complaint that Brown and Superior Taxes caused a tax loss of more than $5 million in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joshua Wu of the Civil Division’s Tax Litigation made the announcement. Tax Litigation Branch attorneys Elizabeth Duncan and Rachel Iacangelo are handling the case.
Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers.
In the past decade, the Department of Justice has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Civil Division, Tax Litigation Branch with details.
Justice Department Files Action to Protect National Security by Enforcing President’s Order of Chinese Company’s Divestment from U.S. CompanyRead the Press Release
Yesterday, the United States filed a complaint under section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 to enforce a presidential order prohibiting Suirui Group’s acquisition, through Suirui International, of California-based Jupiter Systems and compelling Suirui to divest from Jupiter Systems. On July 8, 2025, the President issued the Order based on his findings that the transaction “threatens to impair the national security of the United States.” This is the first such action ever filed in federal district court.
While foreign direct investment is important to the United States’ economy, foreign investment in certain companies and certain industries, particularly those involved in defense or critical infrastructure, can pose national security concerns. To address these concerns, the President has the authority to take such action for such time as the President considers appropriate to suspend or prohibit such a transaction that threatens to impair the national security of the United States. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) is empowered to review and investigate such transactions.
According to the Complaint, in 2020, Suirui Group, a Chinese company, through its Hong Kong subsidiary Suirui International, acquired all of Jupiter Systems, which provides video communications hardware and software to commercial and U.S. Government customers. On July 8, 2025, the President issued an Order prohibiting the transaction and, among other things, requiring Suirui to divest all its interests in Jupiter Systems within 120 days. According to the Complaint, despite CFIUS granting two extensions of the divestment deadline, to Feb. 3, Suirui and Jupiter Systems have failed to comply with the Order. The United States thus filed this action to protect the country’s national security interests.
The Justice Department’s Civil Division, Federal Programs Branch is handling the matter. The case is captioned United States v. Suirui Group Co., Ltd., et al., No. 26-cv-00369 (D.D.C.).
This case is being handled by Trial Attorney Sam Bean of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.
The claims asserted in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Executive Pleads Guilty to Multi-Million Dollar Bid-Rigging ConspiracyRead the Press Release
The president of a metal fabrication and manufacturing company pleaded guilty on Feb. 5, to a conspiracy to rig bids for maintenance, repair, and operations contracts affecting United States military installations, earning his company more than $8.5 million dollars in rigged procurements.
According to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Thomas C. Rollins, of Wilmington, North Carolina, was the president of a company that provided goods and services to military bases through procurements administered by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). Between at least 2015 and 2022, Rollins conspired with other individuals and companies to suppress and eliminate competition by rigging bids for the procurements administered by the DLA, which were awarded to subcontractors through a competitive bidding process. Rollins and his co-conspirators coordinated their submission of rigged bids by agreeing in advance which co-conspirator would submit the lowest pricing and instructing each other how to price “comp” or “cover” bids. In the plea agreement, Rollins admitted that the volume of commerce attributable to him and related to the conspiracy was approximately $8.47 million.
“For seven years, this defendant deliberately chose to cheat instead of compete, harming the Department of War and the American people in the process,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Omeed A. Assefi of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The Antitrust Division and its partners in the Procurement Collusion Strike Force are laser focused on detecting and prosecuting those who seek to tilt the scales in their favor at the expense of American taxpayers and warfighters.”
“As the criminal investigative arm of the Department of Defense’s Office of Inspector General, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service remains steadfast in its commitment to safeguarding the integrity of the Department’s acquisition process,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher Dillard of DCIS’s Mid-Atlantic Field Office. “When individuals conspire to rig bids and eliminate fair competition, they erode taxpayer trust and jeopardize the readiness of our armed forces. Today’s outcome makes clear that this conduct will not be tolerated. DoD contracts must be awarded based on merit, consistent with the best interests of national defense.”
Rollins pleaded guilty to one felony count of restraining trade by conspiring to rig bids, in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act. The maximum penalty for individuals is 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine.
A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled in this case. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. The Department of Defense’s Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DoD-OIG) is investigating this case. The Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal Section is prosecuting the case.
The Justice Department’s Procurement Collusion Strike Force (PCSF) is a joint law enforcement effort to combat antitrust crimes and related fraudulent schemes that impact government procurement, grant and program funding at all levels of government — federal, state and local. To learn more about the PCSF, or to report information on bid rigging, price fixing, market allocation and other anticompetitive conduct related to government spending, go to www.justice.gov/procurement-collusion-strike-force.
Whistleblowers who voluntarily report original information about antitrust and related offenses that result in criminal fines or other recoveries of at least $1 million may be eligible to receive a whistleblower reward. Whistleblower awards can range from 15 to 30 percent of the money collected. For more information on the Antitrust Whistleblower Rewards Program, including a link to submit reports, visit www.justice.gov/atr/whistleblower-rewards.
Civil Rights Division Secures $68M Settlement in Predatory Land Sales and Lending LawsuitRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today that Colony Ridge Land LLC and its affiliates (Colony Ridge), a land developer and lender near Houston, TX, have agreed to pay $68,000,000 to resolve a lawsuit alleging that Colony Ridge targeted Hispanic borrowers with a predatory land sales and lending scheme that led to a cycle of foreclosures and financial hardship in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and the Fair Housing Act (FHA).
“Intentionally targeting vulnerable borrowers with the American dream of homeownership and then trapping them in a predatory scheme is not only wrong, it also violates our civil rights laws. This DOJ will go after all lenders, financiers, and land developers who participate in schemes which ultimately encourage illegal immigration,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The changes required by this settlement will promote public safety, and affordable and sustainable homeownership in America, key priorities of this Administration.”
The Civil Rights Division’s investigation found that Colony Ridge intentionally targeted Hispanic consumers with a deceptive bait-and-switch, predatory scheme that used misleading advertisements and sales tactics, including misrepresentations about flooding risks. Colony Ridge also used seller-financed loans without verifying a borrower’s ability to repay, significantly increasing the possibility of default and resulting in high foreclosure rates.
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the State of Texas’s Office of the Attorney General. The settlement resolves a December 2023 lawsuit filed by the Civil Rights Division and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and a March 2024 lawsuit filed by the State of Texas Office of the Attorney General.
Under the settlement, defendants have agreed to:
- Invest $48 million in infrastructure improvements, with $18 million specifically invested in drainage infrastructure to address severe and costly flooding damage to homes, and $30 million towards other general infrastructure improvements;
- Increase housing affordability by adopting underwriting standards that assess borrowers’ ability to repay their Colony Ridge lot loans through consideration of borrowers’ income, assets, and debt;
- Preserve homeownership by developing a policy to meaningfully reduce the number and frequency of foreclosures and deeds in lieu of foreclosures;
- Protect homeowners by developing a default avoidance plan to help borrowers avoid defaulting on their Colony Ridge lot loans and to meaningfully reduce the overall default rate;
- Protect borrowers by developing a plan to address harms to borrowers’ credit because of reports made by Colony Ridge for all borrowers who have defaulted on a Colony Ridge lot loan;
- Address misrepresentations to consumers by ensuring honest and accurate advertisements that truthfully and accurately describe the properties for sale and applicable loan terms;
- Represent accurately the state of properties by providing pre-sale disclosures that accurately state whether a property is “move in ready” or currently has “all city services” such as immediate access to all utility services;
- Invest $20 million in increased law enforcement presence to ensure the safety of residents by coming into compliance with local, state, and federal agreements and to increase law enforcement presence and effectiveness in the Colony Ridge developments;
- Utilize ILSA’s intrastate land sales exemption and require purchasers to present an unexpired Texas-issued driver’s license, a Texas-issued identification card, a limited-term Texas-issued driver’s license issued after January 1, 2025 or an unexpired passport and valid visa issued or renewed after January 1, 2025; and
- Halt development of new residential plats for direct-to-consumer sales for three years.
More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.justice.gov/crt.
Businessman Who Repeatedly Transferred Assets to Elude Creditors Waives Discharge After USTP InvestigationRead the Press Release
A business owner who devised a corporate shell game to hide assets from creditors both before and after bankruptcy agreed to waive his bankruptcy discharge of more than $8.4 million in debts after an investigation by the Department of Justice’s U.S. Trustee Program (USTP).
On January 29, the Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Missouri approved a voluntary waiver of discharge by debtor Bradley James Carlson. As a result, Carlson remains liable for his debts, and creditors are free to pursue payment from him after the case is closed.
Carlson was the owner and chief executive of a holding company and multiple subsidiaries operating several businesses, including real estate ventures and entities that manufactured and sold commercial food trucks. In November 2023, a state court appointed a receiver over the corporate assets after the businesses defaulted on payments to their primary lender — which also alleged that Carlson and other senior company executives had diverted business funds to buy luxury items, including sports cars and watches, and pay for personal projects such as the remodeling of Carlson’s multimillion-dollar residence. On the eve of the receiver’s appointment, Carlson transferred the business assets to new entities created by his girlfriend and another executive. Carlson continued to manage the businesses while he and his staff told customers and other employees that the old companies were being rebranded.
In February 2024, Carlson filed an individual chapter 7 bankruptcy case to attempt to avoid liability on several personal financial guarantees related to his enterprises. As part of its investigation, the USTP’s Kansas City office subpoenaed bank and business records, which prompted Carlson to create more new entities and transfer business assets again. Ultimately, Carlson agreed to waive his discharge.
“The USTP is committed to combating fraudulent and abusive conduct that threatens to undermine the integrity of the bankruptcy system,” said Acting U.S. Trustee Jerry Jensen of Region 13, which includes the Western District of Missouri. “The USTP will enforce the law against those who try to use the system to gain an unfair advantage.”
The USTP’s mission is to promote the integrity and efficiency of the bankruptcy system for the benefit of all stakeholders — debtors, creditors and the public. The USTP consists of 21 regions with 82 field offices nationwide and an Executive Office in Washington, D.C. Learn more about the USTP at www.justice.gov/ust.
Repeat Sex Offender Convicted of Child Exploitation Offenses, Including Receiving and Possessing AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
A federal jury convicted a sex offender yesterday of receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material and receiving and possessing AI-generated images of child sexual abuse.
Cody L. Prater, 28, of McArthur, Ohio, was convicted of four counts related to his receipt and possession of both child pornography and obscene visual representations of the sexual abuse of children. Before trial, Prater challenged his indictment on First Amendment grounds; however, the Court denied his motion, ruling that the possession and receipt of obscene, generative AI material depicting the sexual abuse of children is not constitutionally protected speech.
According to evidence presented at trial, Prater received and possessed videos depicting the rape and sadistic sexual abuse of real minors, primarily babies and toddlers. He also used an artificial intelligence text-to-image program to convert his text prompts into photorealistic depictions of child sexual abuse, including bestiality, nude prepubescent children being mutilated and tortured, and children engaged in sexual acts with adults.
“Cody Prater created, possessed, and trafficked images depicting the brutal sexual abuse of infants and toddlers, including Artificial Intelligence generated images,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “Child sexual abuse material, including that which is AI-generated, causes substantial harm. It further creates depraved and sadistic desires to harm real children. A seminal prosecution goal of the Department of Justice is to protect the innocent. Our children and their families deserve vigorous investigation and prosecution of those who create, share, possess, or otherwise illegally engage with such material.”
“Prater collected vile videos of real babies and toddlers being sexually abused and created other AI-generated obscene material involving children,” said U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II for the Southern District of Ohio. “We will continue to crack down on those who victimize children through these horrific materials. I commend the investigators and trial team for their outstanding work.”
“Homeland Security Investigations is committed to protecting children from exploitation, whether that abuse is captured in traditional imagery or generated with emerging technologies like artificial intelligence,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Detroit. “This verdict underscores that there is no distinction under the law between child sexual abuse material involving real victims and AI generated depictions of such horrific crimes. HSI will continue to work tirelessly with our federal, state, and local partners to identify offenders, dismantle the networks that enable this abuse, and ensure that those who prey on children are brought to justice.”
The court has not set Prater’s sentencing yet. He faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years and a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison on particular charges. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
HSI Detroit investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Eduardo Palomo of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily Czerniejewski and Tyler Aagard for the Southern District of Ohio are prosecuting the case.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the 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.justice.gov/
Nigerian National Sentenced to over 8 Years in Prison for Orchestrating Multimillion-Dollar Inheritance Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A Nigerian National was sentenced today to more than eight years in prison for participating in a years-long conspiracy to defraud elderly and vulnerable Americans through an inheritance fraud scheme.
According to court documents, Tochukwu Albert Nnebocha, 44, of Nigeria, and his co-conspirators operated a lucrative transnational inheritance fraud scheme that exploited vulnerable people in the United States. Over the course of more than seven years, Nnebocha and his co-conspirators sent hundreds of thousands of personalized letters to elderly individuals in the United States, falsely claiming that the sender was a representative of a bank in Spain and that the recipient was entitled to receive a multimillion-dollar inheritance left by a deceased family member. The conspirators then told the victims that, before they could receive their purported inheritance, they were required to send money for purported delivery fees, taxes, and payments regarding the inheritance. In total, the defendant and his co-conspirators defrauded over 400 U.S. victims of more than $6 million.
In April 2025, Nnebocha was arrested by authorities in Poland and extradited to the United States in September 2025. In November 2025, Nnebocha pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit mail fraud and wire fraud. At sentencing, Nnebocha was sentenced to 97 months in prison, 3 years supervised release, and ordered to pay more than $6.8 million in restitution to the victims of his scheme. This is the second indicted case related to this international fraud scheme. Eight co-conspirators from the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, and Nigeria have previously been convicted and sentenced in connection with this scheme.
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida; Inspector in Charge Bladismir Rojo of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s (USPIS) Miami Division; and Acting Special Agent in Charge Ray Rede of the Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) in Arizona made the announcement.
USPIS and HSI investigated the case.
Senior Trial Attorney Phil Toomajian and Trial Attorney Joshua D. Rothman of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs (OIA) worked with law enforcement partners in Poland to secure the arrest and extradition of Nnebocha. OIA, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, the FBI’s Legal Attache in Poland, INTERPOL, and Polish Authorities, all provided critical assistance.
If you or someone you know is aged 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This U.S. Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, is staffed by experienced professionals who provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim, and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is staffed seven days a week from 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Eastern time. English, Spanish and other languages are available.
Spokane Man Sentenced for Repeatedly Distributing Drugs in De Facto Open Air Drug Market in Downtown SpokaneRead the Press Release
Spokane, Washington – First Assistant Pete Serrano announced that on January 14, 2026, United States District Court Judge Thomas O. Rice, sentenced Timothy Michael Hanahan, age 38, of Spokane, Washington, to 84 months of prison distributing methamphetamine and fentanyl into the Spokane community. Judge Rice also ordered that, following his sentence, Hanahan will be on 4 years of supervised release.
According to court records, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives was conducting a crime reduction emphasis in the greater Spokane area. Hanahan, a homeless transplant from Texas using the moniker “Big Mike”, was identified as a distributor of methamphetamine and fentanyl. He was known to distribute drugs near the House of Charity in downtown Spokane. Over the course of numerous interactions, Hanahan bragged to undercover law enforcement agents posing as drug customers that he had connections in Idaho and Montana, and that his “connections” were moving large volumes of drugs. Ultimately, Hanahan sold the undercover agents methamphetamine and fentanyl on several occasions and introduced the undercover agents to additional drug sources who also sold drugs to the undercover agents.
Hanahan has notable criminal history dating back almost 2 decades, to include several previous significant sex offenses as well as being an accessory to assault with a deadly weapon in Nevada, forgery and drug offenses in Texas, and most recently an assault in Spokane. Hanahan was transient living in and around the House of Charity at the time of the instant offense.
“This case shows the impact of focused, intelligence-driven enforcement,” said Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Blais of the ATF Seattle Field Division. “Mr. Hanahan repeatedly brought dangerous drugs into the heart of downtown Spokane and actively expanded their distribution. This sentence disrupts a supply chain that was harming this community, and ATF is proud to work alongside our federal and local partners and the U.S. Attorney’s office to target those who seek to profit from addiction and victimization.”
“I applaud our partners at ATF for taking the lead in addressing crime in our community. Their investigation led to the prosecution of several individuals who victimize our community, including Mr. Hanahan who has a significant and concerning criminal history and came to our community to distribute his poison,” stated Mr. Serrano.
“The outcome in this case is a prime example of why the City of Spokane is proud to partner and coordinate with our various law enforcement partners in the fight to remove fentanyl and methamphetamine dealers from our community,” stated City Prosecutor Justin Bingham. “Strong partnerships are key to successfully reducing crime and safeguarding our citizens from the dangerous effects of illicit drugs.”
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives in partnership with the Drug Enforcement Administration, the United States Border Patrol, and the Spokane Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Annika Tangvald.Ryan Wesley Routh Sentenced to Life in Prison for Attempted Assassination of President Donald J. Trump and Assault of a Federal Law Enforcement OfficerRead the Press Release
Today, Ryan Wesley Routh, 59, was sentenced to life plus 84 months in federal prison for the attempted assassination of then-presidential candidate Donald J. Trump and related violent and firearms offenses. U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon for the Southern District of Florida imposed the sentence following Routh’s conviction by a federal jury on all five counts charged in the indictment.
“Ryan Routh’s heinous attempted assassination of President Trump was not only an attack on our President — it was a direct assault against our entire democratic system," said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Thanks to our prosecutors in the National Security Division and the Southern District of Florida, Routh will never walk free again.”
“Routh’s plan to kill a major presidential candidate, President Donald Trump, was a despicable attack on our democratic system,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “Thanks to the work of the FBI and our Justice Department partners, he will pay a high price for his actions. Today’s sentencing demonstrates the justice system will not tolerate such heinous attacks.”
“Routh attempted to assassinate President Trump and thereby cast our Nation into what would have been one of its darkest periods,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “Today’s sentence is a resounding rejection of political violence and a clear reminder that we resolve our differences through civil discourse, democratic elections, and lawful protest, not by force.”
“This life sentence reflects a fundamental truth: political violence is un-American and will never be tolerated,” said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida. “An attempted assassination of a presidential candidate is an attack on our democratic process and the rule of law itself. This assassination attempt was stopped by the courage and professionalism of U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Robert Fercano, whose decisive actions protected lives and prevented a national tragedy. Today’s life sentence ensures the defendant will never again threaten public safety and sends a clear message that those who choose violence to advance their beliefs will face swift, certain, and decisive justice.”
“Political violence is unacceptable in the United States, and this sentence is commensurate with the gravity of Routh’s actions,” said Special Agent in Charge Brett Skiles of the FBI Miami Field Office. “The investigation was immense and left no stone unturned. The FBI worked shoulder to shoulder with the Secret Service, ATF, the Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office, and the Martin County Sheriff’s Office. The FBI covered leads across the country and around the globe using all the tools and techniques at our disposal to include FBI Laboratory analysis, the Computer Analysis Response Team and the Cellular Analysis Survey Team. I commend our law enforcement partners and investigative team for their tireless work which led to today’s result.”
In September 2025, after a two-week trial in Fort Pierce, Florida, a jury found Routh guilty of attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, assault of a federal law enforcement officer, and multiple firearms offenses.
According to evidence presented at trial, then-U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Robert Fercano was patrolling one hole ahead of President Trump at the Trump International Golf Club when he observed Routh pointing what appeared to be an AK 47-style rifle at him from a sniper’s hide concealed in a fence line bordering the golf course. Fearing for his life and the life of President Trump, Special Agent Fercano fired at Routh, who fled the scene.
Rifle Behind Fence LineLaw enforcement officers later recovered a Norinco SKS rifle equipped with a scope, a loaded magazine containing 19 rounds of ammunition and one round in the chamber, steel armor plates, and a camera affixed to the fence and pointing at the sixth green of the golf course where President Trump was about to play golf.
A civilian witness reported seeing Routh run across a roadway and enter a black Nissan Xterra. Based on that information, Routh was apprehended while traveling northbound on I-95 by officers from the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
A search of Routh’s vehicle revealed multiple mobile phones and a list of international flights along with directions to Miami International Airport. Cell phone records showed that between Aug. 18 and Sept. 15, 2024, Routh’s phone accessed cell towers located near Trump International Golf Club and the President’s residence at Mar-a-Lago on multiple occasions.
Testimony at trial also established that Routh had dropped off a box at a witness’s residence in April 2024 after making another trip to the area near the golf course. Inside the box was a handwritten letter addressed “Dear World,” in which Routh stated, among other things, “This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I am so sorry I failed you.”
Routh Handwritten LetterFBI Miami investigated the case with assistance from the U.S. Secret Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. The Palm Beach Sheriff’s Office and Martin County Sheriff’s Office also assisted with this case.
Senior Counsel John C. Shipley, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher B. Browne, National Security Division Chief Maria K. Medetis Long, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Luce for the Southern District of Florida, and Trial Attorneys James Donnelly and John Cella of the Justice Department’s National Security Division Counterterrorism Section prosecuted the case.
Justice Department Opens Investigation into Baltimore City Health Department for Racially Segregated TrainingRead the Press Release
Today, the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division launched an investigation into the Baltimore City, Maryland, Health Department (BCHD) to determine whether it engages in employment practices that discriminate against, or limit, segregate, or classify, employees because of their race, color, and national origin in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended.
“Separating employees into training groups based on their race is discriminatory, illegal, and un-American. Such practices are divisive and foster a racially hostile work environment,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Racial segregation of employees is deeply offensive to the American guarantee of equal rights under the law, and it will not be tolerated.”
Public reporting indicates that BCHD segregates its employees into groups based on race, color, and national origin for “racial equity training.” These groups include the “white caucus” and the “people of color caucus.” BCHD describes the “white caucus” as a “group of white people who meet for the purpose of building analysis, awareness, stamina, and strategy to challenge systemic racism and internalized white supremacy.” BCHD further states that “[w]hite affinity groups allow us to examine our racial conditioning without relying on people of color for answers or subjecting them to our process.”
The Civil Rights Division has not reached any conclusions about the subject matter of the investigation. You can read the notice letter here.
Justice Department Files Statement of Interest in Pipeline Case in WisconsinRead the Press Release
Note: View statement of interest here.
The Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) and Civil Division yesterday filed a statement of interest in a case in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin involving the potential shut down of the Line 5 pipeline operated by Enbridge.
The statement of interest supports staying the district court’s injunction that requires Enbridge to cease operating its Line 5 pipeline in the Bad River Reservation by June 16, 2026. The case has been pending appeal since December 2023 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
“If the Line 5 pipeline is shut down in June, America’s energy supply chain would be disrupted and Americans would see increased costs,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of ENRD. “The Seventh Circuit is considering the case, and the district court should not impose drastic actions in this matter while the case is on appeal.”
President Donald J. Trump declared a national energy emergency which underscores the need for an affordable and reliable supply of energy for America’s prosperity and security. A shutdown of Line 5 would damage the United States’ interest because there are no ready alternatives to transport energy products currently flowing through Line 5, as the Justice Department further explained in a statement of interest filed last year in a case between Enbridge and Michigan.
Chief of Staff and Senior General Counsel John Adams of ENRD filed the statement alongside attorneys within ENRD’s Law and Policy Section and the Civil Division’s Federal Programs Branch.
SOI Enbridge Line 5 WI.pdfInsect Shield LLC and Co-Founder’s Estate Agree to Pay $1.4M to Settle False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
Insect Shield LLC, located in North Carolina, and the Estate of Richard Lane, a co-founder and co-owner of Insect Shield, have agreed to pay a combined $1.4 million to resolve allegations that Insect Shield and Lane caused the submission of false claims to the Department of Defense (DoD) under contracts to provide Army Combat Uniforms. Lane served as the president and chief operating officer of Insect Shield until his death in December 2022.
The United States filed its complaint-in-intervention in December 2023 alleging that Insect Shield, a subcontractor to multiple defense contractors who manufacture Army uniforms, violated the False Claims Act by falsifying test results regarding the application of permethrin, an insect repellant, to Army uniforms. The United States alleged that between 2015 and 2021 Insect Shield and Lane failed to follow the permethrin testing requirements by inappropriately combining results from different rounds of testing, re-labeling test samples to hide the true origin of the samples, performing re-tests of uniforms in excess of what the contract permitted, and concealing failing test results.
“Government contractors and subcontractors must comply with contractual commitments and share truthful information with the government,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Justice Department will aggressively pursue those who defraud the American taxpayers by failing to properly perform required testing on goods supplied to our soldiers.”
“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), is fully committed to safeguarding the integrity of the DoD procurement process,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher Dillard of DCIS Mid-Atlantic Field Office. “Manipulating and failing to perform contractually required testing is not only fraudulent, but compromises military readiness. DCIS will continue to collaborate with our law enforcement partners and the Department of Justice to investigate and hold accountable those who submit false claims.”
“Our Soldiers rely on government contractors to provide equipment that they can depend on while serving their country,” said Special Agent in Charge Keith Kelly, Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, Fraud Field Office. “The result of this investigation shows that our Army CID and our partner law enforcement agencies are relentless in their pursuit of anyone who may attempt to defraud the U.S. Government by falsely reporting compliance with contractually obligated requirements for equipment used by our Soldiers
The civil settlement resolves a lawsuit brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to sue on behalf of the United States when a defendant has submitted or caused to be submitted false claims for government funds and receive a portion of any recovery. Ms. Downs will receive $315,000 as her share of the settlement. The qui tam case, which was filed in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, is captioned U.S. ex rel. Downs v. Insect Shield, LLC et al., No. 1:19-cv-1026 (M.D.N.C.).
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Justice Department’s Civil Division, Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of North Carolina with assistance from the DoD Office of Inspector General, Army Criminal Investigation Division, Defense Contract Management Agency, and Defense Contract Audit Agency.
The matter was handled by Fraud Section Attorneys Jonathan Hoerner, Jikky Thankachan, and Jeffrey McSorley and Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the Middle District of North Carolina.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Note: Read the Insect Shield Agreement here; and the Estate of Richard Lane Agreement here.
Former NFL Player Convicted for $197M Medicare FraudRead the Press Release
A federal jury in the Middle District of Florida convicted the owner of a marketing company, and former NFL player, for his role in a yearslong scheme to bilk Medicare and the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) out of nearly $200 million by selling patient information and sham doctors’ orders for orthotic braces that patients did not want or need.
“This defendant’s conduct was egregious: he targeted seniors suffering from Alzheimer’s and dementia and billed Medicare for orthotic braces for deceased patients and amputees,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “These schemes undermine the integrity of our health care system by robbing taxpayer-funded programs meant for legitimate medical care. Today’s verdict sends a clear message: the Criminal Division will aggressively prosecute those who prey on our nation’s seniors and veterans to steal from Medicare.”
“This scheme built on sham operations exploited seniors and corrupted the federal health care system. By falsifying doctors’ orders and selling patient information, the defendant sought to turn Medicare into their own personal ATM machine,” said Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Scott J. Lampert of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “HHS-OIG will stop and catch anyone who exploits vulnerable patients to bilk federal healthcare programs and hold them accountable to the full extent of the law.”
“This guilty verdict holds the defendant accountable for his role in a healthcare fraud scheme that targeted a program meant for deserving veterans and their families,” said Special Agent in Charge David Spilker with the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General Southeast Field Office. “The VA OIG will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to root out fraudsters and hold them responsible.”
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Joel Rufus French, 47, of Amory, Mississippi, worked with overseas call centers that pressured elderly Americans to provide their personal and health insurance information and agree to accept medically unnecessary orthotic braces. Some of the individuals who agreed to the braces suffered from Alzheimer’s and dementia. In certain instances, the call centers altered call recordings to make it seem like Medicare patients agreed to the braces when they did not.
French paid sham telemedicine companies to obtain signed orders from doctors and nurse practitioners who never examined, and often never even spoke to, the patients. He sold the orders to marketers and medical supply companies, which then submitted claims to Medicare. French also defrauded Medicare and CHAMPVA, the health care program for spouses and children of veterans who have or had a permanent and total service-connected disability or who died from a service-connected condition, by billing the programs for orthotic braces through eight durable medical equipment supply companies that he owned and managed, using false documents to hide his connection to the companies from Medicare. The evidence at trial showed that French and his co-conspirators caused Medicare to be billed for braces for amputees for limbs they did not have and for deceased beneficiaries. Also during the conspiracy, French withdrew approximately $225,000 in cash from a bank in Mississippi, over $10,000 of which was placed in a bag and driven to Orlando to pay accomplices who sold him beneficiaries’ personal and insurance information.
The jury convicted French of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to offer, pay, solicit, and receive kickbacks. French faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, 10 years in prison for conspiracy to commit money laundering, and five years in prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing date has not been set.
HHS-OIG, FBI, and VA-OIG investigated the case.
Acting Assistant Chief Catherine Wagner and Trial Attorney William Hochul III of the Justice Department’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of eight strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
Brooklyn Banker Pleads Guilty to Laundering Proceeds of Medicare Fraud for Transnational Criminal OrganizationRead the Press Release
A New York man pleaded guilty today to participating in a scheme to launder more than $8 million in health care fraud proceeds through a U.S. bank on behalf of a transnational criminal organization (TCO). This marks the first time the Health Care Fraud Unit has charged and convicted a former bank employee for conspiring to launder health care fraud proceeds.
According to court documents, Renat Abramov, 36, of Brooklyn, a former relationship manager at a U.S. bank branch in Sheepshead Bay, used his position to aid a sophisticated international scheme uncovered by Operation Gold Rush. Abramov, a dual citizen of the United States and Azerbaijan, was a member of a TCO that allegedly submitted more than $10 billion in fraudulent Medicare claims by stealing the identities of over one million Americans, including elderly and disabled citizens in all 50 states.
As alleged in charging documents, the TCO exploited the U.S. financial system using a range of tactics to circumvent internal controls at multiple banks. Abramov helped execute the scheme by opening bank accounts for individuals – many not lawfully present in the United States – who posed as owners of fake medical equipment companies using fake corporate registration documents. The bank accounts were used to deposit fraudulently obtained insurance checks, which appeared legitimate because they came from Medicare and established insurance companies. Once deposited, members of the TCO transferred the money into offshore accounts and cryptocurrency.
Abramov pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 20.
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Acting Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Scott J. Lampert of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) made the announcement.
The FBI and HHS-OIG are investigating the case.
Assistant Chiefs Kevin Lowell and Shankar Ramamurthy, along with Trial Attorneys Leonid Sandlar, Sara E. Porter, and Andres Q. Almendarez of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of eight strike forces operating in federal districts across the country, has charged more than 6,200 defendants who collectively billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $45 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
Justice Department Sues to Revoke Naturalization of California Sex OffenderRead the Press Release
On Jan. 30, the Department of Justice filed a civil complaint to revoke the citizenship of Erwin Galindo, who committed several unlawful sexual acts with minors prior to naturalizing and, later, withheld his illegal acts throughout his naturalization process.
Galindo sexually abused an 11-year-old child, and he sexually abused and raped a 14-year-old child. After naturalizing, Galindo was convicted in California of two counts of lewd or lascivious acts upon a child and was sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison. His acts and his concealment of these material facts warrant revocation of Galindo’s 2015 naturalization under 8 U.S.C. § 1451.
“This Department of Justice will continue to strip citizenship from those who commit heinous crimes and conceal them during the naturalization process,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “American citizenship is a great and sacred privilege that must be earned honestly.”
“A monster who commits horrific acts of sexual abuse against children should not ever have become a U.S. citizen,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This Administration will not hesitate to take his citizenship back.”
This case is being civilly prosecuted by the Justice Department’s Office of Immigration Litigation, Affirmative Litigation Unit, with assistance from ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations.
Justice Department Seeks to Denaturalize Convicted RapistRead the Press Release
Today, the United States filed a denaturalization action in the Eastern District of New York against Gurmeet Singh, a native of India, who, according to the Department of Justice’s complaint, concealed and misrepresented in his naturalization application that he had previously kidnapped and sexual assaulted a female passenger of his taxicab. After his passenger fell asleep in the backseat, he drove her to a side street and the passenger awoke to find Singh on top of her with a knife to her throat, telling her to stop resisting if she wanted to live. Singh then bound and gagged her, blindfolded her, removed her clothes, and raped her.
Singh concealed these acts throughout his naturalization proceedings and naturalized as a U.S. citizen on Oct. 19, 2011. After naturalizing, Singh was convicted in New York of Rape in the First Degree and Kidnapping in the Second Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
“This Department of Justice will continue to strip citizenship from those who commit heinous crimes and conceal them during the naturalization process,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “American citizenship is a great and sacred privilege that must be earned honestly.”
“This individual’s vile acts prove that he should not have been granted U.S. citizenship,” said Assistant Attorney General Brett A. Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Singh entered our country through family-based immigration laws, then committed horrible crimes before lying about them to become a U.S. citizen. We will now correct this injustice.”
“The defendant in this case secured U.S. citizenship through deceit, and on the heels of committing the heinous crimes of rape and kidnapping,” said U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr for the Eastern District of New York. “This case, brought to strip the defendant of citizenship that he did not earn and to which he was not entitled, demonstrates our Office’s commitment to protecting the American people and defending the sanctity of U.S. citizenship.”
Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, a naturalized U.S. citizen’s citizenship may be revoked, and his certificate of naturalization canceled, if the naturalization was illegally procured or procured by concealment of a material fact or by willful misrepresentation.
This case was investigated by the Civil Division’s Office of Immigration Litigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. The litigation is being handled by Trial Attorney Christopher Lyerla and Assistant U.S. Attorney Layaliza Soloveichik for the Eastern District of New York and reviewed by John Inkeles, Chief, Office of Immigration Litigation, Affirmative Litigation Unit.
The claims made in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Department of Justice Opposes Unfair Class Action Settlement Involving Accessibility of Website under the ADARead the Press Release
Today, the Department of Justice filed a Statement of Interest arguing that a proposed class action settlement involving an apparel company’s website would afford little value to consumers with vision disabilities while generously compensating attorneys.
Plaintiffs in the case, Alcazar v. Fashion Nova Inc., alleged that Fashion Nova Inc., a California-based apparel retailer, operated an online clothing website that was not accessible and denied blind users full and equal access to its goods and services in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Under a proposed settlement reached between the parties, Fashion Nova agreed to pay approximate $2.43 million divided evenly among class members in California who timely filed a valid claim. Plaintiffs seek over $2.52 million in attorneys’ fees and costs. The settlement also provides for injunctive relief generically requiring Fashion Nova’s website to be accessible.
“A class action under the ADA should, above all else, secure greater accessibility for consumers with disabilities,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Congress intended the Department and Courts to be skeptical of settlements that instead enrich private counsel.”
The proposed agreement is unfair because the proposed injunctive relief for class members is not meaningful — it is a mere recitation of the obligation to make visually delivered materials available to individuals who are blind or low vision with no confirmation or enforcement mechanism. As proposed, the agreement does not ensure Fashion Nova takes concrete steps to make its website accessible. The case is pending in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, which must approve any settlement.
The Class Action Fairness Act of 2005 provides the Attorney General and state officials an opportunity to review federal class action settlements before district courts grant final approval.
The Justice Department plays a central role in advancing the ADA’s goals of equal opportunity, and full participation for people with disabilities, including people who are incarcerated. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit justice.gov/crt. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 1-800-514-0301 (TTY 1-833-610-1264) or visit ADA.gov.
Justice Department Requires Reddy Ice to Divest Assets to Proceed with Proposed Acquisition of Arctic GlacierRead the Press Release
The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division announced today that it will require Stone Canyon Industries Holdings LP (owner of Reddy Ice) and Chill Parent Holdco LP (owner of Arctic Glacier) to divest assets in California, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, and Washington to resolve antitrust concerns arising from Reddy Ice’s proposed more-than $126 million acquisition of Arctic Glacier. The proposed divestitures preserve competition for packaged ice sold to retail chains, airlines, and airline caterers in these states.
The Antitrust Division filed a civil antitrust lawsuit today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block the proposed transaction. At the same time, the Division filed a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the competitive harm alleged in the lawsuit.
“The Antitrust Division is committed to enforcing the antitrust laws in markets that impact American consumers and businesses,” said Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “This transaction, as originally proposed, would have led to higher prices and lower service quality on packaged ice, a staple Americans enjoy everywhere from backyard cookouts to cross-country flights. Today’s settlement will maintain competition for the sale of packaged ice to the benefit of American consumers.”
As detailed in the complaint, Reddy Ice and Arctic Glacier are the largest suppliers of packaged ice sold to retail chains in Oregon, Washington, and Imperial and Riverside counties in southern California. They are also the largest suppliers of packaged ice sold to airlines and airline caterers in the Boston and New York City metropolitan areas.
The proposed settlement resolves anticompetitive concerns in these geographies where the parties currently compete, either directly via their facilities or via co-packers that manufacture and deliver ice to the parties’ customers on their behalf.
Under the terms of the proposed settlement, the parties must divest (1) Reddy Ice’s manufacturing and distribution facilities and customer relationships and contracts, along with other assets, in Imperial and Riverside counties in southern California and in Washington; and (2) divest customer relationships and contracts, along with other assets, in Oregon and in the Boston and New York City metropolitan areas. The parties must also provide advance notification for certain future transactions and allow a monitor to supervise the parties’ divestiture of the assets and compliance with the consent decree.
Reddy Ice is the largest producer of packaged ice in the United States with annual revenues of approximately $511 million. The company sells packaged ice in 37 states and the District of Columbia.
Arctic Glacier is the third largest producer of packaged ice in the United States with annual revenues of approximately $306 million. It sells packaged ice in 19 states.
As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed settlement, along with a competitive impact statement, will be published in the Federal Register. Any person should submit written comments concerning the proposed settlement within 60 days following the publication to Jill Maguire, Acting Chief, Healthcare and Consumer Products Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street NW, Suite 4100, Washington, DC 20530. At the conclusion of the public comment period, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia may enter the final judgment upon finding it is in the public interest.
Note: View the Proposed Final Judgement here and the Complaint here.
Department of Justice Publishes 3.5 Million Responsive Pages in Compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency ActRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Department of Justice today published over 3 million additional pages responsive to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was signed into law by President Trump on November 19, 2025.
More than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images are included in today’s additional publication. Combined with prior releases, this makes the total production nearly 3.5 million pages released in compliance with the Act.
These files were collected from five primary sources including the Florida and New York cases against Epstein, the New York case against Maxwell, the New York cases investigating Epstein’s death, the Florida case investigating a former butler of Epstein, Multiple FBI investigations, and the Office of Inspector General investigation into Epstein’s death.
The Department erred on the side of over-collecting materials, and any materials not produced fall within one of the following categories:
- Duplicate documents between SDNY and SDFL investigations.
- Withheld under privilege - deliberative process privilege, attorney client privilege.
- Withheld based upon exceptions under the act (depictions of violence);
- Items that are not part of the case file for Epstein or Maxwell and were completely unrelated to these cases.
More than 500 attorneys and reviewers from the Department contributed to this effort. In addition, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (USAO-SDNY) employed an additional review protocol to ensure compliance with a Court order requiring United States Attorney Jay Clayton to certify that no victim identifying information would be produced unredacted as part of the public production.
Through the process, the Department provided clear instructions to reviewers that the redactions were to be limited to the protection of victims and their families. Some pornographic images, whether commercial or not, were redacted, given the Department treated all women in those images as victims. Notable individuals and politicians were not redacted in the release of any files.
This production may include fake or falsely submitted images, documents or videos, as everything that was sent to the FBI by the public was included in the production that is responsive to the Act. Some of the documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election. To be clear, the claims are unfounded and false, and if they have a shred of credibility, they certainly would have been weaponized against President Trump already.
To access the full letter the Justice Department sent to Congress today, visit:
https://www.justice.gov/letter-to-congress.pdf
To access all files produced, visit: https://www.justice.gov/epstein
Atlanta Return Preparers Agree to Permanent Injunction and to Pay Back $600,000 in Ill-Gotten GainsRead the Press Release
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia issued a permanent injunction yesterday against Atlanta tax return preparers Mabika Ilunga, Simon Ilunga Sr., and Simon Ilunga Jr., both individually and doing business as Metro Insurance and Tax Service (together, the Defendants). The injunction bars the Defendants from preparing tax returns, working for, or having any ownership stake in any tax preparation business, assisting others (including family members) prepare tax returns or set up business as a preparer, and transferring or assigning customer lists to any other person or entity. The Defendants agreed to the terms of the injunction and to pay back to the United States $600,000 in ill-gotten gains they received from their return preparation business.
According to the complaint, the Defendants prepared and filed tax returns that falsely understated their customers’ federal income tax liabilities by fabricating, among other things:
- Eligibility for the Earned Income Tax Credit.
- Businesses and related business expenses and losses;
- Education and qualified electric vehicle credits;
- Unreimbursed employee business expenses; and
- Dependents and filing status.
As a result of the court’s order, the Defendants must post a copy of the injunction at all locations where they conduct business, and post a link to the injunction on their business’s website.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joshua Wu of the Civil Division’s Tax Litigation Branch made the announcement. Tax Litigation Branch attorney Daniel Causey handled this matter.
Taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant against unscrupulous tax preparers. The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax return preparer and has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers. The IRS also offers 10 tips to avoid tax season fraud and ways to safeguard their personal information.
In the past decade, the Department of Justice has obtained injunctions against hundreds of unscrupulous tax preparers. Information about these cases is available on the Justice Department’s website. An alphabetical listing of persons enjoined from preparing returns and promoting tax schemes can be found on this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Civil Division, Tax Litigation Branch with details.
Justice Department Requires Columbus McKinnon to Divest Assets to Proceed with Acquisition of Kito CrosbyRead the Press Release
The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division announced today that it will require Columbus McKinnon Corporation (CMCO) to divest its power chain hoist and chains businesses and related assets to resolve antitrust concerns arising from its proposed $2.7 billion acquisition of Kito Crosby Limited (Kito Crosby) from funds managed by global investment firm KKR.
The Antitrust Division today filed a civil antitrust lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block the proposed transaction. At the same time, the Division filed a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the Division’s competitive concerns.
“Today’s settlement is a structural solution to an acquisition that would have harmed competition for important equipment that facilitates the safe and efficient movement of heavy loads in a wide range of industries across the American economy,” said Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The settlement, which includes two manufacturing facilities, will ensure that American customers and industries will continue to benefit from competition between the leading providers of this important equipment.”
As alleged in the complaint, CMCO and Kito Crosby are two of the leading manufacturers in the markets for electric chain hoists and overhead lifting chain in the United States. Electric chain hoists, a type of power chain hoist, use a chain driven by an electric motor to lift, lower, and position heavy materials. Electric chain hoists are designed to be durable and can be used independently or integrated into a small overhead crane. Industries across the economy – including automotive, aerospace, energy, construction, and logistics – rely on electric chain hoists daily to increase efficiency and reduce strain on operators. Overhead lifting chain is exclusively made from forged alloy steel and meets ASTM standards for chain strong enough to ensure safe lifting operations. CMCO and Kito Crosby compete head-to-head to develop, manufacture, distribute, and sell electric chain hoists and overhead lifting chain. Without the proposed divestiture, CMCO’s acquisition of Kito Crosby would likely result in higher prices, lower quality, and reduced innovation to the detriment of customers.
The proposed settlement requires CMCO to divest its power chain hoist business, including electric chain hoists, and its chain business, including overhead lifting chain, to Pacific Avenue Capital Partners LLC, an American company with significant experience in industrial manufacturing. Pacific Avenue Capital Partners is expected to hire certain key CMCO employees that today support the divested businesses.
CMCO is an American multinational company, with its headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina. In 2024, CMCO had revenues of approximately $1 billion.
Kito Crosby is a U.K. multinational company with its headquarters in Arlington, Texas. In 2024, Kito Crosby reported $1.1 billion in revenue.
KKR is an American multinational company with its headquarters in New York, New York.
As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed settlement, along with a competitive impact statement, will be published in the Federal Register. Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed settlement within 60 days following the publication to Soyoung Choe, Acting Chief, Defense, Industrials, and Aerospace Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street NW, Suite 8700, Washington, DC 20530 or via email at [email protected]. At the conclusion of the public comment period, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia may enter the final judgment upon finding it is in the public interest.
Note: View the Proposed Final Judgement here; the Complaint here; and the Competitive Impact Statement here.
Court Allows Alaska Energy Exploration to ProceedRead the Press Release
The U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska rejected an attempt to halt a project exploring federal oil and gas resources in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve.
In November 2025, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) approved a permit application allowing ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. to conduct a one-year project involving seismic exploration and the drilling of multiple exploration wells in the National Petroleum Reserve. The plaintiffs sued, challenging the permit approval and seeking a preliminary injunction to halt the project. The court denied plaintiffs’ request, finding that they failed to raise even serious questions on the merits because BLM conducted a reasonably thorough analysis of the project’s impacts.
“Developing Alaska’s extraordinary resource potential involves many challenges. Lawsuits like this shouldn’t be one of them,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “We stand ready to advance President Trump’s objective of unleashing American energy.”
Antitrust Division and U.S. Postal Service Make First-Ever Whistleblower Payment: $1M Awarded for Reporting Antitrust CrimeRead the Press Release
The Antitrust Division today announced its first-ever whistleblower reward: a $1 million reward to a whistleblower who provided information that led to EBLOCK Corporation resolving criminal antitrust and fraud charges through a deferred prosecution agreement, under which it has agreed to pay a $3.28 million criminal fine.
EBLOCK Corporation offers an online auction platform for used vehicles. In November 2020, EBLOCK acquired Company A, another online auction platform for used vehicles. According to the Criminal Information and Deferred Prosecution Agreement filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, EBLOCK did not take immediate action after the acquisition to end the bid-rigging conspiracy and fraud at Company A. From November 2020 to February 2022, individuals at Company A conspired with individuals at Company B to suppress and eliminate competition for used vehicles sold on Company A’s online auction platform, in violation of the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1. EBLOCK also did not take immediate action to end “shill bidding” on Company A’s platform, resulting in the placement of fake bids intended to artificially increase the sales prices for used vehicles, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343.
“Whistleblowers serve as the Justice System’s greatest disinfectant against criminal antitrust conspiracies,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Omeed A. Assefi of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “A car is the second largest purchase most Americans will make in their lifetimes. This whistleblower helped expose a brazen $16 million scheme that made it more expensive for hardworking Americans to afford second-hand cars across the country. This $1 million reward not only recognizes a whistleblower for bravely stepping forward to report crimes to the Antitrust Division, but also underscores the indispensable role whistleblowers will continue to play in the Division’s criminal enforcement program. Remember, the first company in an antitrust cartel that reports its collusion to the Antitrust Division might receive Leniency — but the race is faster now, because employees and their attorneys are incentivized to blow the whistle and beat their companies to the Division’s doorstep.”
“Today’s reward shows that the Antitrust Division leverages whistleblower reports to drive forward our investigations,” said Acting Director of Criminal Enforcement Daniel Glad of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “If a whistleblower provides new information that ultimately assists the Antitrust Division in bringing charges, the whistleblower might receive a significant award — even if the criminal activity has already ended.”
“Whistleblowers play a critical role in helping law enforcement to identify and investigate a wide variety of criminal activities,” said Acting Assistant Director Mark Remily of the FBI’s Criminal Division. “In this case, information from a whistleblower led to the identification and dismantlement of a criminal antitrust conspiracy, that if unreported, would have continued to harm American consumers who were unknowingly overpaying for automobiles.”
“In this case, the defendant used the U.S. Mail to send documentation related to the scheme; a scheme that valued illegal profits over protecting unsuspecting car buyers. The Postal Inspection Service does not tolerate this abuse of the U.S. Mail or its customers and will pursue these types of criminals wherever they are,” said Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale. “This $1 million dollar award comes only six months after the Whistleblower Rewards Program first started. This award shows the commitment the U.S. Postal Service and the Antitrust Division to support those who provide accurate, actionable intelligence about antitrust and related competition crimes with a connection to the U.S. Mail.”
As described in the court documents, legacy employees at Company A conspired with employees at Company B to share bidding information and agree on the maximum amount Company A or Company B would bid on certain vehicles. Company A employees provided special access and user permissions to Company B that enabled it to view the confidential bidding information of other buyers and sellers on its auction site. The co-conspirators maintained a shared inventory of vehicles purchased pursuant to the bid rigging scheme, and they coordinated to relist those vehicles and place shill bids with the intention of artificially increasing the prices paid by legitimate buyers. They also misrepresented the numbers and identities of these fake bidders during the online auctions by commissioning the development of software that would automatically place shill bids under the names of actual auto dealerships without those dealerships’ consent. The co-conspirators pooled and split the profits from the scheme. During the course of these actions, various documents in support of the scheme were sent via U.S. Mail.
In addition to the $3.28 million fine, the deferred prosecution agreement requires EBLOCK to undertake remedial measures, including implementing an appropriate compliance program and cooperating with the Justice Department’s ongoing criminal investigation and any resulting prosecutions.
Federal law protects employees who report criminal antitrust violations from retaliation by their employers. At all times, the Antitrust Division will take reasonable steps to protect whistleblowers and minimize risks that use of the information will lead to public identification. More information on confidentiality and anti-retaliation protections is on the Confidentiality page.
The Antitrust Division works with its law enforcement partners the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General to pay rewards to whistleblowers. Whistleblowers who voluntarily report original information about antitrust and related offenses that result in criminal fines or other recoveries of at least $1 million may be eligible to receive a whistleblower reward. Whistleblower awards can range from 15 to 30 percent of the money collected. For more information on the Antitrust Whistleblower Rewards Program, including a link to submit reports, visit www.justice.gov/atr/whistleblower-rewards.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case. Trial Attorneys Melanie Krebs-Pilotti and Patrick Hallagan, and Assistant Chief Kristina Srica for the Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal Section, are prosecuting the case.
Justice Department Recognizes Arizona’s Successful Completion of Disability Access Reforms at Statewide Corrections FacilitiesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department announced today the successful completion of reforms required under an agreement with the Arizona statewide prison system, the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry (ADCRR). The Department concluded its Nov. 16, 2023 agreement with ADCRR, which resolved the Justice Department’s findings that ADCRR violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by discriminating against incarcerated individuals with vision disabilities, including those who are blind or have low vision.
“The Civil Rights Division continues its commitment to upholding the Americans with Disabilities Act,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We commend ADCRR for its work to protect the ADA rights of people with disabilities, including those who are blind or have other vision disabilities, incarcerated in state facilities.”
Under the agreement, ADCRR implemented a series of reforms, including revising policies and practices, training personnel, providing necessary modifications, aids, and services, and providing assistive technology to people with vision disabilities in ADCRR custody. ADCRR also implemented screening and documentation procedures and appointed ADA coordinators to facilitate implementation of the agreement across the state.
The Justice Department plays a central role in advancing the ADA’s goals of equal opportunity, and full participation for people with disabilities, including people who are incarcerated. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit www.justice.gov/crt. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 1-800-514-0301 (TTY 1-833-610-1264) or visit www.ADA.gov.
Brooklyn Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Murder-for-Hire Plot and Stalking a Journalist and Prominent Critic of the Iranian GovernmentRead the Press Release
Today, convicted murderer Carlisle Rivera, also known as “Pop,” was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his participation in a murder-for-hire plot directed by the Government of Iran targeting Masih Alinejad, a journalist, author, and human rights activist. Rivera previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and one count of conspiracy to commit stalking before U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman for the Southern District of New York, who imposed today’s sentence.
“Today’s sentence underscores the consequences of conspiring with a regime that relies on violence and intimidation to survive,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “The National Security Division will continue to work tirelessly with its partners to detect and protect against such plots and to hold accountable those who try to achieve the vile ends of the Iranian regime.”
“The Iranian government repeatedly targeted a journalist and human rights activist living in New York, but thanks to the good work of the FBI and our partners those efforts failed,” said Assistant Director Donald Holstead of the FBI's Counterterrorism Division. “Today's sentencing sends a strong message that anyone who conspires with foreign powers to harm people living in the United States will be held accountable.”
“The Government of Iran, a sponsor of terrorism, assassination, and espionage around the globe, has engaged in a campaign of assassination plots in the United States and abroad targeting those who oppose the regime,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York. “The Government of Iran hired Rivera through an associate living in Iran to locate and murder Masih Alinejad in cold blood, right here in New York City. The Government of Iran has long sought to murder Ms. Alinejad, a U.S. citizen residing in New York City, because of her efforts to stand up to the Iranian regime and expose its discriminatory treatment of women, corruption, and human rights abuses. Today’s sentence should be a warning to anyone who would cast their lot with the brutal Iranian regime and seek to do their murderous bidding, especially on American soil: You will be stopped, you will be arrested, and you will be brought to justice.”
“The Iranian government enlisted a convicted killer to stalk and murder an American journalist and activist, Masih Alinejad, in an effort to forever silence her vocal criticism of its regime,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle, Jr. “Carlisle Rivera served as a hired gun to facilitate the political assassination attempt ordered by an international adversary. May today’s lengthy sentence reflect the FBI’s unwavering stance against any domestic or foreign actor seeking to target our nation’s residents for nefarious agendas.”
As reflected in the charging instruments, other public filings, and statements in public court proceedings, in 2024, Rivera was hired by his criminal confederate, Farhad Shakeri, to murder Masih Alinejad on instructions from high-ranking members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The IRGC is a military and intelligence organization that directly reports to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran and is the Government of Iran’s primary instrument for providing financial and lethal aid to proxy terror groups in the Middle East. Among its activities, the IRGC plots and conducts attack operations outside Iran targeting, among others, U.S. citizens residing abroad and in the United States.
Alinejad is one of the IRGC’s principal targets. The IRGC and the Government of Iran’s intelligence services have long sought to kidnap or murder Alinejad because of her efforts to promote gender equality and civil liberties in Iran and to expose the regime’s corruption, oppression, and terrorism to the international community. In 2020 and 2021, Iranian intelligence officials and assets plotted to kidnap Alinejad in the U.S. for rendition to Iran; then, in 2022, the IRGC hired powerful, violent members of the Russian Mob to murder Alinejad. After those efforts failed, the IRGC turned to Shakeri, who hired Rivera to kill Alinejad.
Rivera and Shakeri were incarcerated together in the New York State prison system after Rivera’s 1994 conviction for murder and Shakeri’s 1991 conviction for manslaughter. In 2024, Shakeri was living in Iran and was an IRGC asset. Shakeri offered Rivera $100,000 to locate and kill Alinejad, and Rivera agreed. Rivera then recruited his friend, co-defendant Jonathon Loadholt, to assist him in the murder plot. Using money sent by Shakeri, Rivera and Loadholt purchased a firearm and “burner” cellphones. The two men then spent several months attempting to find and kill Alinejad, including by following her to a public speaking event and repeatedly stalking the Brooklyn house where Shakeri and the IRGC believed Alinejad lived.
During their efforts to locate and kill Alinejad, Rivera and his co-conspirators shared messages about their progress and photographs relating to their murder plot. For example, in or about February 2024, Rivera and Loadholt messaged about an incoming payment from Shakeri, and then traveled to Fairfield University, where Alinejad was scheduled to appear, and took photographs on campus. In April 2024, Rivera and his co-defendants exchanged a series of voice notes discussing their efforts to locate and kill Alinejad. In one voice note, Rivera told Shakeri that Alinejad was “hard to catch, bro. And because she hard to catch, there ain’t gonna be no simple pull up, unless there[’s] the luck of the draw.” In a subsequent voice note, Rivera referred to the “slammer,” meaning a firearm he had obtained to kill Alinejad.
On Nov. 7, 2024, before he could complete his plan to kill Ms. Alinejad, Rivera was arrested. At Rivera's residence, law enforcement agents recovered, among other things, a firearm with a partially obliterated serial number.
In addition to the prison term, Rivera, 50, was sentenced to three years of supervised release.
In January 2026, Loadholt pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit stalking and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Loadholt is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Liman in April 2026. Shakari remains at large.
Investigative work in this case was conducted by the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force, which principally consists of agents and analysts from the FBI’s New York and Washington Field Offices and detectives from the New York City Police Department. The Department of Justice’s National Security Division (NSD), U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s New York Field Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New York Division, and the New York State Police provided assistance.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jacob H. Gutwillig and Michael D. Lockard for the Southern District of New York, with assistance from Leslie Esbrook of NSD’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and Paul Casey of NSD’s Counterterrorism Section.
Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women Hosts 20th Annual Tribal Consultation and Announces Awards of more than $75M in Grants to Support Public Safety in Indian CountryRead the Press Release
On Jan. 21, 2026, the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) convened the 20th Annual Government-to-Government Violence Against Women Tribal Consultation on the lands of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux (Dakota) Community in Prior Lake, Minnesota. Associate Attorney General Stanley E. Woodward Jr. provided opening remarks in which he reaffirmed the Department of Justice’s commitment to Indian Country and its dedication to protecting Tribal communities — particularly women and children — from violent crime, exploitation, and drug trafficking.
The Justice Department announced today that it awarded over $75 million through six grant programs that support American Indian and Alaska Native Tribes and communities in combatting domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, sex trafficking, and stalking. The Tribal Affairs Division (TAD) of the OVW administers these funds.
The OVW fiscal year 2025 awards announced today are:
- The Tribal Governments Program
- Nearly $47.5 million through 64 awards in support of efforts to combat domestic and sexual violence, trafficking, and stalking in Tribal communities.
- The Tribal Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Initiative
- More than$3.3 million through three awards to cross-designate Tribal prosecutors as Special Assistant U.S. Attorneys, to prevent violent offenders from causing more harm.
- The Tribal Sexual Assault Services Program
- More than $8 million through 17 awards to establish, maintain, and expand assistance programs for sexual assault victims.
- The Special Tribal Criminal Jurisdiction (STCJ) Program
- More than $7 million through eight awards to protect victims of assault or abuse by non-Indian offenders and to bring criminals to justice.
- The Tribal Coalitions Program
- More than $8 million awarded to 21 Tribal nonprofit coalitions to support organizations that serve victims in Tribal communities.
- The National Tribal Clearinghouse on Sexual Assault
- One award of $980,100 to provide resources on effective responses to sexual assault of American Indian and Alaska Native women.
OVW administers grant programs designed to combat sexual assault, domestic and dating violence, and stalking. Tribal organizations and governments interested in applying for these and other grants can visit the OVW website for more details and application guidelines.
- The Tribal Governments Program
Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security Recognize National Human Trafficking Prevention MonthRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Departments of Justice (DOJ) and Homeland Security (DHS) today observe National Human Trafficking Prevention Month and reaffirm the administration’s commitment to combating all forms of human trafficking and protecting victims and survivors. Human Trafficking Prevention Month presents an opportunity for DHS and DOJ, through Homeland Security Task Forces (HSTF) to intensify operational efforts, raise public awareness, and strengthen partnerships across federal, state, and local agencies to disrupt trafficking networks, protect vulnerable individuals, and ensure traffickers are brought to justice.
“This Department of Justice is working tirelessly alongside our partners to dismantle human trafficking networks, help survivors, and protect vulnerable populations from being exploited,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Under this administration we have seen an increase in human trafficking prosecutions, and during Human Trafficking Prevention Month we reaffirm our commitment to prosecuting traffickers and encourage Americans to report instances of human trafficking in their communities.”
“Through the Homeland Security Task Force, President Trump is taking the fight directly to human trafficking networks and disrupting their modern-day slave trade while seizing their assets and arresting their kingpins and foot soldiers. The American people should not have to live in fear of cartels, gang bangers, and foreign terrorists preying upon the most vulnerable among us,” the United States Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said in a statement. “The Homeland Security Task Force is the largest coordinated campaign against transnational criminal organizations in U.S. history, and I’m proud to co-lead it with Attorney General Bondi.”
“During Human Trafficking Prevention Month, the FBI reiterates our work with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies and national victim-based advocacy groups in joint task forces to protect our communities across the country,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “The horrifying reach of human trafficking spreads far and wide. Homeland Security Task Forces are fighting back to disrupt these perilous networks and put a stop to that reach. The FBI will continue our investigations and bring justice to those exploited by human traffickers.”
In January 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. Section 6 of this order directed the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security to jointly establish HSTFs in every state nationwide. The HSTF objective is to end the presence of criminal cartels, foreign gangs, and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) throughout the United States; dismantle cross-border human smuggling and trafficking networks; end the scourge of human smuggling and trafficking, with a particular focus on such offenses involving children; and ensure the use of all available law enforcement tools to faithfully execute the immigration laws of the United States.
In January 2026, DHS and DOJ are surging resources to fight and raise awareness about human trafficking, including:
- Identifying ongoing investigations and prioritizing featured operations across 45 federal locations and 10 state locations with an emphasis on border states.
- Coordinating with FBI Human Trafficking Squads and multi-agency Human Trafficking Task Forces to conduct victim recovery.
- Partnering with AMTRAK and FAMS to increase law enforcement resources and distribute posters with QR codes for reporting human trafficking in all station bathrooms and trains.
- Running advertisements related to $250 million recovery from Backpage to distribute to victims and additional victim restitution efforts by DOL-OIG.
- Organizing Human Trafficking seminars and outreach events with DHS Center for Countering Human Trafficking at high schools and colleges to highlight the role of HSTFs in addressing human trafficking.
On August 25, 2025, HSTF officially launched its effort to protect the Homeland with a September Surge encompassing 400 operations nationwide. In just 43 days, HSTF nationwide operations resulted in 3,266 arrests and seizures including:
- 1,041 Sinaloa members,
- 856 Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (“CJNG”) members,
- 641 MS-13 members,
- 456 Tren de Aragua members,
- 1,067 weapons
- More than $3,250,000 in currency
- Approximately 91 metric tons of narcotics
Since January 20, 2025, the Department of Justice has:
- Secured substantial sentences and landmark convictions against sex traffickers and labor traffickers who used violence, addictive drugs, and psychological coercion to exploit victims in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Ohio, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and beyond.
- Seized $15 billion from a wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy originating from a Cambodian forced labor scam center.
- Secured high-impact sex trafficking indictments in New York against an enterprise associated with the notorious Tren de Aragua Transnational Criminal Organization and in California against traffickers affiliated with local street gangs.
- Pursued extraditions of fugitive traffickers to permanently disrupt and dismantle transnational labor trafficking and sex trafficking enterprises
- Secured sizable restitution orders, including several over a million dollars, to aid victims in their recovery from the unspeakable losses they endured.
- Launched a Remission Portal for survivors of sex trafficking that was facilitated through Backpage or CityXGuide to seek compensation.
- Conducted nationwide crackdowns this month and during Operation Justice for All in August 2025.
- Streamlined and strengthened Joint Task Force Alpha efforts to combat combined human trafficking, human smuggling, and transnational organized crime threats by integrating the Department’s National Human Trafficking Coordinator and human trafficking prosecution experts into the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section; and
- Announced new grant funding opportunities to support victim services for the year ahead.