Eastern District of Pennsylvania

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Joseph Willard, 59, of Cole Camp, Missouri, was convicted at trial with 12 counts of child exploitation offenses arising from his abuse of seven minor children, ranging in age from eight to 17, while pretending to own an international modeling agency.

In August 2019, the defendant was charged by Indictment, which was then subsequently superseded four additional times with more charges as additional victims were identified, which resulted in the defendant ultimately being charged with 11 counts of production and attempted production of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography. As recounted by victims and their parents during the trial, Willard pretended to own a modeling agency with offices in major cities such as Milan, Italy and New York City, and represented that he could secure paid modeling contracts for the children and teenagers. He traveled from state to state in a conversion van and used this ruse to get the minors alone and would then take sexually explicit images of them, sometimes sexually assaulting them as well. Evidence presented at trial demonstrated that the defendant produced these images in four states: Florida, Tennessee, Missouri, and Pennsylvania. 

“Joseph Willard chose to flout the law and pursue his own gratification by concocting this elaborate hoax to lure vulnerable victims,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “His actions are some of the most heinous offenses prosecuted by this Office, and I thank the dedicated investigators and prosecutors who worked on this case for years. As a result of this conviction, he will remain safely behind bars where he can no longer hurt any more children.”

“Joseph Willard devised a twisted scam to lure children into his clutches, specifically to abuse and exploit them,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “With his hideous crimes, this predator has forfeited his right to walk among us. It will be gratifying day when his sentence is handed down and that cell door clangs shut behind him.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bethlehem Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sherri A. Stephan. 

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Joshua Padilla, 37, of Eatontown, New Jersey, was sentenced to 15 years in prison, 10 years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $15,300 in special assessments by United States District Court Judge Eduardo C. Robreno after being convicted of multiple child exploitation offenses. The defendant was charged with these federal offenses in July 2019, and was also charged with multiple related state felonies in February 2019 by the Office of Pennsylvania Attorney General.

In December 2021, the defendant pleaded guilty to one count each of producing, distributing, and possessing child pornography, charges which stemmed from an investigation into the defendant’s illicit sexual contact with a teenage girl. Padilla, who at the time of the charged conduct was a Middlesex County New Jersey Sheriff’s Deputy, recorded himself having unlawful sexual contact with a 17-year-old girl and later uploaded some of that video to an online social media platform. The defendant drove the minor to Northampton County, Pennsylvania to engage in this illicit sexual conduct. 

“While child exploitation cases are always horrendous, the conduct in this case is particularly offensive because of Padilla’s position of authority and trust in the community as a law enforcement officer,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “We stand ready with our federal, state and local partners to identify and prosecute those who would prey upon minor children – no matter who they are.”

“As a member of law enforcement, Padilla was trusted and sworn to protect his community. He lost that trust when he violated a minor and put children’s safety at risk,” said Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “I am thankful for the hard work of my office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to hold Padilla accountable for his crimes and get a sexually violent predator off the streets. This sentencing is a reminder that being in a position of public trust does not put you above the law.” 

“Rescuing the victims of exploitation will always be one of HSI’s most sacred responsibilities, especially those in vulnerable populations such as minor children. The fact that this crime occurred at the hands of a sworn law enforcement officer makes it that much more egregious,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “HSI and our partners in the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) will relentlessly pursue child predators, especially those in positions of trust and authority. I am very proud of the HSI Special Agents, PSP Troopers, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys that brought this investigation to a conclusion and ultimately served justice for the victim.”    

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, the Pennsylvania State Police, and Homeland Security Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Josh A. Davison and Special Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Laucella, cross-designated from the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Dimitre Hadjiev, 41, of Upper Darby, PA, was convicted at trial of charges including trafficking in counterfeit goods and financial fraud offenses related to his sale of counterfeit luxury wristwatches.

In September 2019, the defendant was charged by Indictment with a number of charges stemming from his scheme to sell counterfeit Rolex watches and watches with counterfeit Rolex parts. Evidence presented at trial showed that, since at least 2014, Hadjiev operated a jewelry store on the 300 block of South Street in Philadelphia, out of which he sold and customized watches and other jewelry. An investigation by the IRS and FBI revealed that Hadjiev was knowingly buying and selling counterfeit Rolex watches and customizing Rolex watches with counterfeit Rolex parts. Also, a review of the defendant’s bank records showed that he structured deposits from his store sales to avoid activating his banks’ reporting requirements and failed to make required reports for cash sales of more than $10,000. In total, amount of money involved in the defendant’s illegal scheme is more than $750,000.

“The defendant trafficked in counterfeit merchandise and structured his deposits to conceal the cash flowing into his jewelry business,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This Office and its law enforcement partners are committed to protecting consumers from unknowingly purchasing phony merchandise, and to holding defendants accountable for their greed.” 

“Dimitre Hadjiev’s store wasn’t a legitimate business – it was a front for fraud,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “The FBI and our partners are working hard to crack down on crooked businesses of all stripes, whether they're cheating the public, the government, or, as in this case, both.”

“A jury of Mr. Hadjiev’s peers confirmed what the government first alleged during the indictment: that Mr. Hadjiev trafficked counterfeit goods, laundered the proceeds, and structured deposits in an effort to avoid currency reporting requirements,” said Yury Kruty, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-Criminal Investigation. “The Special Agents of IRS-CI and our law enforcement partners will continue to investigate and bring to justice criminals like Mr. Hadjiev who partake in schemes like this out of greed.”  

The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney KT Newton.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Shawn Money Jones, 33, of Lancaster, PA, was sentenced to 15 years in prison and five years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Joseph F. Leeson, Jr., for being convicted of possession with intent to distribute a variety of illegal narcotics, and illegally possessing a firearm as a previously convicted felon.

In August 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to three counts, which included two counts of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and one count of possession of a firearm by a felon. The charges in this case stemmed from a months-long investigation, which culminated in a search of the defendant’s residence. During the search, local and federal investigators located and seized methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl, and a substance containing a detectable amount of oxycodone. Investigators also seized thousands of dollars in cash and three semi-automatic firearms, including one assault rifle and one “ghost gun” with no make, model, or serial number.

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to keep illegal weapons out of the hands of people who are not permitted to possess them, and to cutting off the supply of deadly narcotics flowing into our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Shawn Money Jones presented a danger to the community in Lancaster, and for his crimes he will now spend fifteen years in prison.”

“Like other drug traffickers, Shawn Jones had no regard for the harm he caused in his community,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Getting illegal narcotics off the street and illegal guns out of criminals’ hands is a step toward making Lancaster safer. The FBI and our partners will continue to work on behalf of all the good, law-abiding folks there.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Lancaster County Drug Task Force, the Lancaster City Bureau of Police Selective Enforcement Unit, and Pennsylvania State Parole, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Timothy M. Stengel.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Conrad Benedetto, 66, of Philadelphia, PA, and who is an attorney licensed to practice in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, entered a plea of guilty before United States District Court Judge Wendy Beetlestone to multiple tax fraud charges in connection with his scheme to avoid paying the appropriate amount of personal and business taxes over to the IRS for several years in connection with his Philadelphia law practice.

The defendant pleaded guilty to the charges of failure to file a tax return and failure to collect or pay employment tax, both arising from an investigation that revealed that from tax years 2013 to 2015, Benedetto filed false personal tax returns understating his law practice’s gross receipts; for tax years 2016-2018, the defendant failed to file personal tax returns; and for 2017, failed to truthfully account for, or pay over to the IRS, federal income and FICA taxes withheld from the wages of his law firm’s employees.

“As the sole owner and operator of his law practice, the defendant had a fiduciary obligation to file taxes in a timely and accurate manner,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Further, as an attorney, he had a duty to conduct himself with professionalism and integrity; instead, he chose the greedy path. Together with our law enforcement partners, we will investigate and hold responsible those who would attempt to cheat the United States tax system.”

“Mr. Benedetto had a responsibility to do what honest taxpayers do every year: file accurate tax returns and pay over the taxes they owe.  However, even being an attorney, he elected not to do so, which ultimately led to today’s guilty plea,” said Yury Kruty, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-Criminal Investigation.  The Special Agents of my office, together with the Department of Justice, will continue to investigate and prosecute those who intentionally violate our tax laws.”    

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joan Burnes.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Ricardo Carrion, a.k.a. “PR,” 42, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 19 years and four months (or 232 months) in federal prison after being convicted at trial of multiple drug trafficking charges, including conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and possession with intent to distribute crack and heroin. The charges stemmed from his leadership role in supplying a drug trafficking organization operating on the 3100 block of Weymouth Street, steps from McPherson Square and just two blocks from the notorious intersection of Kensington & Allegheny Avenues in the Kensington section of Philadelphia.

This case originated from a joint investigation into the scourge of drug trafficking and overdoses in the Kensington area conducted by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the Philadelphia Police Department. After a series of search warrants were executed in 2019, the DEA developed information that the defendant was the supplier of narcotics for an organization selling heroin stamped with the word “Funeral” to advertise its potency and lethalness to addicted consumers.

Covert surveillance showed Carrion repeatedly carrying large bags into stash houses. When investigators initiated a traffic stop of a cab in which Carrion was the sole passenger, they recovered a bag containing over 3,300 flip top containers of crack cocaine.  Evidence presented at the September 2021 trial showed that the defendant used code words including “lenta,” which translates to “slow” in English, and “hard cola” to discuss the heroin he ordered for street dealers. Prosecutors also presented evidence that the defendant supplied thousands and thousands of doses of heroin and crack cocaine to this city block from 2018 until the DEA and PPD dismantled his drug operation.

During the trial, Carrion threatened one of the main witnesses against him. After he was convicted and the jury was dismissed, the defendant asked the court for the personal information of the jurors, a request that was immediately denied. During the sentencing hearing, prosecutors presented evidence demonstrating the defendant’s lengthy criminal record and life of drug dealing.

“This years-long drug trafficking enterprise impacted more than just this one block in one neighborhood; it left a path of destruction across Kensington and throughout Philadelphia,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This sentence sends a clear message that, in order to halt the flow of deadly drugs into our communities, our Office and our law enforcement partners are committed to investigating and prosecuting prolific drug dealers pedaling poison to those suffering from addiction.”

“Carrion ran a drug-trafficking organization in the heart of Kensington, an area in Philadelphia that has been so adversely affected by the illicit drug trade.  His drug-trafficking activities were so nefarious that he distributed bags of heroin stamped “Funeral,” said Thomas Hodnett, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division.  “For his conviction on multiple federal drug charges, Carrion is rightly and deservedly spending the next 20 years of his life in a federal prison cell.” 

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

The case was investigated by Drug Enforcement Administration and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jason D. Grenell and Derek E. Hines.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Christopher Lamont Stimpson, Jr., 24, of Greensboro, North Carolina, was sentenced to six years and six months in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $1,660 in restitution by United States District Court Judge Edward G. Smith for robbing a Lancaster County puppy breeder and his family at gunpoint in order to steal five French Bulldog puppies in October 2020.

In April 2022, the defendant was convicted of robbery which interferes with interstate commerce (Hobbs Act robbery), and interstate transportation of stolen goods in connection with the robbery. Evidence presented at trial proved that in order to gain access to the puppies, dogs with a total value of more than $23,000, Stimpson posed as a customer seeking to purchase five French Bulldog puppies, only to pull out a gun, point it at the victims, and steal the animals. One of the victims recorded the registration of the defendant’s getaway vehicle, which was traced back to a rental company in Greensboro, North Carolina. A customer of the breeder who had also been interested in purchasing one of the puppies later discovered an Instagram posting which featured a video and a photograph of the puppies, as well as photographs of Stimpson. In December 2020, the defendant was arrested in North Carolina.

“The defendant threatened a family at gunpoint inside their own home in order to greedily and callously steal vulnerable, living creatures,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “ Our Office is committed to prosecuting dangerous, armed criminals, no matter where they may run and hide. We are thankful to our law enforcement partners here in Pennsylvania and in North Carolina for their assistance in bringing Stimpson to justice.”

“This was a frightening armed robbery that saw the victims menaced at gunpoint,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “The fact that puppies were the property taken renders this crime more unusual, but no less serious. Christopher Stimpson made the very bad decision to come to Pennsylvania and take these pups by force, and this sentence holds him accountable for his actions.”

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Ephrata Police Department, and the Greensboro (NC) Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark S. Miller.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Mark Allen Hillis, 58, of Southgate, Michigan, was sentenced to 25 years in prison to be followed by lifetime supervised release by United States District Court Judge Eduardo C. Robreno after being convicted of more than a dozen child exploitation offenses.

On November 17, 2021, one year and one day ago, the defendant pleaded guilty to all charges in a 14-count Indictment, including one count of enticing a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity, one count of traveling to engage in illicit sexual conduct, nine counts of manufacturing and attempted manufacturing of child pornography, two counts of transferring obscene material to a minor, and one count of possessing child pornography. The charges arose from the defendant’s sexual exploitation of a 13-year-old child over the internet and by text message over a period of months, his travel from Michigan to Pennsylvania to meet up with her for sex, and his sexual assault of her in a local hotel room when he arrived.

Hillis (also known by his screen name “Denverpolice#666” and the name “Daddy”) met his 13-year-old minor victim in a YouTube chatroom. After obtaining the child’s phone number, Hillis sent hundreds of obscene images and hounded the minor at all times of the day and night, repeatedly requesting her to produce and send him sexually explicit images of herself via text message. After months of online and text communication, Hillis convinced the child to sneak out of her home in the middle of the night. The defendant, having traveled to Pennsylvania to meet the victim for sex, then picked her up and took her to a hotel room, where he sexually assaulted her.

“Mark Hillis not only manipulated a young child into providing him with explicit images of herself, he brazenly traveled across state lines, convinced her to leave her home, and assaulted her – every parent’s worst nightmare,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This 25-year sentence in prison will ensure that he will remain safely behind bars, unable to prey on other children, for a long time.”

“Thanks to quick and seamless interagency cooperation, we have once again taken a dangerous predator of children off the streets,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “I want to give special thanks to the Limerick Police Department for initiating this investigation and following it through to the end.  Only through cohesive partnerships between federal, state, and local law enforcement can investigations and prosecutions like this one be achieved.”

“This sexual predator is the personification of ‘stranger danger.’ He used the internet to seek out his victim by connecting with and grooming a young girl, before escalating to sexually assaulting her. It’s such an egregious case that illustrates the importance of parents talking to their children about internet safety and sharing information with strangers on the internet,” said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele. “The entire law enforcement community at the local, state and federal levels are committed to finding and prosecuting this kind of assault on our children, and I thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for their successful resolution of this case.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by the Limerick Township Police Department, the Montgomery County Detective Bureau of the District Attorney’s Office, the Pennsylvania State Police, and Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Rotella.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Khairyi Burgess, 23, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 12 years in prison, five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $1,000,000 in restitution by United States District Court Judge R. Barclay Surrick for his participation in a home invasion robbery during which the defendant and his accomplices victimized the homeowners’ teenage daughter and stole approximately $1 million in currency and jewelry. Burgess’ father, Edward Burgess, was also sentenced to time served plus a period of supervised release for his role in obstructing justice after the robbery by wiping his son’s cell phone of information.

In March 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery, Hobbs Act Robbery and brandishing a firearm during the commission of a violent crime in connection with the robbery incident in August 2018. According to court documents, Burgess and three co-defendants, including Demetrius Ceasar and Shaquan Johnson, victimized the 17-year-old girl in her home while stealing the cash and valuables owned by her parents. Specifically, while she lay sleeping around midnight, the men entered her bedroom, pulled her from her bed, and struck her several times. They then held her at gunpoint and robbed her family of their life savings—the proceeds of their restaurant business a block-and-a-half away on Washington Avenue in South Philadelphia. Ceasar was previously sentenced to seven years and three months in prison, and Johnson was previously sentenced to eleven years in prison.

Following the robbery, Edward Burgess deleted all information on his son’s cell phone in an attempt to prevent investigators from learning of Khaiyri’s involvement, a crime for which he pleaded guilty in May 2022.

“The younger Burgess and his accomplices not only victimized a family by violating the sanctity of their home and stealing their life savings, the elder Burgess attempted to cover up the crime and help his son evade justice,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “The sentencing results in this case should serve as a warning to others who might be considering engaging in similar behavior – either by committing violent crimes or protecting those who do.”     

“ATF, the Philadelphia Police Department, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office have worked closely with the victims in this case to seek justice for this violent crime,” said Eric DeGree, acting Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “No one deserves what this family went through, and our hope is that some solace can be found in the finality of this sentencing.”

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Carissimi and former Assistant United States Attorney Sarah Damiani.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Herbert Smith, 33, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 45 years in prison and lifetime supervised release by United States District Court Judge Eduardo C. Robreno for his extended sexual abuse of a child who was just eight years old when Smith began molesting her. Smith must also register as a convicted child sex offender under state law.

In June 2021, the defendant pleaded guilty to seven counts of manufacturing child pornography. The charges stemmed from an investigation which exposed the defendant’s sexual abuse of this child victim when Philadelphia Police served an arrest warrant for Smith for his sexual assault of a different nine-year-old victim. When police arrested the defendant, officers discovered him lying in bed with the eight-year-old victim. Police seized Smith’s electronic equipment, and the subsequent forensic analysis by the Federal Bureau of Investigation revealed hundreds of images of Smith’s horrific sexual assaults against the eight-year-old child over a period of more than two years, including rape and other sexual abuse of the child after she was given medication to make her sleep. Smith recorded his abuse of the child victim, saved the images and videos on his electronic equipment, and in some cases, uploaded the images to his online storage account.

Smith was taken into custody by Philadelphia Police in August 2019. He has been detained in federal custody since he was indicted federally in September 2019.

“Smith is a predator of young children and has been for years,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This sentence sends a strong message that victimization of our most vulnerable will be severely punished. Thank you to all of our agency partners who remain determined to identify, prosecute and convict child predators like this defendant.”

“Herbert Smith admitted to unimaginably abhorrent behavior,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “He sexually assaulted multiple children and perpetuated that trauma by recording and reliving it. The harm he has done is vast and this sentence is richly deserved. Locking up depraved predators like Smith is one of the most important things that the FBI and our partners can do to help protect kids, the most vulnerable members of our community.”  

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Rotella.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Ryan Menkins, 37, of Malvern, PA, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge H. Slomsky, for his role in distributing more than 900 pills containing a dangerous fentanyl analogue, a Schedule I controlled substance.

In August 2019, Menkins and his co-defendant, Kevin Swing, were charged by Superseding Indictment with conspiracy to distribute and distributing a substance containing a fentanyl analogue for their scheme to sell fentanyl disguised as prescription oxycodone. In May 2018, Swing used an intermediary to sell more than 900 pills containing the narcotic cyclopropyl fentanyl, a fentanyl equivalent, to Menkins for $5,600. Each pill was imprinted with “ETH 446,” which is typically found on Oxycodone Hydrochloride 30 mg pills. In other words, the fentanyl pills were intentionally mislabeled as legitimate, prescription oxycodone pills. In January 2020, defendant Swing pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced to 6 ½ years in prison in September of that year.

“Prescription medication like oxycodone is already vulnerable to misuse and abuse, but when a substance as dangerous as fentanyl is made to appear to be prescription medication, it can have catastrophic consequences,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Fentanyl is killing Americans every day, and Menkins significantly contributed to this epidemic in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.”

“Ryan Menkins pushed pills that looked like regular prescription oxycodone, which in reality contained a drug related to fentanyl,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Philadelphia Division. “Each sale was a potentially deadly transaction for customers — or anyone else who stumbled upon these deceptive drugs. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to battle the dealers and traffickers endangering our communities in the name of making money off of the opioid epidemic.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Newtown Square Resident Agency and the West Whiteland Township Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew T. Newcomer.

UPDATE

On May 9, 2024, a federal jury acquitted Dr. Muhamad Aly Rifai of the charges alleged in the indictment described in the press release below.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Muhamad Aly Rifai, 49, of Easton, PA, was charged by Indictment with four counts of healthcare fraud stemming from his alleged scheme to improperly and fraudulently bill the federal Medicare program for services not provided, or not provided at the level which was claimed.

According to the Indictment, the defendant was a licensed psychiatrist who was the sole owner of Blue Mountain Psychiatry, a psychiatry practice with offices located in Easton, Palmerton, and Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. The Indictment alleges that for several years, Rifai routinely and improperly billed Medicare for services which he did not provide to Medicare beneficiaries and nursing home patients, including billing for treating dead beneficiaries; billing for treating the same patient at the same time at different nursing homes; and billing for providing more than 24 hours’ worth of services to patients on a single day. 

The Indictment further alleges that the defendant routinely billed for higher levels of care than he or his staff provided to nursing home patients. According to the Indictment, despite not having actually seen the patient, Rifai added a pre-printed stamp to medical progress notes to support billing for psychological and add-on services which were not provided by his staff. From about January 2015 until October 2022, Rifai, through Blue Mountain, obtained Medicare payments of at least approximately $1.36 million based on fraudulent claims.

The defendant made an initial appearance in federal court on these charges before U.S. Magistrate Judge Richard Lloret.

If the public has any information regarding Blue Mountain Psychiatry or any other health care fraud allegation, individuals should contact the HHS-OIG hotline at 800-HHS-TIPS.

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years in prison, and a fine of up to $1 million.

The case was investigated by the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joan E. Burnes.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Kenneth Fox, D.O., has agreed to pay $489,025 to resolve allegations that he violated the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) by failing to maintain complete and accurate records of controlled substances, failing to keep required receipt and dispensing records, failing to perform biennial inventories, and writing prescriptions “for stock.”

The United States’ investigation involved Fox’s practice located at 1310 Frosty Hollow Road, Levittown, PA 19056.

As part of the settlement, Fox has entered into a three-year Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which includes additional responsibilities regarding the handling of controlled substances. The MOA imposes compliance obligations significantly more stringent than those in the applicable laws and regulations.

Fox prescribes and administers phentermine, a Schedule IV controlled substance, and suboxone, a Schedule III controlled substance.  In February 2013, DEA Investigators discovered that Fox allegedly failed to conduct a biennial inventory, failed to maintain records for receipt and dispensing of controlled substances, and failed to keep controlled substances secure – all in violation of applicable regulations and statutes.  In April 2013, the DEA issued a Letter of Admonition to Fox, who agreed to correct his conduct thenceforth.

Nine years later, the DEA performed another scheduled on-site inspection of Fox’s facility. During this inspection, Investigators discovered that Fox continued the same violations as before, and in addition, was prescribing controlled substances “for stock” in violation of the applicable regulations. On the date of inspection, Fox allegedly produced non-compliant and incomplete dispensing records, and no records of biennial inventory, or invoices/receipts for controlled substances. The Investigators obtained records of Fox’s prescriptions “for stock” from a local retail pharmacy.  Physicians are prohibited from obtaining controlled substances for the purpose of general dispensing to patients; they must comply with the requirements for a valid prescription, including the date, patient’s name and address, drug name and strength, dosage form, quantity prescribed, directions for use, and the physician/registrant’s name, address, and registration number.  The prescription requirement is one of the ways in which controlled substances are tracked to prevent diversion and abuse.

“Physicians who fail to maintain proper records of controlled substances create conditions ripe for diversion, or, at worst, may be engaging in diversion itself,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Physicians and pharmacists have a responsibility to ensure that all controlled substances are tracked through the distribution chain.  Our Office is committed to ensuring total compliance with the Controlled Substances Act and we will vigorously enforce violations wherever we find them.”

Congress enacted the CSA to deter the illegal importation, manufacture, distribution, possession, and improper use of controlled substances, including prescription medications, and requires individuals and entities registered with the DEA to maintain complete and accurate records of all controlled substances and security systems so that controlled substances are not lost, stolen, or inappropriately dispensed.

“The goal of DEA’s closed system of distribution is to insure accountability for controlled substances; it insures that end-users directly receive controlled substances from where they were dispensed,” said Thomas Hodnett, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s Philadelphia Field Division. “In ordering controlled substances “for stock” at his office, Dr. Fox made himself a middle-man in this same closed system and created an environment where controlled substances are not properly inventoried or secured.” 

The government’s pursuit of this matter illustrates its emphasis on combating diversion of controlled substances.  The record keeping and other regulations applicable to DEA registrants, including physicians, are the tools by which the DEA deters drug diversion. 

The investigation was conducted by the DEA’s Philadelphia Field Division, Diversion Groups D71 and D72, and the investigation and settlement were handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Viveca D. Parker, with assistance from Asset Investigator Shantelle Kitchen-Nelson.   

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

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Michael Goldner, 52, of Paoli, PA, was sentenced to 40 months in prison and three years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Mark A. Kearney for his scheme to use his cash and his employer’s business bank accounts to hide his actual income and assets and therefore avoid paying his legitimate tax obligations.

In June 2022, the defendant was convicted after trial of tax evasion and failing to file tax returns in connection with this years-long tax fraud. Evidence presented at trial showed that for the tax years 2013 through 2017, Goldner reported more than $4 million in income and $1.8 million in tax due, of which he paid less than $100,000. Further, from 2016 to 2020, the defendant evaded the payment of these outstanding taxes while earning a substantial income. Instead of depositing his paychecks into a personal bank account, he cashed the checks and used his employer’s business accounts to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars of personal expenses, including rent, a second home, groceries, private school and dance lessons for his child, country club dues, and restitution from a prior fraud conviction for which he was on federal probation. For the years 2016 and 2017, the defendant filed tax returns that failed to report this additional income from his employer. For tax years 2018 and 2019, the defendant failed to file a return altogether.

“The American tax system funds government services critical to our people,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Every time someone cheats the system, the burden of providing vital services increases on taxpayers who pay their fair share. As a professional accountant, this defendant knew what his obligations were and willfully schemed to evade them; and for this fraud he will now spend time behind bars.”

“Our agents have the expertise and investigative tools to uncover tax and financial fraud schemes, no matter how sophisticated the scheme may be,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “Goldner’s scheme served no purpose other than to enrich himself, while cheating and stealing from the American public and the government. Anyone contemplating following Goldner’s footstep is urged to take a step back and consider the consequences”

The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Ignall and Trial Attorney Jack Morgan of the Tax Division of the Department of Justice.

PHILADELPHIA - United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced today that Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Eric Gibson will lead the efforts of the Office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 8, 2022, general election. AUSA Gibson has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of election day complaints of voting rights concerns, threats of violence to election officials or staff, and election fraud, in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

United States Attorney Romero said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted in a fair and free election. Similarly, election officials and staff must be able to serve without being subject to unlawful threats of violence. The Department of Justice will always work tirelessly to protect the integrity of the election process.”

The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring and combatting discrimination and intimidation at the polls, threats of violence directed at election officials and poll workers, and election fraud. The Department will address these violations wherever they occur. The Department’s longstanding Election Day Program furthers these goals and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the electoral process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible federal election law violations.

Federal law protects against such crimes as threatening violence against election officials or staff, intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters, and provides that they can vote free from interference, including intimidation, and other acts designed to prevent or discourage people from voting or voting for the candidate of their choice. The Voting Rights Act protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice (where voters need assistance because of disability or inability to read or write in English).   

United States Attorney Romero stated that: “The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise can exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice. In order to respond to complaints of voting rights concerns and election fraud during the upcoming election, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, AUSA/DEO Gibson will be on duty in this District while the polls are open. He can be reached by the public at the following telephone number (215) 861-8200.”

In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day.  The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at 215-418-4000.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by phone at 800-253-3931 or by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/.

United States Attorney Romero said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the assistance of the American electorate. It is important that those who have specific information about voting rights concerns or election fraud make that information available to the Department of Justice.”

Please note, however, in the case of a crime of violence or intimidation, please call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities.  State and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places, and almost always have faster reaction capacity in an emergency.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that James Stevens, 69, of Somerdale, NJ, and Robert Welsh, 59, now living in Arizona, were charged by Indictment with conspiracy, bribery, extortion, and fraud charges related to a scheme to pay off Stevens in exchange for Stevens helping grow the businesses of Welsh. Welsh’s business installed, maintained, and supplied video surveillance equipment to the Southeastern Regional Transportation Authority (SEPTA), and Stevens was a SEPTA official responsible for video surveillance operations at SEPTA.

According to the Indictment, from about March 2014 until about July 2018, the defendants allegedly engaged in a bribery and extortion scheme in which Stevens, who was the Director of the Video Evidence Unit with SEPTA during the time period of the charged conduct, demanded from Welsh, owner and operator of Spector Logistics, Inc., a stream of financial and other benefits in exchange for Stevens’ role in helping maintain and grow Spector’s business with SEPTA. The benefits Welsh provided to Stevens included, most significantly, tens of thousands of dollars in cash payments, as well as donations to an alleged charity that Stevens pocketed, lodging and meals during the 2015 Papal Visit, frequent meals and drinks, tickets to a 2016 Barbra Streisand concert, and funds for SEPTA annual holiday parties. As Stevens demanded, Welsh also offered Stevens future employment with Spector when Stevens retired from SEPTA. During the time of this corrupt relationship, Spector maintained and obtained millions of dollars in contracts with SEPTA. Stevens played a significant role in facilitating and approving contracts for Spector and Blue Zebra, a second company Welsh owned and established with Stevens’ assistance, and helped Spector win bids by giving Welsh inside information about SEPTA’s financial analyses and otherwise collaborating with Welsh in the contracting process. In doing so, Stevens allegedly provided an unfair advantage to Welsh and a disadvantage to other potential vendors.

“Philadelphians deserve public employees who do their jobs honestly, without corrupting the system to line their own pockets,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “As alleged in the Indictment, the defendants’ participation in this scheme was extensive: using millions of dollars in public contracts to fraudulently benefit themselves.”

“SEPTA exists to transport people where they want to go — not to move crooked insiders up a tax bracket,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Stealing public money through back-door deals is reprehensible and the FBI will hold accountable anyone foolish enough to engage in this kind of fraud.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Victor Ortiz, 45, of Philadelphia, PA, was arrested and charged by Indictment for stalking and assaulting a woman with whom he had a previous relationship.

According to the Indictment, on the morning of May 4, 2022, the defendant pursued the victim, who is his ex-girlfriend and a federal employee, as she walked to her office in Philadelphia. Before reaching her office, the defendant allegedly threw a caustic substance on victim’s face and torso. His attack temporarily blinded the victim in her left eye and caused severe pain and scarring on her body. Additionally, the defendant attached a GPS device to the victim’s vehicle so that he could monitor her location and stalk her. After law enforcement officials discovered and removed the device, the defendant was caught on camera allegedly attempting to install a second GPS device on the victim’s vehicle in July 2022.

“The charges against Victor Ortiz allege behavior that is dangerous, terrorizing and abhorrent,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Everyone deserves to feel safe as they go about their daily lives: at home, while at work, and in transit; and intimate partner violence can sometimes be the most terrifying kind because someone who knows you well can strike any part of your routine. Thank you to our partners with Homeland Security Investigations for their dedicated work on this case.”

“Threats and violence against federal employees will never be tolerated,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “HSI Philadelphia is committed to utilizing our investigative expertise, technical capabilities and partnerships to investigate and pursue the prosecution of those who threaten, harm or intimidate government officers or employees.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years in prison.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael R. Miller and Angella Middleton.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that the Honorable Mitchell S. Goldberg of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania entered a default judgment against Timothy Warren of Wichita, Kansas and his company, Titan Medical Compliance, LLC (“Titan”), in the amount of $15,270,066, for violations of the False Claims Act (“FCA”).

This judgment is the latest action in the national investigation into the scheme of improper billing involving P-Stim electro-acupuncture devices. P-Stim is also branded as, among other things, ANSiStim, Stivax, NeuroStim, and NSS-2 Bridge. Federal healthcare programs do not reimburse for P-Stim devices, whether they are characterized as an electro-acupuncture device or as an implantable neuro-stimulator. The Eastern District of Pennsylvania has led the national Department of Justice effort to pursue and resolve various FCA cases against P-Stim providers, marketers, distributors, and coders, recovering tens of millions in the last two years.

As alleged in the Complaint, Timothy Warren, a chiropractor in Wichita, Kansas, along with his company, Titan, falsely promoted auricular electro-acupuncture devices as reimbursable by Medicare and other federal insurers, and as approved by the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”). Warren promoted himself to providers as a medical reimbursement consultant, and his company, Titan, as a compliance consulting firm. As a result, various marketers and distributors of P-Stim devices paid Warren a monthly fee to provide coding recommendations to customers. Certain providers also paid Warren directly for coding guidance.

Beginning in 2014, Warren promoted P-Stim devices as reimbursable by Medicare and other federal healthcare programs and provided instructions on what codes to bill. Those codes, generating a high amount of reimbursement, however, were meant for legitimate, surgically implanted neurostimulators to manage chronic pain. P-Stim, on the other hand, could be applied in a few minutes in an office setting without anesthesia and by someone with minimal training. During this time, Warren and Titan had knowledge that the P-Stim devices were not reimbursable by federal healthcare programs, but continued to promote the non-surgical devices anyway.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania filed a Complaint against Warren and Titan on October 14, 2021, and has litigated the case since then, including defeating a motion by Warren and Titan to transfer the case to the District of Kansas. The United States moved for a default judgment after Warren’s and Titan’s counsel withdrew and the defendants then failed to respond. Judge Goldberg granted the motion and entered a default judgment, finding, among other things, that the United States “has stated cognizable claims under the False Claims Act against Defendants, and Defendants have failed to present any litigable defense.”

Warren and Titan are now responsible for statutory penalties totaling $15,270,066, for causing approximately 1,200 claims to be falsely submitted to the federal healthcare programs in violation of the FCA. Given inability-to-pay concerns and the default nature of the judgment, Judge Goldberg recognized this “appropriate” approach to damages in that the United States sought only minimum statutory penalties, rather than actual damages under the FCA, which were far more significant.

“This office has led the national charge to hold individuals and entities responsible for P-Stim fraud,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “With Warren’s judgment, our office has held accountable those responsible for the tainted claims paid by federal healthcare programs. Even those who never applied P-Stim themselves can be held accountable for causing others to submit false claims through marketing and disseminating fraudulent coding advice.” She continued with a warning to other providers and medical device marketers: “If a scheme seems too good to be true, it probably is—and you should be wary.”

The Warren and Titan cases in this District were investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General. These cases have been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Deborah W. Frey and Matthew E. K. Howatt, as well as former Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Crutchlow, Auditor Dawn Wiggins, and Investigator Frank O’Connor.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Shamire Young, 20, of Philadelphia, PA, entered a plea of guilty before United States District Court Judge Nitza I. Quiñones Alejandro to the charge of carjacking stemming from an incident which occurred in the Germantown section of Philadelphia in March 2022, during which he and three other individuals stole a vehicle and fled in it.

According to court documents, in the early morning hours of March 11, 2022, the victim pulled into a gas station on Wissahickon Avenue near Lincoln Drive and went inside the shop while a second victim, his passenger, remained in the vehicle. Moments later, a dark colored vehicle pulled up alongside the victim’s parked vehicle, and three men get out brandishing handguns. When the victim attempted to return to his vehicle, the assailants forced him into a cluster of nearby trees and forced the second victim out of the vehicle and into the same group of trees. After physically assaulting the victim, the assailants got back into both vehicles, two in each, and sped away down Lincoln Drive toward I-76.

Shortly after the incident, the victim’s stolen vehicle, owned by a local dealership and on loan to the victim, was located using the dealership’s tracking technology in the Kingsessing section of the city. The Philadelphia Police Department conducted a forensic analysis of evidence found inside the vehicle, and identified the defendant as one of the carjackers.

“Our Office is committed to supporting the Philadelphia Police Department in its work to investigate and deter violent crime, which includes our partnership on the joint carjacking task force,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “If you commit a violent offense like a gunpoint carjacking, federal authorities will soon be knocking at your door.”

“These armed carjackings are terrifying for victims, targeted out of the blue while just going about their daily lives,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “The FBI, Philly PD, and our partners are committed to stopping such senseless acts of violence and we’ll use every tool we’ve got to put the criminals responsible behind bars, right where they belong.”

“ATF remains committed to keeping our streets safe from violent individuals,” said Eric DeGree, acting Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “The result of this investigation is just another example of the strength of our carjacking task force, which is determined to investigate people committing serious gun offenses and holding them accountable.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael R. Miller.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Tony Ren, 59, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to three months in prison, one year of supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $50,000 fine by United States District Court Judge Mark A. Kearney after being convicted of two counts of bribery.

In December 2021, the defendant was convicted at trial of attempting to bribe an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Compliance Safety and Health Officer in order to induce the official not to report safety violations at a Philadelphia construction site run by Ren, and to eliminate previous safety violations and corresponding fines. As detailed in the Indictment, in October 2017, the OSHA official conducted an inspection of a worksite on Arch Street in response to an imminent hazard report. During the inspection, the official observed numerous violations of OSHA standards including debris in passageways, electrical issues, holes in the floor, and gas tanks with broken pressure gauges. As the evidence presented at trial showed, on two separate dates in November 2017, Ren offered $1,500 cash bribes to the OSHA official in exchange for the official falsifying the inspection results, deleting previous violations from OSHA’s computer system, and agreeing not to report the violations so that the defendant could avoid the substantial penalties that would follow.

“OSHA inspections and standards exist for a reason: to prevent injuries and protect workers,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This defendant attempted to subvert this system of protections by bribing an official to look the other way on multiple workplace safety violations. This case should serve as a warning to all employers and contractors that our Office will investigate and prosecute fully this type of corruption.”

“Tony Ren paid bribes to an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Compliance Safety and Health Officer in order to induce the officer not to report safety violations at a Philadelphia, PA construction site operated by Ren, as well as to eliminate previous safety violations and their corresponding fines. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners and OSHA to investigate those who attempt to undermine the workplace safety laws that exist to protect American workers,” stated Syreeta Scott, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Philadelphia Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.

The case was investigated by the United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations-Labor Racketeering and Fraud and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mary Kay Costello.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Joseph Cammarata, 48, of Monmouth Beach, NJ, was convicted after trial for his participation in a securities fraud claims scheme with two co-defendants from New York and New Jersey.

In November 2021, the defendant was charged by Superseding Indictment with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud (Count One), wire fraud (Counts Two through Five), money laundering conspiracy (Count Six), and two counts of money laundering (Counts Eleven and Twelve), along with co-defendants David Punturieri, 42, of Staten Island, NY, and Erik Cohen, 41, of Manalapan, NJ. According to the Superseding Indictment, the defendants were the principals of Alpha Plus Recovery, a claims aggregator firm based in Old Bridge, New Jersey. Defendants Punturieri and Cohen previously pleaded guilty to similar charges.

As the evidence presented at trial showed, Cammarata and his co-defendants used Alpha Plus Recovery to make false and fraudulent claims, including claims made in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, to the proceeds of securities fraud class action, and SEC enforcement action, settlements. They falsely claimed that corporate clients of Alpha Plus Recovery had purchased shares of securities that were the subject of the lawsuits and enforcement actions. In reality, the clients, which were entities actually controlled by the defendants, had not purchased the subject securities. To substantiate the false claims, the defendants created fraudulent brokerage and other financial documents to provide to claims administrators. Cammarata and his co-defendants then transferred the fraudulently obtained funds into accounts they controlled, stealing a total of over $43 million between 2014 and 2021.

“A jury has found that Cammarata and his partners at Alpha Plus manipulated complicated financial transactions for years in order to steal over $40 million,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “They committed fraud on top of fraud, filing claims on behalf of clients that didn’t exist and doctoring false financial documents to support those fraudulent claims, and their theft took money from the pockets of deserving claimants. Thanks to the dedicated efforts of the investigators and prosecutors on this case, all three defendants have now been brought to justice.”

“Year after year, Joseph Cammarata and his partners stole millions from legitimate victim investors entitled to class action settlement funds,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Cammarata used the funds to support his lavish lifestyle, including the use of private jets, the purchase of expensive homes, luxury cars, and yachts, and even the maintenance of a private island in The Bahamas. As investigators closed in, Cammarata doubled down on his lies in order to perpetuate the fraud. What Cammarata didn’t know was that Special Agents from the FBI and Postal Inspectors were methodically building a case based on his emails and phone calls where he and his business partners conspired to lie to claims administrators. This conviction sends a message to all sophisticated white collar criminals that no one is beyond the reach of the FBI and our law enforcement partners.”

“A jury in Philadelphia found Joseph Cammarata guilty of defrauding thousands of investors of settlement monies those investors were owed,” said Raimundo Marerro, the Acting Inspector in Charge of the Philadelphia Division of the Postal Inspection Service. “Since 2014, Mr. Cammarata used the United States Mail system to submit fraudulent claims to settlement administrators and receive over $43 million in fraudulent payments from these settlement administrators. By doing so, he and his co-conspirators deprived legitimate claimants of monies they should have received.  I want to thank the agents and prosecutors for their efforts following this case through trial and once again reminding people that stealing money through the U.S. Mail is a crime.”

“This conviction reflects IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agents’ continued resolve to investigate and prosecute those who violate federal fraud and money laundering laws,” said Tammy Tomlins, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Newark Field Office. “IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agents are committed to working with our law enforcement partners to aggressively uncover and disrupt criminals who conspire to perpetrate sophisticated schemes to steal millions.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Newark Field Office, and the Securities and Exchange Commission, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David J. Ignall and Paul G. Shapiro.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Samir Ahmad, 29, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged by Criminal Complaint with firearms trafficking and selling firearms to a person unlawfully in the United States, arising from his sale of two semi-automatic pistols to a confidential informant while he was employed as a Deputy Sheriff with the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office.

According to the court documents, Ahmad was employed as a Deputy Sheriff with the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office beginning in February 2018. In October 2022, when Ahmad was a sworn law enforcement officer as a Deputy Sheriff, he allegedly sold two semi-automatic pistols and ammunition to a confidential informant. During the exchange, the informant explained to Ahmad that he was unlawfully in the United States, and that he could “get deported” if he was caught in possession of a gun. As detailed in the Criminal Complaint, Ahmad responded, simply: “You don’t got to worry about none of that.” The defendant made $3,000 from the sale of the firearms. On October 19, 2022, Ahmad was terminated from employment with the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office and arrested by federal agents.

The investigation is ongoing.

“As alleged, Samir Ahmad abused his authority – to the greatest extent possible – as a sworn law enforcement officer,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “The defendant was allegedly illegally selling firearms on the street to at least one person who was not permitted to possess them, adding fuel to the already-incendiary fire of deadly gun violence in the City of Philadelphia. Working with our law enforcement partners, we are doing all that we can to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the violence.”

“The idea of a sworn public servant so blatantly undermining public safety is reprehensible,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Philadelphia is awash in illegal guns, which are being used to commit violent crimes, so every weapon we can take off the street and every trafficker we can lock up makes a difference. The FBI and our partners will continue to do everything in our power to make this city safer.”

“The result of this investigation is the paradigm of collaboration between our local, state, and federal partners,” said Eric Degree, acting Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “We cannot let the gun violence we are seeing become the norm. We will continue to use our expertise to identify, investigate, and incarcerate those who commit and those who facilitate the violent firearm crimes that plague our streets.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 15 years in prison.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General, and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys J. Jeanette Kang and Justin T. Ashenfelter.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Wylene Johnson, 41, of Chester, PA; Cookie Bundy, 41, of Philadelphia, PA; Hakeem Cooper, 42, of Philadelphia, PA; Louis Barnett, 43, of Philadelphia, PA; Barry Mitchell, 33, of Philadelphia, PA; and Tameka Edmonds, 32, of Marcus Hook, PA; were charged with various Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) fraud-related offenses in two separate Indictments.

 In the first Indictment, defendants Johnson, Bundy, Cooper, Barnett, and Mitchell are each charged with four counts of mail fraud and one count of theft of government money in connection with a scheme to submit fraudulent PUA applications. As part of the scheme, those charged allegedly submitted (or caused to be submitted) nearly 100 fraudulent applications resulting in a loss to the government of nearly $1 million dollars. All of the applications submitted as part of this scheme listed Johnson’s former address in Philadelphia as the mailing address for benefits. After the benefits were mailed to this address, those charged allegedly accessed either the checks or debit cards issued on the applications.

In addition to the PUA scheme, defendants Johnson, Barnett, and Mitchell are also each charged with three counts of theft of government money for allegedly submitting fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications to the Small Business Administration for businesses which did not exist. As a result of these fraudulent application, Johnson allegedly received approximately $52,000 dollars from the SBA which she allegedly spent on personal items. Barnett and Mitchell also allegedly received emergency advances from the SBA which they spent on personal items.

In October 2022, when law enforcement agents from the United States Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Homeland Security Investigations arrested Bundy and Mitchell for the charges in this Indictment, firearms and ammunition were recovered from both of their residences. Immediately thereafter, Bundy and Mitchell were charged by Criminal Complaint with illegally possessing a firearm and ammunition as previously convicted felons.

In the second fraud Indictment announced today, defendant Edmonds is charged with three counts of mail fraud and three counts of theft of government money for allegedly submitting fraudulent PUA, EIDL, and Paycheck Protect Program (‘PPP’) applications. Edmonds is also charged with spending the EIDL and PPP funds on personal items.

On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was signed into law. The CARES Act created the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, which provides unemployment benefits to individuals not eligible for regular unemployment compensation or extended unemployment benefits, including individuals, families, and businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligibility to receive weekly PUA benefits is predicated on an applicant’s unemployment for reasons related to the pandemic, and it requires that the applicant was able to work each day and, if offered a job, would have been able to accept it. Once an applicant is approved to receive benefits, the applicant is required to submit weekly certifications indicating that he or she: was ready, willing and able to work each day; was seeking full time employment; did not refuse any job offers or referrals; and had reported any employment during the week and the gross pay or other payments received.

“Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and small business loan funds are intended to help working Americans and small business owners continue to pay their bills and make ends meet, even when revenues have dropped dramatically due to the pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Thieves who attempt to take these funds under false pretenses are taking advantage of others’ misfortune – ripping them off while also ripping off all taxpayers who fund the programs. These defendants allegedly obtained over $1 million in funds that could have helped struggling businesses and individuals.”

“White collar crime being conducted by convicted felons is part of the new criminal reality facing law enforcement agencies. These criminals are intelligent and bold enough to deliberately defraud the United States government on a large scale,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “Combatting these criminals takes an immense amount of time, effort, and cooperation between the prosecutors and the investigating agencies. We are extremely proud of the working relationships that have developed between all agencies involved.”

“The amount of pandemic program fraud uncovered in the last two-plus years is utterly offensive,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “This was emergency financial assistance meant to keep families, businesses, and the economy afloat, not a golden ticket for crooks and opportunists to live the high life. As these mounting indictments show, the FBI continues to investigate those who so eagerly defrauded the government and we’re committed to holding each and every one accountable for their crimes.”

“An important part of the mission of the Office of Inspector General is to investigate allegations of fraud related to unemployment insurance programs. We will continue to work with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry and our law enforcement partners to investigate these types of allegations”, stated Syreeta Scott, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Philadelphia Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.

This case was investigated by the United States Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Homeland Security Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Everett Witherell and Timothy Lanni.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Jason Rivera, 37, of Queens, NY, was convicted today at trial of kidnapping and extortion charges arising from his involvement with a violent gang, known as “Born To Kill” (a/k/a “BTK”), who paid the defendant money to collect a substantial drug debt from three drug dealers. Two of the three victim dealers, who were brothers, were murdered; the third managed to escape drowning in the Schuylkill River and whose rescue made the case national news.

In the summer of 2014, Rivera and two associates were recruited by members of the BTK gang to forcibly collect money from three marijuana dealers who had failed to pay a substantial drug debt. The co-conspirators, including Rivera, were paid several thousand dollars each using the money they took from the victims. Tam Le, a member of BTK, lured the victims to his home in southwest Philadelphia, where Rivera and the other two co-conspirators assaulted the victims and restrained them with duct tape and zip ties. They then kidnapped and transported the three victims to the Schuylkill River in the back of a van, weighed down their bodies, stabbed them, and dumped all three into the river. Two victims died in the river while the third managed to crawl out of the river and flag down a passing motorist on Kelly Drive for assistance.

In addition to this case, five defendants were federally indicted in connection with this crime and have all pleaded guilty to similar charges. Tam Le was found guilty of murder by a Philadelphia County jury and sentenced to death.

“After the initial investigation and arrests were made in this case which resulted in state charges for two individuals involved with these murders and attempted murder, the trail on the other individuals who helped them went nearly cold,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “But thanks to the persistent efforts and dogged determination of the FBI and other law enforcement partners, our Office was able to charge these remaining individuals, get them off the streets, and bring them to justice for their crimes.”

“What Rivera and his co-conspirators did to their victims was particularly heinous – so much so that, nearly a decade later, the circumstances of these murders and attempted murder still stand out,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Agents and analysts on FBI Philadelphia’s Organized Crime Task Force put years of hard work into the investigation that led to today’s verdict and seen many of the other perpetrators held accountable. We will continue to work to bring to justice Trung Lu, who has been charged in connection with these crimes but remains at large, likely in Vietnam. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading directly to Lu’s arrest.”

The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert Livermore.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Arthur Rowland, 42, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 40 years in prison, and five years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Gerald J. Pappert for his role in a scheme to import significant amounts of methamphetamine from California for distribution in and around Philadelphia. 

In February 2022, following a seven-day trial, a jury found the defendant guilty of possession of a firearm by a felon, but was unable to reach a verdict on the remaining charges. Then, in May 2022, following a six-day retrial, the jury found Rowland guilty on four of the remaining five counts, including multiple firearms and narcotics offenses. The charges stemmed from Rowland’s role as the main distributor for a group that shipped many hundreds of pounds of nearly pure, Mexican-made methamphetamine to the Philadelphia area for further distribution to individuals suffering with addiction and others substance use disorders. For his part, the defendant provided addresses to his California connections, who in turn, sent him packages containing pounds of methamphetamine. Rowland then took possession of that methamphetamine, sold it, and generated large sums of cash.

When federal law enforcement arrested Rowland and executed a search warrant at his residence near City Avenue in December 2018, agents seized more than a kilogram of methamphetamine, approximately $17,000 cash, a Sig Sauer handgun, and two Draco assault-style weapons, as well as ammunition and a high-capacity drum magazine.

“Rowland and his co-conspirators shipped tons of drugs from one end of this country to the other through a large and sophisticated trafficking enterprise,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Four decades behind bars will keep Arthur Rowland off the street and unable to augment the supply of deadly drugs flowing into our community for a very long time.”

“Arthur Rowland pushed massive amounts of meth onto Philadelphia’s streets,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “But this 40-year sentence officially puts him out of business. The FBI and our partners at the Philadelphia Police Department are committed to taking down and locking up prolific drug traffickers like Rowland — people with no regard for the incredible damage they inflict on so many lives and communities.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Paul G. Shapiro and Timothy M. Stengel.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero and Berks County District Attorney John T. Adams announced today during a press conference in the Berks County Courthouse that Jesus Feliciano-Trinidad, 33; Dewayne Quinones, 29; and Mayco Alvarez-Jackson, 25; all of Reading, PA, were convicted at trial of murder, kidnapping, drug distribution and firearms offenses arising from their involvement with a Reading-area drug trafficking organization which was responsible for multiple homicides, kidnapping, and conspiracies to kidnap in 2017 and 2018, including a quadruple homicide which occurred on January 28, 2018. All three defendants were convicted of federal murder and weapons charges relating to the quadruple homicide.

Over 15 defendants were charged in a series of indictments stemming from a years’ long investigation into the receipt, processing, and distribution of methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and crack cocaine. The indictments detailed the defendants using a number of buildings, residences, firearms and acts of violence to further their drug dealing efforts in and around Reading, including kidnapping and/or shooting multiple individuals in 2017 and 2018; conspiring to shoot and kill Miguel Reyes on December 13, 2017; kidnaping, shooting, and killing Hector Gonzalez-Rivera on January 24, 2018; and shooting and killing Jarlyn Lantigua-Tejada, Juan Rodriguez, Nelson Onofre, and Joshua Santos on January 28, 2018.

 “These three defendants, members of the Trinidad gang, have been convicted by a jury of some of the most serious charges that exist under federal law with penalties of equal gravity,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “These convictions, after years of investigation and preparation, would not have been possible without the partnership of District Attorney Adams and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. I want to thank them and all of our local law enforcement partners here in Berks County as we work together to prosecute violent drug trafficking organizations like Trinidad in order to keep the Reading community safe.”

“We appreciate the partnership between the Berks County District Attorney’s Office and the United States Attorney’s office of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in the prosecution of this violent Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO),” said Berks County District Attorney Adams. “Today’s verdict indicates a very successful prosecution of this violent DTO that created mayhem in our community. These convictions indicate that the jury has held the leaders of this organization responsible for their acts of violence and drug trafficking, and as a result they will never be a threat to our community again.”

“These are three violent, dangerous men who terrorized the Reading area for years, trafficking deadly drugs and committing multiple murders,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “The Trinidad organization’s actions destroyed families and had a devastating effect on the community’s public safety and quality of life. This case underscores how the FBI and our law enforcement partners are working together to target and dismantle the violent drug gangs wreaking so much havoc, just to make money and a name for themselves on the street. I want to thank the Reading Police Department and the Berks County District Attorney's Office, in addition to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania – for all the time, work, and resources they put into this investigation, resulting in today’s convictions.”

12 defendants charged in the investigation previously pleaded guilty to federal or state charges and are awaiting sentencing. Co-defendants Mariela Alvarado and Owen Malave-Medina were sentenced to 168 months and 90 months in prison, respectively.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Berks County District Attorney’s Office, the Berks County Detectives, and the Reading Police Department, with assistance from the Pennsylvania State Police and the Montgomery County Detectives, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly A. Lewis Fallenstein, Special Assistant United States Attorney Rosalynda M. Michetti, and Assistant United States Attorney Vineet Gauri.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Robert Dean Caesar, 60, of Oxford, PA, was sentenced to 100 years in prison and lifetime supervised release United States District Court Judge Gerald Pappert for multiple child exploitation offenses including producing, transmitting, and collecting child pornography.

In April 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to those child pornography charges detailed in a 2018 Indictment. According to court documents, beginning in 2017, the defendant hired two teenage brothers, then ages 14 and 15, from the Pennsylvania Dutch (or Amish) to perform yard work and other odd jobs at Caesar’s residence in Chester County. During this time, the defendant sexually abused both boys on numerous occasions, and also used a cell phone to take sexually explicit photos of one of them. After the boys disclosed the abuse, a search warrant executed at the defendant’s residence revealed a massive collection of child pornography, amounting to tens of thousands of images and videos, as well as the sexually explicit images he produced of his minor victim during the abuse. The investigation further revealed that Caesar had been assaulting young boys for decades, dating back to the 1980’s.

“This defendant committed unspeakable, horrific acts, abusing unknown numbers of children until he got to these two victims, these brothers, and destroyed their entire lives,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “And for that he will now spend the rest of his life behind bars. It is our duty to protect the most vulnerable members of society, and together with our law enforcement partners we will continue to uphold that duty by bringing to justice anybody who preys upon minor children.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by the Pennsylvania State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Erica Kivitz and Kelly Harrell.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Eduardo Castelan-Prado, 39, of Leonia, NJ, and Jose Ochoa, 32, of Moreno Valley, CA, were both sentenced to 40 years in prison, and five years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Harvey Bartle III, for their convictions on kidnapping charges arising from the abduction of a teenage victim from Northeast Philadelphia to New Jersey in June 2021.

In June 2022, the defendants were convicted after trial of charges of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and kidnapping in connection with their actions to kidnap a 17-year-old in the parking lot of a restaurant in Philadelphia, which was the teen’s place of employment, after his shift ended. Evidence presented at trial showed that on June 14, 2021, Castelan-Prado, Ochoa, and a third co-conspirator transported the victim to a residence in New Jersey, where they held him at gunpoint while making ransom demands of $500,000 to his parents. The FBI and the Philadelphia Police Department were able to determine the victim’s location by tracing the ransom calls, and in the early morning hours of June 16, 2021, an FBI SWAT team executed a search warrant at an apartment complex in Leonia, New Jersey, rescued the victim, and arrested the defendants.

“The events of this case are every parent’s worst nightmare: someone with ill intentions forcefully taking their child. These defendants kidnapped a teenager in an effort to extort money, a crime for which they have now been convicted and each sentenced to spend 40 years in prison,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “As was the case here, our investigators and prosecutors will work quickly and tirelessly to identify, locate and charge anyone who attempts this type of violent crime in our district.”

“Ochoa and Castelan-Prado grabbed a teenage boy off the street to use as a human bargaining chip,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “They sought to extort his parents, demanding half a million dollars for their child’s survival and safe return. Fortunately, this despicable ploy for money was disrupted and the victim recovered by the FBI and our partners. Today’s sentences ensure the men behind this violent crime will be held accountable for what they’ve done and prevented from so terrorizing anyone else’s family.”

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

The case was investigated by the FBI Philadelphia and FBI Newark, and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Justin Oshana and Kate Shulman.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Jaheym Newsome, 19, of Philadelphia, PA, was arrested and charged by Superseding Indictment with carjacking, attempted carjacking, and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, all in connection with two carjacking incidents which occurred in Northeast Philadelphia and South Philadelphia on December 22, 2021. After being arrested by the United States Marshals Service, the defendant made his initial appearance on these charges and has been detained pending trial.

As detailed in the Criminal Complaints previously filed in this case, Newsome and two co-defendants, Dayon Hackett, 19, and Taquan Mershon, 19, both also of Philadelphia, PA, allegedly approached a man sitting in his car in Northeast Philadelphia preparing to go to work in the early morning hours on that day in December 2021. The defendants ordered the victim out of his car, carjacked him at gunpoint, and fled the area. Mershon then allegedly drove the carjacked vehicle to South Philadelphia, where Hackett and Newsome both approached a different man who was also sitting in his car waiting for a parking spot to open up after he got home from work. According to the Criminal Complaints, Hackett and Newsome opened the door to that vehicle and attempted to pull the victim out of the car. Upon observing a firearm on the victim’s lap, Hackett and Newsome opened fire on the victim, striking him multiple times. The victim returned fire and Hackett was struck by multiple rounds. Hackett and Newsome then returned to the waiting vehicle that Mershon was driving and got inside. Mershon drove to a nearby hospital, and Mershon and Newsome carried Hackett into the hospital, dropped him on the floor of the emergency room, and fled the area in the vehicle they carjacked in Northeast Philadelphia earlier that morning. Hackett was identified that same morning as a suspect in the South Philadelphia attempted carjacking and taken into custody. After a lengthy investigation, ATF investigators identified Newsome and Mershon as the other two suspects in the incidents.

Hackett was arrested by the Philadelphia Police Department on December 22, 2021, and charged by Criminal Complaint on February 25, 2022, as previously announced in a seperate press release, and Mershon was charged by Criminal Complaint on August 10, 2022, and arrested by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives on August 16, 2022, both with offenses arising from the same two carjacking incidents. All three individuals were charged in a Superseding Indictment that was returned on September 13, 2022. Hackett and Mershon were previously detained pending trial.

“Our Office is committed to supporting the Philadelphia Police Department in its work to investigate and deter violent crime, which includes our partnership on the joint carjacking task force,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “If you commit a violent offense like a gunpoint carjacking, federal authorities will soon be knocking at your door.”

“ATF’s mission is straightforward – fighting violent crime,” said Eric Degree, acting Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division.  “As this indictment alleges, it does not get any more violent than these armed carjackings, in which a firearm was discharged.  ATF will continue to work with our local, state, and federal partners to aggressively pursue these violent offenders and make our streets safer.”

The swift action to investigate and federally charge these defendants is the result of the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, which is comprised of members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crime Unit; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Philadelphia Police Department. The goal of the Taskforce is to stem the wave of armed carjackings and violent crimes through investigative and enforcement techniques meant to identify and refer for federal prosecution all who terrorize innocent victims through commission of these offenses within Philadelphia and surrounding areas.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Eckert.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Bonnie Sweeten, 51, recently of Delanco, NJ, was charged by Information with two counts of wire fraud related to her scheme to steal from her former employer by forging checks and making fraudulent purchases with the company credit card.

According to the Information, in September 2017, the defendant was hired as a bookkeeper for a Doylestown-based excavating company because the president of the company had known her for many years. As the bookkeeper, Sweeten had access to company bank accounts, company checkbooks, the company mail, and other sensitive personal information belonging to the president and to the company. The defendant allegedly abused the trust of the president of the company by using her position to steal company funds: using her access to the company’s checking account to issue dozens of company checks to herself; using her access to the company mail to steal checks that had been mailed to the company, which she then fraudulently endorsed over to herself; and using her access to the company credit card to make tens of thousands of dollars of personal purchases.

“As an employee of the company, Bonnie Sweeten was well aware of her obligation to act in the best interest of the company, but instead she allegedly chose to take advantage of the opportunity offered to her to work as a bookkeeper for this company,” said U.S. Attorney Romero.

“Bonnie Sweeten’s alleged actions are the epitome of biting the hand that feeds you,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Defrauding one’s employer is both a bad career move and a federal crime, for which violators must be held accountable.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years in prison.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Mannion.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Nicholas Kirby, 45, of Philadelphia, PA, was arrested and charged by Indictment with multiple firearms and narcotics offenses related to his trafficking in those items. Specifically, the defendant is charged with one count of dealing in firearms without a license, four counts of possession of a firearm by a felon, five counts of distribution of fentanyl, and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

The Indictment alleges that Kirby illegally sold five semiautomatic rifles in separate instances between January 25 through March 14, 2022. The Indictment further alleges that the defendant had been previously convicted of a felony before he possessed each of the firearms that he sold to others. Finally, the Indictment alleges that Kirby distributed fentanyl on five separate occasions between February 2, 2022, and March 10, 2022, and was found in possession of fentanyl with the intent to distribute it on March 14, 2022.

“Our Office is committed to prosecuting those who commit violent crimes including illegally trafficking firearms and narcotics like fentanyl, both potentially lethal commodities,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “In this case, a Nicholas Kirby allegedly illegally possessed and sold firearms, and possessed and distributed fentanyl, which presents a clear danger to our community which is struggling under a surge of violent gun crime and overdose deaths.”

“This investigation is the result of law enforcement partners coming together for a common goal – to investigate individuals who illegally possess firearms,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “As the indictment alleges, this defendant could have endangered the lives of countless citizens by illegally putting guns onto our already gun-flooded streets. This indictment is the result of the hard work of our investigators, our partners with the DEA, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 165 years in prison.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Thomas M. Zaleski.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Christian Dunbar, 42, of Philadelphia, PA, the former Philadelphia City Treasurer, pleaded guilty in front of United States District Court Judge Cynthia M. Rufe to procurement of citizenship unlawfully and through multiple false statements; submitting false citizenship papers; and failure to file tax returns, all in connection with false statements and altered documents he submitted as part of his application to become a U.S. citizen, and failing to file his federal tax returns in three separate years.

In May 2021, the defendant was charged by Superseding Indictment with multiple counts of filing a false income tax return and failure to file tax returns. Earlier, in September 2020, Dunbar was charged in a 14-count Indictment, charging embezzlement by a bank employee, procurement of naturalization through a false statement, procurement of naturalization unlawfully, obtaining false citizenship papers, and making false statements in support of naturalization.

During the hearing, the defendant admitted to procuring U.S. citizenship fraudulently by providing false information about where and with whom he was living, where his child was residing, and submitting a false lease and a false W-2 tax form to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Further, Dunbar admitted to not filing his personal income tax returns for tax years 2015, 2016, and 2019 (during the last of which he was serving as the Philadelphia City Treasurer).   

“Christian Dunbar’s conduct in this case demonstrates a shocking level of misconduct for anyone, let alone a senior official with the City of Philadelphia whose job it was to oversee the City’s fiscal stability,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate these types of complicated public corruption cases, and hold public officials accountable.”

“Christian Dunbar fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship, building his life and career here on a foundation of lies,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “It’s a sad irony that such a dishonest person wound up City Treasurer, a key position of public trust. Corruption like this corrodes people’s faith in government, which is why the FBI works so hard to hold crooked public officials accountable.”

“Christian Dunbar violated federal tax laws when he failed to file his tax returns, even though he was required, by law, to file,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “Tax crimes like this will not go undetected thanks to the tireless hard work of IRS-CI Special Agents. We will continue to focus our investigative efforts on individuals who choose to ignore their legal duty to accurately file and pay their taxes.”

“HSI Philadelphia special agents worked diligently with our partners in the FBI and IRS to ensure Mr. Dunbar is held responsible for his actions,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “HSI’s mission is to investigate crimes regardless of the perpetrator’s position, official title or economic status. This investigation underscores the importance of how collaboration and teamwork among federal agencies leads to accountability for crimes committed by those who seek to exploit vulnerabilities in our systems.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations, and Homeland Security Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Josh A. Davison.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Donna Laansma, 58, of Fairless Hills, PA, was sentenced to three years in prison, three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay full restitution by United States District Court Judge Michael M. Baylson for her scheme to embezzle over $1.8 million from her former employer, and for failing to report these fraudulently obtained earnings to the IRS.

In February 2022, the defendant was charged by Information with wire fraud and tax evasion in connection with this scheme. At the time of the charged conduct, Laansma was the Financial Controller of Astea, a global management software company based in Horsham, PA, and managed the company’s finances worldwide. According to court documents, Laansma obtained a corporate credit card that she kept hidden from senior management. Between November 2014 and November 2020, the defendant used this secret card to spend over $1.8 million on personal expenditures such as her son’s college tuition, monthly payments on her personal bank accounts, vacations, shoes, groceries, furniture, and gift cards. She also utilized her position as Financial Controller to pay down the corporate card bills, falsely recording these payments as legitimate business expenses in company books. The secret corporate credit card was discovered in 2020, after Astea was acquired by another global enterprise software company. Laansma, who was a Certified Public Accountant and familiar with the tax code, failed to report her extra, fraudulently obtained income as earnings on her tax forms.

“Donna Laansma cheated her former employer out of nearly two million dollars, and covered her tracks to hide her fraud,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Instead of doing the right thing and performing her job honestly as the company’s controller, she chose the greedy path. Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect innocent individuals and businesses from being victimized by financial fraud.”

“For years, Donna Laansma stole from her employer and omitted her earnings on her tax returns, said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “Today she has been held accountable for her actions. The sentence she received today is a costly reminder that engaging in such criminal behavior will result in dire consequences such as a loss of liberty and being branded a felon for life.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Jeanette Kang.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Sam Wolo, 21, of Philadelphia, PA; Bruno Nyanue, 20, also of Philadelphia, PA; and Gransae Manue, 20, of Clifton Heights, PA; were arrested and charged by Indictment with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit mail theft, possession of stolen mail, and robbery of a postal carrier. The charges arise from the defendants’ alleged schemes to steal checks from the United States mail, and to then fraudulently alter and deposit the stolen checks.

The Indictment specifically alleges that, on December 22, 2021, Wolo, Nyanue, and Manue forcibly robbed a U.S. Postal Service (USPS) letter carrier of his Arrow Key, a USPS key used by letter carriers to access USPS blue collection boxes along their routes. The Arrow Key stolen by Wolo, Nyanue, and Manue opened USPS collection boxes in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, which the defendants used repeatedly to steal mail from boxes in that area.

As alleged in the Indictment, between December 2021 and February 2022, the co-conspirators “washed” and altered checks they stole from the mail that belonged to victims who had mailed checks in Drexel Hill. The defendants altered the stolen checks to make them payable to third parties, often in amounts greater than the checks’ original value, without the victims’ knowledge or consent. As part of the scheme, the defendants deposited the fraudulently washed and altered checks into those third-party accounts, and in at least some instances, withdrew some of the fraudulently deposited funds. The Indictment further alleges that approximately 370 stolen checks and nine stolen money orders were recovered from defendant Wolo’s apartment. The Arrow Key stolen by the defendants from the USPS letter carrier in Drexel Hill, as well as two stolen checks and two money orders, were also recovered from defendant Wolo’s vehicle. Altogether, the value of stolen checks and money orders recovered from defendant Wolo’s apartment and car totaled more than $171,000.

“The United States Postal Service provides an essential service to nearly every American, often conveying income, bills and expenses which are the basis of many livelihoods,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “If you choose to tamper with or steal U.S. mail for any reason, you can be assured that the federal government will conduct an intensive investigation and aggressive prosecution, as we intend to in this case.”

“People continue to use and rely on the U.S. Mail to pay bills, conduct business, send letters and cards, and send and receive goods, among other things,” said Raimundo Marreo, Inspector in Charge of the Philadelphia Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. “They should be able do these things without fear that their mail will be stolen. Investigating mail theft and violence against mail carriers are core missions of the Postal Inspection Service and we will work tirelessly, with our partners in local law enforcement and in state and federal prosecutors offices, to investigate and prosecute individuals who commit violence against Postal employees and who steal the mail. I want to thank the United States Attorney’s Office and investigators from the Upper Darby Police Department for their help in investigating and prosecuting this case against these three individuals.”

If convicted, defendant Wolo faces a maximum of 236 years in prison, defendant Nyanue faces a maximum of 64 years in prison, and defendant Manue faces a maximum of 172 years in prison. All three defendants could face fines of at least $3 million, with defendant Wolo facing a possible fine of up to $8.5 million.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Upper Darby Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Eileen Castilla Geiger.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Mitchell Spivack, 63, of Collegeville, PA, was sentenced to three years and six months in prison, two years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $451,328 restitution and to forfeit $116,000 by United States District Court Judge Harvey Bartle III, for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and healthcare fraud. These charges were the result of a joint investigation between the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.

In June 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to a Criminal Information charging him with these offenses. According to the charging documents, Spivack owned Verree Pharmacy, a small neighborhood pharmacy located in the Fox Chase section of Philadelphia, and was the pharmacist in charge for more than thirty years. During that time in business, Spivack and his coconspirators allegedly cultivated Verree’s reputation as a “no questions asked” pharmacy for oxycodone and other dangerous and addictive opioid drugs. By 2016, Verree was the largest purchaser of oxycodone among retail pharmacies in the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In furtherance of the conspiracy, Spivack and his coconspirators filled prescriptions for wholesale quantities of high-dose oxycodone despite obvious alterations to the prescriptions and other red flags indicating that the drugs were not for a legitimate medical purpose. In addition, Spivack and other employees of Verree submitted entirely fraudulent claims to health care benefit programs for prescription drugs not dispensed. These drugs were designated in patient profiles as “BBDF” which was an acronym for “Bill But Don’t Fill.” From 2013 through 2019, Medicare and other insurers paid over $450,000 for these bogus claims.

In August 2022, U.S. Attorney Romero announced that the United States filed a civil judgment with Philadelphia-based Spivack, Inc., previously operating under the name Verree Pharmacy, and defendant Spivack, to resolve allegations similar to the criminal charges. The pharmacy and Spivack have agreed to pay over $4.1 million to resolve their civil liability under the Controlled Substances Act, False Claims Act, and forfeiture. The judgment also permanently bans them from ever dispensing controlled substances in the future.

“Pharmacies and pharmacists engage in the deepest violation of the community’s trust when they exploit their access to opioids and other controlled substances and illegally dispense the drugs for their own financial gain,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “It is even more disturbing when pharmacists take advantage of their position of trust by fraudulently billing Medicare and other federal health care programs. Our Office will use every resource it has to pursue and hold these individuals accountable, including criminal charges and civil penalties, as was the case here.”

“Mitchell Spivack filled prescriptions outside of medical standards for the highly addictive drug oxycodone, adding fuel to the fire of a crisis that kills 14 Pennsylvanians every day,” said Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “Pharmacies and medical professionals have a responsibility under the law to dispense these drugs only when appropriate. Nothing will bring back the lives we’ve lost to this epidemic, but today’s sentence holds Spivack, and Verree pharmacy, accountable for their actions.” 

If the public has any information regarding health care fraud allegation, individuals should contact the HHS-OIG hotline at 800-HHS-TIPS.

The criminal case was investigated by the Philadelphia Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, HHS-OIG, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General Bureau of Narcotics Investigation, and the Pennsylvania Department of State’s Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation. The criminal case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney M. Beth Leahy and Special Assistant United States Attorney Linda Montag, who was specially designated by the PA OAG. The civil case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Sarah Grieb and Anthony D. Scicchitano.  

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that so far this year, the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania has charged no less than a dozen cases involving Social Security fraud, either by Information or Indictment, with nine of those defendants pleading guilty to those charges. The charges are the result of a concerted effort to investigate, prosecute and deter theft of government funds, primarily by way of stealing the Social Security payments of a deceased beneficiary. Altogether, the fraud loss amount in these cases totals nearly $1 million.

Defendants charged and their status are:

• Sloan Carter, 59, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on August 2, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on September 7, 2022;
• Marcus Ecks, 38, of Langhorne, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on June 28, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on September 8, 2022;
• Anthony Percell, 54, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Indictment on August 9, 2022, with social security fraud, passport fraud, identity theft, and related charges; scheduled for trial early next year;
• Angel Guilbe, Jr., 53, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on August 17, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on September 19, 2022;
• Stephanie Rudnick, 52, of Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on May 19, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on June 7, 2022;
• Lilian Rogers, 58, of Glenolden, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on March 4, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on April 27, 2022;
• Dana Douglas-Rodriguez, 40, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Indictment on April 6, 2021, with wire fraud and social security fraud; pleaded guilty to social security fraud on May 3, 2022;
• Paulette Tamburro, 55, of Collingswood Heights, New Jersey; charged by Information on December 15, 2021, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on May 4, 2022;
• Michael Smith, 62, of Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on September 2, 2022, with theft of government funds;
• Aracelis Quinones-Martinez, 52, of Lebanon, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on August 24, 2022, with theft of government funds;
• Ivan Wallace, 60, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Indictment on September 16, 2021, with wire fraud and social security fraud; pleaded guilty to social security fraud on September 28, 2022;
• Christopher Miller, 59, of Wernersville, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on September 20, 2022, with theft of government funds.

As an initiative to increase federal Social Security fraud prosecutions, the Social Security Administration (SSA) provides DOJ with attorneys who are sworn in and serve as Special Assistant United States Attorneys (SAUSA) in multiple U.S. Attorney’s Offices throughout the country. The SAUSA’s focus is solely to prosecute Social Security fraud. The goal of this initiative is to increase the number of prosecutions for fraud involving Social Security programs.  

“Social Security benefits are intended to help Americans who have worked hard and need some extra help making ends meet,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Thieves who take these funds fraudulently are taking advantage of American workers and taxpayers who fund these programs. Thanks to our partnership with SSA, our Office has dedicated prosecutors who are making a difference bringing these fraudsters to justice.”

“Our work to protect Social Security programs and taxpayers’ funds from criminals is one of our highest priorities. We will continue to pursue those who seek to defraud SSA, and we rely heavily on the SAUSAs to prosecute Social Security fraud, which is a federal crime,” said Gail S. Ennis, Inspector General for the Social Security Administration. “I thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and SAUSAs Laura Bradbury and Megan Curran for their efforts in prosecuting these cases and holding these persons accountable for their criminal actions.”  

These cases were investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, and are being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorneys Laura Bradbury and Megan Curran.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Victor Clayton, 47, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 15 years in prison and 10 years of supervised release by United States District Judge R. Barclay Surrick, for sex trafficking of two minors across state lines.

In November 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to two counts of sex trafficking of a minor, and one count of attempted sex trafficking of a minor. The charges arose from Clayton’s trafficking of a 16-year-old minor in at least four local hotels in Philadelphia in early 2018, after which he kept half of the proceeds paid to the minor by sex buyers. He then picked up that victim’s 15-year-old friend and drove both girls to Dunn, North Carolina, with the intention to cause them to engage in prostitution there. While in North Carolina, the defendant sexually assaulted the second minor, according to court papers.

“The crime that this defendant committed is one of the most devastating to victims that our Office prosecutes,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Clayton forced a young person, a minor child, to sell her body for his own greed and financial gain, attempted to do the same to her friend, and did, in fact, assault that girl himself. We will continue to work collectively to investigate these destructive crimes against some of the most vulnerable victims in our community.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Dunn, North Carolina Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michelle Morgan and Amanda Reinitz.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Amir Harvey, 20, of Philadelphia, PA was arrested and charged by Criminal Complaint with carjacking and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, in connection with a carjacking incident which occurred in Northeast Philadelphia earlier this month.

As detailed in the Criminal Complaint, in the early morning hours of September 19, 2022, Philadelphia police officers respond to a report of a robbery in progress in the 8900 block of Maxwell Place, where the victim reported that her car had just been stolen by an armed individual as she and her teenage daughter were getting ready to leave to go to school. The victim stated that around 6:15 a.m., she started her vehicle using an application on her cell phone. A short time later, she and her daughter exited their house and walked to the car parked in the driveway in front of their home when they were approached by an armed individual, later identified as the defendant, who pointed a black handgun at their heads. The defendant allegedly took the keys to the vehicle out of the victim’s purse and sped away. The victim used the location tracking feature on her cell phone application and informed police, who responded to its location on the 2000 block of Griffith Street, about 2.5 miles from the victim’s residence. Using neighborhood video surveillance footage, investigators traced the movement of the victim’s vehicle and the defendant to a nearby apartment complex.

“Through the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, we are continuing to investigate, arrest and prosecute those responsible for the spate of carjackings we have seen in Philadelphia in recent months,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “As alleged, this defendant threatened the lives of a mother and daughter going about their daily morning routine. Carjacking is not game or a fun pastime, it is a serious federal crime with severe consequences.”

“When the Carjacking Task Force was established several months ago, this is exactly the type of crime we set out to investigate,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division.  “As the Indictment alleges, this is a seriously violent crime with the lives of innocent victims being threatened. ATF and our local, state, and federal partners will continue to collaborate and seek justice for the victims of violent gun crimes like this.”

“While we are grateful that this dangerous individual has been taken into custody, the increase in the number of carjackings seen across our city and nation continues to be disturbing,” said Philadelphia Police Department Commissioner Danielle Outlaw. “Victims of carjackings have been spread across all demographics, and just as alarmingly, the demographics of the offenders have also been the same. Law enforcement refuses to tolerate this criminal behavior; and the PPD, along with our fellow Task Force partners, will not stop until we bring each and every offender to justice.”

The swift action to investigate and federally charge these defendants is the result of the newly formed Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, which is comprised of members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crime Unit; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Philadelphia Police Department. The goal of the Taskforce is to stem the wave of armed carjackings and violent crimes through investigative and enforcement techniques meant to identify and refer for federal prosecution all who terrorize innocent victims through commission of these offenses within Philadelphia and surrounding areas.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Eckert.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Rusmaldy Jimenez-Hiciano, 38, of Goose Creek, SC, was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay full restitution of $536,000 and forfeiture of $461,000 by United States District Court Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl for his role in perpetrating a mail fraud scheme to steal high-end electronics from his former employer, Walmart.

In June 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to four counts of mail fraud and admitted in court that he masterminded a scheme to steal and re-sell expensive electronics. In late 2017, the defendant, a long-time employee at Walmart’s Bethlehem, PA, distribution center, devised a plan to defraud the company by hiding certain high-end electronic merchandise when it came into the warehouse on delivery trucks; mailing that merchandise via FedEx to addresses in Allentown controlled by the defendant; selling the stolen goods; and sharing the proceeds with others.

“Jimenez-Hiciano stole hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of goods from his former employer,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Instead of doing the right thing and performing his job honestly, he took advantage of his position and his employer. Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect innocent individuals and businesses from being victimized by financial fraud.”

“HSI and our partners in the Pennsylvania State Police and the U.S. Attorney’s office have struck another blow against criminals who use our commercial systems to commit crimes that damage our business infrastructure, slow our delivery systems, and ultimately harm consumers through higher prices,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of the HSI Philadelphia office. “Crimes such as organized mail fraud schemes inflict severe and long-reaching damage to American consumers.  Congratulations to the dedicated agents and prosecutors who worked on this investigation.”

The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security – Homeland Security Investigations and the Pennsylvania State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mary E. Crawley.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced today that former U.S. Congressman Michael “Ozzie” Myers, 79, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 30 months  in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $100,000 in fines, with $10,000 of that due immediately, by United States District Court Judge Paul S. Diamond after pleading guilty to conspiracy to deprive voters of civil rights, bribery, obstruction of justice, falsification of voting records, conspiring to illegally vote in a federal election, and for orchestrating schemes to fraudulently stuff the ballot boxes for specific Democratic candidates in the 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 Pennsylvania elections. The defendant was immediately remanded into custody following today’s hearing.

In June 2022, the defendant admitted in court to bribing the Judge of Elections for the 39th Ward, 36th Division in South Philadelphia in a fraudulent scheme over several years. Myers admitted to bribing the election official to illegally add votes for certain candidates of their mutual political party in primary elections. Some of these candidates were individuals running for judicial office whose campaigns had hired Myers, and others were candidates for various federal, state, and local elective offices that Myers favored for a variety of reasons. Myers would solicit payments from his clients in the form of cash or checks as “consulting fees,” and then use portions of these funds to pay election officials to tamper with election results.

Myers also admitted to conspiring to commit election fraud with another former Judge of Elections for the 39th Ward, 2nd Division in South Philadelphia. Myers’ accomplice was the de facto Judge of Elections and effectively ran the polling places in her division by installing close associates to serve as members of the Board of Elections. Myers admitted that he gave his accomplice directions to add votes to candidates supported by him, including candidates for judicial office whose campaigns actually hired Myers, and other candidates for various federal, state, and local elective offices preferred by Myers for a variety of reasons.

“Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy. If even one vote has been illegally cast or if the integrity of just one election official is compromised, it diminishes faith in process,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This defendant used his position, knowledge of the process, and connections to fix elections for his preferred candidates, which demonstrates a truly flagrant disregard for the laws which govern our elections. He will now spend 30 months in prison as penalty for his crimes.”

“Protecting the legitimacy of elections is critical to ensuring the public’s trust in the process,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Through his actions, Ozzie Myers pointedly disdained both the will of Philadelphia voters and the rule of law. He’s now a federal felon twice over, heading back behind bars, with time to consider the great consequence of free and fair elections.”   

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Pennsylvania State Police. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Richard P. Barrett, Chief of the Criminal Division, and Eric L. Gibson with assistance from Richard C. Pilger, the former Director of Elections Crimes Branch (retired), Criminal Division, Public Integrity Section, U.S. Department of Justice.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Steven Kish, 66, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to three years in prison, three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $259,019 in forfeiture and $353,488 in restitution by United States District Court Judge C. Darnell Jones. Defendant Kish was the most prolific of the numerous SEPTA managers who participated in a scheme to defraud SEPTA of approximately $900,000.

In January 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to theft from an organization receiving federal funds, money laundering, and wire fraud. From about 2013 through 2019, the defendant and other management-level employees working in SEPTA’s Bridges and Buildings Department (“BBD”), engaged in bribery and theft schemes with two SEPTA vendors. The BBD is responsible for maintaining, repairing, and renovating SEPTA facilities throughout the southeastern Pennsylvania region. To facilitate this work, SEPTA issued “procurement cards” (also known as P-Cards) to management-level employees working in the BBD. The P-Cards, which operate as SEPTA credit cards, are to be used for purchasing items needed for the legitimate work of the BBD.

In about 2013, a codefendant, who was the Senior Director of Maintenance at SEPTA, agreed with two other codefendants, who were SEPTA vendors, to exploit the P-Card system for their mutual benefit. The Senior Director solicited the vendors to provide him with regular cash payments of approximately $1,000 to $2,000 per month. In exchange for those payments, the vendors falsely billed SEPTA through the P-Card system for items that the vendor was not providing to SEPTA. The false charges to SEPTA covered the cash payments, plus a substantial additional amount to generate fraud proceeds for the vendor. As part of the corrupt deals with the vendors, the Senior Director encouraged other BBD managers, including Kish, the Director of Maintenance just below the Senior Director of Maintenance, to use and continue to use the vendors for SEPTA purchases, growing the vendors’ business with SEPTA.

The defendant separately asked both vendors to provide him with personal products and cash with the understanding that the vendors would use the SEPTA P-Cards to fraudulently bill SEPTA for those personal products and cash and generate additional fraud proceeds for the vendors. The total value of those items and the cash was approximately $259,000, resulting in approximately $353,488 in fraudulent billing to SEPTA. In particular, one of the vendors purchased for Kish approximately $215,000 in the form of gold bullion, gold coins, and other precious metals. The purchases included several American Gold Eagle Coins, Gold American Buffalo Coins, South African Gold Krugerrand Coins, Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coins, Royal Canadian Mint Gold Bars, and PAMP Suisse Gold Bars. Kish also obtained from the other vendor thousands of dollars in cash and personal products, such as a gas grill.

Then in June 2019, Kish attempted to conceal the scheme from authorities by having a different SEPTA manager purchase from eBay one of the gold coins (a Canadian Mint Gold Bar for approximately $4,272) that Kish had previously obtained from a vendor as part of the scheme. Kish then provided the coin to the vendor so that he could make it appear that he had purchased that coin for himself.

All of the other codefendants in this case, including the two vendors and other former SEPTA managers, were sentenced earlier this year.

“Philadelphians deserve public employees who do their jobs honestly, without gaming the system to line their own pockets,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “The defendant’s participation in this scheme was extensive, and as one of the highest-level managers in his department, he should have known better than to engage in this level of criminal behavior.”

SEPTA Inspector General, Denise S. Wolf, said: “SEPTA employees are hard-working and dedicated to providing our customers with safe and efficient public transportation. These bad actors were the unfortunate exception, and, through these criminal prosecutions, justice was ultimately served. The SEPTA Office of Inspector General appreciates its partnership with the FBI and the United States Attorney’s Office in investigating this matter.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance of the SEPTA Office of Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. SEPTA Office of Inspector General (OIG) launched an investigation after its internal auditors detected fraud, and subsequently the OIG shared its findings with the FBI.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Tyree Little, 22, of Philadelphia, PA, pleaded guilty earlier this week, just before trial was scheduled to begin today, to illegally possessing a firearm with an extended magazine.

The charge stems from an incident in July 2021, during a vehicle stop for a traffic violation, when Philadelphia Police Officers observed a firearm with an extended magazine sticking out from under the driver’s seat of the defendant’s car, where the defendant was seated. Little pleaded guilty to possessing that firearm, which he was not able to lawfully possess due to a prior felony conviction for robbery.

The defendant was on state parole for the robbery at the time, and he was also a participant in the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Call-In Program. The PSN Call-In Program is a violence prevention and re-entry initiative coordinated by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, Parole Field Services, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The program, which is part of the Justice Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods strategy, has been in operation since 2013 and is designed to reduce violent crime and recidivism of individuals returning from state incarceration to the 1st, 3rd, 12th, 16th, 18th, 19th, 22nd, 24th, 25th, 39th Police Districts in Philadelphia. Parolees attend a one-time meeting with law enforcement and community members imploring them refrain from violence and firearms possession. Law enforcement officials deliver a clear message of deterrence, warning parolees that if they continue to commit crime, they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Following this meeting, parolees receive connections to resources to assist with their re-entry process into general society.

“Our Office is invested in the successful re-entry of previously convicted individuals to our communities for many reasons, chief among them is ensuring public safety,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Once their debt to society has been paid and their sentence served, previously convicted individuals often require extra support and services to become productive citizens, which is why the PSN Call-In Program exists. But participants are made aware that if they don’t adhere to the terms of the program including refraining from committing additional crimes, they will face serious federal charges as a result.”

“ATF is determined to make our streets safer by working with our local, state, and federal partners,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division.  “We are committed to identifying and prosecuting armed criminals, especially repeat offenders, and remove them from our communities.” 

“The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections and the Parole Field Services Department in particular sincerely appreciate the support and cooperation the U.S. Attorney’s Office has invested in this matter as well as in our ongoing partnership,” said Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Acting Secretary George Little. “Continued communication and collaboration between all levels of law enforcement is essential to building stronger, safer communities.”

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, with assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department Highway Patrol, and is being prosecuted by AUSA Jeanine Linehan, Chief of the Violent Crimes Unit, and Assistant United States Attorney Katherine Shulman.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Mark Houck, 48, of Kintnersville, PA, was charged by Indictment with a violation of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, which makes it a federal crime to use force with the intent to injure, intimidate, and interfere with anyone because that person is a provider of reproductive health care. The defendant was arrested and made his initial appearance in federal court on these charges earlier today.

According to court documents, the defendant is alleged to have twice assaulted a man because he was a volunteer reproductive health care clinic escort. The charges stem from two separate incidents both on October 13, 2021, which occurred at the Planned Parenthood Elizabeth Blackwell Health Center on Locust Street in Philadelphia, where Houck allegedly assaulted the victim, a 72-year-old man, identified in the Indictment as “B.L.,” because B.L. was a volunteer escort at the reproductive health care clinic. In the first incident, B.L. was attempting to escort two patients exiting the clinic, when the defendant forcefully shoved B.L. to the ground. In the second incident, the defendant verbally confronted B.L. and forcefully shoved B.L. to the ground in front of the Planned Parenthood center, causing injuries to B.L. that required medical attention.

“Assault is always a serious offense, and under the FACE Act, if the victim is targeted because of their association with a reproductive healthcare clinic, it is a federal crime,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Our Office and the Department of Justice are committed to prosecuting crimes which threaten the safety and rights of all individuals.”

“Put simply, violence is never the answer,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Philadelphia Division. “Violating the FACE Act by committing a physical assault is a serious crime for which the FBI will work to hold offenders accountable.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 11 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and fines of up to $350,000.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anita Eve and DOJ Trial Attorney Sanjay Patel of the Civil Rights Division.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Bruce Minor, 46, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to two years in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $462,256 restitution and forfeit the same amount by United States District Court Judge Chad F. Kenney for his scheme to embezzle money from his former employer, the Philadelphia Veterans’ Affairs Medical Center (VAMC).

In May 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government funds. The charge arose from his theft of approximately $487,000 in Veterans Affairs travel reimbursement funds, which he helped administer as part of his official duties as a travel clerk. In order to perpetrate the theft, Minor created fraudulent travel reimbursement claims in the names of at least three other VAMC employees and then diverted the fraudulently obtained funds into bank accounts he controlled. According to court documents, in an email to VAMC management, the defendant admitted to stealing approximately $13,000 in travel funds, though subsequent investigation showed that he stole upwards of $487,000 between December 2015 and September 2019.

“Americans – and especially the men and women who have served in uniform – deserve public employees who do their jobs honestly and with integrity,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This defendant selfishly took advantage of his position with the VA to commit fraud, cheating both the veterans who rely on VA programs and the taxpayers who fund those services.”

“This defendant deceitfully used his position at VA to steal funds to which he was not entitled,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher F. Algieri of the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General’s Northeast Field Office. “This illegal conduct compromises the integrity of VA programs and wastes funds that could otherwise be used for the benefit of our nation’s veterans. The VA OIG thanks the US Attorney’s Office for its commitment throughout this investigation.”

The case was investigated by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Diviny.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Duane Taylor, 47, of Brooklyn, New York, was charged by Indictment with kidnapping after abducting a minor child from her home in Reading, Pennsylvania, and transporting the child to his residence last month. The defendant made his initial appearance in federal court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on these charges earlier today.

According to court documents, on the morning of August 31, 2022, City of Reading Police officers responded to the victim’s home when the child’s mother reported her missing from her bedroom, where she had last seen her around 10:30 p.m. the evening prior before going to bed. After searching for the child, her mother observed the back door of her residence was wide open, and law enforcement found the chain lock on that door was broken. Investigators reviewed video surveillance footage from the home’s security system, which showed a person entering the living room area at approximately 2:00 a.m., and proceeding to the stairs leading to the second floor. A short time later, the victim is seen walking down those stairs and through the living room, followed by the person who was later identified as the defendant, whom the victim’s mother also stated was her former boyfriend. Reading investigators contacted the New York City Police Department, who traced the defendant to his residence in Brooklyn, but did not locate the victim there. The victim was located later that day when a citizen called 911 to report a child alone and asking for help because she had been kidnapped from Pennsylvania.

“On August 31, 2022, millions of people received notification of an Amber Alert for a missing child from Reading, PA. Thanks to the hard work of investigators in Pennsylvania and New York City, the alleged kidnapper was swiftly tracked down and the child was found and reunited with her mother,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “As any parent can understand, this was a terrifying situation for this family, and this defendant will now appear in federal court to answer to these charges.”

“Imagine one morning finding your home’s door broken open and your child’s bed empty,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “It’s a parent’s worst nightmare come true. We’re so thankful that this young victim was recovered safely, and for the great collaboration by law enforcement partners in locating and arresting her alleged abductor. Anyone who would harm a child like this is simply depraved and must be held accountable.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of life in prison.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Reading Police Department, and the New York City Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sherri A. Stephan.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Ernest Pressley, 42, of Philadelphia, PA, pleaded guilty before United States District Court Judge Eduardo C. Robreno to one count of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and four counts of use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire, in connection with Pressley’s role in murdering four victims in Philadelphia between 2017 and 2018, all in exchange for money. As part of the guilty plea, the defendant also admitted to his role in the killing of two other victims in 2016 and 2017, and the attempted murder of a woman in 2018.  Charging documents and court filings detailing these crimes were unsealed today in connection with the plea hearing.

In late 2018, the Philadelphia Police Department joined with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate Pressley in connection with the murder of a victim known as S.S., who was shot to death in the parking lot of a Philadelphia apartment complex near 7400 Malvern Avenue in the early morning hours of September 1, 2018. The defendant was captured on video surveillance footage near the scene and in footage retrieved from a bar in Philadelphia the evening before, when he was with S.S. and several other men. Pressley was arrested in connection with this crime on September 7, 2018.

The ensuing investigation revealed that Pressley was responsible for other murders in Philadelphia, including the killings of two tow truck drivers who worked for the business A. Bob’s Towing on January 12 and 13, 2017. The defendant agreed to kill a tow truck driver known as K.F. in exchange for money, in order to prevent K.F. from testifying as a witness at an assault trial in Philadelphia. In an effort to distract law enforcement from the true motivation for K.F.’s murder and to make it appear as though it was connected to a feud between rival tow truck companies, Pressley selected at random one of K.F.’s co-workers, a victim known as E.R., and shot him to death as he left work on January 12, 2017, near 4500 Melrose Street. The next day, Pressley approached K.F. as he left his home and entered his tow truck, which was being driven by a co-worker, at which time Pressley opened fire, fatally striking K.F. and injuring his co-worker, who was shot several times in his lower body.   

As the investigation developed further, Pressley was also identified as the person who shot a victim known as M.R. to death in Philadelphia on January 11, 2017, near the intersection of East Sharpnack and Baldwin Streets, while M.R. worked on his vehicle at a garage in the area. 

During the guilty plea allocution before Judge Robreno earlier today, Pressley admitted that he murdered M.R., E.R., K.F., and S.S., in exchange for money and at the direction of a drug trafficker. Around the time of each crime, Pressley used his cellular phone to communicate with his co-conspirator to plan how and when each murder would be carried out. His use of a cell phone to facilitate each of the killings is a federal offense. Pressley’s conviction by way of his guilty plea carries a mandatory life sentence in prison. 

Further, Pressley admitted to shooting a victim known as C.Y. to death on July 19, 2016, as C.Y. sat on the porch of a residence near 1500 West Olney Avenue in Philadelphia. The defendant also admitted to his role in providing the location of a man he knew was wanted dead by a Philadelphia drug trafficker, which later resulted in the death of a victim known as Y.H., who was killed as the result of mistaken identity near the intersection of 56th Street and Ithan Street on July 24, 2018. Finally, Pressley admitted that he attempted to kill a woman when he shot her in the arm as she arrived at her Philadelphia home on North Woodstock Street on July 9, 2018. While the woman survived a gunshot wound, she later discovered that her home had been ransacked and several items were stolen, including money and jewelry. Several hours later, Pressley was identified as having sold a Rolex watch belonging to the woman at a Philadelphia pawn shop. 

“By his own admission, Ernest Pressley is an incredibly dangerous individual with no qualms about accepting money to calculatedly and cold-bloodedly murder anyone,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “With today’s guilty plea and thanks to the dedicated efforts of the investigators on this case, this defendant will now spend the rest of his life behind bars for these heinous crimes.”

“We’ve long known that much of Philadelphia’s violent crime is committed by a discrete group of chronic offenders,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Ernest Pressley is a case in point. Today, he’s admitted to murdering six people and trying to kill a seventh. He’s an obvious menace with zero respect for human life and the city is unequivocally safer with him behind bars. The FBI and Philadelphia Police Department are working in lockstep and bringing all our resources to bear, as we home in on these violent criminals leaving bodies in their wake.” 

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Philadelphia Police Department, and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin Ashenfelter.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Taylor Thompson, 27; Tiana Fairfax, 29, both of Philadelphia, PA, and Theodore Robinson, 29, of Upper Darby, PA, were arrested and charged by Indictment with seven counts of wire fraud in connection with their scheme to defraud their employer, a national airline carrier, out of ticket fare revenue by recruiting customers to book inexpensive flights which they didn’t intend to use, upgrading those customers to more expensive flights which the customers actually wanted by using supervisors’ computer access codes, and then charging the customers a ‘commission’ and pocketing that money rather than charging the customer the full price of the upgraded flight.

The Indictment alleges that in 2017 and 2018, defendant Thompson was an employee in a supervisory role with a major U.S. airline headquartered in Florida, and defendants Fairfax and Robinson worked as customer service agents with the same airline. In those jobs, the defendants had access to the airline’s computerized reservation system and were able to book flight reservations; supervisors like Thompson had the ability to use a special code at their discretion to make changes in the reservation system without charging customers the additional costs associated with modified reservations. In general, if a passenger changed their itinerary, airline policy required that the passenger pay the full price of the modified itinerary, which was often more expensive than the itinerary that the passenger originally booked. Although supervisors had the ability to modify a reservation without assessing those charges, under Airline policy, those charges were only to be waived under extenuating circumstances, such as a death in the passenger's family.

In March 2018, Thompson allegedly approached another employee and co-schemer about participating in a scheme to skim money from airline fares, and asked that employee for access to their Cash App account in order to receive payments directly from customers. Thompson made money from the scheme by charging customers for whom she booked and modified a flight reservation more for the flight than the price of the original itinerary (that is, the amount that was paid to the airline), but less than the true cost of the new, modified itinerary. The defendant retained the additional amount paid to her by the customer as a commission for her services. Defendants Fairfax and Robinson allegedly joined the scheme by modifying flight reservations for customers without charging them the difference in cost by utilizing Thompson’s supervisory airline credentials. In 2018, when Thompson was terminated by the airline, a second co-schemer was approached to join the scheme in order to utilize their supervisory credentials in order to modify flight reservations.

According to the Indictment, between December 2017 and August 2018, all three defendants along with the two co-schemers modified more than 1,700 flight reservations without compensating the airline for the increased cost of those modified reservations, for a total loss to the airline of more than $283,000.

“As alleged, these defendants used access and privileges granted by virtue of their employment to cheat the airline reservation system and skim money off the top for themselves,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute fraud schemes wherever they occur.”

“Supplementing your paycheck by scamming your employer is a criminally bad career move,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Fraud is never the ticket to lasting financial gain, as these defendants have now discovered. Instead, it’s landed them in court to answer for their alleged actions. The FBI stands ready to investigate financial crimes wherever they may occur.”   

The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica Rice.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Rafael Robinson, 35, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to seventeen years and six months in prison, ten years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $459,000 restitution by United States District Judge C. Darnell Jones II, for sex trafficking of an adult by force.

The defendant is the fourth and final member of a brutal sex trafficking ring in West Philadelphia to be sentenced. According to court documents, the four defendants ran a strip club, known as “Club Passions,” and a brothel, known as “Passionate Touch,” at a leased property in the Mill Creek section of West Philadelphia. Along with his three co-defendants, the defendant engaged in acts of force, threats, fraud and coercion to cause a young woman referenced as “Person 1” in the second Superseding Indictment to engage in prostitution over the course of approximately three years, including subjecting her to repeated acts of sadistic torture.

The defendant and his co-defendant, Kevino Graham, were convicted by a jury on February 5, 2016. Graham was convicted of two counts of sex trafficking by force, and attempted sex trafficking by force, and was sentenced to 100 years in prison. Co-defendant Brian Wright pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 21 years and ten months in prison. Co-defendant Renato Teixeira pleaded guilty and was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison.

“The crimes committed in this case were truly horrific,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “And while the victims may never fully recover from the crimes committed against them, they can rest assured that these four perpetrators have now been brought to justice. Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners at all levels to relentlessly investigate and prosecute human trafficking crimes.”

“The actions of Rafael Robinson and his co-defendants were unconscionable,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “While it’s gratifying to see the last member of this sex trafficking ring handed a lengthy term, no sentence can make up for the terrible physical and emotional harm these men inflicted. We hope those they victimized continue to heal with each new day that passes. Combatting sex trafficking remains squarely in the FBI’s sights, as we work to free victims from such cruel and calculating exploitation and to hold accountable the ruthless criminals who would engage in such heinous acts.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department Special Victims Unit and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Morgan.

PHILADELPHIA –United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Saifuddin Hasan, 21, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged by Indictment with three counts of Hobbs Act Robbery in connection with three armed robberies which all occurred on the same night in December 2021, in Montgomery County and Philadelphia.

The Indictment alleges that on the night of December 5, 2021, the defendant entered a 7-Eleven convenience store on City Avenue in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, and brandished a firearm as he committed his first robbery. Then, according to the Indictment, Hasan drove east bound to a Lukoil gas station on City Avenue and committed his second armed robbery. The defendant capped off his night of violence by continuing in his vehicle eastbound on Route 1 into the Hunting Park section of North Philadelphia and allegedly committed an armed robbery of a 7-Eleven convenience store at Wyoming and Rising Sun Avenues. Philadelphia police officers pursued and arrested Hasan after this third armed robbery.

“As alleged, this defendant brandished a firearm in the faces of convenience store and gas station employees simply doing their jobs,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “The charges in this Indictment demonstrate that our Office is committed to investigating and prosecuting violent crime.”

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.  The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

The case was investigated and charged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael R. Miller and Special Assistant United States Attorney Shannon Zabel.  

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Northeast Discount Pharmacy will pay $200,000 to resolve allegations that it failed to comply with various record-keeping requirements for controlled substances.

Northeast Discount Pharmacy, a Philadelphia pharmacy wholly owned by pharmacist Patrick Assifuah, is a registered retail pharmacy authorized to purchase and dispense Schedule II-V controlled substances. The settlement announced today resolves allegations that between April 2018 and January 2021, Northeast Discount Pharmacy failed to maintain complete and accurate electronic records of controlled substances, and to prepare appropriate Drug Enforcement Administration forms. For example, the settlement resolves allegations that Northeast Discount Pharmacy failed to maintain appropriate inventories of controlled substances including Endocet 10/235mg (Percocet 10/325mg and Oxycodone 10/325mg), Oxycodone 5mg, Oxycodone 15 mg, and Oxycodone 30mg.

In addition to the $200,000 penalty, Northeast Discount Pharmacy is also now subject to a number of monitoring requirements, including reporting of controlled substance purchasing, dispensing, and prescribing to the Drug Enforcement Administration, as well as sharing Standard Operating Procedures pertaining to all aspects of purchasing, storing, and distributing controlled substances.

“Controlled substances, especially opioids, pose extraordinary risks to our communities in this district,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “When pharmacies are granted the privilege of purchasing controlled substances, they also accept the significant responsibility of ensuring that controlled substances are used for a legitimate medical purpose and generating the records necessary for accountability and transparency. When this does not happen, we will work with our law enforcement partners, use all available enforcement tools, and hold these pharmacies responsible.”

“Pharmacies are entrusted with the dispensing of powerful prescription painkillers such as oxycodone and Percocet. With that responsibility comes the obligation to properly safeguard and account for these same drugs,” said Thomas Hodnett, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division.  “Civil settlements and the monitoring requirements imposed against Northeast Discount Pharmacy help to ensure that these safeguards are met.” 

This investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Philadelphia Field Division. For the United States Attorney’s Office, Assistant United States Attorney Deborah W. Frey and former Assistant United States Attorney P.J. Koob handled the investigation and settlement.

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