District Not Recorded
The source did not name an office we could identify. These records remain unassigned rather than guessed.
Former Supplement Company Owner Pleads Guilty to Unlawful Distribution of Steroid-like DrugsRead the Press Release
A New Jersey chiropractor pleaded guilty today to a felony charge relating to the distribution of steroid-like drugs in purported dietary supplements.
According to court documents, Nicholas Andrew Puccio, 41, currently of Columbus, New Jersey, pleaded guilty to introducing an unapproved new drug into interstate commerce with the intent to defraud and mislead the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and consumers. The United States alleged that from 2016 to 2020, Puccio marketed drugs as “dietary supplements” to the bodybuilding and fitness community. The supplements included a product labeled as containing ostarine, a type of synthetic steroid known as a Selective Androgen Receptor Modulator (SARM). The FDA has long warned against the use of SARMs, including stating in a 2017 warning letter to another firm that SARMs had been linked to life-threatening reactions such as liver toxicity, and have the potential to increase the risk of heart attack and stroke.
“Undermining the FDA drug approval process puts consumers at risk, especially when those drugs contain ingredients that can cause harm,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice will continue to work closely with the FDA to prosecute those who put profit before the public health.”
“When Mr. Puccio marketed unapproved drugs as dietary supplements, he sidestepped important safeguards to protect the public, and must be held accountable,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Daniel P. Bubar of the Western District of Virginia. “Our office will continue to closely partner with FDA to ensure safety and effectiveness in our drug supply and prosecute those who flout these rules.”
“Marketing misbranded dietary supplements that contain unapproved drugs is illegal and is a threat to public health,” said Assistant Commissioner for Criminal Investigations Catherine A. Hermsen of the FDA's Office of Criminal Investigations. “We remain committed to bringing to justice companies and individuals who attempt to subvert the regulatory functions of the FDA by distributing unapproved, and potentially dangerous, drugs.”
Puccio pleaded guilty before Judge James P. Jones in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 23, and faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations is investigating the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Ramseyer of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia and Trial Attorney Speare Hodges of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case.
Georgia CPA Indicted for Promoting Syndicated Conservation Easement Tax Scheme Involving Fraudulent Charitable DeductionsRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury sitting in Atlanta, Georgia, returned an indictment today charging an Atlanta certified public accountant with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States; 24 counts of wire fraud; 32 counts of aiding or assisting in the preparation of false federal tax returns; and five counts of filing false federal tax returns relating to a wide-ranging, abusive tax shelter scheme.
According to the indictment, between 2014 and 2019, Herbert E. Lewis conspired with others to market, promote, and sell fraudulent tax shelter transactions in the form of syndicated conservation easement (SCE) donations. The SCE tax shelters allegedly enabled high-income taxpayers to purchase membership interests in purported real estate investment funds. According to the indictment, the funds served no legitimate business purpose, but instead were used to generate large fraudulent tax deductions for its participants based on the donated value of the conservation easements.
To further promote the scheme, the indictment alleges that Lewis allowed clients to purchase units in a given SCE shelter after year’s end and that he advised clients to backdate checks and subscription agreements. Lewis then prepared tax returns for these same clients claiming the non-cash charitable deductions generated by the conservation easement donations despite knowing that they were not entitled to claim the charitable deductions. In total, the conservation easement donations allegedly generated hundreds of millions of dollars in tax deductions that were passed through to the SCE shelters and client taxpayers.
For his part, Lewis allegedly received more than $1 million in commissions for selling the SCE shelters. The indictment also alleges that Lewis filed false individual income tax returns that failed to report a substantial portion of his commission income on his individual tax returns.
If convicted, Lewis faces a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each count of wire fraud, five years in prison for conspiring to defraud the United States, three years in prison for each count of filing a false tax return, and three years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return. He also faces a period of supervised release, monetary penalties, and restitution.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department's Tax Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine for the Northern District of Georgia, and IRS Commissioner Charles P. Rettig made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service are investigating the case.
Tax Division Trial Attorneys Brittney Campbell, Grace Albinson, Casey Smith, and Parker Tobin, along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Krepp of the Northern District of Georgia, are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Former Managers at Major Property Management Firm Plead Guilty to Defrauding U.S. Air ForceRead the Press Release
An Arizona man and a Texas woman have pleaded guilty to major fraud against the United States, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, respectively, for their roles in a scheme to defraud the U.S. Air Force in connection with privatized military housing contracts between approximately 2013 and 2016.
Rick Cunefare, 61, of Glendale, Arizona, and Stacy M. Cabrera, 47, of Converse, Texas, pleaded guilty to their roles in the scheme. Cunefare was a regional manager for Company 1. He directly supervised the Company 1 community managers who were responsible for overseeing day-to-day operations at the military housing communities at Lackland Air Force Base (AFB), Travis AFB, Vandenberg AFB, Tinker AFB, and Fairchild AFB. He was responsible for reviewing and approving quarterly maintenance reports and for ensuring that the data in the quarterly maintenance reports were submitted to the Air Force with performance incentive fee request letters.
According to court documents, Company 1 managed housing communities created under the Military Privatized Housing Initiative (MHPI) at Lackland AFB, Travis AFB, Vandenberg AFB, Tinker AFB, Fairchild AFB and other U.S. military installations. The MHPI was a program designed to attract private sector financing, expertise, and innovation to provide necessary housing for military servicemembers, their families, and other dependents faster and more efficiently than traditional military construction processes would allow. Company 1’s revenue from the management of these communities was based, in part, on meeting performance maintenance objectives that were set forth in Company 1’s contracts with the U.S. Air Force. For example, if Company 1 completed 95% of routine maintenance requests within three business days on a quarterly basis, it was eligible for a performance incentive fee. Company 1 kept maintenance records in a computer system called Yardi and used data from Yardi to generate quarterly maintenance reports, which it submitted to the U.S. Air Force in support of requests for performance incentive fees.
According to court document, Cunefare and others conspired to manipulate and falsify information maintenance reports from 2013 to 2015 so that the reports falsely reflected that Company 1 had met performance maintenance objectives, when in reality, as Cunefare and his co-conspirators well knew, it had not. This allowed Company 1, acting through the co-conspirators to submit requests to the Air Force for payment of performance incentive fees to which it was not entitled. Specifically, in quarters in which Company 1 did not legitimately meet the maintenance performance objectives, Cunefare gave written and oral instructions to community managers and others that resulted in the community managers and others manipulating and falsifying maintenance information to reflect that Company 1 had met its objectives. These actions had the effect of falsely inflating Company 1’s maintenance performance objectives, resulting in Company 1 receiving approximately $2.5 million in performance incentive fees. Cunefare admitted that the false information deceived the U.S. Air Force into believing that Company 1 was properly maintain the housing communities, when in reality Company 1 was unable to keep up with maintenance issues at many of the military housing communities, parts of which had fallen into disrepair.
On April 21, Cabrera pleaded guilty to her role in the scheme. According to court documents, from approximately 2013 to 2016, Cabrera was the Company 1 community manager at Lackland AFB. She personally, and through subordinates acting on her instructions, falsified maintenance records in order to generate quarterly maintenance reports that falsely reflected that Company 1 had met maintenance-related performance objectives. She then caused these reports to be submitted to other managers at Company 1, who then knowingly used the false reports to substantiate Company 1’s requests for performance bonuses. According to court documents, Company 1 fraudulently obtained approximately $1 million in performance bonuses as a result of Cabrera’s conduct. Cabrera acted on instructions from Cunefare and others.
“The defendants defrauded the U.S. Air Force and put corporate profits ahead of the well-being of servicemembers and their families,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The department is committed to protecting our military families from deceit and mistreatment and ensuring the integrity of Department of Defense programs.”
“As the lead investigative agency for the Department of the Air Force, AFOSI is resolute in safeguarding our personnel and their families from harm,” said Special Agent in Charge Blair A. Holmstrand of the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI). “The collaboration between DCIS, AFOSI, and the Department of Justice has been significant, and we are looking forward to seeing the final results of the hard work put forth by all agencies involved.”
“As the investigation arm of the DoD Inspector General, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) is charged with investigating those who seek to fraudulently enrich themselves at the expense of the taxpayer,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael Mentavlos of the DCIS Southwest Field Office. “The safety and well-being of our service members and their families is paramount to readiness. This outcome demonstrates not only the outstanding partnership between AFOSI, the Justice Department and DCIS, but also our ability to keep our warfighters ready by holding wrongdoers accountable for their actions.”
Cunefare is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Cabrera is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
AFOSI and DCIS are investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Michael P. McCarthy and Siji Moore of the Justice Department’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section is the nation’s leading prosecuting authority for complex procurement fraud and corruption matters.
Project Monitor and Abatement Supervisor Plead Guilty to Conspiring to Violate Asbestos RegulationsRead the Press Release
Two individuals pleaded guilty today to conspiring to violate federal and New York State regulations intended to prevent human exposure to asbestos.
According to court documents, between 2015 and 2016, Kristofer Landell, 36, and Madeline Alonge, 27, both permitted, and in some cases directed, abatement workers to use illegal methods to remove asbestos from a former IBM site in Kingston, now known as TechCity. The facility in question contained over 400,000 square feet of regulated asbestos-containing material (RACM), as well as an additional 6,000 linear feet of RACM pipe wrap. Alonge, then a supervisor for the asbestos abatement company operating on the TechCity site, oversaw multiple crews of abatement workers who were illegally removing asbestos. Landell held a New York license to work as a person responsible for ensuring compliance with federal and state asbestos regulations and had been hired as the “project monitor” on site. Landell was also responsible for conducting air monitoring to ensure that asbestos fibers were not released into the surrounding environment.
According to court documents, Alonge and Landell failed to fulfill their responsibilities. As a result, New York State issued numerous notices of violation (NOVs). Notwithstanding those NOVs, A2 owner Stephanie Laskin, as well as abatement supervisors Alonge and Gunay Yakup, instructed workers to remove asbestos illegally. For example, they removed RACM dry, produced visible emissions of asbestos, and directed work to proceed in areas that were not properly sealed off with “critical barriers,” which are designed to prevent asbestos emissions outside a work area. Their co‑conspirator Landell not only permitted such practices to continue, but also failed to conduct requisite air monitoring, falsified compliance records, and failed to properly conduct “final air clearances,” as required by New York regulations. Final air clearances are intended to ensure areas are safe to be reinhabited following abatement activities. All of the defendants charged as co-conspirators had received training in proper asbestos removal and regulatory requirements.
“The pleas entered today are especially important because they address not only criminal violations of the Clean Air Act, but also the criminal circumvention of the third party project and air monitor systems designed to ensure compliance,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jean E. Williams for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “I would like to take this opportunity to thank New York State inspectors for their support of this prosecution.”
“Today’s plea agreements again reflect the serious consequences of the failure of these defendants to comply with EPA’s regulations that protect public health from asbestos, a dangerous human carcinogen,” said Special Agent in Charge Tyler Amon of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Criminal Investigation Division. “These criminal acts endanger workers and the community and cost the taxpayers substantial monies in cleanup costs. EPA commends the Justice Department prosecutors for vigorously prosecuting this environmental crime case.”
Because of the defendants’ and others’ actions, asbestos was released into the surrounding environment, as admitted by co-defendant Roger Osterhoudt. Although not charged with conspiracy, Osterhoudt took responsibility last month for his criminal negligence in re-hiring A2 Environmental Services after having been made aware of numerous NOVs and other evidence of illegal practices. According to Osterhoudt’s plea, his negligence caused a release of asbestos into the environment that placed others at an increased risk of death or serious bodily injury. Asbestos has been determined to cause lung cancer, asbestosis, and mesothelioma, an invariably fatal disease. The EPA has determined that there is no safe level of exposure to asbestos.
Landell and Alonge entered guilty pleas to violating the federal conspiracy statute before Hon. Judge McAvoy in Binghamton, New York. Sentencing is currently scheduled for Oct. 6, and Oct. 19, respectively. Both individuals face up to five years in prison, three years supervised release, a $250,000 criminal fine, and may be held liable for providing restitution to any victims.
These charges are related to conspiracy pleas previously entered by Laskin, who owned A2 Environmental Solutions, and Yakup, who — like Alonge — worked for Laskin as an abatement supervisor.
Special agents of the EPA and individuals from the New York Departments of Labor and Environmental Conservation investigated the case.
Todd W. Gleason and Gary N. Donner of ENRD’s Environmental Crimes Section prosecuted the case with the assistance of paralegal Chloe Harris.
North Carolina Return Preparer Sentenced to Prison for Tax Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A Kinston, North Carolina, woman was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for conspiring to file false tax returns for her clients.
According to court records, from at least January 2016 through March 2016, Hildares Kinkesha Parker-Greene managed a tax return preparation business in Kinston. Parker-Greene conspired with another return preparer to fraudulently inflate clients’ tax refunds by claiming false wages, federal income tax withholdings, and dependents. This fraudulent conduct caused clients to receive refunds to which they were not entitled. To profit from the false returns, Parker-Greene printed client tax refund checks, directed clients to cash the refund checks, and pay her additional cash fees. Additionally, between 2017 and 2018, Parker-Greene operated a tax preparation business out of her home and continued to prepare false returns for clients. In total, the false returns prepared by Parker-Greene and her co-conspirator sought to defraud the IRS of more than $550,000.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Court Judge James C. Dever III ordered Parker-Greene to serve three years of supervised release and pay $442,576 in restitution to the IRS.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney G. Norman Acker III for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement.
The IRS-Criminal Investigation investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Michael Jones and William Guappone of the Tax Division prosecuted the case.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.
Justice Department Settles Disability Discrimination Claims Against 19 Building OwnersRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today announced that it reached a single agreement with 19 building owners* who rent space in their buildings to stores and restaurants.
The agreement requires the owners to fix their buildings so that people with mobility disabilities, like wheelchair users, can get in the door to shop or eat. Physical barriers, like steps at an entrance, can keep people with disabilities out and cause discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
The Justice Department inspected three buildings on 14th Street N.W., in Washington, D.C., to see if people with disabilities could enter the businesses renting space there. Two of the buildings had steps at the entrances and one did not have enough space at the entrance for wheelchair users to open the door and go in on their own.
The building owners agreed to hire an architect to check their 19 buildings in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia to make sure the buildings can be used by people with disabilities. The owners agreed to fix any problems by the end of next year. Possible fixes are adding a ramp where there are steps or putting in an automatic door opener when there is not enough space for wheelchair users. Fixing the buildings is an important step toward providing people with mobility disabilities an equal opportunity to shop and dine at the stores and restaurants inside.
The ADA requires stores and restaurants located in new buildings to make sure the spaces their customers use in those buildings are useable by people with disabilities, such as those who use wheelchairs. If a business is located in an older building, the business must make sure barriers to people with disabilities are removed when it is easy to do. And if a business makes changes to a building, those changed areas must be made useable as much as possible. These rules also apply to the companies that own the buildings that they rent to businesses like stores and restaurants.
“Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990 to stop discrimination against people with disabilities caused by the way a building is designed, built, or changed,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Today’s agreement calls attention to the obligations of building owners to ensure that the space they rent to a store or restaurant follows the rules of the ADA. We welcome the owners’ cooperation with us in today’s agreement to make their buildings more usable for people with disabilities.”
This matter was handled by the Disability Rights Section of the department’s Civil Rights Division. The Justice Department plays a central role in advancing the nation’s goal of equal opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for people with disabilities. 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 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov.
*The 19 building owners, all managed by companies that are managed by J.C. Reger Interests Inc., doing business as JCR Companies, are:
- Hillwood SRR 1324 14th Street Investors LLC
- 1526 14th Street Investors LLC
- 1529 14th Street Investors LLC
- 601 King Street Investors LLC
- 1723 Conn Ave Investors LLC
- JCR Silver Hill Investors LLC
- 1519 Wisconsin Ave, Investors LLC
- JCR Pinefield South Investors LLC
- JCR Westview Corner Investors LLC
- 1515 Unit C-3 and C-9 Investors LLC
- JCR Lorton Station Investors LLC
- JCR Rutherford Crossing Investors LLC
- JCR Signal Hill Investors LLC
- JCR 916 G Street Investors LLC
- JCR Bel Air TC Investors LLC
- JCR Woodley Investors LLC
- JCR Krispy Korner Investors LLC
- JCR Innovation Investors LLC
- JCR Riverton Investors LLC
Justice Department Seeks to Shut Down Georgia Return PreparerRead the Press Release
The United States has filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia, Macon Division, seeking to bar an Irwinton, Georgia, tax return preparer from preparing tax returns for others.
The civil complaint against Shondre D. Pitts alleges that, since 2014, he has operated through a business named “First Choice Tax Services.” The complaint further alleges that Pitts has a long history of preparing fraudulent returns, including returns that claimed false itemized deductions, false income and business expense deductions, and fabricated business losses in order to fraudulently reduce the customer’s liability or claim improper tax credits. The complaint further alleges that returns prepared by Pitts falsely claimed earned income tax credits, residential energy credits, additional child tax credits, and education credits. As a result of Pitts’ conduct, the complaint alleges, his customers may face large income tax debts and may be liable for penalties and interest.
Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’ Dirty Dozen Tax Scams and taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant. (More information can also be found here.) The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax preparer, has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers, and offers information on how to avoid “ghost” tax preparers, whose refusal to sign a return should be a red flag to taxpayers.
In the past decade, the Tax Division 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 this page. If you believe that one of the enjoined persons or businesses may be violating an injunction, please contact the Tax Division with details.
Hospital Pharmacist Sentenced for Attempt to Spoil Hundreds of COVID Vaccine DosesRead the Press Release
A Wisconsin man was sentenced today to three years in prison for tampering with COVID-19 vaccine doses at the hospital where he worked.
Steven R. Brandenburg, 46, of Grafton, pleaded guilty on Feb. 9, to two counts of attempting to tamper with consumer products with reckless disregard for the risk that another person would be placed in danger of death or bodily injury. According to court documents, Brandenburg purposefully removed a box of COVID-19 vaccine vials manufactured by Moderna — which must be stored at specific cold temperatures to remain viable — from a hospital refrigeration unit during two successive overnight shifts in late December 2020. According to his plea agreement, Brandenburg stated that he was skeptical of vaccines in general, and the Moderna vaccine specifically, and had communicated his beliefs about vaccines to his co-workers.
Brandenburg acknowledged that after leaving the vaccines out for several hours each night, he returned the vaccines to the refrigerator to be used in the hospital’s vaccine clinic the following day. Before the full extent of Brandenburg’s conduct was discovered, 57 people received doses of the vaccine from these vials.
“The purposeful attempt to spoil vaccine doses during a national public health emergency is a serious crime,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice will continue working with its law enforcement partners to safeguard these life-saving vaccines.”
“Ensuring access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines is critical to the well-being of everyone in our communities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Richard G. Frohling for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. “The Department of Justice is committed to working with its federal, state, and local partners to hold individuals who seek to tamper with these vaccines fully accountable. Today’s sentence was the direct result of that shared commitment and the underlying hard work and collaborative efforts of all involved in the investigation and prosecution of Mr. Brandenburg.”
“The FDA has ensured that the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine meets the agency’s rigorous standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality,” said Assistant Commissioner for Criminal Investigations Catherine A. Hermsen of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). “Those who knowingly tamper with this vaccine place American patients’ health at risk. Today’s announcement should serve as a reminder that this kind of illicit tampering activity will not be tolerated.”
“The FBI, together with our local law enforcement and private sector partners, are committed to upholding laws designed to protect our health care system from harm,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Hughes of the FBI’s Milwaukee Field Office. “By illegally tampering with these doses, Brandenburg threatened the health and safety of an entire community. Today’s sentencing sends a clear message to individuals who intentionally violate these laws that they will be vigorously prosecuted.”
In addition to the term of imprisonment, the U.S. District Judge Brett Ludwig ordered Brandenburg to serve three years of supervised release and to pay approximately $83,800 in restitution to the hospital.
This matter was investigated by the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations, the Milwaukee Field Office of the FBI, and the Village of Grafton Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin C. Knight of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, and Senior Litigation Counsel Ross S. Goldstein and Trial Attorney Rachel Baron of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch prosecuted the case.
Clinical Researchers Plead Guilty in Connection with Scheme to Falsify Drug Trial DataRead the Press Release
A Florida nurse practitioner and a Florida woman pleaded guilty today to their participation in a conspiracy to falsify clinical trial data.
According to court documents, Eduardo Navarro, 52, of Miami, and Nayade Varona, 50, of Port St. Lucie, worked at a clinical research site called Tellus Clinical Research. Navarro was a sub-investigator, and Varona was an assistant study coordinator. As part of their plea agreements, Navarro and Varona admitted that they agreed with one another and others to falsify data in medical records in connection with two clinical trials intended to evaluate a treatment for irritable bowel syndrome. Among other things, Navarro and Varona falsified data to make it appear as though subjects were participating in the trials when, in truth, they were not.
“The falsification of clinical trial data puts the health and safety of the public at risk,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Justice Department will continue to work with its partners at the Food and Drug Administration to investigate and prosecute anyone who engages in this conduct.”
“Public health and safety must always take precedence over profit when new pharmaceutical drugs are being tested,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida. “Medical researchers needlessly endanger the public by manipulating clinical data and falsifying records. Such conduct is illegal and will be prosecuted.”
“FDA’s evaluation of a new drug begins with an analysis of reliable and accurate data from clinical trials,” said Assistant Commissioner for Criminal Investigations Catherine A. Hermsen of the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Office of Criminal Investigations. “Compromised clinical trial data could impact the agency’s decisions about the safety and effectiveness of the drug under review. We will continue to investigate and bring to justice those whose actions may subvert the FDA approval process and endanger the public health.”
Navarro and Varona both pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez of the Southern District of Florida to conspiracy to defraud the United States and to commit an offense against the United States. Both face a maximum penalty of five years in prison and are scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 11. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The FDA's Office of Criminal Investigations is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Lauren M. Elfner and Joshua D. Rothman of the Civil Division's Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida provided critical assistance.
Chicago Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Kidnapping and Assaulting Women He Met OnlineRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — A Chicago man was sentenced today to 30 years in federal prison for kidnapping and assaulting three women he met online.
KEITH DEWITT DAVIS, 31, assaulted the women in vacant buildings in Calumet City, Ill., in the summer of 2016. Davis met the women online and used a pretext of engaging in consensual, commercial sex acts to lure them to the vacant buildings. Once there, he physically assaulted each of the women and raped two of them. Davis displayed a handgun and pointed it at one of the victims, and he displayed a wrench or pipe in the two other incidents.
Davis pleaded guilty in 2019 to three counts of kidnapping for sexual gratification. U.S. District Judge Harry D. Leinenweber imposed the sentence after a hearing in federal court in Chicago.
The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. The case was investigated by the FBI and the Will County Safe Streets Task Force. Substantial assistance was provided by the Calumet City Police Department, Hazel Crest Police Department, Midlothian Police Department, South Bend, Ind., Police Department, and the St. Joseph County, Ind., Prosecutor’s Office.
“Defendant’s crime was vicious,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Abigail L. Peluso argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “Defendant showed a complete disregard for human life and respect for a person’s dignity.”
Queens Acupuncture Clinic Owner Charged with Tax CrimesRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Brooklyn, New York, returned an indictment on June 4, charging a New York City woman with conspiring to defraud the United States and aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return.
According to the indictment, from 2008 to 2013, Alice Bixuan Zhang of Queens owned and operated Welling Physical Therapy and Acupuncture PLLC (Welling) and, from 2012 to 2013, co-owned Wellife Physical Therapy and Acupuncture PLLC (Wellife). Both businesses had locations throughout New York City. As charged, Zhang and her co-conspirator took multiple steps to reduce the income they reported and taxes they paid to the IRS. They allegedly diverted funds from Welling and Wellife to other entities that they controlled (“Related Companies”), and Zhang and her co-conspirator reported those funds as deductible business expenses, thereby reducing the taxable income of Welling and Wellife. Zhang and her co-conspirator then allegedly sought to conceal from the IRS income earned by the Related Companies by cashing checks made to those firms at a check cashing business, and not disclosing that income to their tax return preparers, which resulted in the preparation of false income tax returns.
Zhang will make her initial court appearance at a later date before a U.S. Magistrate Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge and three years in prison for assisting in filing a false return. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Mark J. Lesko for the Eastern District of New York made the announcement.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Anahi Cortada and Thomas F. Koelbl of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
New York Plumbing Contractor Sentenced to 20 Months in Prison for Employment Tax FraudRead the Press Release
A New York man was sentenced today to 20 months in prison for failing to collect and pay over to the IRS $732,462 in employment taxes.
Sergei Denko, of Queens, New York, owned and operated Denko Mechanical Inc. and Independent Mechanical Inc., both contracting businesses in Queens that specialized in plumbing. According to court documents and statements made in court, from 2010 through 2014, Denko cashed more than $5 million in checks made out to companies he owned and operated to fund an “off the books” cash payroll. He did not report the cash wages to the IRS, filed false employment tax returns, and did not pay to the IRS the employment taxes arising from the cash payroll. Denko admitted to causing a total tax loss of $732,462 .
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Judge Rachel P. Kovner ordered Denko to serve one year of supervised release. The defendant has already paid $366,231 in restitution to the United States.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
The IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Sam Bean and Mark Kotila of the Tax Division prosecuted the case.
Justice Department Issues Proposed Rule and Model Legislation to Reduce Gun ViolenceRead the Press Release
Today, the Department of Justice announced two new steps to help address the continuing epidemic of gun violence affecting communities across the country. First, the department issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that makes clear that when individuals use accessories to convert pistols into short-barreled rifles, they must comply with the heightened regulations on those dangerous and easily concealable weapons. Second, the department published model legislation to help states craft their own “extreme risk protection order” laws, sometimes called “red flag” laws. By sending the proposed rule to the Federal Register and publishing the model legislation today, the department has met the deadlines that the Attorney General announced alongside President Biden in April.
“The Justice Department is determined to take concrete steps to reduce the tragic toll of gun violence in our communities,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Today we continue to deliver on our promise to help save lives while protecting the rights of law-abiding Americans. We welcome the opportunity to work with communities in the weeks and months ahead in our shared commitment to end gun violence.”
The department issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would make clear that the statutory restrictions on short-barreled rifles apply to pistols that are equipped with certain stabilizing braces and intended to be fired from the shoulder. The National Firearms Act imposes heightened regulations on short-barreled rifles because they are easily concealable, can cause great damage, and are more likely to be used to commit crimes. But companies now sell accessories that make it easy for people to convert pistols into these more dangerous weapons without going through the statute’s background check and registration requirements. These requirements are important public safety measures because they regulate the transfer of these dangerous weapons and help ensure they do not end up in the wrong hands. The proposed rule would clarify when these attached accessories convert pistols into weapons covered by these heightened regulations.
Once the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, the public will have 90 days to submit comments. To view the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, please see here.
The department also published model legislation and detailed commentary that will make it easier for states to craft “extreme risk protection orders” authorizing courts to temporarily bar people in crisis from accessing firearms. By allowing family members or law enforcement to intervene and to petition for these orders before warning signs turn into tragedy, “extreme risk protection orders” can save lives. They are also an evidence-based approach to the problem. The model legislation, developed after consultation with a broad range of stakeholders, provides a framework that will help more states enact these sensible laws.
To read the model legislation, please see here.
To learn more about the rulemaking process, please see here.
Georgia Man Sentenced to 57 Months in Prison for Tax FraudRead the Press Release
A federal district court in Cincinnati, Ohio, sentenced an Atlanta, Georgia, man to 57 months in prison today for tax evasion. This sentence included an enhancement for failing to report income from drug trafficking.
According to court documents and statements made in court, from at least 2011 to 2016, Darryl Brown earned at least $1 million. To evade paying taxes on this income, Brown did not file returns. He created nominee businesses, opened bank accounts and lines of credit in the names of those businesses, and then used the accounts to pay for his luxury lifestyle. This included extravagant overseas trips, Rolex and Cartier watches, and luxury clothing and vehicles. Brown further used cash to purchase money orders in structured amounts to avoid triggering reporting requirements to the Department of Treasury and the IRS. Brown then used the money orders to pay off the balances on his nominee accounts. In total, Brown caused a tax loss of more than $250,000.
U.S. District Judge Timothy S. Black in the Southern District of Ohio also ordered Brown to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $377,240.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Vipal J. Patel of the Southern District of Ohio made the announcement.
IRS Criminal Investigation and local law enforcement officials conducted the investigation.
Trial Attorneys Sarah C. Ranney and William Guappone of the Tax Division prosecuted the case, and Criminal Chief Karl Kadon of the Southern District of Ohio provided substantial assistance in this matter.
Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.
Engineering Firm Pleads Guilty to Decade-Long Bid Rigging and Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
A North Carolina engineering firm was sentenced today after pleading guilty to long lasting conspiracies to rig bids and defraud the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT).
According to court documents, Contech Engineered Solutions LLC (Contech) pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Sherman Act and one count of conspiracy to commit fraud, as charged in a six-count indictment filed in the Eastern District of North Carolina on Oct. 21, 2020. Contech admitted to conspiring to rig bids to the NCDOT and conspiring to defraud the NCDOT in order to fraudulently obtain contracts for infrastructure projects. The conspiracies started at least as early as 2009 and continued at least until March 2018. Former Contech executive Brent Brewbaker was charged as a co-defendant in the same six-count indictment, and he remains under indictment.
“Today’s resolution demonstrates the Antitrust Division’s unwavering commitment to holding accountable those who cheat the competitive process at the expense of the American taxpayer,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “A critical part of that mission is seeking restitution to compensate government victims of public procurement crimes.”
“This is a case about fraud and collusion in the North Carolina bidding process for certain water drainage system components,” said Acting U.S. Attorney G. Norman Acker III for the Eastern District of North Carolina. “All taxpayers lose when companies submit false records in an effort to game the bidding system. I applaud our partners in the Department of Justice for their efforts to halt such practices in North Carolina.”
“Activities related to collusion, bid rigging and market allocation do not promote an environment conducive to open competition which harms the consumer,” said Acting Executive Special Agent in Charge Steven Stuller of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) Office of Inspector General. “The USPS spends hundreds of millions of dollars on new construction, maintenance and renovation of USPS facilities. Along with the Department of Justice and our federal law enforcement partners, the USPS Office of Inspector General will aggressively investigate those who would engage in this type of harmful conduct.”
“The agreement and sentence imposed should serve as a significant deterrent for anyone who chooses corporate greed over open and fair competition in transportation projects funded with federal dollars,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Jamie Mazzone of the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Mid-Atlantic Region. “Together with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners, we will continue our efforts to pursue and uncover corrupt conduct and hold these bad actors accountable.”
Contech pleaded guilty to one count of bid-rigging under Section One of the Sherman Antitrust Act and one count of conspiring to commit mail and wire fraud. Contech agreed to pay a criminal fine of $7,000,000 and restitution to the NCDOT in the amount of $1,533,988. Contech has also agreed to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.
The Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal I Section is prosecuting the case, which was investigated with the assistance of the USPS Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
Anyone with information concerning market allocation, price fixing, bid rigging, or other anticompetitive conduct related to the aluminum structures industry should contact the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 1-888-647-3258 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html.
In November 2019, the Department of Justice created the Procurement Collusion Strike Force, a joint law enforcement effort to combat antitrust crimes and related fraudulent schemes that impact procurement and grant and program funding at all levels of government – federal, state, and local. For more information, visit https://www.justice.gov/procurement-collusion-strike-force.
Department of Justice Seizes $2.3 Million in Cryptocurrency Paid to the Ransomware Extortionists DarksideRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - The Department of Justice today announced that it has seized 63.7 bitcoins currently valued at approximately $2.3 million. These funds allegedly represent the proceeds of a May 8, ransom payment to individuals in a group known as DarkSide, which had targeted Colonial Pipeline, resulting in critical infrastructure being taken out of operation. The seizure warrant was authorized earlier today by the Honorable Laurel Beeler, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of California.
“Following the money remains one of the most basic, yet powerful tools we have,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco for the U.S. Department of Justice. “Ransom payments are the fuel that propels the digital extortion engine, and today’s announcement demonstrates that the United States will use all available tools to make these attacks more costly and less profitable for criminal enterprises. We will continue to target the entire ransomware ecosystem to disrupt and deter these attacks. Today’s announcements also demonstrate the value of early notification to law enforcement; we thank Colonial Pipeline for quickly notifying the FBI when they learned that they were targeted by DarkSide.”
“There is no place beyond the reach of the FBI to conceal illicit funds that will prevent us from imposing risk and consequences upon malicious cyber actors,” said FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate. “We will continue to use all of our available resources and leverage our domestic and international partnerships to disrupt ransomware attacks and protect our private sector partners and the American public.”
“Cyber criminals are employing ever more elaborate schemes to convert technology into tools of digital extortion,” said Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California Stephanie Hinds. “We need to continue improving the cyber resiliency of our critical infrastructure across the nation, including in the Northern District of California. We will also continue developing advanced methods to improve our ability to track and recover digital ransom payments.”
On or about May 7, Colonial Pipeline was the victim of a highly publicized ransomware attack resulting in the company taking portions of its infrastructure out of operation. Colonial Pipeline reported to the FBI that its computer network was accessed by an organization named DarkSide and that it had received and paid a ransom demand for approximately 75 bitcoins.
As alleged in the supporting affidavit, by reviewing the Bitcoin public ledger, law enforcement was able to track multiple transfers of bitcoin and identify that approximately 63.7 bitcoins, representing the proceeds of the victim’s ransom payment, had been transferred to a specific address, for which the FBI has the “private key,” or the rough equivalent of a password needed to access assets accessible from the specific Bitcoin address. This bitcoin represents proceeds traceable to a computer intrusion and property involved in money laundering and may be seized pursuant to criminal and civil forfeiture statutes.
The Special Prosecutions Section and Asset Forfeiture Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California is handling the seizure, with significant assistance from the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, and the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. The Department components who worked on this seizure coordinated their efforts through the Department’s Ransomware and Digital Extortion Task Force, which was created to combat the growing number of ransomware and digital extortion attacks.
The Task Force prioritizes the disruption, investigation, and prosecution of ransomware and digital extortion activity by tracking and dismantling the development and deployment of malware, identifying the cybercriminals responsible, and holding those individuals accountable for their crimes. The Task Force also strategically targets the ransomware criminal ecosystem as a whole and collaborates with domestic and foreign government agencies as well as private sector partners to combat this significant criminal threat.
Court Orders Toledo Pharmacy and Two Pharmacists to Stop Dispensing Dangerous Doses and Combinations of Opioids and Other Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
A federal court in Ohio ordered a Toledo pharmacy and two of its pharmacists to pay a $375,000 civil penalty and imposed restrictions related to the dispensing of opioids and other controlled substances.
Pursuant to an agreed consent judgment and permanent injunction, the court enjoined Shaffer Pharmacy, along with pharmacist-owner Thomas Tadsen and pharmacist Wilson Bunton, from dispensing certain opioid prescriptions, including combination opioid and benzodiazepine prescriptions. The order also mandates that the defendants undergo periodic comprehensive reviews of their dispensing practices to ensure compliance with the order and the Controlled Substances Act. The consent decree resolves a civil complaint the government filed on Jan. 6, 2021, in the Northern District of Ohio. The complaint alleged that the defendants repeatedly dispensed opioids and other controlled substances in violation of the Controlled Substances Act by ignoring “red flags” – that is, obvious indications of drug diversion and drug-seeking behavior.
“Pharmacies and pharmacists must abide by the Controlled Substances Act and take active steps to ensure opioids are dispensed based on medical legitimacy,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to working closely with the Drug Enforcement Administration to combat the opioid addiction crisis.”
“With opioid abuse and overdose deaths again on the rise in the Northern District of Ohio, we must remain vigilant in our prevention efforts and in holding those in the medical profession accountable when they are alleged to be unlawfully prescribing or dispensing opioids,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan for the Northern District of Ohio. “We will continue to utilize all of our available enforcement options to address this threat and those who are alleged to be engaged in these unlawful practices.”
The investigation was conducted by the DEA, FBI, Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy, the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, and the Ohio Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patricia Fitzgerald and Angelita Cruz Bridges of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, and Trial Attorneys Scott Dahlquist and Maryann McGuire of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch.
Attorney General Announces Initiatives to Combat Human Smuggling and Trafficking and to Fight Corruption in Central AmericaRead the Press Release
U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland today announced a series of steps that the Department of Justice is taking to address the threats posed by both corruption and by transnational human smuggling and trafficking networks.
Attorney General Garland announced the establishment of Joint Task Force Alpha, a law enforcement task force that will marshal the investigative and prosecutorial resources of the Department of Justice, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), to enhance U.S. enforcement efforts against the most prolific and dangerous human smuggling and trafficking groups operating in Mexico and the Northern Triangle countries of Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.
“Transnational human smuggling and trafficking networks pose a serious criminal threat,” said Attorney General Garland. “These networks profit from the exploitation of migrants and routinely expose them to violence, injury, and death. The joint efforts we are announcing today will combine investigative, prosecutorial, and capacity-building efforts of both the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security. Our focus will remain on disrupting and dismantling smuggling and trafficking networks that abuse, exploit, or endanger migrants, pose national security threats, and are involved in organized crime. Together, we will combat these threats where they originate and operate.”
In addition to the work of the Joint Task Force, Attorney General Garland directed the Office of Prosecutorial Development, Assistance, and Training (OPDAT) and the International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP), in coordination with the State Department, to enhance the assistance provided to counterparts in the Northern Triangle countries and Mexico to support their efforts to prosecute smuggling and trafficking networks in their own courts.
The Joint Task Force will consist of federal prosecutors from U.S. Attorney’s Offices along the Southwest Border (District of Arizona, Southern District of California, Southern District of Texas, and Western District of Texas), from the Criminal Division and the Civil Rights Division, along with law enforcement agents and analysts from DHS’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Patrol. The FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration will also be part of the Task Force. And it will work closely with Operation Sentinel, a recently announced DHS operation focused on countering transnational criminal organizations affiliated with migrant smuggling.
“In our continued efforts to disrupt transnational criminal organizations, and smuggling and trafficking enterprises, the Department of Homeland Security will partner with the Department of Justice to launch Joint Task Force Alpha,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas. “We will take action to identify smugglers and their associates to ensure that we enhance the security of the U.S. border, and help save the lives of vulnerable people these organizations routinely prey upon.”
Joint Task Force Alpha will also complement the Justice Department’s efforts to fight corruption. The Justice Department will increase its focus on investigations, prosecutions, and asset recoveries relating to corruption in Northern Triangle countries through its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement program, counternarcotics prosecutions, and Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative. In addition, adopting a Task Force approach, the department’s OPDAT and ICITAP personnel – including new Northern Triangle anti-corruption legal advisors – will work with Northern Triangle prosecutors and investigators to build corruption cases in those countries themselves, as well as to develop leads that can be pursued by the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative.
Maryland Tax Preparer Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Defraud the IRSRead the Press Release
A Maryland tax return preparer was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States and aiding in the preparation of a false tax return.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Anita Fortune, 56, provided tax return preparation services under multiple business names, including Tax Terminatorz Inc. Due to a wire fraud conviction in 2007, Fortune was not eligible to have IRS e-filing privileges. Nevertheless, Fortune prepared and filed returns using IRS e-filing credentials belonging to two co-conspirators, who provided the credentials in exchange for fees and office space. For the tax years 2012 to 2018, Fortune and her associates fraudulently reduced their clients’ tax liabilities and increased their tax refunds by adding fictitious or inflated itemized deductions and business losses to the clients’ returns. The false returns included one that Fortune prepared for an undercover IRS agent. In total, Fortune caused a tax loss to the IRS of $189,748.
In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm ordered Fortune to serve three years of supervised release and to pay approximately $189,748 in restitution to the United States.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Jonathan F. Lenzner for the District of Maryland made the announcement.
The IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.
Trial Attorney Kathryn Sparks of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leah Grossi of the District of Maryland prosecuted the case.
Justice Department Resolves ADA Complaint with Maine Department of Health and Human ServicesRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today reached an agreement with the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to resolve alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
A young man with intellectual disabilities (ID) filed a complaint with the Justice Department alleging that Maine imposed restrictions that placed him at serious risk of having to move from his own home into a congregate setting in order to receive the services he needs. Congregate settings are multi-person homes or facilities where residents receive needed services. This agreement will help ensure that Mainers with ID and autism can receive the personal assistance they need in their own homes.
While Maine’s Medicaid program allows unlimited personal assistance services for people living in congregate settings, the state’s community service program for people with ID and autism limits those same services when they are provided in a person’s own home. As a result, people with disabilities who need more personal assistance, like the young man who filed the complaint, may be forced to leave their homes and move to a segregated setting.
“The ADA requires states to provide disability services in the most integrated setting appropriate,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This often means ensuring that people with disabilities can receive services in their own homes rather than in congregate settings. The Civil Rights Division will vigorously enforce the ADA to avoid unnecessary segregation of people with disabilities and ensure their full integration into the community.”
“We appreciate Maine DHHS’s cooperation with the department’s investigation,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark for the District of Maine. “The settlement agreement ensures that this young man, and other Mainers with disabilities, will be able to obtain needed services in their own homes.”
After receiving the complaint, the department opened an investigation under the ADA. Maine fully cooperated with the Justice Department’s investigation. In February 2020, the department issued a letter of findings concluding that Maine was failing to provide the complainant with necessary services in the most integrated setting appropriate to his needs, which is his own home, thus placing him at serious risk of having to enter a congregate setting. The department also found that Maine had failed to modify its service program for people with ID and autism to avoid discrimination.
Under the agreement reached today, Maine will modify its policies so that people with ID or autism can receive services in the most integrated setting appropriate to their needs. For example, DHHS will implement a process for granting exceptions to its cap on services provided in one’s own home. DHHS will also establish an individualized process for people to assess their options of where they want to live and receive services. For the complainant, DHHS will provide access to all needed in-home services and pay $100,000 in damages.
Federal Court Finds Florida Tax Preparers in Contempt for Violating Court’s Preliminary InjunctionRead the Press Release
On Thursday, a federal court in the Southern District of Florida held two individuals, as well as the company they allegedly co-own, in contempt for violating a preliminary injunction that restricted their tax preparation activities. The court’s order notes defendants “admit that sufficient evidence exists to hold them in contempt of court for violating the preliminary injunction.”
The United States filed a complaint against Wendell Devallon, Berald Dominique, and Tax Time Group Inc. on Dec. 4, 2020, seeking to enjoin them from preparing returns for others. The complaint alleges that Devallon and Dominique co-own Tax Time Group Inc., which has its principal place of business in North Lauderdale, Florida, and additional offices in Charlotte, North Carolina; Niagara Falls, New York; Buffalo, New York; and Evansville, Indiana. According to the complaint, defendants prepared tax returns for customers that claimed fraudulent self-employment expenses, fictitious education credits, and fake charitable contributions, among other schemes. The complaint also alleged that Devallon and Dominique acted as “ghost” preparers, meaning that they acted as paid tax return preparers but did not sign the returns they prepared, as required by law.
On Jan. 13, 2021, the court entered a stipulated preliminary injunction against all three defendants, requiring them to “cease all tax preparation and filing services” at certain offices, including a location at 995 SW 71st Avenue, North Lauderdale, FL 33068.
On May 3, 2021, the United States sought an order to show cause and a temporary restraining order, alleging that Devallon, Dominique, and Tax Time Group Inc. were violating that preliminary injunction. According to the show cause motion, defendants continued to prepare returns out of the 995 SW 71st Avenue location but masked their involvement in the prohibited activities by submitting those returns through entities purportedly based in Indiana and Pennsylvania. The motion for a temporary restraining order alleged that proceeds from the prohibited return preparation were being deposited into five bank accounts, three of which were held in the name of nominee entities. On May 12, 2021, the court entered a temporary restraining order prohibiting Devallon, Dominique, and Tax Time Group Inc. from accessing the funds in those five bank accounts.
On Thursday, the United States and defendants jointly moved for an order holding defendants in contempt, which motion was granted the same day. The court will determine appropriate sanctions at a later date.
Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’s’ Dirty Dozen Tax Scams and taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant. (More information can also be found here.) The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax preparer, has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers, and offers information on how to avoid “ghost” tax preparers, whose refusal to sign a return should be a red flag to taxpayers.
In the past decade, the Tax Division 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 Tax Division with details.
Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Hate Crime Charges After Using Dating App to Target Gay Men for Violent CrimesRead the Press Release
A Texas man pleaded guilty yesterday to federal hate crime charges in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.
According to court documents, Daniel Jenkins, 22, of Dallas, pleaded guilty yesterday to a federal hate crime and two other charges in connection with his involvement in a scheme to target gay men for violent crimes, announced Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Prerak Shah, and FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew J. DeSarno of the Dallas Field Office. Jenkins is the last of four defendants to plead guilty to charges stemming from the scheme.
Jenkins pleaded guilty to one hate crime count, one count of conspiracy to commit hate crimes, kidnapping, and carjacking, and one count of use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.
“The Department of Justice and the Civil Rights Division are committed to confronting the scourge of hate-based violence gripping communities across our nation,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We denounce hate-based violence in all of its forms, including violence targeting individuals based on sexual orientation and gender identity. We will continue to diligently investigate and prosecute violent, bias-motivated crimes to the fullest extent. As noted by Attorney General Garland, we stand ready to use every tool in our arsenal to address the rise in hate and we will work to hold perpetrators of hate-motivated violence accountable.”
“These defendants brutalized multiple victims, singling them out due to their sexual orientation. We cannot allow this sort of violence to fester unchecked,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Prerak Shah of the Northern District of Texas. “The Department of Justice is committed to prosecuting hate crimes. In the meantime, we urge dating app users to remain vigilant. Unfortunately, predators often lurk online.”
“Investigating hate crimes is one of the FBI's highest priorities because of the devastating impact they have on families and communities,” said FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge Matthew DeSarno. “We are committed to the pursuit of offenders and holding them accountable for perpetrating these harmful crimes. No one should have to live in fear of violence because of who they are, where they are from or what they believe. We will continue working with our law enforcement and community partners to detect and prevent violent incidents motivated by hate or bias. We also urge the public to report any suspected hate crimes to the FBI and local law enforcement.”
According to court documents filed in connection with his guilty plea, Jenkins admitted that he and his co-conspirators used Grindr, a social media dating platform used primarily by gay men, to lure gay men to a vacant apartment and other areas in and around Dallas for robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, and hate crimes over the course of approximately a week in December 2017. Jenkins admitted that he and his co-conspirators held victims against their will; pointed a handgun at victims and took their personal property, including their vehicles; and traveled to local ATMs to withdraw cash from the victims’ accounts. Jenkins further admitted that he and his co-conspirators physically injured at least one victim and taunted the victims based upon the co-conspirators’ perception of the men’s sexual orientation.
In March 2019, Michael Atkinson pleaded guilty to conspiracy and kidnapping charges in connection with this case. In December 2019, Daryl Henry and Pablo Ceniceros-Deleon pleaded guilty to a federal hate crime and other charges in connection with this case. Sentencing for these three defendants is set for June 23.
Daniel Jenkins’ sentencing is set for Oct. 6. Pursuant to the terms of the plea agreement, Jenkins faces a sentence of up to 26 years in prison.
The FBI’s Dallas Field Office conducted the federal investigation; a separate criminal investigation is being conducted by the Dallas Police Department. Special Litigation Counsel Rose E. Gibson and Trial Attorney Kathryn Gilbert of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Dana of the Northern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.
New Orleans Woman Sentenced on Federal Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that on May 26, 2021, ZYETA RUDOLPH, age 42, a resident of Orleans Parish, Louisiana, was sentenced to serve 37 months in the custody of the United States Bureau of Prisons for participating in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine. RUDOLPH was also sentenced to 4 years of supervised release following imprisonment and payment of a $100 mandatory special assessment fee.
These charges stemmed from an investigation by both the United States Drug Enforcement Administration and the Plaquemines Parish Sheriff’s Office into the illegal distribution of drugs in South Louisiana and Houston, Texas. This investigation led to the Indictment of Paul Metz, Eugene Rudolph, Elbert Childs, ZYETA RUDOLPH, Yrian Devoure, and Dale Phillips back in May 2019 under case number 19-087 “H”. To date, Elbert Childs, ZYETA RUDOLPH, and Dale Phillips have pled guilty.
During her guilty plea in this case, ZYETA RUDOLPH admitted that she was a drug courier for her brother Gene Rudolph. She acknowledged that she had transported between 3.5 and 5 kilograms of cocaine from Houston to the greater New Orleans area on behalf of her brother.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (D.E.A.), and the Plaquemines Parish Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Maurice Landrieu is in charge of the prosecution.
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Justice Department, EPA and the State of Indiana Reach Clean Air Act Settlement with Lone Star IndustriesRead the Press Release
Lone Star Industries Inc, a subsidiary of Italian company Buzzi Unicem, has agreed to upgrade and optimize pollution control equipment and procedures at its cement manufacturing facility in Greencastle, Indiana, to resolve Clean Air Act (CAA) violations brought by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the State of Indiana Department of Environmental Management.
The complaint filed simultaneously with the settlement alleges numerous, longstanding Clean Air Act violations at the Greencastle plant that date from 2010 to the present. Many of the violations involved opacity in emissions that exceeded state and federal limits. Opacity measures the amount of light blocked by emissions of particulate matter. Particulate matter, especially fine particulates, contains microscopic solids or liquid droplets, which can migrate deep into the lungs and cause serious health problems. The complaint also alleges violations of CAA requirements that limit emissions of other hazardous air pollutants from the burning of hazardous wastes which Lone Star uses to heat its cement kilns.
“This settlement is a reminder that industrial facilities must comply with the law and prevent illegal emissions of harmful pollutants from plant operations,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jean E. Williams of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “The settlement requires Lone Star to improve its processes and pollution controls to protect air quality and the public health in surrounding communities.”
“The health of the citizens of the State of Indiana is a top priority of my office,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Childress of the Southern District of Indiana. “Successful efforts such as this protect and preserve the environment for current and future generations and demonstrate our ongoing dedication to that goal.”
“EPA is committed to improving air quality in Indiana in order to protect people’s health and the environment,” said Acting EPA Region 5 Administrator Cheryl Newton. “Reducing particulate matter especially benefits vulnerable populations such as children, older adults, and people with heart or lung diseases.”
Under the settlement, Lone Star also will pay $729,000 in civil penalties, split equally between the United States and the State of Indiana, and will undertake additional measures not required by law to mitigate past violations of CAA opacity limits.
EPA estimates that the measures in the consent decree will reduce emissions of particulate matter from the Lone Star plant by 2.44 tons per year, carbon monoxide emissions by 46.39 tons per year, and other hazardous air pollutants by 1.69 tons per year. Lone Star will spend approximately $1.4 million at the Greencastle facility to bring it into compliance and to mitigate for past harm.
The settlement was lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana and is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval. It will be available for viewing at www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.
Information about EPA Region 5's air enforcement program is at http://www.epa.gov/region5/air/enforce/index.html.
Potential environmental violations may be reported at http://www.epa.gov/compliance/complaints.
Justice Department Obtains Settlement from San Diego Landlord to Resolve Claims of Sexual Harassment Against Female TenantsRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today announced it has reached an agreement with defendant Larry Nelson to resolve a Fair Housing Act lawsuit alleging that he sexually harassed female tenants while owning and managing San Diego area rental properties.
Under the consent order entered by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, Nelson must pay at least $230,000 to $205,000 in damages to tenants harmed by his harassment and a $25,000 civil penalty to the United States. A judgment for an additional $350,000 also was entered against Nelson in favor of the United States, but is suspended based on sworn disclosure statements reflecting Nelson’s financial situation. Any misrepresentation or omission by Nelson on those disclosure statements will trigger collection of the suspended judgment. Nelson also is prohibited from being involved in property management of rental units in the future and must hire an independent professional property manager. He also must implement a nondiscrimination policy and complaint procedure and must release judgments obtained against victims whom he wrongfully evicted.
The United States’ lawsuit alleged that Nelson’s harassment spanned a period of nearly two decades. The allegations included that Nelson engaged in unwelcome sexual touching, offered to reduce monthly rental payments in exchange for sex, made unwelcome sexual comments and advances, made intrusive and unannounced visits to female tenants’ homes to further his sexual advances, and evicted or threatened to evict female tenants who objected to or refused his sexual advance.
“People deserve to be safe in their homes,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Sexual harassment in housing deprives them of that security. The Justice Department will not tolerate landlords who abuse their power by sexually harassing their tenants and will continue vigorously to pursue allegations of sexual harassment.”
“Abusive landlords in San Diego and Imperial counties should be on notice that protecting the civil rights of citizens in our district is a top priority, and we do not tolerate discrimination and harassment in housing,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Randy S. Grossman for the Southern District of California. “Holding a key to someone’s property is a position of trust, not a license to engage in illegal sexual harassment and sexual demands.”
This case was jointly litigated by attorneys in the Civil Rights Division and the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California. The Justice Department’s Sexual Harassment in Housing Initiative is led by the Civil Rights Division, in coordination with U.S. Attorney’s Offices across the country. The goal of the department’s Initiative is to address and raise awareness about sexual harassment by landlords, property managers, maintenance workers, loan officers, or other people who have control over housing. Since launching the Initiative in October 2017, the Department of Justice has filed 21 lawsuits alleging sexual harassment in housing and recovered over $2.5 million for victims of such harassment.
The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division enforces the Fair Housing Act, which prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at http://www.justice.gov/crt. Individuals may report sexual harassment or other forms of housing discrimination by calling the Justice Department’s Housing Discrimination Tip Line at 1-800-896-7743, e-mailing the Justice Department at [email protected], or submitting a report online. Individuals may also report such discrimination by contacting HUD at 1-800-669-9777 or by filing a complaint online.
EOIR Warns of Scammers Spoofing Agency Phone NumberRead the Press Release
FALLS CHURCH, VA – The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) today announced it has recently been notified of phone calls that spoof the Office of the Chief Immigration Judge as part of a misinformation campaign. The callers will often “spoof,” or fake, the Office of the Chief Immigration Judge’s main line, 703-305-1247, so the calls appear to be coming from EOIR on the recipient’s caller ID.
In this scam, fraudulent callers posing as EOIR employees request personal information from the victims. These calls are fraudulent; EOIR personnel do not call individuals from this number about case-related matters. To protect yourself, be wary of answering phone calls from numbers you do not recognize. Never give out your personal information over the phone to individuals you do not know.
If you have a question about your case, please call the Automated Case Information Hotline at 1-800-898-7180, or visit the Automated Case Information System (https://portal.eoir.justice.gov/InfoSystem) or the Immigration Court Online Resource (https://icor.eoir.justice.gov).
Montana Man Indicted on Federal Hate Crime and Firearm ChargesRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Billings, Montana, returned an indictment on May 20 charging a Montana man with hate crime and firearm violations for allegedly firing a gun into an individual’s house and threatening the individual with violent, homophobic slurs.
According to court documents, John Russell Howald, 44, of Basin, is charged with violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, and with the use of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. The indictment alleges that on March 22, 2020, in Basin, Howald attempted to injure an individual because of their actual and perceived sexual orientation by discharging a firearm into the individual’s house, stating that he wanted to “get rid of the lesbians [and] gays.” The offense included an attempt to kill the individual.
Howald is scheduled for an arraignment on June 29 before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in Great Falls. If convicted, Howald faces up to life in prison on the hate crime charge and a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison, consecutive to any other sentence, on the firearm charge.
A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Leif M. Johnson of the District of Montana made the announcement.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan McCarthy of the District of Montana and Trial Attorney Eric Peffley of Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section are prosecuting the case. The FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
For more information and resources on the department’s efforts to combat hate crimes, visit www.justice.gov/hatecrimes.
Nevada Bottled Water Companies and Owners Ordered to Stop Distributing Adulterated and Misbranded Water ProductsRead the Press Release
A federal court permanently enjoined a Henderson, Nevada, company from preparing, processing and distributing adulterated and misbranded bottled water.
In a complaint filed on May 19, at the request of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the United States alleged that AffinityLifestyles.com Inc. and Real Water Inc., along with company officers Brent A. Jones and his son, Blain K. Jones, violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by distributing adulterated and misbranded bottled water. The companies formerly distributed bottled water under the brand names “Re2al Water Drinking Water” and “Re2al Alkalized Water.” While the companies marketed their products as a healthy alternative to tap water, the government alleged that the products in fact consisted of municipal tap water that the defendants processed with various chemicals in violation of current good manufacturing practices, relevant food safety standards and hazard prevention measures.
According to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, the FDA received information that at least five children experienced acute non-viral hepatitis (resulting in acute liver failure) after drinking Re2al Water. The FDA documented other consumer complaints of illness, including nausea and vomiting, related to the Re2al Water. Subsequently, the agency warned consumers, restaurants, distributors and retailers not to drink, cook with, sell or serve the product.
“Food and water sold to consumers must be safe,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department's Civil Division. “The Department of Justice will continue to work closely with the Food and Drug Administration to ensure that bottled water and other products we eat and drink are manufactured in compliance with the law.”
“As consumers, we count on bottled water companies to take appropriate measures in ensuring their water doesn’t make our families sick, particularly children,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Christopher Chiou for the District of Nevada. “The permanent injunction imposed on Real Water reflects the Department of Justice’s and FDA’s commitment to protecting the health of Nevadans and consumers across the country.”
The complaint alleges that FDA inspections found: (a) multiple regulatory violations in the companies’ manufacturing processes, including significant deviations from preventative control requirements intended to control the risk of hazards in food; and (b) multiple failures to follow current good manufacturing practice requirements for water bottling facilities.
“We are committed to preventing harmful products from entering the nation’s food supply, and we will take enforcement action when a company fails to follow the law,” said FDA Associate Commissioner for Regulatory Affairs Judy McMeekin, Pharm.D. “The FDA, together with our federal counterparts at the U.S. Department of Justice, aggressively pursued this injunction and we will continue to take swift action to protect consumers.”
The defendants agreed to settle the suit and be bound by a consent decree of permanent injunction. The order entered by the federal court permanently enjoins the defendants from violating the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and requires that they destroy any food, including any bottled water products, still in their possession. As part of the settlement, the defendants represented that they are no longer engaged in processing, preparing, packing or distributing water or any other type of food. Before processing or distributing any food in the future, the defendants first must notify the FDA in advance, comply with specific remedial measures set forth in the injunction, and permit the FDA to inspect their facilities and procedures.
Trial Attorneys Brianna Gardner and Sarah Williams of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch are handling the case with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy Flake of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada and Associate Chief Counsel Jennifer Argabright of the FDA’s Office of the Chief Counsel.
Justice Department Requires Substantial Divestitures in Zen-Noh Acquisition of Grain Elevators from Bunge to Protect American FarmersRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced today that it will require Zen-Noh Grain Corp. (ZGC) to divest nine grain elevators in nine geographic areas located in five states along the Mississippi River and its tributaries in order to proceed with its proposed $300 million acquisition of 35 operating and 13 idled grain elevators from Bunge North America Inc.
The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division filed a civil antitrust lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block the proposed merger. At the same time, the department filed a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the department’s competitive concerns.
“American farmers produce the crops that feed our nation and the world,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Without this comprehensive divestiture, many American farmers would have faced lower prices for the corn and soybeans they produce. The divestiture of these assets protects vital competition in our nation’s agricultural industry.”
According to the complaint, the defendants are two of only a small number of competing grain purchasers in nine geographic areas. Without the required divestiture, the combined company likely would have been able to pay less for grain and lower the quality of services offered to farmers. The divestiture ensures that the buyer of the grain elevators will be well positioned to compete vigorously with the merged company in the purchase of corn and soybeans in the affected markets, preserving competition for the benefit of farmers in Arkansas, Iowa, Illinois, Louisiana and Missouri.
The divestiture required under the settlement would, if approved by the court, require ZGC to sell the grain elevators to Viserion Grain LLC (Viserion) or an alternative acquirer approved by the United States. Viserion’s management team has substantial experience in the grain industry.
Zen-Noh Grain Corporation, headquartered in Covington, Louisiana, is the U.S. subsidiary of the National Federation of Agriculture Cooperative Associations of Japan, Zen-Noh. Zen-Noh Grain Corporation trades and exports corn, soybeans, sorghum, wheat and byproducts from its export elevator in Convent, Louisiana, to Japan and other global markets.
Bunge North America Inc. is the North American arm of Bunge Limited. Bunge North America is headquartered in Chesterfield, Missouri. Its operations include grain origination, grain processing and grain trading.
Viserion Grain LLC is owned by Viserion International Holdco LLC, a Colorado-based global agriculture merchant formed with the financial backing of Pinnacle Management L.P. Pinnacle is a $3.2 billion private, New York-based alternative asset management firm that maintains a focus on global commodity markets and trading.
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 during a 60-day comment period to Robert Lepore, Chief, Transportation, Energy and Agriculture Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street NW, Suite 8000, Washington, D.C. 20530. At the conclusion of the 60-day 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.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Four Plead Guilty to Multi-State Dogfighting ConspiracyRead the Press Release
Four defendants pleaded guilty to federal dogfighting and conspiracy charges for their roles in an inter-state dogfighting network across the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia and New Jersey.
The Honorable John A. Gibney Jr., U.S. District Judge in Richmond, Virginia, accepted the following pleas:
- On June 1, Odell S. Anderson Sr., 52, of the District of Columbia, pleaded guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to violate the animal-fighting prohibitions of the Animal Welfare Act by conspiring with others to sponsor and exhibit dogs in a dog fight, as well as to buy, sell, possess, train, transport, deliver, and receive dogs for the purposes of having those dog participate in animal-fighting ventures. Additionally, Anderson pleaded guilty to one felony count of causing a child under the age of sixteen to attend an animal-fighting venture;
- On May 10, Emmanuel A. Powe Sr., 46, of Frederick, Maryland, also pleaded guilty to one felony count of conspiracy to violate the animal-fighting prohibitions of the Animal Welfare Act; and
- On April 28, Chester A. Moody Jr., 46, of Glenn Dale, Maryland; and Carlos L. Harvey, 46, of King George, Virginia, each pleaded guilty to the same conspiracy.
According to court documents filed in connection with the cases, from April 2013 through July 11, 2018, the pleading defendants and their co-conspirators participated in animal-fighting ventures, involving training, transporting, breeding and dogfighting setups, including at least one specific “two-card” dogfighting event on April 3, 2016. For that event, Anderson, Powe and Harvey met up with others in the Walmart parking lot in King George, Virginia, and then traveled to another location for a fight. Moody, Powe and Anderson then participated in a pre-scheduled “two-card” dogfight, which involves two separate dogfights with different dogs and handlers. The dogfighters subjected the dogs to arduous training for several weeks before the fighting event. At least one of the dogs died due to its injuries in this dog fight.
The defendants each also maintained other fighting dogs at their residences, as well as dogfighting equipment including dog treadmills, “med kits,” “breeding stands” (to immobilize female dogs), and chains weighing up to several pounds per linear foot. Each animal-fighting charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The charge against Anderson of taking a minor to attend a dog fight carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
“Organized dogfighting — whether on a professional, hobbyist or street fighter level — has no place in our society,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jean E. Williams of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Dogfighting is an extremely violent and secretive venture of animal abuse, and bringing young children to these fighting events exposes another generation to indifference towards animal cruelty and disrespect for the law against this ruthless and illegal activity.”
“Dogfighting is absolutely intolerable and callously subjects defenseless animals to inhumane treatment and abuse,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Raj Parekh for the Eastern District of Virginia. “We must protect and care for these animals—not cruelly turn them against each other for profit. Those who engage in this deplorable conduct will face justice to the fullest extent of the law.”
“The provisions of the Animal Welfare Act were designed to protect animals from being used in illegal fighting ventures, which often entail other forms of criminal activity,” said Special Agent in Charge Bethanne M. Dinkins of the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Office of Inspector General (USDA-OIG). “Together with the Department of Justice, animal fighting is an investigative priority for USDA-OIG, and we will work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and assist in the criminal prosecution of those who participate in animal fighting ventures.”
This case was prosecuted as part of Operation Grand Champion, a coordinated effort across numerous federal judicial districts to combat organized dogfighting. The phrase “Grand Champion” is used by dogfighters to refer to a dog with more than five dogfighting “victories.”
The Humane Society of the United States, along with other entities, assisted with the care of the dogs seized by federal law enforcement.
The government is represented by Trial Attorney Shennie Patel of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Olivia L. Norman of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. The case is being investigated by the USDA-OIG, with assistance from the FBI.
The district court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Readout of Attorney General Merrick B. Garland’s Call with Australia’s Minister for Home Affairs Karen AndrewsRead the Press Release
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland met virtually with Karen Andrews, Australia’s Minister for Home Affairs. In this inaugural meeting, the Attorney General and Home Affairs Minister reaffirmed their shared commitment to deepening our bilateral cooperation on countering common threats, including those posed by terrorism and cybercrime. The two leaders also discussed their intention to work to promote infrastructure security and combat online child sexual exploitation and abuse. They look forward to further in-depth discussions on these and other issues central to the protection of the citizens of both our countries.
Justice Department Settles Investigation into Language Barriers in the Hazleton Police DepartmentRead the Press Release
The Justice Department today announced it has reached a settlement agreement with the Hazleton Police Department (HPD) and the City of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, to help people with limited English proficiency (LEP) communicate with the police.
The agreement resolves a Justice Department investigation of the HPD under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VI prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin by recipients of federal assistance, such as the HPD. The Justice Department initiated its review after receiving a complaint from the Community Justice Project on behalf of an LEP Hazleton resident who had been forced to rely on his young son and a co-worker to communicate with the police. HPD has since agreed to secure appropriate and reliable means of communicating with the City’s large Spanish-speaking community.
"Timely and accurate communication between limited English proficient residents and police officers is essential to public safety,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Civil Rights Division. "The changes required by this agreement will benefit crime victims and witnesses, but also help police officers do their jobs. We are pleased that Hazleton’s City and Police Department leadership support improvements to police policy and practices on language services."
“Our office is proud to have joined with the Civil Rights Division on this important case,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Bruce D. Brandler for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. “Ensuring that all individuals can communicate with law enforcement officers benefits all involved and is fundamental to our democracy.”
Under the agreement, HPD will soon release a new standard operating procedure on language access that requires HPD officers to provide appropriate language assistance in any contacts with LEP community members. Over the next year, HPD and the City will take a number of additional steps, including providing Spanish and English language notices and complaint forms, assessing language skills of bilingual officers, and training staff on how and when to access interpreters and translations.
Enforcement of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a top priority of the Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt, and information about limited English proficiency and Title VI is available at www.lep.gov. Members of the public may report possible civil rights violations at https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/.
El Departamento de Justicia resuelve una investigación de las barreras lingüísticas en la Policía de HazletonRead the Press Release
El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha llegado a un acuerdo conciliatorio con la Policía de Hazleton («HPD», por sus siglas en inglés) y la Ciudad de Hazleton, Pennsylvania, para ayudar a personas cuyo dominio del inglés es limitado («LEP», por sus siglas en inglés) a comunicarse con la policía.
El acuerdo resuelve una investigación liderada por el Departamento de Justicia de la HPD en virtud del Título VI de la ley de Derechos Civiles de 1964. El Título VI prohíbe la discriminación por motivos de raza, color de piel y nacionalidad de origen por parte de beneficiarios de fondos federales, tales como la HPD. El Departamento de Justicia inició su investigación tras recibir una querella del Community Justice Project [Proyecto Comunitario para la Justicia] en nombre de un residente LEP de Hazleton que se había visto obligado a usar a su hijo pequeño y un colega de trabajo para comunicarse con la policía. Desde entonces, la HPD ha acordado conseguir medios apropiados y fiables de comunicación con la gran comunidad hispanoparlante de la ciudad.
«La comunicación oportuna y precisa entre residentes con un dominio limitado del inglés y agentes de policía es esencial para la seguridad pública», afirmó la Fiscal General Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles Kristen Clarke. «Los cambios que este recuerdo requiere beneficiarán a víctimas y testigos, pero también ayudarán a los agentes de policía a hacer su trabajo. Estamos muy contentos de ver que los líderes en Ciudad de Hazleton y su Policía apoyan mejoras a las políticas y prácticas de la policía en lo que estos se refieren a servicios lingüísticos».
«Nuestra oficina se enorgullece de haberse unido a la División de Derechos Civiles en este importante caso», dijo el fiscal federal interino Bruce D. Brandler. «Asegurar que todas las personas puedan comunicarse con los agentes del orden beneficia a todos los involucrados y es fundamental para nuestra democracia».
Conforme este acuerdo, dentro de poco, la HPD publicará un nuevo procedimiento operativo estándar sobre el acceso lingüístico para la provisión de asistencia lingüística apropiada durante cualquier contacto con miembros comunitarios LEP. Durante el próximo año, la HPD y la Ciudad tomarán unas medidas adicionales, entre ellas la provisión de notificaciones y formularios de demanda en inglés y español, la evaluación de los conocimientos lingüísticos de sus agentes bilingües y la capacitación del personal en cuanto a cómo y cuándo acceder a intérpretes o traducciones.
La ejecución del Título VI de la ley de Derechos Civiles de 1964 representa una de las prioridades principales de la División de Derechos Civiles. Para más información sobre la División de Derechos Civiles, vaya a su sitio web en www.justice.gov/crt-espanol. Para más información sobre el dominio limitado del inglés y el Título VI, vaya a www.lep.gov. Miembros del público también pueden informar de posibles vulneraciones de derechos civiles en
https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/.El Departamento de Justicia resuelve una investigación de las barreras lingüísticas en la Policía de HazletonRead the Press Release
El Departamento de Justicia resuelve una investigación de las barreras lingüísticas en la Policía de Hazleton
El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha llegado a un acuerdo conciliatorio con la Policía de Hazleton («HPD», por sus siglas en inglés) y la Ciudad de Hazleton, Pennsylvania, para ayudar a personas cuyo dominio del inglés es limitado («LEP», por sus siglas en inglés) a comunicarse con la policía.
El acuerdo resuelve una investigación liderada por el Departamento de Justicia de la HPD en virtud del Título VI de la ley de Derechos Civiles de 1964. El Título VI prohíbe la discriminación por motivos de raza, color de piel y nacionalidad de origen por parte de beneficiarios de fondos federales, tales como la HPD. El Departamento de Justicia inició su investigación tras recibir una querella del Community Justice Project [Proyecto Comunitario para la Justicia] en nombre de un residente LEP de Hazleton que se había visto obligado a usar a su hijo pequeño y un colega de trabajo para comunicarse con la policía. Desde entonces, la HPD ha acordado conseguir medios apropiados y fiables de comunicación con la gran comunidad hispanoparlante de la ciudad.
«La comunicación oportuna y precisa entre residentes con un dominio limitado del inglés y agentes de policía es esencial para la seguridad pública», afirmó la Fiscal General Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles Kristen Clarke. «Los cambios que este recuerdo requiere beneficiarán a víctimas y testigos, pero también ayudarán a los agentes de policía a hacer su trabajo. Estamos muy contentos de ver que los líderes en Ciudad de Hazleton y su Policía apoyan mejoras a las políticas y prácticas de la policía en lo que estos se refieren a servicios lingüísticos».
«Nuestra oficina se enorgullece de haberse unido a la División de Derechos Civiles en este importante caso», dijo el fiscal federal interino Bruce D. Brandler. «Asegurar que todas las personas puedan comunicarse con los agentes del orden beneficia a todos los involucrados y es fundamental para nuestra democracia».
Conforme este acuerdo, dentro de poco, la HPD publicará un nuevo procedimiento operativo estándar sobre el acceso lingüístico para la provisión de asistencia lingüística apropiada durante cualquier contacto con miembros comunitarios LEP. Durante el próximo año, la HPD y la Ciudad tomarán unas medidas adicionales, entre ellas la provisión de notificaciones y formularios de demanda en inglés y español, la evaluación de los conocimientos lingüísticos de sus agentes bilingües y la capacitación del personal en cuanto a cómo y cuándo acceder a intérpretes o traducciones.
La ejecución del Título VI de la ley de Derechos Civiles de 1964 representa una de las prioridades principales de la División de Derechos Civiles. Para más información sobre la División de Derechos Civiles, vaya a su sitio web en www.justice.gov/crt-espanol. Para más información sobre el dominio limitado del inglés y el Título VI, vaya a www.lep.gov. Miembros del público también pueden informar de posibles vulneraciones de derechos civiles en https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/.
Deputy Attorney General Convenes Inaugural Meeting of the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task ForceRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON - Yesterday, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco convened the first meeting of the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force. Launched earlier this month, the Task Force is marshalling the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across the federal government to enhance enforcement efforts against COVID-19 related fraud.
In launching the first meeting of the Task Force, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco told the members that the “aim of the Task Force is to join forces against fraud and protect the integrity of government funds.”
The Task Force members discussed several of their priority goals, including increased efforts to combat fraud related to COVID-19 relief programs like the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, as well as unemployment insurance benefits. The Task Force also discussed efforts to combat health care fraud, including the criminal charges that were announced earlier this week against 14 defendants for their alleged participation in various health care fraud schemes that exploited the COVID-19 pandemic and resulted in over $143 million in false billings.
The Deputy Attorney General closed by stressing that a well-informed public is the strongest weapon in preventing fraud and reiterating the Task Force's commitment to educating individuals and businesses about how they can best protect themselves.
For more information on the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force, visit: Attorney General Announces Task Force to Combat COVID-19 Fraud | OPA | Department of Justice
Department of Justice Fiscal Year 2022 Funding RequestRead the Press Release
Proposal Reinvigorates Civil Rights Enforcement, Counters International and Domestic Terrorism, Combats Violent Crime and Gun Violence, Advances Environmental Justice, Invests in Community Policing, Addresses Inequities in the Nation’s Criminal Justice System, and Reduces the Immigration Court Backlog
The President today submitted his Budget for Fiscal Year 2022 to Congress, totaling $35.3 billion for the Department of Justice (DOJ).
The request seeks to sustain and enhance the Justice Department’s vital work to counter both international and domestic terrorism, reinvigorate civil rights enforcement, address inequities in the nation’s criminal justice system, combat gun violence, advance environmental justice and help reduce the backlog in the nation’s immigration courts.
“This budget proposal advances the Justice Department’s three overarching goals: keeping Americans safe, adhering to the Rule of Law, and seeking equal justice under law for everyone,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “These funds will strengthen our ability to counter international and domestic terrorism, support our efforts to curb violent crime, enhance our enforcement of voting rights and other civil rights laws, protect our nation from cyber-attacks, and double our resources dedicated to addressing gender-based violence and the support of survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. Our request will increase public safety through investments in policing and criminal justice reform, as well as by dedicating funds to combating gun violence. Importantly, this budget makes a down payment on improving access to justice, a prerequisite to equal justice. The department looks forward to working with members of Congress on both sides of the aisle to help secure its timely passage.”
At the Department of Justice, the Budget would provide:
- More than $1.5 billion to combat international and domestic terrorism – an increase of more than 12% over the FY 2021– which includes an additional $101.2 million to address domestic terrorism with a broadscale approach across the Department.
- $2.1 billion, an increase of $184.3 million, to combat gun violence while focusing on programs that address both gun safety and violent crime.
- $177.2 million over the FY 2021 appropriation to reinvigorate Federal civil rights efforts, including to re-establish and expand the Office for Access to Justice and to support the Community Relations Service with conciliators in local communities.
- $1.0 billion, an increase of $486.5 million, to address gender-based violence through the Office on Violence Against Women, nearly twice the FY 2021 investment in this effort.
- $1.6 billion, an increase of $669.3 million, to implement further reforms to the criminal justice system and continue critical investment in implementation of the First Step Act of 2018.
- $1.3 billion, an increase of $379.8 million, to support programs designed to further strengthen relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve.
- $44.0 million in new resources to advance environmental justice initiatives, including facilities modernization and repair.
- $177.5 million more than FY 2021 to reduce the immigration court backlog and fund new legal support efforts for children and families.
- $1.1 billion, an increase of $150.7 million, to augment Cyber Investigations and Cyber Security.
Countering International and Domestic Terrorism
As the Nation’s top law enforcement agency, the Department of Justice is devoted to a broad-scale approach to counter the threat of both international and domestic terrorism. While the United States has seen unprecedented and troubling levels of domestic violent extremism, the department and its law enforcement agencies remain acutely aware of the threats posed by international terrorist organizations. The budget request includes increased funding for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the principal DOJ law enforcement agency charged with combating terrorism, to conduct domestic terrorism investigations, and for the U.S. Attorneys to manage increasing domestic terrorism caseloads. Further, the budget will support additional response capabilities at the U.S. Marshals Service and support research on the root causes of domestic radicalization at the National Institute of Justice.
The FY 2022 budget invests more than $1.5 billion to combat international and domestic terrorism, including an additional an $101.2 million to address the rising threat of domestic terrorism.
Combating Violent Crime and Gun Violence
The Department is committed to addressing the epidemic of gun violence and other violent crime that has taken the lives of too many people in our communities. As part of the department’s recently announced strategy to reduce violent crime, including through grantmaking opportunities, the budget request establishes innovative new grants for States to incentivize Red Flag and Gun Licensing Laws; creates a new $100 million Community Violence Intervention Initiative to tackle gun violence in our neighborhoods; provides grants for Project Safe Neighborhoods, and expands ATF’s Crime Gun Intelligence through the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network. A new pilot program promotes the development, adoption and use of programs designed to help communities address situations where people become legally prohibited from possessing the firearms they own.
The FY 2022 budget invests $2.1 billion to address gun violence and gun safety, an increase of $184.3 million over FY 2021.
Reinvigorating Civil Rights Efforts
Protecting our Nation’s civil rights is a top priority for the Department, as far too many of our citizens still face discrimination. To help protect marginalized communities, the budget request includes funding to re-establish the Office for Access to Justice, and increases funding for the Civil Rights Division, the Community Relations Service, the Office of Justice Programs and the Office on Violence Against Women. These funds will support the enforcement of voting rights and the protection of constitutional and civil rights; mediation and conciliation services for community conflicts arising from discriminatory practices; the prosecution of hate crimes across the nation, especially in communities uniquely impacted by bias, xenophobia and hate driven by the COVID-19 pandemic; and other civil rights activities.
The FY 2022 budget invests a total of $307.2 million in civil rights efforts, an increase of $177.2 million over FY 2021.
Addressing Inequities in the Criminal Justice System
The Department’s budget request addresses the need to ensure equal justice for all Americans. The budget request prioritizes improving community relations through the Office of Justice Programs. The budget request establishes new programs for community-based alternatives to prison, expands the Part B Formula Grants, and increases funding for the Second Chance Act program. The Department will implement Executive Order 14006 by transferring Federal Prisoner Detention detainees from privately operated to alternate State, local, and Federal facilities with an additional $75.0 million. Finally, the budget continues the historic investment of $409.5 million by the Bureau of Prisons in the First Step Act.
The FY 2022 budget invests over $1.6 billion to address inequities in the criminal justice system in America, an increase of $669.3 million over FY 2021 levels.
Investing in Community Policing
Creating strong, positive ties between law enforcement and the communities they serve is critical to making the Nation’s communities safer and to rooting out systemic inequities in the justice system. Providing resources to police departments to help them reform and gain the trust of communities is a priority of this Department and this Administration. The department’s budget addresses the need to further strengthen relationships between communities and police officers by hiring local police officers and investing in racial sensitivity, hate crime and implicit bias training.
The FY 2022 budget invests a total of $1.3 billion to support law enforcement agencies, including through programs that support community-oriented policing policies and practices, as well as training for law enforcement on racial profiling, de-escalation and the duty to intervene. This is a $379.8 million increase over the FY 2021 level.
Advancing Environmental Justice
The Department is committed advancing environmental justice and supports the President’s Executive Order 14008, “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad.” The Executive Order establishes a “whole-of-government” approach to addressing the climate crisis and formalizes the government’s commitment to environmental justice. The budget request includes increased funding for the Environment and Natural Resources Division to expand its use of existing authorities in affirmative cases to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and address the impacts of climate change and to continue defensive and other work related to climate change. In addition, the Bureau of Prison will invest in energy saving modernization and repair projects to replace aging equipment with energy efficient models, resulting in reduced energy costs and consumption, as well as other environmentally-sound operational benefits.
The FY 2022 budget invests $44.0 million to advance environmental justice, tackle climate change, and enhance environmental stability.
Reducing the Immigration Court Backlog
Although the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) has doubled the number of Immigration Judges onboard since 2015, caseloads continue to grow at an even faster pace, and processing times continue to increase due to a rise in the number of complex adjudications, such as those of asylum claims. The FY 2022 budget addresses this challenge by both providing additional Immigration Judges, and by promoting efficiency initiatives within EOIR. The request supports hiring 100 new Immigration Judges, as well as necessary support staff and attorneys. The request would also enable EOIR to continue to modernize its IT capabilities.
The FY 2022 budget invests $177.5 million in new resources to reduce the immigration court backlog, as well as create the Legal Representation for Immigrant Children and Families Pilot, which supports the enhancement of legal representation of immigrant children and families who seek asylum and other forms of legal protection in the United States after entering at the borders.
For more information on the President’s FY22 Budget as a whole, please visit: https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/.
DHS and DOJ Announce Dedicated Docket Process for More Efficient Immigration HearingsRead the Press Release
Today, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas and Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced a new Dedicated Docket process to more expeditiously and fairly make decisions in immigration cases of families who arrive between ports of entry at the Southwest Border. This new process should significantly decrease the amount of time it takes for migrants to have their cases adjudicated while still providing fair hearings for families seeking asylum at the border.
“Families arriving at the border who are placed in immigration proceedings should have their cases decided in an orderly, efficient, and fair manner,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas. “Families who have recently arrived should not languish in a multi-year backlog; today’s announcement is an important step for both justice and border security.”
“The mission of the Department of Justice’s immigration courts is to decide the cases that come before them promptly and fairly,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This new program for certain newly arriving families will help achieve that critically important goal.”
Under this new process, certain recently arrived families may be placed on the Dedicated Docket. Families may qualify if they are apprehended between ports of entry on or after Friday, May 28, 2021, placed in removal proceedings, and enrolled in Alternatives to Detention (ATD). DHS, in partnership with the Department of Justice (DOJ) Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), will make available information services to help families understand the immigration system and refer families to pro bono legal service providers for possible representation.
EOIR has identified immigration courts in 10 cities with established communities of legal services providers and available judges to handle the cases. The designated cities are Denver, Detroit, El Paso, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York City, San Diego, San Francisco, and Seattle.
Under the Dedicated Docket, EOIR’s immigration judges will work generally to issue a decision within 300 days of the initial master calendar hearing, subject to the unique circumstances of each case including allowing time for families to seek representation where needed. While the goal of this process is to decide cases expeditiously, fairness will not be compromised.
DHS and DOJ Announce Dedicated Docket Process for More Efficient Immigration HearingsRead the Press Release
Today, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas and Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced a new Dedicated Docket process to more expeditiously and fairly make decisions in immigration cases of families who arrive between ports of entry at the Southwest Border. This new process should significantly decrease the amount of time it takes for migrants to have their cases adjudicated while still providing fair hearings for families seeking asylum at the border.
“Families arriving at the border who are placed in immigration proceedings should have their cases decided in an orderly, efficient, and fair manner,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas. “Families who have recently arrived should not languish in a multi-year backlog; today’s announcement is an important step for both justice and border security.”
“The mission of the Department of Justice’s immigration courts is to decide the cases that come before them promptly and fairly,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This new program for certain newly arriving families will help achieve that critically important goal.”
Under this new process, certain recently arrived families may be placed on the Dedicated Docket. Families may qualify if they are apprehended between ports of entry on or after Friday, May 28, 2021, placed in removal proceedings, and enrolled in Alternatives to Detention (ATD). DHS, in partnership with the Department of Justice (DOJ) Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), will make available information services to help families understand the immigration system and refer families to pro bono legal service providers for possible representation.
EOIR has identified immigration courts in 10 cities with established communities of legal services providers and available judges to handle the cases. The designated cities are Denver, Detroit, El Paso, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York City, San Diego, San Francisco, and Seattle.
Under the Dedicated Docket, EOIR’s immigration judges will work generally to issue a decision within 300 days of the initial master calendar hearing, subject to the unique circumstances of each case including allowing time for families to seek representation where needed. While the goal of this process is to decide cases expeditiously, fairness will not be compromised.
Utah Company and Its Owner Plead Guilty to Wildlife Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
A Utah man and his company Natur Inc. pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Salt Lake City to violating the Lacey and Endangered Species Acts.
On Nov. 18, 2020, a grand jury issued an indictment charging Jean-Michel Arrigona, 58, of Midvale, with unlawfully importing wildlife into the United States and reselling it from the Natur store in Midvale, which he owns. In a plea agreement with the government, Arrigona admitted that he imported approximately 1,500 wildlife items from 2015 to 2020. He only declared three of the packages, as required, to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or customs authorities. Arrigona resold the wildlife online and at Natur. The wildlife, primarily from Indonesia, consisted of taxidermy mounts and bones of bats, flying foxes, frogs, starfish, insects, rodents, and lizards. Some of the wildlife, such as the flying fox (Pteropus sp.) and monitor lizard (Varanus sp.) are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which regulates trade in endangered or threatened species through permit requirements. The United States, Indonesia, and 181 other countries are signatories to the CITES treaty.
Arrigona pleaded guilty to a felony Lacey Act trafficking charge, and Natur pleaded to one misdemeanor violation of the Endangered Species Act. U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby will determine the defendants’ sentence at an Aug. 4 hearing. Arrigona and Natur have agreed to pay at least $23,101 and $5,000 in fines, respectively. The maximum sentence for Arrigona under the Lacey Act is five years’ imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. The Endangered Species Act carries a maximum corporate sentence of five years’ probation and a $25,000 fine.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement in Redmond, Washington, conducted the investigation as part of Operation Global Reach. The operation focused on the trafficking of wildlife from Indonesia to the United States.
Trial Attorney Ryan Connors of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Melina Shiraldi of the U.S. Attorney Office for the District of Utah prosecuted the case.
Navistar Defense Agrees to Pay $50 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Involving Submission of Fraudulent Sales HistoriesRead the Press Release
Navistar Defense LLC (Navistar), an Illinois based manufacturer of military vehicles and subsidiary of Navistar International LLC, has agreed to pay $50 million to resolve allegations that it fraudulently induced the U.S. Marine Corps to enter into a contract modification at inflated prices for a suspension system for armored vehicles known as Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles.
During negotiations for the modification, Navistar was asked to provide sales information on the contract parts to assess the reasonableness of Navistar’s proposed prices. The United States alleged that Navistar knowingly created fraudulent commercial sales invoices and submitted those invoices to the government to justify the company’s prices. The sales reflected in the commercial sales invoices never occurred. The government relied on the fraudulent sales invoices in agreeing to Navistar’s inflated prices.
“We expect those doing business with the government to be truthful and transparent,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Today’s settlement demonstrates our commitment to pursue those who knowingly provide false information to government procurement officials for their personal gain.”
“Money overcharged to the United States is money that should go to providing the very protection and security that we contracted to provide to our troops,” said the Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips for the District of Columbia. “The settlement evidences our commitment to go after any contractor who treats America’s dedication to our troops as a get rich quick scheme at the expense of the taxpayer and the safety of our military personnel.”
“This settlement sends an important message to defense contractors who hide costs and profit margins from the government to unjustly enrich themselves,” said Special Agent in Charge Cynthia A. Bruce of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Southeast Field Office. “The Department of Defense must have confidence in the pricing, services and products provided by our contractors in order to protect our military members and be fiscally responsible to the public. I would like to thank the Department of Justice and our investigative partners for their resolve to hold the responsible parties accountable.”
“Fraud is not a victimless crime,” said Special Agent in Charge Thomas Cannizzo of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), Southeast Field Office. “It steals money from American taxpayers, damages the integrity of the Department of the Navy procurement process, degrades the readiness of the services by compromising the quality of goods and services used to protect the nation, and squanders more money through the funding of criminal investigations which could have been avoided simply by individuals doing the right thing. NCIS will continue to work with our partner agencies to aggressively pursue those who perpetrate financial crimes.”
“This settlement agreement is another example of our commitment of ensuring that all military contractors comply with the law,” said Frank Robey, director of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command's (CID) Major Procurement Fraud Unit. “Our organization, and our law enforcement partners, will respond robustly to protect the U.S. government from those who would take advantage of it.”
“It is always disappointing to see a contractor not fulfill their obligations in an open and fair manner,” said Director Anita Bales of the Defense Contract Audit Agency. “We are proud to have partnered with the investigative team in providing forensic audit expertise to bring this contractor to justice. We consider it an honor to be part of a team that helps protect our warfighters.”
The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Duquoin Burgess, a former Government Contracts Manager for Navistar. Under those provisions, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The qui tam case is captioned U.S. ex rel. Burgess v. Navistar Defense, LLC, et al., No. 13-cv-1463 (D.D.C). Burgess will receive $11,060,000 out of today’s settlement.
The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the for the District of Columbia, with assistance from the Department of Defense’s DCIS, NCIS, U.S. Army CID's Major Procurement Fraud Unit, and the Defense Contract Audit Agency.
The matter was handled by Trial Attorneys Gary Newkirk and Brandie Weddle and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Darrell Valdez and Benton Peterson.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
Michigan Insurance Salesman Indicted for Tax and Bankruptcy FraudRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Detroit, Michigan, returned an indictment charging a Michigan man with filing false tax returns, making false statements to a bankruptcy court, and making a false statement to the Department of Justice.
According to the indictment, Donald Stanley LaVigne of Lake Orion failed to report insurance commissions and other income on tax returns he filed with the IRS for the years 2013 through 2018. In addition to filing false tax returns, it is alleged that LaVigne falsely claimed in letters he sent to the IRS that these commissions were not income to him.
The indictment also alleges that when LaVigne filed for bankruptcy in 2018, he did not list the IRS as a creditor on the schedules attached to his bankruptcy petition even though he owed taxes to the IRS for the years 2008, 2009, and 2013 through 2015. On one document he filed in the bankruptcy case, LaVigne also allegedly understated his income for the years 2016 and 2017.
Finally, LaVigne is charged with making a false statement to the Department of Justice, Tax Division. After LaVigne was notified that he was the target of a federal grand jury investigation, LaVigne allegedly sent a letter to the Tax Division in which he falsely claimed that his bankruptcy attorney had reviewed his 2017 income tax return and advised him that it was “correct and complete.” In fact, the indictment alleges that his bankruptcy attorney neither reviewed LaVigne’s 2017 income tax return nor advised him that it was correct and complete.
If convicted, LaVigne faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison on each of the false tax return charges, five years in prison on each of the bankruptcy fraud charges, and five years in prison on the false statement charge. He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorneys Melissa S. Siskind and Abigail Burger Chingos of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.
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 Settles with New York-Based Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Company to Resolve Immigration-Related Discrimination ClaimsRead the Press Release
The Department of Justice announced yesterday that it reached a settlement with LNK International Inc. (LNK), a Hauppauge, New York-based manufacturer of over-the-counter pharmaceuticals. The settlement resolves the department’s claims that LNK violated the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) when it discriminated against work-authorized non-U.S. citizens.
Based on its investigation, the department determined that LNK routinely requested unnecessary and specific documents from lawful permanent residents that the company hired for work in certain departments to prove that they were allowed to work in the United States. The department’s investigation determined that LNK requested that lawful permanent residents show their Permanent Resident Cards (sometimes known as “green cards”) to prove their work authorization, but allowed U.S. citizens to choose from among various acceptable document types. According to the department, LNK also had an unlawful policy of requiring refugees and asylees, based on their immigration status, to show updated proof of their work authorization, even when they already had provided documents that demonstrated ongoing, permanent work authorization.
“Employers cannot discriminate against employees because of their citizenship status, immigration status, or national origin when verifying that employees are authorized to work in the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department looks forward to working with LNK to ensure its compliance with the INA’s anti-discrimination provision, so that all employees are subject to the same rules for proving their ability to work in the United States.”
Federal law allows all work-authorized individuals, regardless of citizenship status, to choose which valid, legally acceptable documentation to present to demonstrate their identity and authorization to work in the United States. Many non-U.S. citizens, including lawful permanent residents, refugees, and asylees, among others, have work authorization that does not expire, and are eligible for several of the same types of documents as U.S. citizens (such as driver’s licenses and unrestricted Social Security cards) to prove their work authorization. The INA’s anti-discrimination provision prohibits employers from requesting more or different documents than necessary to prove work authorization based on employees’ citizenship, immigration status, or national origin.
Under the terms of the settlement agreement, LNK will pay the United States a civil penalty of $220,000.00. Additionally, LNK will train its employees on the requirements of the INA’s anti-discrimination provision, including an IER-provided training, and be subject to monitoring for a three-year period to ensure the company is complying with the agreement.
The Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) is responsible for enforcing the anti-discrimination provision of the INA. The statute prohibits citizenship status and national origin discrimination in hiring, firing, or recruitment or referral for a fee; unfair documentary practices; and retaliation and intimidation.
Learn more about IER’s work and how to get assistance through this brief video. Applicants or employees who believe they were discriminated against based on their citizenship, immigration status, or national origin in hiring, firing, recruitment, or during the employment eligibility verification process (Form I-9 and E-Verify); or subjected to retaliation, can file a charge. The public also can contact IER’s worker hotline at 1-800-255-7688; call IER’s employer hotline at 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY for hearing impaired); email [email protected]; sign up for a free webinar; or visit IER’s English and Spanish websites. Subscribe to GovDelivery to receive updates from IER.
Justice Department Settles with Maine School District to Protect Educational Rights of Students with Disabilities and English LearnersRead the Press Release
Today the Justice Department announced a settlement agreement with the Lewiston Public Schools to end the district’s systemic and discriminatory practice of excluding students from full-day school because of behavior related to their disabilities.
The settlement also will require the district to provide equal educational opportunities to its English learner students. The department conducted its investigation under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Equal Educational Opportunities Act of 1974 (EEOA) after receiving a complaint from Disability Rights Maine.
The department’s investigation found that the district routinely shortened the school day for students with disabilities without considering their individual needs or exploring supports to keep them in school for the full day. The district’s lack of training for staff on how to properly respond to students’ disability-related behavior contributed to the over-reliance on “abbreviated” school days. The district compounded the harm to students by often failing to provide them with instruction or behavior support during the time that they were out of school. The department’s investigation also revealed that the district failed to provide appropriate services to its English learner students, many of whom remained in the district’s English learner program for years without ever becoming fluent in English. As a result, many English learners, including immigrants and refugees from Somalia, Angola and other African countries, faced significant academic setbacks that can have lasting consequences.
“Students with disabilities and students who are learning English need additional support and services in school – not additional barriers to learning,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Giving students with disabilities half the education they are entitled to is unacceptable. Failing to properly serve children who are learning English limits their opportunities for success in their current school and beyond. The department is committed to enforcing the law to make sure schools meet the needs and respect the rights of all their students.”
“We are encouraged that the Lewiston Public Schools cooperated with our investigation, recognized the opportunity to improve, and are committed to the successful implementation of our agreement,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark for the District of Maine. “We look forward to working with the district to improve educational opportunities for all students.”
Attorneys from the Civil Rights Division conducted the investigation in coordination with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maine.
The enforcement of Title II of the ADA in schools and the EEOA are top priorities of the Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division is available on its website at www.justice.gov/crt, and additional information about the work of the Educational Opportunities Section is available at https://www.justice.gov/crt/educational-opportunities-section. Members of the public may report possible civil rights violations at https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/.
Justice Department Announces Settlement with Ashley Home Store over Discrimination Claims of Indiana Army National GuardsmanRead the Press Release
On Tuesday, the Justice Department resolved a lawsuit in which an Indiana Army National Guardsman, Captain Christopher Robbins, alleged that The Dufresne Spencer Group, a limited liability corporation doing business as Ashley Home Store, violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA). Captain Robbins specifically alleged that The Dufresne Spencer Group violated USERRA when it failed to promptly offer him re-employment after a period of active duty military service.
“Federal law protects the right of servicemembers like Captain Robbins to resume their jobs when they return home,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Pamela S. Karlan of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “It guarantees that members of the armed forces are not forced to sacrifice their continued employment on top of the sacrifices they have already made in order to fulfill their military obligations.”
“The Justice Department expects employers to fully comply with their reemployment obligations under the law,” said Acting U.S. Attorney John Childress of the Southern District of Indiana. “Where employers fall short in doing so, we will aggressively vindicate the reemployment rights of servicemembers.”
As alleged in his complaint, in 2014, Captain Robbins began working as a salesman at an Ashley Home Store in Greenwood, Indiana. During the summer of 2017, he provided notice to the company that his military service obligations with the National Guard required him to attend mandatory, out-of-state military training exercises with his unit. Robbins alleged that at the completion of his training obligation, he promptly sought re-employment, but was fired by Ashley Home Store instead. Under the terms of the settlement, the company has agreed to pay Robbins $6,000 in damages. The company will also offer comprehensive training to its supervisors and HR officials on USERRA and post a notice at the store advising employees of their rights under USERRA and the company’s intent to comply with the law.
This lawsuit stems from a complaint that Captain Robbins filed with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), which, after an investigation by its Veterans’ Employment and Training Service, referred the matter to the Justice Department.
The Justice Department gives high priority to the enforcement of servicemembers’ rights under USERRA. Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department’s websites at https://www.justice.gov/crt/employment-litigation-section and https://www.justice.gov/servicemembers, as well as on the DOL’s website at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/vets/programs/userra.
This case is being handled by Senior Trial Attorney Christopher Woolley of the Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Preston of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana.
Former Owner of Michigan Home Healthcare Business Pleads Guilty to Tax FraudRead the Press Release
A Michigan man pleaded guilty today to filing a false individual income tax return.
According to court documents, Robert Nakfoor, of Lansing, claimed false expenses for his home healthcare business, Jessi Kay Home Care, on his 2011 through 2015 federal individual income tax returns. Nakfoor reported fraudulent business expenses for insurance, legal and professional services, wages, and contract labor that he knew his company did not incur. In total, Nakfoor caused a tax loss to the IRS of $481,465.
Nakfoor is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison. He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Andrew B. Birge for the Western District of Michigan made the announcement.
IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.
Trial Attorney Melissa S. Siskind of the Justice Department’s Tax Division is prosecuting the case.
Final Defendant Sentenced in $80 Million Health Care Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
A Florida man was sentenced today to 210 months in prison for conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud.
Alberto Orian Gonzalez-Delgado, 46, of Miami, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud on March 4. Gonzalez-Delgado is the last remaining defendant in this case to be sentenced. Eduardo Rubal, 41, of Miami, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud and was sentenced to 210 months; Vicente Gonzalez Acosta, 50, of Miami, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud and was sentenced to 188 months; Alexander Fernandez, 49, of Miami, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and was sentenced to 120 months; Yaxing Tapanes, 24, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and was sentenced to 97 months; Jose Carlos Valladares Rivera, 43, of Miami, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering and was sentenced to 97 months; Hector Suarez Gonzalez, 45, of Hialeah, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud and was sentenced to 78 months; Antonio Jimenez, 54, of Hialeah, was sentenced to 48 months.
According to court documents, these eight individuals and their co-conspirators operated a fraud and money laundering organization responsible for executing a series of frauds in Florida and Michigan through which they billed Medicare for over $80 million, actually receiving approximately $53 million for fraudulent claims.
The organization recruited and directed nominee owners to fraudulently purchase home health agencies, as well as to open sham corporations in their names, along with corresponding personal and corporate bank accounts. After the acquisition of the home health agency was completed, the group began fraudulently billing Medicare for services that were never provided. The home health agencies had no medical staff and provided no services to any beneficiaries. The group, upon receiving the Medicare money, would funnel that through several layers of shell companies and bank accounts in an effort to launder the money before converting it to cash at ATMs and check cashing stores in Miami. Once the nominee owners completed their work, the group required them to permanently move to Cuba to avoid detection and live beyond the jurisdiction of the United States.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division made the announcement.
The FBI and Department of Health and Human Services-Office of Inspector General investigated the case, with assistance from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Center for Program Integrity.
Trial Attorney Emily Gurskis of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section prosecuted the case.
El Departamento de Justicia llega a un acuerdo con una compañía de fabricación farmacéutica con sede en Nueva York que resuelve acusaciones de discriminación relacionada con la inmigraciónRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. – El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha llegado a un acuerdo con LNK International Inc. (LNK), un fabricante de farmacéuticos sin receta médica con sede en Hauppauge, Nueva York. El acuerdo resuelve las acusaciones del Departamento de que LNK vulneró la ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad («INA», por sus siglas en inglés) al discriminar a individuos con autorización para trabajar que no eran ciudadanos de los EE. UU.
Con base en su investigación, el Departamento determinó que LNK, de forma rutinaria, pedía documentos innecesarios y específicos a residentes permanentes legales que la compañía contrataba para trabajar en ciertos departamentos para demostrar su permiso para trabajar en los Estados Unidos. La investigación del Departamento determinó que LNK solicitaba que residentes permanentes legales mostraran sus tarjetas de residencia permanente (a veces conocidas como «tarjetas verdes») para demostrar su autorización para trabajar pero permitía a ciudadanos estadounidenses a escoger entre varios tipos de documentos aceptables. Según el Departamento, LNK también tenía una práctica ilegal de requerir que, con base en su estatus migratorio, refugiados y asilados presentaran una prueba actualizada de su autorización para trabajar, incluso cuando ya habían facilitado documentos que demostraban una autorización continua y permanente para trabajar.
«Los empleadores no pueden discriminar a empleados por motivos de su estatus de ciudadanía, estatus migratorio o nacionalidad de origen a la hora de comprobar que sus empleados cuentan con la autorización debida para trabajar en los Estados Unidos», afirmó la Fiscal General Auxiliar Kristen Clarke de la División de Derechos Civiles. «El Departamento de Justicia anticipa la colaboración de LNK para garantizar su cumplimiento con la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA para que todo empleado quede sujeto a las mismas normas a la hora de demostrar su permiso para trabajar en los Estados Unidos».
Las leyes federales permiten a todo individuo con autorización para trabajar, independientemente de su estatus de ciudadanía, elegir los documentos válidos y legalmente aceptables que desea presentar para demostrar su autorización para trabajar en los Estados Unidos. Muchas personas que no son ciudadanos de los EE. UU., incluyendo a residentes permanentes legales, refugiados y asilados, entre otros, tienen una autorización para trabajar que no vence y son elegibles para varios de los mismos tipos de documentos como lo son los ciudadanos de los EE. UU. (tales como carnets de conducir y tarjetas de seguro social sin restricciones) para demostrar su autorización para trabajar. La disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA prohíbe que los empleadores pidan documentos adicionales o diferentes a los necesarios para demostrar la autorización para trabajar con base en el estatus migratorio o de ciudadanía del empleado o bien por su nacionalidad de origen.
Conforme los términos del acuerdo conciliatorio, LNK pagará una sanción civil a los Estados Unidos que asciende a 200.000,00 $. Asimismo, LNK capacitará a sus empleados en cuanto a los requisitos de la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA, incluyendo una capacitación dirigida por la Sección de Derechos de Inmigrantes y Empleados («IER», por sus siglas en inglés), y será supervisado durante un período de tres años para garantizar que la compañía esté cumpliendo con el acuerdo.
La Sección de Derechos de Inmigrantes y Empleados de la División de Derechos Civiles es responsable de hacer cumplir la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA. La ley prohíbe la discriminación por motivos de estatus de ciudadanía y nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido o reclutamiento o recomendación por comisión, prácticas documentales injustas y represalias e intimidación.
Aquellos aspirantes o empleados que creen haber sido discriminados por motivos de su estatus de ciudadanía o nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido, reclutamiento o verificación de la elegibilidad para trabajar (Formulario I-9 e E-Verify) o sujetos a represalias pueden presentar una denuncia. El público también puede llamar a la línea directa de la IER para trabajadores al 1-800-255-7688; llamar a la línea directa de la IER para empleadores al 1-800-255-8155 (1-800-237-2515, TTY para personas con discapacidades auditivas); enviar un correo electrónico a [email protected]; inscribirse a un seminario en línea gratuito; o visitar los sitios web de la IER en inglés o español. Para recibir las últimas noticias de la IER, inscríbase a GovDelivery.
Alaska Defendant Pleads Guilty for Threatening Los Angeles SynagogueRead the Press Release
An Alaska defendant pleaded guilty today to making threats to a synagogue and attempting to obstruct the free exercise of religious beliefs in Los Angeles, California.
On May 5, William Alexander, 50, of Anchorage, Alaska, entered a guilty plea before U.S. District Court Judge Matthew McCrary Scoble to an indictment charging them with one count of making threatening interstate communications and one count of intentionally obstructing and attempting to obstruct persons in the enjoyment of their free exercise of religious beliefs through the threatened use of force.
According to information presented at the guilty plea hearing, on Nov. 1, 2019, while in Anchorage, Alexander used their cellular phone to call a Los Angeles area synagogue. Alexander left a voice message stating that they were going to kill the synagogue’s congregants, while repeatedly using slurs referring to people of Jewish faith. Alexander intended the voice message to be viewed as a threat. At the plea hearing, Alexander admitted committing this act with the intent to obstruct the synagogue’s congregants from enjoying the free exercise of their religious beliefs. Alexander’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for August 23.
“One of the greatest truths about our nations is that everyone has the right to be free from threats of violence because of their religious beliefs,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Those individuals who are driven by hate to violate that right will be brought to justice. The defendant’s conviction in this case sends a strong message that hate crimes will not be tolerated in our free society.”
“For centuries, religious freedom has been a pillar of American society and a beacon for those persecuted for their faith,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Bryan Wilson for the District of Alaska. “We are committed to protecting this freedom and individuals or groups who threaten it will be held accountable for their actions. Violence and intimidation are abhorrent and have no place in this country.”
The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Anchorage Field Office and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonas Walker of the District of Alaska and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Sanjay Patel.
Joint Press Statement by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and European Commissioner for Justice Didier ReyndersRead the Press Release
During their introductory conversation, the leaders emphasized their shared commitment to strengthening transatlantic cooperation on law enforcement matters and addressing common threats, including those posed by international terrorism. Attorney General Garland and Commissioner Reynders also discussed the importance of access to justice, ensuring resilient justice systems for the post-pandemic economic recovery, upholding the rule of law, and protecting citizens’ rights.
Former Chief of Staff to Illinois Speaker of the House Indicted for Allegedly Lying Under Oath to Federal Grand JuryRead the Press Release
CHICAGO — The former Chief of Staff to the Illinois Speaker of the House of Representatives was indicted today for allegedly providing false material declarations under oath to a federal grand jury and attempting to obstruct its investigation into allegations of public corruption.
TIMOTHY MAPES, 66, of Springfield, Ill., is charged with one count of making false declarations before a grand jury and one count of attempted obstruction of justice, according to an indictment returned in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Arraignment has not yet been scheduled.
The indictment was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI; and Tamera Cantu, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division in Chicago. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julia Schwartz, Amarjeet S. Bhachu, Diane MacArthur, Timothy J. Chapman, Sarah E. Streicker, Matthew L. Kutcher, and Michelle Kramer. The officials noted that the federal investigation into the allegations of public corruption remains ongoing.
According to the indictment, the federal grand jury was investigating possible violations of federal criminal law, including efforts by the Illinois Speaker of the House and an individual acting on the Speaker’s behalf, to obtain for others private jobs, contracts, and monetary payments, including from Commonwealth Edison (“ComEd”), the largest electric utility in Illinois, to influence and reward the Speaker in the Speaker’s official capacity. On March 24, 2021, Mapes was granted immunity to testify before the grand jury. The immunity order provided that no testimony or evidence provided by Mapes could be used against him in a criminal case, except for perjury, giving a false statement, or otherwise failing to comply with the immunity order.
On March 31, 2021, Mapes testified before the grand jury and knowingly made false material declarations in response to several questions about a consultant’s relationship with the Speaker from 2017 to 2019, the indictment states. Mapes in his testimony denied knowing that the consultant acted as an agent or performed work for the Speaker during those years, when, in fact, Mapes knew that the consultant carried out work and assignments on behalf of the Speaker and communicated messages on the Speaker’s behalf, the indictment states.
The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The obstruction charge is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison, while the false declaration charge carries a maximum sentence of five years.