Middle District of Tennessee
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Former Cumberland County Solid Waste Director Indicted for Civil Rights ViolationsRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A nine-count indictment was unsealed today charging the former Cumberland County, Tennessee Solid Waste Director with civil rights violations, including kidnapping and sexually assaulting women that he supervised, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee. A federal grand jury in Nashville on Monday indicted Michael Harvel, 59, of Crossville, Tennessee. FBI agents arrested Harvel at his home this morning and he will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge later today.
According to the indictment, Harvel was the Director of Solid Waste for Cumberland County with an office located in the Cumberland County Recycling Center. Harvel’s official duties included supervising workers at the recycling center and at other satellite locations and county landfills where he supervised dozens of women who served their community service time or worked as paid employees.
The indictment alleges that between 2015-2018, Harvel sexually assaulted seven women under his supervision. Specific allegations include that he kidnapped and sexually assaulted two women and forcibly raped one of them on two separate occasions.
During one incident in July 2017, Harvel confined a woman in a locked room at a county facility, physically pushed her onto a table and sexually assaulted her. In another incident in November 2015, Harvel approached another woman in a dark office, physically pushed her onto a desk and raped her. In December 2015, Harvel drove this same woman to an isolated landfill and raped her again.
The indictment alleges several other incidents of sexual assault, including fondling the breasts and genitals of other women under his supervision and against their will.
If convicted, Harvel faces up to life in prison.
This case is being investigated by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Beth Myers and Trial Attorney Michael Songer of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Owner of Spring Hill-Based Crestar Labs, LLC Charged in Massive Medicare Fraud SchemeRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – The owner and Chief Executive Officer of Spring Hill, Tennessee-based Crestar Labs, LLC, (Crestar) was charged Friday with aiding and abetting and violation of the anti-kickback statute for his role in orchestrating a fraudulent Medicare billing scheme relating to genetic testing in cancer patients, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
The criminal complaint was unsealed yesterday and outlined the charges against Fadel Alshalabi, 53, of Waxhaw, North Carolina. Alshalabi was arrested by federal agents Sunday evening in Chicago and will return to the Middle District of Tennessee to face the charges.
The complaint alleges that beginning as early as 2016, Alshalabi, as the owner of Crestar, engaged in a scheme to pay illegal health care kickbacks in exchange for the solicitation of genetic tests from Medicare beneficiaries. In addition to the laboratory in Spring Hill, Alshalabi owned associated labs in other locations, including Karemore Labs in Baltimore, Maryland, and Martis Labs and CrestarDX in Dallas, Texas.
Alshalabi, as the owner and Chief Executive Officer, contracted with marketing companies to target and recruit elderly patients who were federal health care program beneficiaries in order to obtain their genetic material for conducting genetic tests. Marketers, who were not health care professionals, obtained swabs from the mouths of the patients at nursing homes, senior health fairs, and elsewhere. The tests were then approved by telemedicine doctors who did not engage in the treatment of the patients, and often did not even speak with the patients for whom they ordered tests. Often, the patients or their treating physicians never received the results of the tests. Alshalabi paid illegal kickbacks and bribes in exchange for the doctor’s orders and tests, without regard to any medical necessity. During the period of late 2017 to present, Crestar billed Medicare approximately $86 million for genetic testing and was paid almost $14 million for those claims.
If convicted, Alshlabi faces up to 10 years in prison.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services- Office of Inspector General and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah K. Bogni is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Hendersonville Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Arson Charges in Connection to Metro Courthouse FireRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A Hendersonville, Tennessee man charged last year with the malicious destruction of property at the Metro Courthouse pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee. Wesley Somers, 26, was charged in a criminal complaint on June 3, 2020, following protests which escalated to acts of violence and intimidation on the evening of May 30, 2020. Somers was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 14, 2020.
On the afternoon of May 30, 2020, protesters gathered in downtown Nashville following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Later in the evening, several persons gathered in front of the Nashville City Hall, also known as the Metro Courthouse, and began smashing the windows of the premises and spraying graffiti on the Courthouse facade. One or more fires were also set inside of the Courthouse at this time.
Numerous video clips and photographs of the destruction at the Courthouse were posted on social media websites, on the websites for news outlets, and on other Internet sites. Somers is depicted in video clips and photographs from that evening attempting to smash windows of the Courthouse. One photograph depicted Somers holding an unknown accelerant, which had been set on fire, and placing the accelerant through the window of the Courthouse.
Somers was quickly identified by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department – Specialized Investigation Division, after receiving numerous tips from citizens.
Somers will be sentenced on December 1, 2021, and faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 20 years in prison.
This case was investigated by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department; the FBI; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; Assistant U.S. Attorney Ben Schrader; and Trial Attorney Justin Sher of the Department’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case.
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Clarksville Business Owner Indicted on Tax FraudRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A Clarksville, Tennessee, business owner was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury on four counts of tax fraud, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
David Haley, 64, the owner and operator of Haley & Associates Mechanical Contractors, faces four counts of filing false tax returns for tax years 2014-2017. The indictment alleges that even though Haley’s business compensation was well in excess of $1 million for each of the tax years, he falsely reported that he received zero business income. The indictment also alleges that except for a small payment in 2012, neither Haley nor his business paid federal income taxes for 2008 through 2017.
If convicted, Haley faces up to three years in prison and up to a $250,000 fine on each count.
This case was investigated by the IRS-Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn W. Booth is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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World Elder Abuse Awareness DayRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart today, reminded the elderly and those responsible for their care to be cautious and vigilant in their financial and healthcare affairs to prevent them from becoming victims of scams and other abuses which target elderly and vulnerable populations.
“As we emerge from the pandemic, it is critical that we inform and educate our older population about the vast number of emerging scams which target the elderly,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Stewart. “Elder-fraud schemes were on the rise even before the pandemic and now we are seeing an explosive amount of fraudulent activity designed to profit from the abuse of senior citizens. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners will continue to vigorously pursue individuals and corporations who target the elderly with their scams.”
Individuals are reminded to use caution when encountering high-pressure sales tactics; being asked to pay “up front” fees; responding to unsolicited emails and phone calls from services that were not requested; or being asked to provide personal information, just to name a few examples. Other scams presently on the rise include fake post-vaccine scams; fake unemployment benefit and stimulus scams; grandparent scams; and others pretending to represent law enforcement.
Recent enforcement efforts by the U.S. Attorney’s Office involving scams targeting the elderly include:
- The settlement of False Claims Act allegations against SavaSeniorCare for $11.2 million. Allegations in this case included medically unnecessary rehabilitation therapy services and grossly substandard skilled nursing services provided to elderly patients in nursing homes.
- On May 13, 2021, Fredrick Stow, a former investments advisor, was sentenced to federal prison for defrauding two elderly investors of more than $933,000.
- On May 12, 2021, Karl Hampton and his wife Deborah Hampton, both of Franklin, Tennessee, were charged with defrauding an elderly widow and dementia patient of $1.7 million by convincing the woman that Karl Hampton was her son and acquiring a Power of Attorney over her affairs.
Elder abuse is widespread. Help spread the word and keep our elders informed.
If you are a victim of elder fraud, or know someone who is, take action and call the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-372-8311.
More information and additional resources on elder abuse and prevention can be found by visiting the National Center on Elder Abuse website (NCEA) https://ncea.acl.gov . Additional resources can be found here .
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Cannon County, Tennessee Resolves ADA Complaint over Sports FacilityRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – Cannon County, Tennessee has resolved a complaint that it was constructing a school sports facility that did not comply with the accessibility standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
“We appreciate the willingness of the County and Cannon County Schools Director William Curtis to resolve these issues so that all individuals with disabilities – students and spectators – can utilize a sports facility that complies with the ADA for years to come,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Stewart. “This successful resolution was achieved because of concerned citizens, who are the eyes and ears of their communities and help this Office ensure that there is equal access in all areas of the Middle District.”
On April 23, 2019, the United States notified Cannon County that it was investigating a complaint that the sports facility was not being constructed in accordance with ADA standards, and specifically did not comply with parking, signage, and accessibility requirements. The United States sought information on the status of the construction, including photographs and architectural plans to demonstrate ADA compliance. Cannon County promptly responded to the requests.
Despite delays for budgetary reasons and the pandemic, Cannon County continued to update the United States as to its progress in constructing the facility and resolved the issues the United States identified in the construction phase. Cannon County then entered into a Letter of Resolution whereby it agreed to make certain remaining changes to the facility to comply with ADA accessibility requirements, including parking, signage and accessibility of the entrance and restrooms. Once the facility and parking areas are completed, Cannon County has agreed to provide evidence that the remaining items are in compliance with the ADA.
General information about the ADA, is available through the ADA information line at 800-514-0301 (voice), 800-514-0383 (TTY), or on the ADA homepage at www.ada.gov. If you believe your civil rights have been violated, including ADA rights, you may submit a report to the Department of Justice at https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/.
The Letter of Resolution does not constitute a finding by the United States that Cannon County is in full compliance with the ADA, nor does it constitute an admission by Cannon County of fault or noncompliance with the ADA.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kara F. Sweet represented the United States in the matter.
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United States and Tennessee File Suit Against Curo Health Services and Related EntitiesRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – The United States and Tennessee today filed a consolidated complaint in intervention alleging violations of the False Claims Act and the Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act by Curo Health Services Holdings, Inc., Curo Health Services, LLC, TNMO Healthcare, LLC (d/b/a Avalon Hospice), and Regency Healthcare Group, LLC, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee and Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III. The complaint also states common law claims, including unjust enrichment and payment under mistake of fact.
As set forth in detail in the complaint, since at least 2010, the defendants violated the False Claims Act and the Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act by knowingly submitting or causing to be submitted false claims, and knowingly and improperly concealing or avoiding Avalon’s obligation to repay overpayments, for hospice services provided to patients who were ineligible for the Medicare or Medicaid hospice benefit because they were not terminally ill.
The complaint alleges that the defendants pressured staff at their Tennessee hospice agencies to maximize admissions and census through aggressive financial targets and incentives, while simultaneously discouraging the discharge of patients who were no longer eligible for the Medicare or Medicaid hospice benefit. Moreover, the complaint alleges that the defendants failed to ensure that physicians who provided legally required and material certifications and recertifications of patients’ terminal illnesses received or adequately considered complete and accurate information regarding patients’ conditions. Furthermore, the complaint alleges that even after the defendants were made aware through internal complaints and audits that they had billed for hospice services provided to Medicare or Medicaid beneficiaries who were not hospice-eligible, they did not return Medicare or Medicaid payments they had received.
The governments began investigating the wrongdoing alleged in today’s complaint in response to lawsuits filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act and the Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act, which allow private citizens with knowledge of false claims to bring civil suits on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery.
The matter was investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kaitlin E. Hazard and Wynn M. Shuford represent the United States, and Assistant Attorney General Scott Corley represents Tennessee.
The claims alleged by the United States and Tennessee are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability. The lawsuit is captioned United States and the State of Tennessee ex. rel. Lisa Pence, et al. v. Curo Health Services Holdings, Inc., et al., Case No. 3:13-cv-00672 (M.D. Tenn.).
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SavaSeniorCare LLC Agrees to Pay $11.2 Million to Resolve False Claims Act AllegationsRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – SavaSeniorCare LLC and related entities (Sava), based in Georgia, have agreed to pay $11.2 million, plus additional amounts if certain financial contingencies occur, to resolve allegations that Sava violated the False Claims Act by causing its skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) to bill the Medicare program for rehabilitation therapy services that were not reasonable, necessary or skilled, and to resolve allegations that Sava billed the Medicare and Medicaid programs for grossly substandard skilled nursing services. Sava currently owns and operates SNFs across the country.
“Nursing home operators will be held accountable when they engage in fraudulent schemes and put their own financial gain ahead of the needs of their vulnerable residents,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “To ensure the integrity of our public health care programs, the department will pursue operators who bill Medicare and Medicaid for unnecessary or grossly substandard services and who fail to provide adequate care.”
In 2015, the government filed a consolidated False Claims Act complaint against Sava, alleging that between October 2008 and September 2012, Sava knowingly submitted false claims for rehabilitation therapy services as a result of a systematic effort to increase its Medicare billings. The United States’ complaint alleged that, through corporate-wide policies and practices, Sava exerted significant pressure on its SNFs to meet unrealistic financial goals, resulting in the provision of medically unreasonable, unnecessary, or unskilled services to Medicare patients. Sava allegedly set these aggressive, prospective corporate targets for the highest Medicare reimbursement rates without regard for its patients’ actual clinical needs and then pressured its staff to meet those targets. Sava also allegedly sought to increase its Medicare payments by delaying the discharge of patients from its facilities, even though the patients were medically ready to be discharged.
This settlement also resolves allegations that between October 2008 and September 2012, Sava knowingly submitted false claims to Medicaid for coinsurance amounts for rehabilitation therapy services for beneficiaries eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid and for whom Sava also allegedly submitted or caused the submission of false claims to Medicare for those services.
In addition, this settlement resolves allegations that between January 2008 and December 2018, Sava knowingly submitted false claims for payment to Medicare and Medicaid for grossly and materially substandard and/or worthless skilled nursing services. The government alleged that some of the nursing services provided by Sava failed to meet federal standards of care and federal statutory and regulatory requirements, including failing to have sufficient staffing in certain facilities to meet certain residents’ needs. The government also alleged that in certain skilled nursing facilities, Sava failed to follow appropriate pressure ulcer protocols and appropriate falls protocols, and failed to appropriately administer medications to some of the residents.
“When corporate greed rises to the level of defrauding federal health care programs, while subjecting one of our most vulnerable populations to grossly substandard care and unnecessary medical services, we must hold the companies accountable,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee. “Any fraud that undermines the care being provided to elderly nursing home residents cannot continue and will be exposed and rooted out. We are grateful to the courageous whistleblowers who reported this egregious conduct.”
“Nursing home residents should not be at the mercy of nursing home operators that put their own economic gain ahead of the needs of the residents, and we will continue to aggressively pursue those operators who bill Medicare and Medicaid for substandard care,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. “This settlement holds Sava accountable, and the resulting Corporate Integrity Agreement should ensure that Sava provides seniors with quality care and treats its residents with dignity and respect.”
“Too many unscrupulous nursing homes operators seek maximum profit by routinely inflating bills while providing grossly substandard care,” said Special Agent in Charge Derrick L. Jackson for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Medicare and Medicaid patients deserve so much better. With our law enforcement partners, we will continue to investigate and hold accountable those who place profits over patients.”
Under the settlement with the United States, and separate settlements with participating states, Sava has agreed to pay a total of approximately $11.2 million, plus additional amounts if certain financial contingencies occur. The settlement was based on the company’s ability to pay.
In connection with the settlement, Sava entered into a five-year chain-wide Corporate Integrity Agreement (CIA) with HHS-OIG that requires an independent review organization to annually review patient stays and associated paid claims by Medicare for those stays. In addition, Sava is required to engage an Independent Monitor to review the quality of resident care. CIAs promote compliance and protect vulnerable nursing home residents.
The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act against Sava by Relators Rita Hayward, Trammel Kukoyi, Terrence Scott, James Thornton, and Barbara Roberts. Under those provisions, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery. The qui tam cases are captioned United States ex rel. Hayward v. SavaSeniorCare, LLC, et al., No. 3:11-cv-0821 (M.D. Tenn.); United States ex rel. Scott v. SavaSeniorCare Administrative Services, LLC, 3:15-cv-0404 (M.D. Tenn.); United States ex rel. Kukoyi v. Sava Senior Care, L.L.C., et al., No. 3:15-cv-1102 (M.D. Tenn.); and United States, et al. ex rel. Thornton, et al. v. SavaSeniorCare, Inc., et al., Civil Action No. 16-CV-0840 (E.D. Pa.).
The resolutions obtained in these matters were the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section, and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Middle District of Tennessee and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, with assistance from the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Southern District of Texas and the Western District of Texas, as well as from HHS-OIG and the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units. The quality of care investigation was supported by the Justice Department’s Elder Justice Initiative, which helps to coordinate the department’s law enforcement and programmatic efforts to combat elder abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation. Learn more about the Elder Justice Initiative and the department’s elder justice efforts at www.elderjustice.gov.
The investigation and resolution of these matters illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud. One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, can be reported to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).
These matters were handled by Fraud Section attorneys Alison Rousseau, Susan Lynch, Seth Greene, Breanna Peterson, Christopher Terranova, and Laura Hill; Assistant U.S. Attorney and Civil Chief Mark Wildasin of the Middle District of Tennessee; and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Charlene Fullmer, David Degnan, and Gerald Sullivan of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
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Macon County, Tennessee Resolves ADA Complaint over Courthouse Access for A Disabled Individual with A Service DogRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – Macon County, Tennessee has resolved a complaint that it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by denying a disabled individual accompanied by a service dog access to a public court proceeding, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
“The ADA prohibits disabled individuals with service dogs from being treated differently than non-disabled individuals in all manners of access to public facilities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Stewart. “We appreciate the prompt attention by Macon County to resolve these issues and ensure that all individuals with disabilities have equal access to the courthouse and that Macon County complies with the ADA.”
In December 2020, an individual with a disability recognized under the ADA attempted to enter the Macon County Courthouse in Lafayette, Tennessee, with a service dog to attend a public court proceeding. The Macon County General Sessions Judge would not allow the service dog to be permitted in his courtroom. Although Macon County received a complaint about the incident, no resolution was reached. The complaint was then brought to the attention of the U.S. Attorney’s Office to investigate whether an ADA violation occurred.
To resolve the complaint, Macon County entered into a Letter of Resolution whereby it agreed to post signage in the entry area to the courthouse and on the court’s public website indicating that service dogs are permitted in the courthouse. Macon County also will provide training to courthouse employees on the ADA and distribute DOJ guidance on allowing access to individuals with service dogs.
The Letter of Resolution does not constitute a finding by the United States that Macon County is in full compliance with the ADA, nor does it constitute an admission by Macon County of fault or noncompliance with the ADA.
General information about the ADA, is available through the ADA information line at 800-514-0301 (voice), 800-514-0383 (TTY), or on the ADA homepage at www.ada.gov. If you believe your civil rights have been violated, including ADA rights, you may submit a report to the Department of Justice at https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anica C. Jones and Kara F. Sweet represented the United States in this matter.
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Former Clarksville School Nurse Facing Federal Charges in Child Pornography InvestigationRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A criminal complaint unsealed today charged a former Clarksville, Tennessee school nurse with attempted production of child pornography, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Leon B. Hensley, 40, formerly of Clarksville and currently living in Lake Whales, Florida, was arrested this morning near his home in Florida. He will make an appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in Tampa later today.
According to the criminal complaint, from August 2017 through November 8, 2019, Hensley was employed as a nurse at North East High School (NEHS) in Clarksville. In November 2019, the Clarksville Police Department (CPD) received a referral from the Tennessee Department of Children Services advising that Hensley sent a digital image, via text message, of a nude adult female to a minor female in the Clarksville area. Hensley had been communicating with the minor female via text and asked her to help him with a photo shoot by posing for photos.
During the follow-on investigation by the CPD and a search of his phone, several images were discovered depicting the sexual exploitation of children. During a subsequent search warrant for Hensley’s house, numerous electronic devices were seized, including a small covert video camera. The initial examination of Hensley’s phone lead to the discovery of nude images which were identified as female students at NEHS. Due to the enormous amount of imagery on Hensley’s devices, the United States Secret Service joined the investigation and conducted a more thorough forensic examination of Hensley’s electronic devices. This examination located several imagery files depicting what appeared to be unidentified minor females photographed surreptitiously by a hidden camera while using a restroom. Other imagery files depict unidentified females in hospital examination rooms, pre-operation or post operation rooms, and nude females in tanning beds.
Last month, HSI agents joined the investigation and to date, more than 700 imagery files have been discovered of minor females in a single bathroom in various stages of undress and/or utilizing the bathroom facilities. The images appear to have been taken by a hidden or concealed camera. The camera was positioned in such a manner as to capture or attempt to capture the lewd and lascivious display of the genitalia and positioned in the same location in all of the images. The camera was positioned directly across and in front of the toilet seat, at toilet seat level. Further investigation determined that the bathroom depicted in the images is the private student bathroom in the nurse’s station at NEHS. Other images found geolocate to Tennova Hospital in Clarksville, where Hensley was employed prior to his employment at NEHS.
The investigation is continuing and to date, more than 40 victims are suspected to be students at NEHS and range in age from 12-17.
Hensley faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years, and up to life in prison if convicted.
This case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; the U.S. Secret Service; the FBI; and the Clarksville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Monica Morrison and Carrie Daughtrey are prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Lengthy & On-Going Investigation Results in Four Houston Area Men Charged in Mid-State ATM TheftsRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – Four Houston, Texas men are facing federal charges after a lengthy investigation by the FBI into a series of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) thefts in middle Tennessee and elsewhere, announced U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Elijah Diaz, 19; Troy Alan Parker, 18; Willie Charles White, 21; and Abraham Woods, 32, were arrested on the morning of April 26, at a hotel in Holladay, Tennessee, and charged with conspiracy and bank larceny, following the theft from an ATM machine in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, hours earlier.
According to the criminal complaint, for more than a year, the FBI Violent Crimes Task Force in Nashville has been investigating ATM thefts. Typically, the method of these thefts involve crews of individuals who steal a heavy duty capacity pickup truck, obtain large J-hooks and an industrial chain and then scout a free-standing ATM to target. These crews then use the stolen truck and approach the ATM in the early morning hours, wearing hoodies and masks. The shell of the ATM is then pried open and the J-hooks are attached to the safe and to the truck. The truck is then used to pull open the safe door, allowing access to the cash inside. After travelling to a pre-determined location, the crews offload the cash into other vehicles and abandon the stolen truck to avoid detection and apprehension.
On April 4, 2021, an ATM theft occurred at a Wilson Bank & Trust in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Video surveillance shows two suspects wearing dark clothing and ski masks arriving at the bank at 1:14 a.m. driving a Chevrolet 2500 pickup. The suspects then pried open the shell of the ATM and used the chain and hooks to force open the safe, before taking the cash and fleeing.
The investigation determined that the Chevrolet truck used in this theft had been stolen earlier in the evening on April 3rd. A review of the surveillance footage in the hours preceding the theft, identified a black Dodge Durango with a Texas license plate and the driver appeared to have been casing the machine. The FBI has also been coordinating the ATM theft investigations with the FBI Houston Office and the Houston Police Department Major Offenders Criminal Apprehension Team. The video was shared with Houston law enforcement and Willie White was quickly identified as the driver of the black Dodge Durango. Investigators also determined that the Murfreesboro Police Department had conducted a traffic stop of the Durango on April 2, 2021 and identified Elijah Diaz and Troy Parker as the occupants. Officers also noticed crowbars and chains in the rear of the vehicle.
On April 25, 2021, Houston law enforcement informed the Nashville FBI that White and others were in Nashville and were preparing for an ATM theft. At 2:27 a.m. on April 26th, an ATM theft occurred at the Wilson Bank & Trust in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. Surveillance cameras captured the theft where an individual in a hooded sweatshirt pried open the shell of the machine while another individual positioned a stolen pickup truck, attached hooks to the safe and drove forward, ripping open the safe. Both individuals then fled the scene with the cash from the ATM. The stolen pickup truck was found abandoned in Wilson County and contained several money cartridges from an ATM, scattered $20 bills, and crowbars. A review of the surveillance video preceding the theft also showed a black dodge Durango which appeared to be casing the ATM at 9:35 p.m. the previous evening.
Later in the morning on April 26th, the Dodge Durango was located at the Days Inn Hotel, near Interstate 40 in Holladay, Tenn. Shortly thereafter, the four defendants were arrested and investigators recovered more than $88,000 in cash. Investigators had also determined that the four had stayed at the Westin Hotel when they arrived in Nashville before carrying out the ATM theft and recovered several surveillance photos of the defendants and the vehicles used, including the Dodge Durango.
If convicted, the defendants face up to 10 years in prison.
The FBI continues to investigate ATM thefts across the region. If you have any information related to the thefts, please contact the Nashville FBI Office at 615-732-7500.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Nashville Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate CrimeRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – Christopher Beckham, 35, of Nashville, Tennessee, pleaded guilty Friday in U.S. District Court to violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. Beckham was indicted in April 2018 after an investigation into an incident that occurred on October 24, 2017.
“The cowardly and unprovoked attack and display of hate-filled aggression by this defendant toward two innocent young girls and their father is despicable,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart. “I commend the work of the FBI and our prosecutors in bringing this individual to justice.”
“The defendant confronted two young girls who were walking home from school and violently attacked their father because of how they worship,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Pamela S. Karlan for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “An attack upon the free exercise of any person’s religious beliefs is an attack on that person’s civil rights. The Department of Justice will continue to vigorously prosecute such violent acts motivated by hate.”
“Hate crimes are the highest priority of the FBI’s Civil Rights program due to the devastating impact they have on families and communities,” said Douglas M. Korneski, Special Agent in Charge of the Memphis Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. “The FBI is committed to protecting the civil rights of all people, and we will aggressively pursue those who commit criminal offenses based on bias.”
Beckham admitted that on October 24, 2017, he saw two teenage girls wearing hijabs and yelled, “Allahu Akbar!” and “Go back to your country!” When the girls’ father arrived to pick up his daughters from the school bus stop to take them home, Beckham attacked the girls’ father by swinging a knife and punching at him. This attack injured the father. When the girls’ mother arrived on the scene with her young child in her car, Beckham, with his knife still drawn, chased after them. After the police took Beckham into custody at the scene, he called the family “terrorists,” made other derogatory comments about the family, and pledged to kill them when the police released him. Beckham further admitted that he carried out this assault because of the actual and perceived religion and national origin of the victims, namely that he perceived them to be Muslim and of a nationality other than American.
In September 2019, this case was tried by a jury in U.S. District Court. The trial ended in a hung jury.
Beckham will be sentenced on October 7, 2021.
This case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sara Beth Myers of the Middle District of Tennessee and Trial Attorney Michael Songer of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.
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Former Mid-State Securities Broker Sentenced to Federal Prison for Stealing from Elderly ClientsRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A former Investments Vice President at Raymond James & Associates, Inc. (Raymond James), was sentenced yesterday to five years in prison for stealing $933,500 from two elderly clients, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Fredrick M. Stow, 66, of Franklin, Tennessee, was charged in June 2020 with securities fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft and pleaded guilty in August. In a separate action, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil action against Stow, alleging violations of the antifraud provisions of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
In sentencing Stow, U.S. District Judge Aleta A. Trauger issued a stern rebuke of those in a position of trust who manage investments for others, especially the elderly, and choose to steal from them. Judge Trauger also ordered a forfeiture money judgement in the amount of $933,500.
According to Court records, beginning in 1982, Stow acted as the registered representative for three brokerage accounts owned by a client who was a retired airline pilot and WWII era veteran. Stow changed investment firms several times and the client elected to move his accounts with Stow each time, ultimately transferring his accounts to Raymond James when Stow joined the firm in 2013. Over time, Stow inserted himself into the financial affairs of this client and in the later years of the client’s life, he visited him at his home. Relatives at the hearing testified that the client died believing that his dwindling investment accounts were caused solely by stock market activity.
In October 2015, Stow began misappropriating funds from this client’s IRA account by forging wire transfer letters of authorization to permit transfers from the client’s IRA account to a SunTrust Bank account that Stow owned jointly with his wife. To accomplish the transfers, Stow sold securities in the client’s IRA account.
At the time of this client’s death at the age of 98 in March 2018, Stow had made 74 unauthorized transfers and had stolen more than $900,000 from him. Within weeks of this client’s death, Stow stole $32,000 from another elderly brokerage customer, by transferring money from the customer’s brokerage account to another SunTrust bank account that Stow owned.
This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the SEC. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie N. Toussaint prosecuted the case.
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Franklin, Tennessee Couple Charged with Defrauding Elderly Widow of $1.7 MillionRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A criminal complaint unsealed today charged a Franklin, Tennessee couple with an elaborate scheme to defraud an elderly widow of $1.7 million, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee. FBI agents this morning, arrested Karl Hampton, 63, and his wife, Deborah Hampton, 59, at their home. Karl Hampton is charged with wire fraud and money laundering and Deborah Hampton is charged with money laundering. Both will make an initial appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge later today.
According to the criminal complaint, Karl Hampton met an elderly widow while he was working as an exterminator for a Belle Meade-based pest control company and provided extermination services for her home from approximately January 2016 through May 2019.
Beginning in approximately January 2018, when the elderly woman was 85 years old, and continuing until about June 2020, Karl Hampton devised and executed a scheme to defraud the woman and various financial institutions and credit and loan-issuing institutions by deceiving the woman into believing that he was her son or godson and that he would care for her personally and financially. He then used his influence over her to convince her to sign over her Power of Attorney (POA) and to name him in her Revocable Living Trust (RLT) and in her will. Karl Hampton methodically drained the woman’s bank accounts, took out a $500,000 line of credit in her name using her securities as collateral, and amassed huge charges on her credit cards for his own personal expenses, all under the false pretenses that he had a valid POA, that he was entitled to her money and property, and that he was acting for her benefit and in her interest.
In April 2019, Karl Hampton accompanied the woman to an attorney’s office, where she signed a POA, a RLT and a will, each of which purported to give Karl Hampton considerable control over her assets. The POA appointed Karl Hampton as the Agent and Deborah Hampton as the successor agent. The RLT and the will specified that Karl Hampton and Deborah Hampton would be beneficiaries when the woman died. In May 2019, shortly after inducing the woman to sign the POA, Karl Hampton quit his job and thereafter continued to drain the woman’s bank accounts to fund his lavish lifestyle.
On June 8, 2019, the woman fell and fractured her hip and was transported to Williamson County Medical Center (WCMC) and then to NHC of Cool Springs (NHC), which was an assisted living facility, for recovery following hip surgery. During her hospital visit and transfer to NHC, the woman was diagnosed with dementia. Staff at NHC also noted that the woman was malnourished when she arrived, and staff discussed with Karl Hampton that she suffered from dementia. Upon the woman’s admission to WCMC and on the application to place her at NHC, Karl Hampton listed himself as her “son,” her trustee, POA, and emergency contact. On other occasions, Karl Hampton called a financial institution, allegedly on the woman’s behalf, and represented that he was her “personal assistant” and another time falsely represented that she was his “mother.”
In December 2019, Karl Hampton took out a $500,000 line of credit in the woman’s name at SunTrust, using her security accounts at SunTrust as collateral. Karl Hampton then wrote checks to himself, purchased cashier’s checks, took out cash withdrawals, and transferred money out of the woman’s bank account and into a bank account in the name of Falcon Company, which he set up and controlled.
In January 2020, Karl Hampton used $170,000 of the money from the line of credit to purchase an ownership interest in his own name in a pest control business located in Franklin. Also, in January 2020 Karl Hampton rented an apartment in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in the woman’s name. By this time, the woman had been living at NHC for almost six months.
During the course of the scheme, Karl Hampton took a total of approximately $1,240,438.06 from the woman’s accounts, and frequently purchased luxury items and often spent between $1,000 and $1,500 per day on lottery tickets. In February 2019, Karl Hampton and Deborah Hampton purchased a luxury Lexus SUV, using $21,000 of the criminal proceeds. In January 2020, the Hamptons spent $21,452 on a 4.3-karat diamond ring, also using proceeds of the fraud.
Karl Hampton also liquidated two investment accounts of the woman’s deceased sister in the amount of $246,645 and used the money for his own benefit.
If convicted, the Karl Hampton faces up to 20 years in prison and Deborah Hampton faces up to 10 years.
This case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Booth.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation of guilt. Both defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Three Fort Campbell Soldiers Charged in Illegal Gun Pipeline to ChicagoRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – Three Fort Campbell soldiers were charged today with conspiracy and offenses relating to the illegal purchase and transfer of dozens of firearms to the streets of Chicago, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Demarcus Adams, 21; Jarius Brunson, 22; and Brandon Miller, 22, all enlisted members of the U.S. Army and stationed at the Fort Campbell military installation in Clarksville, Tennessee, were arrested this morning by ATF agents and agents of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division. A criminal complaint obtained late yesterday charged each defendant with transferring a firearm to an out-of-state resident; making false statements during the purchase of a firearm; engaging in the business without a firearms license; wire fraud; money laundering; and conspiracy to commit Title 18 offenses.
According to the criminal complaint, this investigation began on March 26, 2021, when Chicago police responded to a mass shooting incident. During this incident, multiple people were shot and one person was pronounced dead at the scene. During the resulting investigation, multiple firearms were recovered from the shooting scene and five of the firearms were found to have been recently purchased from Federal Firearms Licensed (FFL) dealers in the Clarksville, Tennessee area. Further investigation identified Adams, Brunson and Miller as the majority purchasers of these firearms.
A broader investigation into firearms transaction records from FFLs in the Clarksville region determined that since September 2019, the trio had purchased 91 firearms from multiple FFLs in Clarksville; Oak Grove, Kentucky; Hopkinsville, Kentucky; Fort Campbell, Kentucky; and Paducah, Kentucky. The majority of the firearms were purchased during the last five months. The criminal complaint also alleges that after the firearms were purchased, Miller would provide them to individuals he was associated with in Chicago.
On April 28, 2021, a federal search warrant was executed at the home of Miller and Adams in Clarksville, where 49 empty firearms cases were recovered. Many of these empty cases were matched to firearms recovered by the Chicago Police Department at the scene of recent shootings and homicides.
The defendants will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in Nashville Later this afternoon. If convicted, the defendants face up to 20 years in prison.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division; and the Chicago Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Kurtzman is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Three Murfreesboro Men Indicted Following Violent Crime Spree Last SummerRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A federal grand jury last week handed down a 13-count indictment charging three Murfreesboro, Tennessee, men with a variety of serious offenses, stemming from a July 2020 series of violent crimes, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Joshua Hallmon, 25, Charles Melvin Walker, 20, and Walter Lee Williams, 20, were charged with multiple counts of Hobbs Act robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, and using a firearm in during and in relation to a crime of violence. Additionally, Joshua Hallmon was charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.
According to the indictment, on July 6, 2020, the trio committed an armed robbery of a Twice Daily convenience store in Murfreesboro, and on July 23, 2020, they committed an armed robbery of a Mapco gas station in Murfreesboro. Then, on July 26, 2020, the trio carjacked an individual at gunpoint on Bradyville Pike in Murfreesboro. After taking the victim’s phone and wallet, they drove the victim to an ATM and forced the withdrawal of $1,000 cash before discharging a firearm out the window of the vehicle and eventually putting the victim out of the car and taking his Honda Accord. The indictment and other court records also allege that on the same day, the defendants attempted to carjack another vehicle in Franklin, Tennessee, and shot into the occupied vehicle during the attempt.
Later that same evening, law enforcement responded to another carjacking and kidnapping incident and located a victim on Interstate 24, with a gunshot wound. The victim told police that he was kidnapped at his residence in Murfreesboro and his Ford F150 pickup truck was taken. The victim was also shot during this carjacking. A short time later, officers with the Smyrna Police Department observed the stolen pickup truck and the driver fled at a high rate of speed. After a pursuit by area law enforcement, the driver crashed in the Antioch, Tennessee, area and fled on foot. He was found a short time later hiding in a convenience store bathroom and was taken into custody. The driver was identified as Joshua Hallmon. Arresting officers found a magazine and ammunition in his pocket and recovered a .380 caliber handgun from the pickup truck that he was driving. Hallmon was found to have previously been convicted of at least three felonies and was prohibited from possessing a firearm.
The next day, Murfreesboro Police Department officers found the stolen Honda Accord and attempted to stop it, but the driver fled and eventually abandoned the car and fled on foot into a wooded area. He was taken into custody a short time later and identified as Charles Melvin Walker. The follow-up investigation led to the identification and arrest of Walter Lee Williams, the third suspect in these carjackings.
If convicted, each defendant faces a mandatory minimum of 44 years and up to life in prison.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; the Murfreesboro Police Department; the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office; the Smyrna Police Department; the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department; the Franklin Police Department; and the Tennessee Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Suedekum is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Chinese National Pleads Guilty to Obstructing International Human Trafficking InvestigationRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE – A Chinese National pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to conspiring to commit evidence tampering in relation to an international human trafficking investigation, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Xu Zhang, 31, a New York resident, was indicted in September 2019, after conspiring with his girlfriend and co-conspirator, Gao Xing, also a Chinese National, to destroy and conceal records pertinent to a federal grand jury investigation.
According to court documents, on September 6, 2019, Zhang visited Gao Xing in jail while she was in federal custody and the subject of an international human trafficking investigation. During the visit, Xing instructed Zhang to delete material information, including contacts and conversations from her WeChat account. WeChat is a Chinese multi-purpose messaging, social media, and mobile payment application that can be accessed by mobile devices, personal computers, and the internet. Xing provided Zhang with a method to obtain her online WeChat account login information from her mother in China, and other details pertaining to her account. Xing indicated that the items she needed Zhang to delete would make her case or situation worse and she further instructed Zhang to change her WeChat name.
The following day, during a telephone call from the jail, Zhang confirmed to Xing that he had deleted the information requested and had changed Xing’s WeChat name in an attempt to delete and destroy material information related to her WeChat account.
On November 1, 2019, Gao Xing committed suicide in her cell at the Daviess County, Kentucky Detention Center.
Zhang faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced on September 15, 2021.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; IRS-Criminal Investigation; and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Beth Myers is prosecuting the case.
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FBI Electronics Technician Charged with Child Pornography CrimesRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – April 27, 2021 – An Antioch, Tennessee man employed by the FBI as an electronics technician was charged today with sexual exploitation of children and receipt of child pornography. Justin D. Carroll, 38, was arrested by FBI agents this morning when he arrived to work at the Nashville FBI office. He will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge later today.
The announcement was made by Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee and Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Douglas Korneski of the FBI Memphis Field Office.
“I commend the leadership of the FBI for their quick and decisive action in this matter,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Stewart. “Once the suspect was identified as an FBI support employee, agents took swift action to prevent the continued victimization of this child and others. We will continue to work vigorously with our FBI partners to hold this individual accountable.”
“Once the FBI became aware of the alleged crime, an investigation was immediately initiated and investigated with all expediency, which culminated in today’s arrest,” said SAC Korneski. “Anyone who commits a federal crime should know that the FBI will investigate to the fullest extent allowable by law, particularly when they are one of our employees.”
According to the criminal complaint, Carroll was identified as the user of an email address which was connected to the facilitation and exchange of sexually explicit images and videos between Carroll and a 14-year-old female in Rhode Island.
The investigation began in March when a package was received at the Nashville FBI Office and although addressed to the building address, no recipient was indicated on the label. The package had a return address that listed the name and Rhode Island address of an individual who was later identified as a 14-year-old female. The nature of the package prompted a response from FBI bomb technicians and once opened, the package contained a teddy bear and candies.
Further investigation determined that the 14-year-old female met Carroll in an online chat room in the summer of 2020 and their communications continued over multiple communication platforms and eventually transitioned to Google Hangout and email, including her school email account. Messages sent by Carroll consisted primarily of descriptions of intercourse and professions of love and included sexually explicit photos and videos exchanged between Carroll and the minor female. All communications sent from and received by Carroll were determined to have been sent from his personal devices. Carroll had previously provided the minor female with his mailing address, listing the Nashville FBI Office’s street address.
The investigation also identified other accounts with which Carroll engaged or attempted to engage in sexually explicit conversations with minors and the investigation remains active.
If convicted, Carroll faces a minimum of 15 years and up to 50 years in prison.
This investigation is being conducted by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Carrie Daughtrey is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Department of Justice Awards Emergency Funding to Support Response to Nashville BombingRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – April 20, 2021 – The Department of Justice today announced that it is awarding more than $1.3 million to the State of Tennessee to meet critical law enforcement needs in the aftermath of last year’s Christmas Day bombing in Nashville. The funds are made available under the Emergency Federal Law Enforcement Assistance Program administered by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, a division of the Department’s Office of Justice Programs.
“These funds are a welcome relief and come at a most critical time for our partners at the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department”, said Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart. “The number of critical incidents responded to in 2020, all of which required a sustained and long-term response, greatly impacted the operational budget of our district’s largest municipal police department. These funds will help offset deficits and allow police operations to continue without major interruption.”
On December 25, 2020, a man detonated an explosive device inside a recreational vehicle in downtown Nashville. The incident resulted in the suspect's death and injured eight citizens. The explosion damaged dozens of buildings in the surrounding area. Already fiscally impacted by the pandemic, the response to community-wide demonstrations and the effects of a devastating tornado earlier in the year, the city will use this grant to cover unbudgeted law enforcement duties, including overtime expenses, that have placed considerable financial hardship on the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department.
“The explosion in downtown Nashville and the serious damage and injury it caused, on what should have been a day of peace and reflection for many, served as a stark reminder that the safety of our communities can never be taken for granted,” said OJP Acting Assistant Attorney General Maureen A. Henneberg. “These resources will help defray the costs associated with law enforcement’s role in responding to this shocking and terrifying public safety emergency.”
The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, advance racial equity in the administration of justice, assist victims and enhance the rule of law. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.
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Comprehensive Pain Specialists and Former Owners Agree to Pay $4.1 Million to Settle Fraud AllegationsRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – April 21, 2021 – Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart and Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III announced today that they have entered into agreements with Anesthesia Services Associates, PLLC d/b/a Comprehensive Pain Specialists (“CPS”), its four majority owners, Dr. Peter B. Kroll, Dr. Steven R. Dickerson, Dr. Gilberto A. Carrero, and Dr. Richard J. Muench (collectively, the “Owners”), and Russell S. Smith, D.C. – a former CPS executive – whereby they agreed to pay a total of $4,121,663.94 to settle all claims by the United States and Tennessee involving allegations of wrongdoing at CPS.
CPS, which was based in Brentwood, Tennessee, at one point operated over 40 pain clinics and had operations in 12 states, until it shut down in 2018. On July 22, 2019, the United States and Tennessee filed a Consolidated Complaint in Intervention in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee against CPS, its former CEO, John Davis, who was convicted in April 2019 of health care fraud, as well as three of the four principal Owners, Drs. Kroll, Dickerson, and Carrero, and, Dr. Smith, a former manager of certain CPS clinics in East Tennessee (the “Civil Action”). The Complaint alleged, among other things, that the defendants submitted false claims for medically unnecessary and/or non-reimbursable testing and acupuncture. Dr. Muench, the only owner not a party to the lawsuit, agreed to settle with the United States and Tennessee prior to the filing of the Complaint.
The agreements with CPS and the Owners resolve the United States’ and Tennessee’s claims for violations of the False Claims Act and the Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act that arose from the submission of false claims to federal health care programs and TennCare specifically for medically unnecessary and/or non-reimbursable urine drug, specimen validity, genetic and psychological testing, as well as claims for electro-auricular acupuncture during the period from May 2011 through when CPS ceased operating in 2018. The settlement also resolves claims relating to CPS’s submission of false claims under Dr. Kroll’s provider number for services he did not render and testing he did not order. In addition, the agreements resolve common law claims for fraud, payment by mistake, and unjust enrichment against CPS, the Owners and Dr. Smith.
To resolve the Civil Action, CPS agreed to release $2,196,663.94 million in funds held by Medicare in a suspension account and will contribute an additional $750,000 in cash. The Owners will pay a total of $1.05 million to resolve claims against them. Dr. Smith also agreed to pay $125,000 to resolve potential liability for common law claims that could be brought against him by the United States and Tennessee. As part of the settlements, the United States and Tennessee agreed to dismiss the Civil Action, except for their claims against John Davis.
“Even though CPS ceased operations before the United States and Tennessee filed the Civil Action, the United States and Tennessee were still able to recover millions of dollars in damages through litigation and utilizing administrative remedies available through our partners at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Stewart. “The United States will not hesitate to use all of its resources to protect taxpayer dollars, including by going after the individuals who reap the benefits, directly or indirectly, from health care fraud.”
“This type of purposeful, illegal conduct takes money from TennCare that otherwise would be used to pay legitimate claims of others,” said General Slatery. “This settlement should send a message. If you do this, State and federal authorities are coming after you.”
“When physicians and health care companies engage in questionable business practices and unnecessary services, it compromises patient care and the integrity of HHS programs,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Our agency will continue to investigate and hold accountable providers that put profits before patients.”
“We are fortunate to have this strong partnership between state and federal agencies in the pursuit of false claims, to hold accountable those responsible,” said TBI Director David Rausch. “Health care fraud impacts the quality of our health care, in addition to costing consumers and taxpayers.”
The allegations resolved by this settlement were originally raised in lawsuits filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the FCA, which allow private citizens with knowledge of false claims to bring civil suits on behalf of the government and to share in any recovery. The whistleblowers will receive $610,684.62 as their share of the Governments’ settlement proceeds from the CPS settlement and will dismiss their individual actions.
The case was handled by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee and the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, and investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kara F. Sweet represented the United States. Assistant Attorney General Philip H. Bangle represented Tennessee.
The Civil Action is captioned United States and the State of Tennessee ex. rel. Suzanne Alt, et al. v. Anesthesia Services Associates, PLLC, et al., Case No. 3:16-cv-00549 (M.D. Tenn.). The claims resolved by the settlements are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
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Reign of Violence and Drug Distribution Orchestrated from Tennessee Prison Results in Federal IndictmentsRead the Press Release
Nashville, Tenn. - March 30, 2021 - A federal indictment unsealed Friday charged 27 individuals with a host of federal crimes relating to a large scale conspiracy to distribute heroin, methamphetamine, fentanyl and cocaine, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee. Eight others were charged in separate indictments last week and two other individuals had previously been charged. The conspiracy has been ongoing since as early as 2018 and was orchestrated from within the Tennessee State Prison system by Humberto Morales, aka Pelon, 29, of Columbia, Tennessee, who has been incarcerated since 2014. Other charges resulting from this investigation include kidnapping, money laundering, making threats by electronic communication, and firearms violations.
The Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) previously sought the assistance of federal law enforcement to address criminal activity occurring within the prison system.
The resulting indictments and other court documents allege that the organization had ties to MS-13, Sur-13, and other street gangs and distributed tens of thousands of fentanyl-laced pills; multiple kilograms of fentanyl and heroin; over fifty pounds of methamphetamine, which was often 95-99 percent pure (commonly referred to as “ice”); as well as smaller quantities of cocaine and marijuana. Court documents also allege that this well-orchestrated conspiracy is linked to at least one murder, horrific assaults, and multiple other crimes of violence.
Morales is alleged to have been the leader of the organization and routinely obtained contraband cell phones which were smuggled into the prison facilities where he was housed. Morales used these phones and encrypted communication services such as WhatsApp to orchestrate activities of the drug distribution network, order acts of violence against individuals, and to direct the flow of cash from drug sales between middle Tennessee and Mexico. Drug proceeds were also used to pay co-conspirators, to pay for drug shipment expenses, bail and legal services, and to purchase firearms.
Notable acts of violence associated with the conspiracy include the severing of a woman’s hand in November 2019, as punishment for losing drug proceeds. During this incident, the woman was kidnapped, driven around Nashville, and then a hatchet was used to chop off one of her hands, before leaving her lying on the street. This incident was recorded on video and sent via encrypted communication on a cell phone. Another incident involved a hitman for the organization who, at the direction of Morales, cut off part of his own pinky finger to prove his continued loyalty to the organization after he lost or stole a small quantity of drugs.
The indictment also charges Morales and Kim Birdsong, 49, of Nashville, with using facilities of interstate commerce (cellular telephones and encrypted messaging services) in an effort to murder a person known as “Pancho”/”Mekaniko,” and that cash, drugs, and the cancellation of a pre-existing drug-related debt were to be provided as payment for that murder. That person was then shot multiple times on April 4, 2019, in Nashville, but survived.
As a result of this investigation, law enforcement seized more than $160,000 in cash drug proceeds and multiple firearms, including a handgun which had been illegally modified to operate as a machinegun, and an operational firearm silencer.
Many of the defendants were charged by criminal complaint as the investigation progressed and have been in custody awaiting indictment. Others were arrested Friday and are in federal custody. Two others are fugitives, including Morales’ girlfriend, Erika Vasquez, 32, aka Chula, of Memphis and Columbia, Tenn., and Magdiel Pina Ramirez, aka Big Show, 28, of Mexico. Ramirez is the person described above who served as a hitman in Mexico and cut off part of his own finger. Both are currently believed to be in Mexico.
Others charged in this investigation are: Jose Juan Alvarado, 44; Oscar Avelar Anguiano, aka Chucky, 33; Grecia Barrios, 33; Kim Lamont Birdsong, aka Bird, 49; Jennifer Cano, 33; Ricardo Davalos-Martinez, 28; Mario Garcia Flores, aka Christhian Colmenares-Ruiz, 33; Jonhy Fernando Jimenez, 38; Antonio Sanchez-Lopez, 23; Jennifer Montejo, 33; Korrine Parker, 43; Luis Ramirez Escudero, 27; Phillip Christopher Smith, aka Felipe, 41; Sinquan D. Smith, 27, all of Nashville; Avigael Cruz, aka Traviesio, 29; Billy Cruz, aka Pee Wee 26; Kevin Oliva-Hernandez, 31; Jairo Rostran, aka Poffi, 28, all of Smyrna, Tenn.; Rico Gross, 38; Armando Lopez, aka Mando, 40; Jesse Sanchez, aka Papi, aka Bori, 31, all of Goodlettsville, Tenn.; Jacob Lee, aka Grenas, 25; Justin Blake Lee, aka Chino, 26; Jasmine Tayor, 26, all of Manchester, Tenn.; Kevin Tidwell, aka Miklo, 27; Melinda Tidwell, both of Ashland City, Tenn.; Terrance Marquette Bobo, 28, of Memphis, Tenn.; Pearline Neal, 31, of Gallatin, Tenn.; Austin Dodd, 25, aka Chucky, of Chapmansboro, Tenn.; Tiffany Messick, 27, of Shelbyville, Tenn.; Stacy Owens, 31, of Decaturville, Tenn.; Zenaida Cano, 42; of Phoenix, Arizona; David Ku, 45, of Inglewood, California; and Gerson Jimenez-Garcia, 38, of Honduras.
Jennifer Montejo, charged in the conspiracy in December 2019, was sentenced on Friday to 25 years in prison. Montejo was arrested at a Nashville bus station as she returned from California after travelling to Los Angeles days earlier. At the time of her arrest, four kilograms of fentanyl, and a kilogram of heroin were discovered in Montejo’s luggage. She pleaded guilty in November 2020.
Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart praised the tremendous efforts of the law enforcement agencies involved in this extensive investigation and noted the unparalleled cooperation between the agencies and the significant resources contributed by the Tennessee Department of Correction and its desire to reduce criminal activity by its inmates.
This multi-year Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation is being conducted by numerous federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; IRS Criminal Investigations; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; FBI; Tennessee Department of Corrections-Office of Investigations & Compliance; and others.
If convicted, most defendants face a minimum of 10 years in prison and many face up to life in prison.
All defendants not previously convicted are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Justice Department Settles Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Cumberland County, Tennessee for $1.1 MillionRead the Press Release
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement with Cumberland County, Tennessee, to resolve allegations that the county discriminated against ten female employees because of their sex in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Title VII is a federal statute that prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, national origin and religion. Under the terms of the settlement, which still must be approved by the court in the form of a consent decree, Cumberland County will pay approximately $1.1 million in compensatory damages to ten women whom the United States alleged were sexually harassed by the former director of the county’s Solid Waste Department. Cumberland County will also revise its policies, procedures, and training to better prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.
“Today’s resolution, through settlement, will bring some measure of closure and vindication to the vulnerable women who were victimized by the egregious and abusive behavior in this case,” said Pamela S. Karlan, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division. “Sexual harassment must not be tolerated in the workplace, and we remain committed to eliminating it root and branch through our vigorous enforcement of Title VII.”
“No individual should have to endure the unwanted sexual advances of another, especially from someone who wields a position of authority over another as alleged here,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee. “We will seek all available remedies to address such unwanted and unlawful conduct and will continue to protect the civil rights of all of our citizens. They deserve nothing less.”
“State and local governments are among our largest employers. It is important that they understand that the federal anti-discrimination laws also apply to them,” said Delner Franklin-Thomas, District Director of the Memphis District of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). “The egregious sexual harassment that these women were subjected to contravenes Title VII. The EEOC will continue to collaborate with the Justice Department to ensure the protection of our workers in governmental workplaces.”
The Justice Department’s complaint, filed March 8, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, alleged, among other things, that Cumberland County failed to take adequate precautions to prevent the former director of the county’s Solid Waste Department from sexually harassing the women. According to the complaint, the former director regularly subjected the women, who all worked for him, to unwanted sexual contact, including kissing and groping; unwelcome sexual advances, including propositioning the women for sexual favors; and offensive sexual remarks about their bodies and sex acts. The former director has been indicted on criminal charges and is awaiting trial in state court.
Four of the women had filed charges of discrimination with the EEOC. The EEOC’s Nashville Area Office, in its Memphis District, investigated the charges and found reasonable cause to believe Cumberland County discriminated against the four women and other similarly situated employees. After unsuccessful conciliation efforts, the EEOC referred the charges to the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. The Justice Department brought this lawsuit as part of a joint effort to enhance collaboration between the Department and the EEOC in the vigorous enforcement of Title VII.
This lawsuit is part of the Civil Rights Division’s Sexual Harassment in the Workplace Initiative, which is aimed at eradicating sexual harassment in state and local government workplaces. It focuses on litigation, outreach and development of effective remedial measures to address and prevent future sex discrimination and harassment.
This lawsuit was handled by Trial Attorneys Jen Swedish and Julia Quinn of the Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section and by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kara Sweet of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee.
The full and fair enforcement of Title VII is a top priority of the Employment Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division. Additional information about the Civil Rights Division and the jurisdiction of the Employment Litigation Section is available on its websites at www.justice.gov/crt/ and https://www.justice.gov/crt/employment-litigation-section.
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Clarksville Man Facing Child Pornography ChargesRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – March 24, 2021 – A Clarksville, Tennessee man was arrested last week and charged with possession of child pornography, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart. Austin Kidd, 27, was arrested on March 17th at his home by agents of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). Kidd appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara D. Holmes this morning for a detention hearing and was ordered held in custody pending trial.
According to the criminal complaint, in March 2020, HSI Nashville received an investigative referral pertaining to Kidd and his internet activity in April 2019. Agents were able to identify a Facebook account, “ShadowPhoenix24,” as belonging to Kidd and through further investigation, agents identified Internet Protocol (IP) addresses associated with Kidd’s home address in Clarksville. Agents were also aware that in August 2019, a foreign law enforcement agency notified the FBI of an IP address in San Antonio, Texas that was used to access online child sexual abuse and exploitation material. This address was found to have been occupied by Kidd during the time the access occurred and before he relocated to Clarksville.
Through further investigation, HSI agents determined that the IP address associated with Kidd’s Clarksville residence had accessed The Onion Router (TOR) network, which is an anonymizing network that masks the IP address of users and is commonly used by persons when accessing child pornography. Based on the information obtained through the investigation, agents obtained a federal search warrant for Kidd’s residence and subsequently seized his cell phone and other media storage devices. To date, approximately 260 suspected images and videos depicting child sexual abuse have been identified on the devices.
The complaint further alleges that Kidd is in the final hiring process to become a substitute teacher for middle school children.
If convicted, Kidd faces up to 20 years in prison.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Monica Morrison.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. Kidd is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Middle Tennessee Investors to Pay $200,000 to Settle False Claims Act Allegations Regarding HUD ProgramRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – March 22, 2021 – Laziza Abdullaeva and Aziz Ashurov of Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, agreed to pay $200,000 to settle False Claims Act allegations involving misrepresentations in their purchases of certain properties from the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD), Mary Jane Stewart, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, announced today.
On December 30, 2019, relators William Worrall and Jim Gregory filed a qui tam action against Ms. Abdullaeva, Mr. Ashurov and their investment company, Capital Invest, LLC, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee. Relators alleged that Abdullaeva and Ashurov made false statements that they intended to occupy certain properties they purchased from HUD as a primary residence, but instead resold the properties for a profit and were presently renovating one such property purchased in East Nashville presumably for resale.
“When purchasers misstate their intentions in purchasing federally-owned properties, it impairs the ability of HUD to provide access to affordable housing for everyone,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Stewart. “This settlement sends a message that the Government will take action to ensure that the objectives of HUD are met and to deter investors from profiting through misrepresentations.”
The settlement agreement resolves the United States’ allegations that misrepresentations were made concerning three properties in Nashville, and one property in Antioch that Ms. Abdullaeva and Mr. Ashurov purchased between July 29, 2013 and December 20, 2017. As part of the settlement, Relators will receive a 20% share of the recovery.
“HUD housing programs have been created to aid millions of Americans to realize the dream of homeownership. This action today should serve as notice that through close cooperation with our law enforcement partners this office will work to preserve the fiscal integrity of affordable housing funds and ensure their appropriate use,” said Wyatt Achord, Special Agent in Charge, HUD, Office of Inspector General.
The case was investigated by the United States’ Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee and HUD, Office of Inspector General (HUD OIG). Assistant U.S. Attorney Kara F. Sweet represented the United States.
The lawsuit is captioned United States ex rel. Worrall v. Ashurov, et al., Case No. 3:19-cv-1170 (Trauger, J.). The claims alleged are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
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Clarksville Restaurant Owner Pleads Guilty in Alien Harboring and Tax Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – March 3, 2021 – The majority owner of the New China Buffett & Grill (NCBG) in Clarksville, Tennessee, pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to harbor illegal aliens; harboring illegal aliens; money laundering; tax evasion; and employment tax fraud, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Quanwei Shi, 31, of Clarksville, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Eli J. Richardson. Shi and NCBG co-owner Chongqiang Chen, 30, also of Clarksville, were arrested in April 2020, after a 14-count indictment charged them in a scheme to harbor undocumented workers and to defeat the tax laws of the United States.
Shi admits that between 2017 and April 2019, he conspired to conceal and harbor illegal aliens from China and Guatemala, profiting from their employment at NCBG. The undocumented workers were not required to complete any forms related to immigration status and were paid in cash, outside the regular payroll system. In addition, Shi admits that the undocumented workers lived with him at his residence on D Street in Clarksville; were transported to NCBG and back daily; and were assigned to work in the kitchen where they would not be able to interact with the patrons of the restaurant.
In addition to harboring the undocumented workers, Shi admits that for tax years 2017 through 2019, he underreported gross receipts on NCBG’s corporate tax returns and failed to collect, account for, and pay over employment taxes for an overall tax loss of $440,941.
The government also seeks to forfeit Shi’s house in Clarksville; two vehicles, the contents of two bank accounts, totaling $33,126.25; and $42,947 in cash.
Shi faces up to 45 years in prison when he is sentenced on July 16, 2021.
The case against Chongqiang Chen remains pending and he is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations; the IRS-Criminal Investigation; the Diplomatic Security Service of the U.S. Department of State; the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation; the Tennessee Bureau of Workers Compensation; the Clarksville Police Department; and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara Beth Myers and Robert Levine are prosecuting the case.
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Robertson County Man Facing Federal Child Sexual Exploitation ChargesRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – March 2, 2021 – A criminal complaint was unsealed this morning charging a Springfield, Tennessee man with attempted enticement of a minor; attempted production of visual depictions of minors engaging in sexual activity; and transfer of obscene matter to a minor, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Malcolm Wilkerson, 50, was arrested at his home this morning by FBI agents and will make an initial appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge later today.
According to the criminal complaint, beginning in mid-December 2020, the FBI was conducting a covert online investigation on an online dating app. This app is available for free and requires users to be at least 18 years old. It is widely known that many users under the age of 18 frequently use the app by misrepresenting their ages. On December 16, 2020 a user of the app with the profile of “Malcom from Springfield, Tennessee,” contacted the FBI covert agent, whose profile suggested that she was an 18-year-old female, and began a conversation suggesting sexual activity. The online conversation quickly turned to age and the FBI covert agent informed “Malcolm” that she was under the age of 15. “Malcolm” and the FBI covert agent then continued their conversation over text messaging where the agent informed him that she was 13 years old.
These text message conversations continued until mid-February and included numerous requests by “Malcolm” for the agent to send nude photographs. On several occasions, “Malcolm” sent the agent obscene and sexually suggestive photos and also sent her nude photographs of a person believed to be Malcolm Wilkerson. “Malcolm” continued to send the agent requests for nude photos and made many suggestions and plans to meet for sexual activity.
Through further investigation, the FBI was able to identify “Malcolm” as Malcolm Wilkerson and obtained an arrest warrant on February 26, 2021.
If convicted, Wilkerson faces a minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison.
This case is being investigated by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Kurtzman is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Nashville Man Outed by Dashcam Sentenced in Carjacking CaseRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – March 1, 2021 – A Nashville man, who was unknowingly captured on an in-car video system making his getaway after carjacking another man, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court, to 117 months in prison, followed by 4 years of supervised release, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Mary Jane Stewart for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Shaun Harris, 23, pleaded guilty in October 2020 to carjacking and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Harris has been in custody since May 2018 and was given credit for 33 months’ time served on the carjacking charge.
According to court documents, on the evening of May 24, 2018, Harris and a juvenile, robbed and carjacked a man at gunpoint at the Hickory Hollow Apartment complex in Antioch. As they drove away in the victim’s car, the in-car camera system was activated and was recording their getaway. After travelling a short distance, Harris noticed the camera, ripped it from the car, and threw it out of the window. Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD) detectives were able to gain remote access to the vehicle’s camera and capture video of the suspects. The MNPD Public Affairs Office later posted the video on social media platforms and shared it with local media outlets, which led to the identification of Harris and the juvenile on the following day as well as the recovery of the victim’s vehicle.
This case was investigated by the MNPD and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph P. Montminy prosecuted the case.
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235 Months in Federal Prison for Nashville Man Following 2019 Stand Off with PoliceRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – February 25, 2021 – Justin Jerome Jones, 33, of Nashville, Tennessee, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge William L. Campbell Jr., to 235 months in prison, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Jones was charged on February 7, 2018, after residents of the Tony Sudekum public housing neighborhood called police when they saw Jones outside a residence, arguing with his 11-year-old daughter, before firing several gunshots into the ground near the young girl. When officers from the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD) arrived, Jones barricaded himself inside an apartment. MNPD S.W.A.T. officers, as well as federal agents, responded to the scene and Jones then repeatedly fired at the officers. One round struck an MNPD officer. After several hours, Jones exited the apartment and was immediately taken into federal custody.
A search warrant was then executed at the apartment and officers recovered several spent shell casings, a cocked .357 caliber revolver; a .38 caliber revolver; and parts from a 9mm pistol. Additional firearms parts and boxes of ammunition were also recovered from the apartment the following day. The investigation also determined that Jones had previously brandished the 9mm pistol at another person.
Jones had previously been convicted of aggravated robbery in Davidson County, Tennessee, in 2007, and was also convicted of aggravated robbery in Hamilton County, Ohio, in 2009, relating to armed bank robbery. Jones was released from custody in Ohio in December 2016 and paroled to the State of Mississippi.
Jones pleaded guilty in November 2019 to three counts of being a convicted felon in possession of firearms.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sunny A.M. Koshy, Joseph Montminy and Ahmed Safeeullah prosecuted the case.
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U.S. Attorney Don Cochran Announces DepartureRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – February 22, 2021 – U.S. Attorney Don Cochran announced today that he is leaving his post at the end of the month, as requested by the White House and the Department of Justice. Cochran submitted his resignation to the White House last week, effective February 28, 2021.
Cochran was sworn in on September 21, 2017, returning to the Justice Department after serving from 1998-2002 as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Birmingham, Alabama, where he successfully prosecuted the final defendant charged with the 1963 bombing of the Sixteenth Baptist Church.
Cochran leaves a legacy of partnerships with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies which have come together to address a wide variety of critical issues, including violent crime. Under his leadership, the Project Safe Nashville initiative was formed in cooperation with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Davidson County District Attorney’s Office and others, and quickly doubled the number of federal firearms prosecutions. This initiative was soon expanded to include the entire Middle District of Tennessee and has resulted in hundreds of dangerous, repeat offenders being removed from local communities and sentenced to federal prison.
U.S. Attorney Cochran has also been successful in adding to the number of federal prosecutors in the Middle District, which has greatly expanded the bandwidth of federal prosecutions, including white collar crime, public corruption and organized criminal activity.
“Serving the citizens of the Middle District as their U.S. Attorney for the last three and a half years has been the highest honor of my professional life. I am confident that the team of exceptional lawyers and support staff that we have built and our law enforcement and community partnerships will continue to protect and defend the citizens of the district and live up to the high standards of the Department of Justice,” said Cochran.
Upon Cochran’s departure, First Assistant Mary Jane Stewart will become the Acting United States Attorney.
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Mid-State Psychologist Sentenced to Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – February 9, 2021 – A mid-state psychologist was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 41 months in federal prison for operating a healthcare fraud scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Donald McCoy, 54, of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Eli J. Richardson and ordered to pay $1,217,848.51 in restitution. McCoy was charged in December 2018 and in January 2020 he pleaded guilty to healthcare fraud, mail fraud and money laundering.
During the scheme, McCoy was a licensed psychologist by the State of Tennessee and was an authorized TennCare provider who provides individual psychotherapy and family psychotherapy services to patients—usually minors—in the care of the Department of Children’s Services (“DCS”). Between January 2014 and December 2018, McCoy billed for more hours of services than can physically be provided in any given day and received over $2.16 million from TennCare based on those claims.
An investigative analysis conducted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation determined that on multiple occasions, McCoy submitted claims for psychotherapy services that totaled more than 24 hours per day, some even exceeding 48 hours and 72 hours per day. The analysis also determined that McCoy billed for services purportedly rendered on more than 200 weekends and major holidays, including New Year’s Day, the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving and Christmas, among others. On numerous occasions, McCoy billed for family psychotherapy sessions involving patients in DCS custody, which never occurred.
The investigation determined that of the more than $2.16 million in claims submitted to TennCare by McCoy, at least $1.2 million which he received payment for was based on fraudulent claims.
This case was investigated by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and the IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kathryn Booth and Sarah Bogni are prosecuting the case.
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Nashville Murder Suspect Charged with Federal Firearms ViolationRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – January 27, 2021 – Robert Rasean Smith, 28, of Nashville, was charged yesterday with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
According to the criminal complaint, Smith was wanted for the murder of an individual on November 14, 2020, outside of the Wireless Z store on D.B. Todd, Jr. Boulevard in North Nashville. On December 5, 2020, officers with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department located Smith sleeping in a car in the area of Haynes Park Court and arrested him. At the time of his arrest, Smith had a .45 caliber pistol in his waistband. Smith is a convicted felon and under federal law, is prohibited from possessing a firearm.
Smith’s prior felony convictions listed in the complaint include convictions in May 2011 for attempted aggravated burglary, for which he received a two-year prison sentence; aggravated robbery, for which he received an eight-year prison sentence; and evading arrest, for which he was sentenced to two years in prison.
If convicted of the instant offense, Smith faces up to 10 years in federal prison.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire is prosecuting the case.
The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Man Convicted of Multiple Obscenity Crimes Involving ChildrenRead the Press Release
A Texas man was convicted by a federal jury today for operating a website dedicated to publishing writings that detailed the sexual abuse of children.
Nicholas L. McQuaid, Acting Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Gregg Sofer, U.S. Attorney of the Western District of Texas; and Luis M. Quesada, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s El Paso Field Office made the announcement.
After a three-day trial, Thomas Alan Arthur, 64, of Terlingua, was convicted of three counts of trafficking in obscene visual representations of the sexual abuse of a child, five counts of trafficking in obscene text stories about the sexual abuse of children, and one count of engaging in the business of selling obscene matters involving the sexual abuse of children.
According to trial evidence, Arthur began operating the Mr. Double website in 1996, and began charging members for access to the site in 1998. The website was dedicated to publishing writings that detail the sexual abuse of children, including the rape, torture, and murder of infants and toddlers. The evidence at trial showed that all submissions for publication were reviewed and approved by Arthur before he posted them on the site. Some of the author pages contained drawings depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Evidence at trial showed that the website was Arthur’s sole source of income for more than 20 years. The site was taken offline in November 2019 when the FBI executed a search warrant at his residence near Terlingua, where Arthur administered the site. Pursuant to our Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with the Netherlands, additional evidence was obtained from the server in the Netherlands where the site was hosted.
Sentencing is scheduled for April 19, 2021.
Trial Attorney Austin M. Berry of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Assistant U.S. Attorney Monica Morrison of the Middle District of Tennessee, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Fidel Esparza of the Western District of Texas are prosecuting the case with assistance from the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.
The FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Texas Department of Public Safety, and Brewster County Sheriff’s Office investigated the 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 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and 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 http://www.justice.gov/psc.
Suspect in Nashville Homicide Facing Federal Firearms and Drug Trafficking ChargesRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – January 19, 2021 – A criminal complaint obtained today, charged James Edward Cowan, aka James Edward Lillard, 28, of Nashville, with federal firearms and drug offenses, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee. Cowan was charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm; possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
According to the complaint, on January 12, 2021, Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD) detectives were conducting surveillance in the area of the La Quinta Inn on Sidco Drive, in an attempt to locate and arrest Cowan, who was wanted for a homicide which occurred on December 3, 2020, on I-440 in Nashville. Detectives observed a car enter the parking lot and park and then observed an individual matching the description of Cowan, exit the hotel and enter the car on the passenger side. The car then exited the lot and detectives maintained visual surveillance of the car as it travelled about the Nashville area before parking in the area of 300 Hickory Hollow Place. Once parked, detectives determined the passenger was in fact Cowan and arrested him without incident.
Upon searching Cowan, detectives found a substantial quantity of Xanax pills and fentanyl and more than $2,100 cash in his pockets. A search of the car produced more pills and other controlled substances. Detectives also found a Glock pistol with an extended magazine and a .45 caliber handgun. The driver of the car told detectives that the drugs and guns belonged to Cowan and acknowledged knowing that Cowan was wanted for homicide. The driver was subsequently charged by the MNPD for aiding Cowan in eluding law enforcement.
Cowan was previously convicted for robbery in Davidson County, Tennessee in 2011 and was sentenced to six years’ incarceration. If convicted of the instant federal offenses, he faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to life in prison.
This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire is prosecuting the case.
The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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The United States and Tennessee Resolve Claims with Three Providers for False Claims Act Liability Relating to "P-Stim" Devices for A Total of $1.72 MillionRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – January 4, 2021 – Don Cochran, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, and Herbert Slatery III, Attorney General for the State of Tennessee, announced today that James P. Anderson, M.D. (“Dr. Anderson”), as owner of Affiliated Neurologists, PLC; Charles F. Spencer, D.C., as owner of Total Family Physicians Center PLLC d/b/a Total Family Health & Wellness (“Total Family”); and Mitchell P. Shea, D.C., as owner of Chiro2Med of Tennessee P.C. (“Chiro2Med”), agreed to pay the United States and Tennessee a total of $1.72 million to resolve liability under the False Claims Act for the alleged improper billing for electro-acupuncture using a peri-auricular stimulation device known as “P-Stim” that does not qualify for reimbursement under Medicare or TennCare.
P-Stim is an electro-acupuncture device that, pursuant to manufacturer’s instructions, is affixed behind a patient’s ear using an adhesive. Needles are inserted into the patient’s ear and affixed using another adhesive. Once activated, the device then provides intermittent stimulation by electrical pulses. It is a single-use, battery-powered device designed to be worn for approximately four days until its battery runs out, at which time the device is thrown away. Medicare and TennCare do not reimburse for such acupuncture devices, nor do Medicare and TennCare reimburse for P-Stim as a neurostimulator or as implantation of neurostimulator electrodes. Other brand names for this device include Stivax, NeuroStim, ANSiStim, E-Pulse, and NSS-2 Bridge.
From May 2016 through November 2018, Dr. Anderson, Total Family, and Chiro2Med billed for, and were reimbursed by the United States for acupuncture using P-Stim devices under HCPCS Code L8679, which instead requires implantation of a neurostimulator with anesthesia in a surgical setting by a physician, typically a surgeon. Dr. Anderson, Total Family, and Chiro2Med separately billed for, and were reimbursed by, Medicare and/or TennCare for these devices over a two year period.
On June 10, 2020, Tennessee brought suit in the Chancery Court of Davidson County against Dr. Anderson under the Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act for the false claims he submitted to TennCare. Under the terms of the settlement, Dr. Anderson agreed to pay $1 million to the United States and Tennessee over five years. Dr. Anderson also agreed to enter into an Integrity Agreement with the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that will require regular monitoring of its billing practices for a period of three years.
Dr. Spencer and Total Family agreed to pay the United States $700,000 over five years.
Dr. Shea and Chiro2Med agreed to pay the United States $20,000 over five years.
“These settlements are part of a nationwide effort to hold accountable those providers who were paid improperly for non-reimbursable acupuncture under the guise of a surgically implanted neurostimulator,” said U.S. Attorney Cochran. “Working closely with our partners at CMS’s Center for Program Integrity, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, our sister U.S. Attorney’s Offices, and the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, we were able to identify those who profited from the submission of these false claims and negotiate resolutions that resulted in a significant recovery of taxpayer dollars.”
“This Office will not tolerate medical device fraud in Tennessee, whether it is the P-Stim as in these cases, or any type of fraud,” said General Slatery.
“Every dollar saved is critical to the sustainability of our Medicare program and the needs of our beneficiaries,” said Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma. “We thank our partners at the Department of Justice and Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General for working hard with us to identify, investigate, and eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in our federal health care programs.”
“These providers disregarded Medicare and Medicaid rules to bill acupuncture services as P-Stim devices in order to pad their bottom line,” said Derrick L. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General in Atlanta. “Our agency, working closely with our law enforcement partners, will continue to protect patients and the federal health care programs that serve them.”
These cases were handled by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee and the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, Medicaid Fraud and Integrity Division, with assistance from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kara F. Sweet represented the United States. Deputy Attorney General Tony Hullender represented Tennessee.
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Tennessee State Prison Inmate Charged with Mail StalkingRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – December 29, 2020 – An inmate at the Tennessee Department of Correction has been charged with using the U.S. Mail to harass and intimidate the widow of a man he murdered in 2009, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
A criminal complaint unsealed today charged Hank Wise, 55, with mail stalking, after sending numerous letters and other communications to the woman through her attorney.
“We owe a duty to victims of crime to ensure that they will not continue to be subjected to cruel acts which cause emotional distress as alleged here,” said U.S. Attorney Cochran. “We simply will not stand for this.”
On April 2, 2009, while at the Buck Wild Saloon in Nashville, Wise shot and killed a man identified in the complaint as “B.G.” in front of his wife. In April 2012, Wise was convicted of second degree murder in Davidson County Criminal Court and subsequently sentenced to 23 years in prison.
While in prison, beginning in approximately 2011, Wise began sending letters to the victim’s widow, through her attorney, which lasted until 2017. The communications were also in the form of holiday cards such as Christmas and Valentine’s Day and contained romantic overtures, professing his love for her and telling her that he thinks about her every day.
Wise continued to send letters and cards intended for the woman through her attorney until 2017. Although initially aware of the communications, the woman asked her attorney not to notify her of any subsequent letters after 2012. After 2012, the attorney continued to receive letters from Wise, intended for the woman, but in keeping with his client’s wishes, he did not share the communications with her until sometime in 2019. The woman was highly distressed when she learned of the continued attempts by Wise to communicate with her.
Wise made an initial appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge this afternoon. If convicted of this charge, he faces up to five years in federal prison.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. Wise is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Owner of Medical Marketing Company Pleads Guilty to Healthcare Fraud ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – December 3, 2020 – A Mississippi man pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court in Nashville, to conspiracy to pay and receive healthcare kickbacks, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Vernon Sanders, 54 of Meridian, Mississippi, and owner of FastScripts, LLC, was charged in August with conspiring with unnamed co-conspirators to solicit and receive kickbacks and defraud the Medicare Program of $3,381,434.
Sanders was the owner of a marketing company and a patient broker who referred Medicare beneficiaries to laboratories in exchange for kickbacks and bribes. Sanders paid marketers to recruit Medicare patients to provide their genetic material, which he then referred to laboratories for Cancer genomic (“CGx”) testing in exchange for kickbacks. CGx testing uses DNA sequencing to detect mutations in genes that could indicate a higher risk of developing certain types of cancers in the future.
Sanders also paid kickbacks to doctors for signed orders for CGx tests, without regard for the medical necessity of the tests. Sanders was aware that these tests had been procured through the payment of kickbacks, including kickbacks he paid to a physician in Loretto, Tennessee, another co-conspirator. Sanders also paid illegal kickbacks to telemedicine companies in exchange for signed doctors’ orders for genetic testing.
From approximately June 2016 to January 2020, Sanders received approximately $383,260 in illegal kickback payments from laboratories and other marketing co-conspirators. As a result of Sanders’ participation in the conspiracy, Medicare paid laboratories approximately $3,381,434 in reimbursements they were not entitled to receive because the patients had been procured through kickbacks, including orders signed by the physician in Loretto.
Sanders faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced on April 12, 2021,and a fine of up to $250,000; restitution to the Medicare program; and forfeiture of the ill-gotten proceeds.
This case was investigated by the Office of the Inspector General, Department of Health and Human Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah K. Bogni is prosecuting the case.
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Nashville Man Pleads Guilty to Drug Distribution & Firearms Charges in Case That Left A Three-Year-Old Child with A Gunshot to the HeadRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – December 2, 2020 – Kedrick Ross, 27, of Nashville, pleaded guilty Monday in U.S. District Court to drug distribution and firearms charges, resulting from an 11-count indictment handed down last year, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Ross was initially charged in a criminal complaint on October 2, 2019, and indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2019 and charged with three counts of being a convicted felon in possession of firearms; three counts of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug crime; possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute marijuana, methamphetamine and Xanax, within 1,000 feet of an educational institution; possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute marijuana and methamphetamine, within 1,000 feet of a public housing complex; possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine; and two counts of obstruction of justice.
On December 13, 2018, Ross, a convicted felon, was in possession of a stolen Glock .40 caliber handgun, 208 grams of marijuana, and a mixture of methamphetamine near the Watkins College of Art in Nashville. While out on bond on these state charges, on May 29, 2019, Ross was in possession of a stolen Glock 9mm handgun, a stolen Glock .45 caliber handgun, marijuana and methamphetamine, while in the Cumberland View Public Housing development, and on September 9, 2019, Ross was in possession of a stolen Glock .40 caliber handgun while in possession of methamphetamine, with intent to distribute. This firearm was determined to have been the same firearm that Ross left unattended at a relative’s house and with which his 3-year- old son shot himself in the head on the same day and was critically injured. Ross later obstructed justice during the investigation of this incident by attempting to persuade his cousin to falsely claim that this firearm belonged to the cousin’s deceased husband.
Ross faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 16 years and up to life in prison when he is sentenced on April 23, 2021.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department Youth Services Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sunny A.M. Koshy is prosecuting the case.
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Nashville Woman Pleads Guilty in Heroin & Fentanyl Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 24, 2020 – A Nashville woman pleaded guilty yesterday to her involvement in a drug distribution conspiracy that pumped enormous amounts of illegal and deadly drugs into the Nashville area, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Jennifer Montejo, 32, was charged in a criminal complaint on December 12, 2019, with possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin and 400 grams or more of fentanyl, after being arrested at a Nashville bus station a week earlier as she returned from California, after travelling to Los Angeles, days earlier. At the time of her arrest, four kilograms of a fentanyl, and a kilogram of heroin were discovered in Montejo’s luggage. Montejo, at the time, was on bond for state drug charges in Dickson County, Tennessee, which resulted from an incident in July 2019, where the Tennessee Highway Patrol stopped Montejo on Interstate 40, as part of the on-going investigation as she was travelling from California, and subsequently found approximately ¾ of a kilogram of pills containing fentanyl, about one kilogram of heroin, and three firearms.
In addition to the conspiracy, Montejo pleaded guilty to two counts of possession with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl; possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug crime; and money laundering.
The elaborate scheme involved several co-conspirators, including the leader of the conspiracy who orchestrated the operation from his prison cell at a state prison facility in Nashville. The scheme resulted in dozens of kilograms of illicit drugs and thousands of pills, including heroin, fentanyl, methamphetamine and marijuana shipped or brought into the mid-state and was carried out by the use of contraband cell phones which were unlawfully smuggled into the prison. The conspirators used WhatsApp, an encrypted communication service, to communicate about drugs, drug proceeds, firearms and violence. The incarcerated leader even offered significant monetary incentives to others to apply for employment with state or privately run prisons to aid in the illegal smuggling of contraband into the prisons. Montejo herself applied for employment as a guard with the prison in June 2019.
The scheme also involved the transfer of hundreds of thousands of dollars in drug proceeds to Mexico and horrific violence towards co-conspirators who failed at their mission. For instance, on November 3, 2019, a woman was found near a Nashville park whose hand had been severed because she lost $50,000 in drug proceeds which she was transporting by bus. In another instance, the leader of the conspiracy ordered another co-conspirator to cut off his own pinky finger to prove his loyalty.
In furtherance of their drug conspiracy, Montejo and others regularly carried firearms between Nashville and California and continued to distribute counterfeit roxycodone pills, even after learning that people who ingested them ended up in hospital emergency rooms.
This investigation is continuing and to date has resulted in eighteen people being charged with federal drug distribution and other offenses. Montejo will be sentenced on March 26, 2021 and the other cases are pending disposition.
This investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations; Homeland Security Investigations; the Drug Enforcement Administration; The FBI; the Tennessee Highway Patrol; the Tennessee Department of Corrections – Office of Investigations; and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sunny A.M. Koshy and Brooke K. Schiferle.
Other defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Former Supervisory Corrections Officer Sentenced for Repeatedly Tasing Restrained DetaineeRead the Press Release
Former supervisory corrections officer Mark Bryant, 42, was sentenced today to five years in prison for repeatedly tasing a restrained pretrial detainee inside the Cheatham County Jail in Tennessee. In January 2020, a jury in the Middle District of Tennessee convicted Bryant of two counts of violating Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 242, for using excessive force while acting under color of law.
“The defendant abused his power as a supervisory corrections officer by assaulting a restrained person in his custody. Officers who willfully use excessive force both violate the Constitution and erode the public trust in law enforcement,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is committed to prosecuting these abuses of power and upholding the Constitution and laws that protect us all.”
“The extraordinary abuse of power displayed by Bryant was both disturbing and disappointing to the many fine men and women in law enforcement who strive every day to carry out their duties with honor and professionalism,” said U.S. Attorney Donald Q. Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee. “We can never be complacent in our responsibility to protect every citizen from such abuse. Justice has been served and I commend our trial team and our law enforcement partners for their outstanding work in the investigation, preparation and prosecution of this case.”
“When a law enforcement officer violates the civil rights of another, he brings shame on the badge," said Douglas Korneski, Special Agent in Charge of the Memphis Field Office of the FBI. "The sentencing of former Corrections Officer Mark Bryant sends a strong message that law enforcement officers or any other government employees who abuse their authority and use unlawful force will be vigorously investigated and prosecuted. Our citizens have a fundamental and constitutional right to ethical treatment by employees of federal, state, and local government."
Evidence presented at trial established that, on Nov. 5, 2016, Bryant repeatedly tased an 18-year-old detainee who was restrained and surrounded by officers inside the jail. At approximately 8:00 p.m. that night, Bryant tased the detainee four times for a total of 50 seconds while the detainee was strapped into a restraint chair. Bryant returned two hours later and tased the detainee again, this time while the detainee was handcuffed, shackled, and compliant. As a result of Bryant’s unjustified uses of force, the detainee suffered bodily injury, including burns that an officer on the scene described as making the detainee’s skin look like “raw hamburger meat.” As the senior officer at the scene, Bryant then directed his colleagues not to submit reports regarding his uses of force on the detainee.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, and the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Beth Myers of the Middle District of Tennessee’s Nashville Office and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Michael J. Songer.
Former Cheatham County Supervisory Corrections Officer Sentenced for Repeatedly Tasing Restrained DetaineeRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 20, 2020 –Former supervisory corrections officer Mark Bryant, 42, was sentenced today to 5 years in prison for repeatedly tasing a restrained pretrial detainee inside the Cheatham County Jail in Tennessee. In January 2020, a jury in the Middle District of Tennessee convicted Bryant of two counts of violating Title 18, United States Code, Section 242, for using excessive force while acting under color of law.
“The extraordinary abuse of power displayed by Bryant was both disturbing and disappointing to the many fine men and women in law enforcement who strive every day to carry out their duties with honor and professionalism,” said U.S. Attorney Cochran. “We can never be complacent in our responsibility to protect every citizen from such abuse. Justice has been served and I commend our trial team and our law enforcement partners for their outstanding work in the investigation, preparation and prosecution of this case.”
Evidence presented at trial established that, on Nov. 5, 2016, Bryant repeatedly tased an 18-year-old detainee who was restrained and surrounded by officers inside the jail. At approximately 8:00 p.m. that night, Bryant tased the detainee four times for a total of 50 seconds while the detainee was strapped into a restraint chair. Bryant returned two hours later and tased the detainee again, this time while the detainee was handcuffed, shackled, and compliant. As a result of Bryant’s unjustified uses of force, the detainee suffered bodily injury, including burns that an officer on the scene described as making the detainee’s skin look like “raw hamburger meat.” As the senior officer at the scene, Bryant then directed his colleagues not to submit reports regarding his uses of force on the detainee.
“The defendant abused his power as a supervisory corrections officer by assaulting a restrained person in his custody. Officers who willfully use excessive force both violate the Constitution, and erode the public trust in law enforcement,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreibund of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is committed to prosecuting these abuses of power and upholding the Constitution and laws that protect us all.”
“When a law enforcement officer violates the civil rights of another, he brings shame on the badge," said Douglas Korneski, Special Agent in Charge of the Memphis Field Office of the FBI. "The sentencing of former Corrections Officer Mark Bryant sends a strong message that law enforcement officers or any other government employees who abuse their authority and use unlawful force will be vigorously investigated and prosecuted. Our citizens have a fundamental and constitutional right to ethical treatment by employees of federal, state, and local government."
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, and the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Beth Myers of the Middle District of Tennessee’s Nashville Office and Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Michael J. Songer.
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Two More Rollin'40s Crips Gang Members Sentenced to Lengthy Prison TermsRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 19, 2020 – Two additional members of the Rollin’ 40s Crips Gang were sentenced to federal prison this week for drug distribution and firearms charges, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Ricky Brown, 44, of Nashville, was sentenced yesterday to 12 years in federal prison for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and possessing cocaine with intent to distribute with 1,000 feet of a college. Brown was indicted in August 2018, after providing firearms to a confidential informant on two occasions in May and June 2018, while on parole. During a subsequent parole search of Brown’s residence, where children resided and near MeHarry Medical College, law enforcement officers found more than 370 grams of cocaine, digital scales and cash and marijuana. In May 2020, Brown pleaded guilty to possessing cocaine with intent to distribute.
Deandre Bridges, 32, also of Nashville, was sentenced on Monday to nine years in prison for possession and distribution of cocaine. Bridges was indicted in August 2018, after being arrested by officers with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD) in February 2018 after he was found to be a passenger in a car stopped for a traffic violation. Bridges attempted to flee but was apprehended by MNPD officers. Officers found distribution amounts of heroin, cocaine and marijuana in the car where Bridges was seated and also found hydroxycodone and oxycodone pills, cash and digital scales. Bridges had earlier sold 24 grams of crack cocaine to a confidential informant in November 2017. He pleaded guilty in June 2020.
These follow Friday’s sentencing of Lorenzo Shelton, 38, who was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Shelton was convicted in September 2019, after a four-day jury trial, of possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin; possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Shelton committed these crimes while on parole for previous drug trafficking convictions.
Since 2019, the U.S. Attorney’s office and federal, state and local law enforcement has charged 17 members of the Rollin’ 40s Crips Gang, 15 of which either have been sentenced or are awaiting sentencing.
These investigations were conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department and the Tennessee Department of Correction. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ahmed Safeeullah prosecuted the cases against Brown and Bridges. Additional prosecutions of Rollin’40s Gang members have been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brooke K. Schiferle, Sunny A.M. Koshy, Miller Bushong, Robert McGuire, Josh Kurtzman, Robert Levine and Ben Schrader.
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Three Mid-State Men Indicted on Drug Distribution ChargesRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 19, 2020 – Three Nashville men indicted in February as part of a deadly heroin and fentanyl distribution network have now been taken into federal custody as the remaining two made initial appearances before a U.S. Magistrate Judge earlier today, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Marquel Peoples, aka Worm, 25, and Christopher Johnson, 27, both of Nashville, were charged in a 15-count indictment with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin, fentanyl, and carfentanil; and various counts of possession with intent to distribute and distribution of heroin and fentanyl. Peoples and Johnson are each charged with being responsible for the distribution of more than 400 grams of fentanyl, and both are also charged with possessing firearms in furtherance of drug crimes. The indictment also alleges that the fentanyl distributed by Peoples resulted in serious bodily injury to others and resulted in the death of one individual.
Blaine Ellis, 31, of Lavergne, Tennessee was also charged with possession with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl. Peoples and Ellis appeared in front of United States Magistrate Judge Barbara D. Holmes earlier today. Johnson appeared before a U.S. Magistrate Judge earlier this year and was released with conditions, pending trial.
“The forgotten pandemic is that an alarming number of people continue to overdose and die from these deadly drugs,” said U.S. Attorney Cochran. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue alongside our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute those who contribute to this deadly addiction crisis.”
“This case should serve as a warning to anyone who seeks to destroy our communities by peddling poison and preying on those who are struggling with the disease of addiction,” said Special Agent in Charge Todd Scott, head of DEA’s Louisville Division, which includes Tennessee, Kentucky, and West Virginia. “Together with our law enforcement partners, DEA will continue to hunt you down and work tirelessly to bring you to justice.”
According to documents filed with the Court, in the summer of 2019, law enforcement became aware of reports of blue-tinted drugs, which were causing overdoses in the middle Tennessee area. Through a series of investigative efforts, law enforcement acquired blue-tinted drugs from Peoples, Johnson, and Ellis and subsequent testing determined that those drugs contained heroin and fentanyl. During one operation, Peoples claimed responsibility for the blue drugs, saying “if you got the blue stuff … [you] got it from us.” The investigation linked a fatal overdose in March 2019 to the signature blue heroin.
If convicted, Peoples faces a minimum of 25 years and up to life in prison; Johnson faces a minimum of 15 years and up to life in prison; and Ellis faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
This investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Nashville District Office Tactical Diversion Squad; the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Opioid/Overdose Task Force; the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department SID Gang Unit; the Lavergne Police Department; the Murfreesboro Police Department; and the Rutherford County Sherriff’s Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda J. Klopf is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Seven MS-13 Gang Members Indicted in Violent Crime and Drug Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
A federal grand jury in Nashville, Tennessee, returned a 16-count superseding indictment Wednesday, charging seven MS-13 gang members with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana and serious firearm-related offenses, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Those charged include Carlos Ochoa-Martinez, 31, aka “El Serio,” Jason Sandoval, 35, aka “Bin Laden,” Jorge Flores, 28, aka “Peluche,” all of Nashville; Jose Pineda-Caceres, 22, aka “Demente,” and Franklin Hernandez, 21, aka “Happy,” both of Honduras; Gerson Serrano-Ramirez, 33, aka “Frijole,” of El Salvador and Juan Melendez,” aka “Shaggy,” of Lebanon, Tennessee.
The indictment alleges that beginning in 2014 and continuing until yesterday, the defendants conspired with each other to obtain bulk quantities of marijuana and cocaine for redistribution in and around middle Tennessee. Once the drugs were received, the defendants would reduce them into smaller quantities and sell them in and around nightclubs in Nashville and from the parking lots and restrooms of these establishments. In order to maximize drug distribution in these nightclubs, the defendants would threaten rival and competing drug dealers who sold and attempted to sell cocaine and marijuana in the nightclubs.
In order to protect their drugs, territory and proceeds, the defendants would acquire, carry and discharge firearms. To maintain and extend control over their drug distribution, the defendants would commit acts involving murder, intimidation and assault against individuals who jeopardized its operations, including rival drug dealers.
All defendants are in custody and will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge at a later date.
This investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; the Drug Enforcement Administration; and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Trial Attorney Matthew Hoff of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime & Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ahmed Safeeullah are prosecuting this case.
An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.
Seven MS-13 Gang Members Indicted in Violent Crime and Drug Distribution ConspiracyRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 19, 2020 – A federal grand jury in Nashville returned a 16-count superseding indictment yesterday, charging seven MS-13 Gang members with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana and serious firearm-related offenses, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee and Brian C. Rabbitt, Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice.
Those charged are: Carlos Ochoa-Martinez, 31, aka “El Serio,” Jason Sandoval, 35, aka “Bin Laden,” Jorge Flores, 28, aka “Peluche,” all of Nashville; Jose Pineda-Caceres, 22, aka “Demente,” and Franklin Hernandez, 21, aka “Happy,” both of Honduras; Gerson Serrano-Ramirez, 33, aka “Frijole,” of El Salvador and Juan Melendez,” aka “Shaggy,” of Lebanon, Tennessee.
The indictment alleges that beginning in 2014 and continuing until yesterday, the defendants conspired with each other to obtain bulk quantities of marijuana and cocaine for redistribution in and around middle Tennessee. Once the drugs were received, the defendants would reduce them into smaller quantities and sell them in and around nightclubs in Nashville and from the parking lots and restrooms of these establishments. In order to maximize drug distribution in these nightclubs, the defendants would threaten rival and competing drug dealers who sold and attempted to sell cocaine and marijuana in the nightclubs.
In order to protect their drugs, territory and proceeds, the defendants would acquire, carry and discharge firearms and to maintain and extend control over their drug distribution they would commit acts involving murder, intimidation and assault against individuals who jeopardized its operations, including rival drug dealers.
All defendants are in custody and will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge at a later date.
If convicted, the defendants face a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and up to 40 years.
This investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; the Drug Enforcement Administration; and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ahmed Safeeullah and Trial Attorney Matthew Hoff of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime & Gang Section are prosecuting this case.
An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Clarksville Man Sentenced to Prison for PerjuryRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 18, 2020 – A Clarksville, Tennessee man was sentenced to federal prison today for giving false testimony during the trial of local Gangster Disciple members, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Midle District of Tennessee.
Ronald Marion Daniels II, 35, was sentenced to five years in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Daniels was indicted on two counts of perjury in August 2019, following the conclusion of the trial in April 2019 of several members of the Gangster Disciples, including Marcus Darden and Maurice Burks. Darden and Burks were both charged with criminal offenses related to the assault and murder in aid of racketeering of Malcolm Wright, a member of the rival Bloods gang, inside C-Ray’s nightclub in Clarksville, Tennessee on November 3, 2012.
“Witnesses before the Court and grand jury are sworn to provide the truth during their testimony,” said U.S. Attorney Cochran. “Testimony that deviates from the truth undermines the justice process and can have dire consequences on the integrity of the justice system. Those who lie during these proceedings should expect that we will always hold them accountable.”
During the trial, Daniels provided testimony that he did not know the identity of Brandon Hardison, aka, “Creep,” another defendant in the case. Daniels’s testimony was inconsistent with prior statements to law enforcement and sworn grand jury testimony in which Daniels had identified a photograph of Hardison, described Hardison’s appearance, and described statements Hardison had made in the parking lot of C-Ray’s nightclub prior to Wright’s murder.
In other testimony during the trial, Daniels testified under oath that he had never seen Elance Justin Lucas, aka “Mac Luke,” another trial defendant, cook powder cocaine into crack cocaine. Daniels had previously provided sworn testimony to a grand jury during which he stated that he had in fact seen Lucas cook powder cocaine on two occasions.
Darden, Burks, Lucas and others were convicted at trial. Brandon Hardison is scheduled for trial in February 2022.
This investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the Clarksville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ben Schrader is prosecuting this case.
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Nashville Gang Member Sentenced to 30 Years in PrisonRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 16, 2020 - A Nashville man convicted last year of drug distribution and firearms charges was sentenced Friday to 30 years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Lorenzo Shelton, 38, was convicted in September 2019, after a four-day jury trial, of possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin; possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Shelton, a high-ranking member of the Rollin’ 40s Gang, was on parole for previous drug trafficking crimes in August 2016 when parole officers made a surprise visit to his home on Tillman Lane in Nashville. A search of Shelton’s room resulted in the seizure of 165 grams of heroin and other items indicative of drug trafficking. A loaded sawed-off shotgun and another shotgun were also found in the house and $11,000 cash was recovered from the trunk of Shelton’s rental car. The investigation led officers to a second address on Chesapeake Drive in Nashville, where Shelton also lived, and there, officers recovered 90 grams of heroin, a loaded 9mm pistol, and $51,000 cash.
After being convicted of these crimes last year, Shelton was returned to state custody to await sentencing. Approximately 10 days later, agents received information that Shelton used a contraband cellular phone to call into a meeting of Rollin’ 40s Gang members to solicit the assassination of the federal prosecutor and ATF agent who brought the charges. The U.S. Marshals Service opened an investigation and requested state correctional officers conduct a search of Shelton’s prison cell for the cellular phone. When an officer attempted to retrieve the phone, Shelton assaulted the officer and destroyed the phone. When sentencing Shelton, U.S. District Court Judge Eli J. Richardson found that this conduct by Shelton obstructed justice.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; the United States Marshals Service; the Tennessee Department of Correction; and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooke K. Schiferle prosecuted the case. The sentencing was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sunny A.M. Koshy.
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Tennessee Emergency Medical Doctor Sentenced to Prison for Unlawfully Distributing Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
A Tennessee emergency medical doctor was sentenced today to serve 24 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his role in unlawfully distributing controlled substances.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Don Cochran of the Middle District of Tennessee and Special Agent in Charge J. Todd Scott of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Louisville Division made the announcement.
Lawrence J. Valdez, M.D., 51, of Hendersonville, Tennessee, was sentenced after pleading guilty in November 2019 to one count of unlawful distribution of controlled substances. U.S. District Judge Eli J. Richardson of the Middle District of Tennessee imposed the sentence.
Pursuant to his guilty plea, Valdez admitted that in February 2017 he knowingly distributed oxymorphone, a schedule II controlled substance, to a patient without a legitimate medical purpose and outside the usual course of professional practice. He further admitted to distributing schedule II opioids to four different patients without a legitimate medical purpose and outside the course of professional practice on 16 other occasions between June 2016 and February 2017, and in exchange for sexual intercourse and other sexual acts with those patients.
The DEA, Tennessee’s 18th Judicial Drug Task Force and the District Attorney General’s Office for Tennessee’s 18th Judicial District investigated the case. Assistant Chief Kilby Macfadden and Trial Attorney William M. Grady of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
The Fraud Section leads the Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid (ARPO) Strike Force. Since its inception in October 2018, the ARPO Strike Force, which operates in 10 districts, has charged more than 70 defendants who are collectively responsible for distributing more than 50 million pills. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for approximately $19 billion. In addition, the Health and Human Services (HHS) Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-Office of Inspector General, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Individuals who believe that they may be a victim in this case should visit the Fraud Section’s Victim Witness website for more information.
Nashville Man Charged with CyberstalkingRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 12, 2020 –A Nashville man was arrested today and charged with four counts of cyberstalking, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Barry Zarculia, 53, was arrested this morning by FBI agents, pursuant to a criminal complaint issued Tuesday and unsealed today. According to the complaint, the FBI has been investigating Zarculia since June and determined that he used a cellular phone and an Instagram account to send death threats, threaten serious bodily harm, and/or harass, intimidate and stalk multiple victims.
The complaint alleges that Zarculia was the user of the Instagram account @songs_in_the_key_of_z and posted hateful, racist, anti-black messages on their public message board, such as messages including the phrasing “black lives don’t matter.” In addition, an individual referenced having observed posts which applauded the sniper who conducted the 2017 Las Vegas Massacre and which alluded to the fact that the user wished the same attack would occur in Nashville, Tennessee. After posting these and other comments, Zarculia received negative feedback from other social media users. Zarculia then posted a photograph of one individual’s house, along with the address of the individual’s public page, and said in part, “Anyone that wants a piece of me, come on over,……..Off Nolensville Pike. I sleep in the front bedroom.” This alarmed the individual as this front bedroom was occupied by his child. Zarculia also sent other messages to this individual and called him on the phone and threatened to put a gun in his mouth.
The continuing investigation led agents to another victim who began receiving unsolicited messages from Zarculia in September 2019, via Instagram. Although this woman had never met Zarculia, his messages referenced her recent locations around Nashville, including a local coffee shop and a local park. Zarculia continued to message this woman for the next several months, which she described as “creepy” and “overly sexual” in nature, often sending her photos of his penis. On one occasion, Zarculia made reference to the woman’s minor son and specifically mentioned the elementary school which he attended, though the woman had never mentioned her son to Zarculia. She eventually stopped responding to Zarculia’s messages and in early 2020, Zarculia approached her in a local grocery store. She did not engage in conversation with him and went about her business. Later, Zarculia sent her messages that were angry in nature. These messages continued to escalate to violent and threatening rants, some sent in audio format and also directed at a friend of the woman who had become involved out of fear for the woman’s safety.
Another victim told FBI agents that in the summer of 2018, she was contacted by Zarculia, via Instagram. Although they had never met, the woman became friends on social media with Zarculia and talked online until early 2019, when she decided not to pursue the relationship. Zarculia later messaged the woman and told her he had found her apartment, though they had never met in person. Zarculia escalated his activity to include lewd comments and photographs and posted her home address, phone number and photograph on Craigslist and other public websites to be used for escort/prostitution advertising. This woman also received information that Zarculia had been to her home and wiped a caustic chemical compound on the handle of the front door.
The complaint alleges yet another woman who began receiving unsolicited Instagram messages from Zarculia in July 2020. These messages also escalated to harassing and threatening text and audio messages. On many occasions, Zarculia made reference to her location, making it apparent that he had followed her and knew where she had been and where she lived. In October, out of fear for her safety, the woman obtained a temporary order of protection against Zarculia. The following day, while hiking at a local park, the woman saw Zarculia from a distance. She then hid in a large bush and sought the assistance of a park ranger to escort her to her vehicle, at which time Zarculia began yelling at her.
Each of these victims were forced to take additional security measures, including installing or updating their home alarm systems, or even moving from their home, in order to mitigate the threat posed by Zarculia.
Zarculia will make an initial appearance before a U.S. Magistrate Judge later this afternoon. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each count.
Anyone who believes they have been the target of Zarculia’s cyberstalking or threatening behavior is encouraged to contact the local FBI office at 615-232-7500.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn Risinger is prosecuting the case.
A criminal complaint is merely an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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Hendersonville Emergency Medical Doctor Sentenced to Prison for Unlawfully Distributing Controlled SubstancesRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 12, 2020 – A Hendersonville, Tennessee emergency medical doctor was sentenced today to two years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in unlawfully distributing controlled substances.
U.S. Attorney Don Cochran of the Middle District of Tennessee, Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, and Special Agent in Charge J. Todd Scott of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Louisville Division made the announcement.
Lawrence J. Valdez, M.D., 51, was sentenced after pleading guilty in November 2019 to one count of unlawful distribution of controlled substances. U.S. District Judge Eli J. Richardson of the Middle District of Tennessee imposed the sentence.
Valdez admitted that in February 2017 he knowingly distributed oxymorphone, a Schedule II controlled substance, to a patient without a legitimate medical purpose and outside the usual course of professional practice. He further admitted to distributing Schedule II opioids to four different patients without a legitimate medical purpose and outside the course of professional practice on 16 other occasions between June 2016 and February 2017, and in exchange for sexual intercourse and other sexual acts with those patients.
The DEA, the District Attorney General’s Office for the 18th Judicial District and the 18th Judicial District Drug Task Force investigated the case. Assistant Chief Kilby Macfadden and Trial Attorney William M. Grady of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case
The Fraud Section leads the Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid (ARPO) Strike Force. Since its inception in October 2018, the ARPO Strike Force, which operates in 10 districts, has charged more than 70 defendants who are collectively responsible for distributing more than 50 million pills. Thus far there have been 32 guilty pleas as a result of ARPO Strike Force’s efforts. The Fraud Section leads the Medicare Fraud Strike Force. Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,200 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for approximately $19 billion. In addition, the Health and Human Services (HHS) Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-Office of Inspector General, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.
Individuals who believe that they may be a victim in this case should visit the Fraud Section’s Victim Witness website for more information.
The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.
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Nashville Man Sentenced to 17 Years in Federal Prison for Drug Distribution and Firearms ViolationsRead the Press Release
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 9, 2020 – A Nashville man with a lengthy criminal history spanning two decades was sentenced last week to 17 years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney Don Cochran for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Timothy Lamont Page, 50, was sentenced Thursday, after he pleaded guilty in July to possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, cocaine and heroin, and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.
In April 2019, officers with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department – Madison Crime Suppression Unit, executed a search warrant at Page’s apartment, following months of surveillance based on complaints of illegal drug activity. During the search, officers found crack cocaine, cocaine and heroin packaged for sale, along with digital scales and over $4,000 cash. A loaded 9mm Smith & Wesson handgun was also found in Page’s vehicle. A federal grand jury indicted Page and his co-defendant, Isabell Slusher, 23, of Bell Buckle, Tennessee in November 2019.
On January 2, 2020, Page was transferred from the Sumner County Jail to federal custody and was released from custody the following week after a detention hearing. One of the conditions of his pre-trial release was that he have no contact with Slusher. Page left the United States Courthouse after the hearing and immediately contacted Slusher and just three days later, he picked her up from her mother’s house. On February 2, 2020, Slusher overdosed on heroin at the Strike and Spare Family Fun Center in Nashville, and lost consciousness in a bathroom stall. A volunteer firefighter was present and administered NARCAN, which likely saved Slusher’s life. It was later learned that Page had also accompanied Slusher to Vanderbilt Medical Center on two occasions after being released. In addition to likely continuing to supply Slusher with heroin, which almost killed her, Page also threatened Slusher, telling her that people would kill her if she cooperated with law enforcement. Slusher pleaded guilty to drug charges earlier this year and is awaiting sentencing.
Page’s criminal history includes facilitation of murder in 1993; possession with intent to distribute cocaine in 2003; distribution of cocaine in 2007; being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm in 2008; and attempt to possess heroin for resale in 2015.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua A. Kurtzman is prosecuting the case.
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