Northern District of Texas

DALLAS — Ellis Wamsley, IV of Grand Prairie, Texas, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle to serve 54 months in federal prison and pay $1,850,000 in restitution following his guilty plea in May 2016 to a felony offense stemming from his work with co-defendant Kevin Kenard Howard and the FAIM Economic Development Corporation, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas. 

Specifically, Wamsley, 47, pleaded guilty to one count of engaging in a monetary transaction with property derived from specified unlawful activity and aiding and abetting.  Judge Boyle ordered that he surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on November 30, 2016.

Co-defendant Howard, 34, of Duncanville, Texas, pleaded guilty in May 2016 to one count of wire fraud.  He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison a fine not to exceed $250,000 or twice any pecuniary gain to the defendant, and restitution.  He is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Boyle on December 8, 2016.

According to documents filed in the case, Wamsley formed FAIM in 2003, and in 2010, as its CEO, hired Howard to work as a financial consultant to assist in recruiting investors for FAIM.  In summer 2010, while trying to recruit these investors to supply additional cash revenue for FAIM, Howard and Wamsley recruited “M.R.,” the owner/operator of “Company R,” in Flower Mound, Texas.  They advised M.R. that a proposed joint venture between FAIM and Company R would generate funding for FAIM economic development projects in the southern sector of Dallas and throughout the U.S.  FAIM and Company R signed a joint venture agreement in July 2010 that represented to investor M.R. and Company R that FAIM would provide a monthly financial report regarding the performance of the trading.  Wamsley and Howard told M.R. that M.R.’s funds would only be invested in certain types of investments identified in the agreement and that all investment profits would be split equally between FAIM and M.R.

In August 2010, M.R. wired $2 million to a FAIM brokerage account at Charles Schwab.  Approximately one month later, Wamsley transferred $1,791,703 in Company R’s investment funds from that account to a FAIM Merrill Lynch brokerage account that he had established and to which M.R. did not have access.

Wamsley told Howard that Howard would be FAIM’s primary point of contact with M.R.  After the first few trades, the joint venture began to lose money.  Wamsley told Howard to hide the investment losses from M.F.  Howard agreed to, and did, lie to M.R. about the trading losses and the true balance of the investment account. 

Howard, with Wamsley’s knowledge and consent, knowingly participated in the fraud scheme by sending lulling emails to M.R. that contained false information about the true balance and value of the account.  In November 2010, Howard sent an email to M.R. falsely assuring M.R. that profits in the investment account had increased.  In December 2010, Howard sent an email to M.R. in which he falsely represented that the account balance was $2,436,611.  In January 2011, Howard sent another email saying the total account balance was $2,500,000.  In fact, from October 2010 to August 2011, Howard, at Wamsley’s instruction, sent several emails to M.R. with the specific intent to deceive, mislead and confuse M.R. about the account’s true balance.  Wamsley and Howard also concealed that fact that Wamsley was diverting some of the funds in the account for his own personal benefit and use.

For instance, from October 2010 through April 2012, Wamsley fraudulently transferred more than $1.7 million of Company R investment funds to FAIM’s business accounts, and he unlawfully spent those funds for his, Howard’s and others’ personal benefits.  For example, in November 2010, Wamsley used $40,024 in Company R investment funds to purchase a 2008 Cadillac Escalade for Howard; $41,764 of investment funds to purchase a 2008 Cadillac Escalade for a family member; and $125,477 in investment funds to purchase a 2007 Aston Martin for himself.  Wamsley also used more than $200,000 in investment funds to host a Super Bowl fund-raising event in 2011.  In court filed documents, Wamsley admitted that he caused a total investor loss of $1,850,000 as a result of this investor fraud scheme.

This case is one of several felony prosecutions of bankruptcy-related crimes generated by the Bankruptcy Fraud Initiative in the Northern District of Texas.  Wamsley is the 16th defendant convicted since July 2014 as part of that initiative. 

Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney David Jarvis prosecuted.

# # #

LUBBOCK, Texas — Benny T. Martinez, 37, of San Angelo, Texas, made his initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge E. Scott Frost on a complaint, unsealed today, charging possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Judge Frost ordered that Martinez remain in federal custody.  A preliminary hearing is set for November 9, 2016.

The investigation began when the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) received information that Martinez resided at a location that was being used as a multi-pound methamphetamine stash site, and that Martinez was responsible for the distribution of multiple pounds of methamphetamine, per month, throughout the San Angelo area.

A search warrant was executed at Martinez’s residence on Wilma Lane on October 21, 2016.  Martinez was located exiting the west bedroom of the residence.  The search of the residence revealed 2,188 gross grams of methamphetamine in the ceiling of the pantry, as well as two .22 caliber rifles, approximately $13,700 in cash, a vacuum sealer and food saver bags, a digital scale, rolls of plastic, and adulterants consistent with those used to dilute controlled substances.  The search yielded an additional 6,279 gross grams of methamphetamine buried on the north side of an outbuilding, in a small garden.

A federal criminal complaint is a written statement of the essential facts of the offense charged, and must be made under oath before a magistrate judge.  A defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.  The U.S. Attorney’s office has 30 days to present the matter to a grand jury for indictment.  The penalty for the charged offense is not less than 10 years or up to life in federal prison and a $10 million fine.

The matter is being investigated by Texas DPS, the San Angelo Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Tom Green County Sheriff’s Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Haag is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — Special agents with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), along with postal inspectors with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), arrested Francisco Javier Gonzalez, a/k/a “Javier Gonzalez,” Monday morning at his home in Duncanville, Texas, on a federal indictment, returned last week by a grand jury in Dallas, and just unsealed, which charges Gonzalez with 21 counts of mail, wire and bank fraud and aggravated identity theft stemming from his work at the Dallas County Community Action Committee, Inc. (DCCAC).  The announcement was made today by U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Gonzalez, 44, made his initial appearance in federal court yesterday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge Paul D. Stickney, who ordered him detained pending trial. 

Specifically, the indictment charges Gonzalez with five counts of mail fraud, six counts of wire fraud, eight counts of bank fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft.

The DCCAC was a non-profit entity, accredited by HUD between October 1990 and mid- February 2016, to provide housing counseling.  It was created in 1965 by the Dallas Commissioners Court to support the efforts of the Johnson administration to combat poverty.  DCCAC was located on East Jefferson Boulevard in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas.  Gonzalez served as DCCAC’s Vice President and one of the directors. Gonzalez also leased space in the DCCAC offices for another entity, known as Residential Counseling FJ LLC.

The indictment alleges that through his work at DCCAC, Gonzalez defrauded numerous homeowners under the guise that he was assisting them with mortgage assistance.  Instead, Gonzalez falsified paperwork, stole these homeowners’ mortgage payments, and extracted large payments from these homeowners in a claimed, but untrue, effort to unsuccessfully save their homes from foreclosure.  As a result of his fraud, these homeowners were defrauded of tens of thousands of dollars and many lost their homes; HUD also suffered a loss of approximately $659,859.00

Gonzalez, according to the indictment, specifically sought out victims who were facing financial difficulty and who had contacted the DCCAC seeking mortgage loan and foreclosure prevention assistance.  He also identified victims facing such financial distress by subscribing to the Foreclosure Listing Service, a/k/a Roddy List, which offers listings of foreclosure and pre-foreclosure homes, by county, through a review of public records.  Once identified, Gonzalez would meet with these victims in the DCCAC offices and in the victims’ homes.  He would explain a plan to reduce the victim’s mortgage payment and to prevent foreclosure; the plan often included a loan modification application. 

In many instances, Gonzalez would prepare and submit a Making Home Affordable Request for Mortgage Assistance modification application, pay stubs, Hardship Affidavits, and verifications of employment in an attempt to obtain the loan modification for these victims.  These documents often contained information that had been falsified by Gonzalez and were otherwise incomplete.  Banks would often deny these applications because they were incomplete. 

On some occasions, the indictment alleges, Gonzales told victims to not communicate with the banks as that would prevent him from effectively obtaining the loan modification.  He would tell these victims to stop making their mortgage payments to the bank and instead make the payments directly to him so that he could forward the funds to the bank.  Sometimes, he instructed the victim to make a large lump sum payment directly to him to stave off foreclosure, and he also often required a lump sum payment for his own services.  On almost all occasions, Gonzalez did not submit this money paid to him by the victims to the banks as he had promised, but instead used the money for his own personal expenses.

As a result of the failure to make mortgage payments and incomplete applications submitted to modify loans, banks would often begin the foreclosure process.  In some instances, Gonzalez would then mail a Real Estate Settlement Procedure Act (RESPA) Qualified Written Request to the bank in an effort to delay the foreclosure and extract additional funds from the victim.  Gonzalez also instructed some victims to file for bankruptcy in an effort to avoid foreclosure.

On some occasions, when a victim provided Gonzalez with a money order already made out to the bank, Gonzalez would alter it to make it payable to himself. 

An indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury, and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.  If convicted, however, each mail fraud count carries a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years and a $250,000 fine.  Each wire fraud count and each bank fraud count carries a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years and a $1 million fine.  Each aggravated identify theft count carries a mandatory two years and a $250,000 fine.  

HUD Office of Inspector General, FHFA Office of Inspector General, and the USPIS are investigating the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney P.J. Meitl is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS – U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas announced today that Assistant U.S. Attorney Mattie Compton will lead the efforts of his Office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 8, 2016, general elections.  AUSA Compton has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the Northern District of Texas, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights abuses in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

 

“Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud,” said U.S. Attorney Parker.  “The Department of Justice will act promptly and aggressively to protect the integrity of the election process.”

 

The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring election fraud and discrimination at the polls, and combating these violations whenever and wherever they occur.  The Department’s long-standing Election Day Program furthers these goals, and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the integrity of the election process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible election fraud and voting rights violations while the polls are open on election day.

 

Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input.  It also contains special protections for the rights of voters and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them.  For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them, under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law.  Further, federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice.

 

The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy.  We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice.  In order to respond to complaints of election fraud or voting rights abuses on November 8, 2016, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, U.S. Attorney Parker stated that AUSA/DEO Compton will be on duty in this District while the polls are open.  The public may reach her at 682-667-6723.

 

In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day.  The Dallas FBI field office can be reached by the public at 972-559-5000.

 

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section in Washington, DC by phone at 1-800-253-3931 or (202) 307-2767, by fax at (202) 307-3961, by email to [email protected] or by complaint form at http://www.justice.gov/crt/complaint/votintake/index.php.

 

U.S. Attorney Parker said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the cooperation of the American electorate.  It is imperative that those who have specific information about discrimination or election fraud make that information available immediately to my Office, the FBI, or the Civil Rights Division.”

 

# # #

FORT WORTH, Texas — A former fugitive who was wanted for various offenses, including most recently, making a false statement on a passport application, pleaded guilty to that offense in federal court and has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor to 72 months in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Avniel Awan Anthony, 40, a U.S. citizen and former resident of Arlington, Texas, was taken into custody on April 14, 2016, by the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) and the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS).  Anthony pleaded guilty in June 2016 to an indictment charging one count of false statement in passport application.

In documents filed in the case, Anthony admitted that in October 2013, he willfully and knowingly made a false statement in an application for a passport, when he knowingly falsely stated his name was “Dominic Dewayne Wilson” on the passport application he submitted at the U.S. Post Office located on E. Bardin Road in Arlington.  In support of that application, Anthony presented a postal clerk a Texas identification card bearing his photograph and the name “Dominic Dewayne Wilson,” and he falsely swore that the information on the application was true.

Anthony was a DSS fugitive wanted for passport fraud, identity theft, evading the police, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Anthony changed his identity and fled to Playa de Carmen, Mexico, where he remained a fugitive until DSS located him in March 2016.

DSS and the USMS coordinated with the Playa de Carmen Tourist Police and Mexican immigration officials to locate, arrest, and return Anthony to the U.S. to face charges. 

The DSS is the security and law enforcement arm of the U.S. Department of State with agents located in more than 160 countries worldwide.  DSS and the USMS work together to locate and return U.S. fugitives from abroad.

Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Michael Worley prosecuted the case.

# # #

FORT WORTH, Texas — Six individuals, most with ties to the Polywood Crips street gang in Fort Worth, Texas, have been charged in a federal indictment with conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, sex trafficking of children, sex trafficking through force, fraud or coercion and related offenses.  Three additional defendants involved in the conspiracy, each charged in a criminal information, have entered guilty pleas.  The announcement was made today by U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Most of the defendants were arrested on July 21, 2016, on related charges, outlined in a criminal complaint following an operation conducted by special agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Fort Worth Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals Service.

Each of the below-listed defendants acted as a “pimp” and is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking:

Chad Johnson, a/k/a “Ocho Hood Fame,” 24
Diwone Nobles, a/k/a “Pooh,” 32
Audry Lane, a/k/a “Spud,” 29
Deon Bonner, a/k/a “Spanish Fly,” 26
Stanley Johnson, a/k/a “Pee Wee,” 24
Katelyn Michelle Ward, a/k/a “KD,” 24

In addition, Chad Johnson is charged with two counts of sex trafficking through force, fraud or coercion; one count of sex trafficking of children through force, fraud or coercion; and one count of sex trafficking of children.  Nobles is charged with one count each of sex trafficking through force, fraud or coercion; one count of sex trafficking of children through force, fraud or coercion; and one count of sex trafficking of children.  Audry Lane is also charged with two counts of sex trafficking through force, fraud or coercion and one count of sex trafficking of children.  Bonner and Stanley Johnson are also each charged with two counts of sex trafficking of children.

The three defendants who pleaded guilty on October 17, 2016, before U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor, are:

Jessica Arnold, 23
Serrah Arnold, a/k/a “Kristen,” 28
Alvin Lane, a/k/a “Spank,”

Alvin Lane pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of children.  Sisters Jessica and Serrah Arnold each pleaded guilty to one count of use of a facility of interstate commerce in aid of a racketeering enterprise.

The indictment alleges that beginning before June 1, 2013, though approximately July 21, 2016, the six defendants conspired and agreed with others to recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide, obtain and maintain, female children victims under the age of 18, as well as adult victims, recklessly disregarding that force, threats of force, fraud and coercion and any combination of such means would be used to cause these victims to engage in commercial sex acts.

In the affidavit filed with the criminal complaint, one minor female victim was told by Nobles, Bonner, and Chad Johnson to charge $120 for a half hour and $180 for a full hour of commercial sex acts, and the three kept all of the money she received.  The victim feared Nobles and Chad Johnson because she had observed both become violent when angry and had observed Chad Johnson assault another female on several occasions when the female did not follow his instructions. 

Another minor female victim engaged in commercial sex acts at the direction of Stanley Johnson, who would post advertisements with her photo on Backpage.com.  All of the money she earned by engaging in commercial sex acts was given to Stanley Johnson.

An adult female victim engaged in commercial sex acts at the direction of Nobles, Chad Johnson, Audry Lane, Alvin Lane, and Serrah Arnold.  Nobles frequently assaulted her when she made him angry or did not follow his instructions; he also raped her.  Nobles kept the money she earned and the contact phone number used in the Backpage.com ad for her services was used by Nobles.   In one trip to Austin, this adult female victim made enough money for Nobles to buy a Chevy sedan that he painted bright orange – “Poly Orange” in reference to their neighborhood Polytechnic Heights – that he still owns.

When an adult female victim engaged in commercial sex acts at Chad Johnson’s direction, he physically assaulted her if she did not follow his instructions.  On one occasion, Chad Johnson punched her in the ear hard enough to cause her eardrum to burst and bleed.  Chad Johnson also raped her, and when he believed she had attempted to “renegade,” he had several friends gang rape her as punishment.  “Renegade” is a term used to describe attempting to engage in commercial sex acts for money outside the knowledge or control of a pimp. 

When an adult female victim engaged in commercial sex acts at Audry Lane’s direction, he would have Serrah Arnold, his “bottom girl,” supervise the victim and take the money she received. 

A minor female victim engaged in commercial sex acts at the direction of Audry Lane, Alvin Lane, Serrah Arnold and Jessica Arnold.  Alvin Lane would have his girlfriend/bottom girl, Jessica Arnold post photos of her in ads that she placed on Backpage.com.  The minor female victim would give all the money she earned to Jessica or Serrah Arnold, who would then give the money to Audry Lane or Alvin Lane.

Some of the six pimp’s Facebook pages contained online posts, visible to the public, that reference making a lot of money through criminal activity, namely “pimping.”  Chad Johnson’s Facebook page contains photos of him posing with large sums of cash while referencing commercial sex.  Several of Chad Johnson’s Facebook friends are females observed in Backpage.com ads for commercial sex. 

Nobles, Bonner, Chad Johnson, Stanley Johnson, and Audry Lane have several photos on their Facebook pages in which they can be observed flashing gang signs referencing the “Polywood Crips” street gang.

A federal complaint is a written statement of the essential facts of the offenses charged and must be made under oath before a magistrate judge; the government has 30 days to present the matter to a grand jury for indictment.  An indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury, and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.  If convicted, however, each count in the indictment carries a maximum statutory penalty of life in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. 

ATF, ICE HSI and the Fort Worth Police Department are investigating.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Cara Foos Pierce is in charge of the prosecution.              

# # #

DALLAS - Daybreak Partners, LLC, a holding company for a number of subsidiaries that operate and manage skilled nursing facilities throughout Texas, has agreed to pay $5,300,000.00 to resolve allegations that they billed Medicare and Medicaid for materially substandard nursing services.  The skilled nursing facilities are operated as individual limited partnerships owned by Daybreak Venture, LLC and Daybreak Healthcare, Inc. (Daybreak).  Daybreak denies the allegations.  U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas made the announcement today.

The settlement resolves allegations that between 2006 and 2010, some of the skilled nursing services provided at four nursing facilities Daybreak owned and managed (Deerings Nursing and Rehabilitation, L.P., Odessa, Texas; Mansfield Nursing and Rehabilitation, L.P., Mansfield, Texas; Marine Creek Nursing and Rehabilitation, L.P. Mineral Wells, Texas; and Mineral Wells Nursing and Rehabilitation, L.P., Mineral Wells, Texas) were materially substandard and/or worthless because Daybreak: (a) failed to follow appropriate fall protocols for several residents; (b) failed to follow appropriate pressure ulcer and infection control protocols for several residents; (c) failed to properly administer medications to several residents to avoid medication errors; (d) failed to follow doctors’ orders for several residents; (e) failed to provide appropriate mental health treatment to several residents; (f) failed to answer several residents’ call lights promptly; (g) failed to institute appropriate infection control measures for several residents; (h) failed to provide a habitable living environment, adequate equipment, and needed capital expenditures; and (i) failed to investigate and report serious incidents to appropriate authorities on several occasions.

“In addition to our responsibility to preserve federal tax dollars, we have a special obligation to protect the most vulnerable members of our community,” said U.S. Attorney Parker.  “This settlement reflects our commitment to ensuring that medical providers for our ailing friends and family are not paid for substandard services.”

As part of the settlement, Daybreak entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Office of Inspector General for Health & Human Services (OIG) that requires an independent monitor and allows the OIG to oversee the quality of care provided at all of Daybreak’s skilled nursing facilities over the next five years.  Daybreak cooperated throughout the course of the investigation.

This case was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Clay Mahaffey.

# # #

DALLAS — Carl Keith Battie, a/k/a “Carl Hampton,” 60, was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to 10 years in federal prison and ordered to pay $11,407,794 in restitution, following his guilty plea in June 2016 to a superseding indictment charging one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Battie’s sentence will run concurrently with any sentence imposed in People of the State of California v. Carl Keith Battie, in the Superior Court of California, County of San Diego.  Battie has been in custody since his arrest on this related state case while he was living in Atlanta.  Battie must also forfeit property that was seized from his home in Atlanta, including a vehicle, U.S. and Iraqi currency, numerous jewelry items, and more than $100,000 seized from bank accounts. 

According to documents filed in the case, from approximately May 2011 to March 2014, Battie conspired with others, including “Person A,” to defraud investors in connection with the fraudulent sale, and offer of sale, of real estate investments.  Part of his scheme involved inducing victim investors to purchase mortgage notes based on material misrepresentations about the true value of the mortgage notes and the real property underlying the notes, for the personal enrichment of Battie, Person A, and others.

To further his scheme, Battie owned and operated several businesses entities, out of offices in Dallas, including Lien Exchange TX, LLC; Lien Exchange, Inc.; Family First NV, LLC; Loving Life Studios, LLC; WCM Direct, Inc.; and Entrust.  Person A also operated multiple business entities in Addison, Texas, in furtherance of the scheme.

Battie located and purchased distressed and dilapidates real estate, mostly in the St. Louis, Missouri, area, which had already been foreclosed upon by other financial institutions.  Battie, using the various business entities, flipped the properties one or more times over the course of several months or years to create the appearance of a market and inflate the appraised values of the properties.  At Battie’s direction, associates falsified signatures and notaries on property records that were later filed with the St. Louis County Clerk’s office and the City of St. Louis Recorder of Deeds.  In turn, Person A sold the fraudulently inflated mortgage notes to victim investors and then paid one of Battie’s companies from funds received from victim investors.

Battie directed Person A on how to “pitch” the investment opportunity to potential investors, typically senior citizens, at investment seminars at high-end restaurants.  Among other things, Person A made numerous factual and material misrepresentations about the value of the properties underlying the mortgage notes and the solvency of the company and omitted details about the condition of the properties.  For instance, Person A misrepresented that investors were purchasing a mortgage note for a rehabilitated property that had a stable, civil servant residing in the property who would make rent payments, when in reality, as Battie and Person A knew, many of the properties did not have any tenants, or in cases where tenants were living in the properties, they were not civil servants with steady income.

Over the course of the scheme, Battie acquired approximately 120 properties that he used in furtherance of his scheme.  Between June 2010 and February 2014, Battie and Person A, and others, raised approximately $12.5 million from victim investors and caused more than $7 million in losses.  In fact, at least 40 victim investors suffered significant financial hardship as a result of his scheme.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the California Department of Insurance, the California Department of Business Oversight, and the San Diego District Attorney’s Office. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Nicholas Bunch was in charge of the prosecution.

 

# # #

FORT WORTH, Texas – At a press event held this afternoon, U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas, Assistant Special Agent in Charge Calvin Bond of Dallas DEA, and Executive Director Jennifer Gilley of Challenge of Tarrant County discussed their combined and continued efforts in raising awareness of the dangers of prescription drug abuse.  October 2016 has been proclaimed National Youth Substance Use and Substance Use Disorder Prevention Month by President Obama.

 

The press event was held at Cinemark Alliance Town Center in far north Fort Worth.  Stay on Track, a program of Challenge of Tarrant County, is sponsoring the theatre campaign in which Cinemark Alliance Town Center will run a public service announcement (PSA) –recently produced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office to address the dangers of prescription drug abuse – in advance of its feature films. 

 

Since the home medicine cabinet is the number-one source of prescription pills for teens and young adults, Assistant Special Agent in Charge Bond announced that this Saturday, October 22, 2016, is National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, and stressed that Take-Back Day provides a safe, convenient and responsible means of disposing of unused prescription drugs.  There are numerous collection sites throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex; find the location closest to you here. 

 

Next week is also DEA Red Ribbon Week, the nation’s oldest and largest drug prevention program that reaches millions of Americans during the last week of October each year.  By wearing red ribbons and participating in community “Living Drug Free” events, youngsters pledge to live a drug-free lifestyle and pay tribute to DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, whose tragic murder in 1985 by drug traffickers in Mexico, where he was investigating that country’s biggest marijuana and cocaine traffickers, brought needed attention to the dangers of drugs and the international scope of the drug trade.

 

Challenge of Tarrant County continues its anti-drug efforts with PSAs in movie theatres in Tarrant County as well as during football games at the Keller ISD Athletic complex.  It has also sponsored billboards in Tarrant County with the messages “Don’t let a prescription become an addiction. Safe Use/Safe Storage/Safe Disposal,” and “Before it’s prescribed, you decide.”  Challenge of Tarrant County also has implemented prescription drug abuse prevention campaigns throughout Keller and Keller ISD.

 

Last month, Challenge of Tarrant County sponsored two highly successful events that brought community leaders and stakeholders together to address substance abuse prevention priorities, including prescription drug misuse and abuse in adolescents and young adults, underage drinking, and binge drinking.  One event, a Prescription Town Hall meeting in Keller was attended by more than 100 members of the Keller Community.  The other, a day-long symposium, “When the Prescription Becomes the Problem: A Community Response to the Opiate Epidemic” was attended by more than 800 individuals.

 

During Saturday’s Take-Back Day, Challenge of Tarrant County will be working with the Keller Police Department and Cook Children’s Pediatric, and their Lock Your Meds Campaign will run in conjunction with DEA’s Red Ribbon Week.

 

For more information about Stay on Track Challenge of Tarrant County, contact Cynthia Velazquez, program director, at [email protected]

 

 

# # #

Thursday, October 20, 2016, at 1:00 p.m.

Cinemark Alliance Town Center

9228 Sage Meadow Trail

Fort Worth, Texas

John Parker, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas

Calvin Bond, Assistant Special Agent in Charge DEA Dallas

Jennifer Gilley, Executive Director at Challenge of Tarrant County

During October 2016, proclaimed National Youth Substance Use and Substance Use Disorder Prevention Month, by President Obama, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas, DEA Dallas, and Challenge of Tarrant County are joining together to announce their combined and continued efforts in raising awareness of the dangers of prescription painkillers, including:

• As an introduction, U.S. Attorney John Parker’s Public Service Announcement (PSA) on the dangers of opioid abuse will be shown.  Cinemark Theatre at Alliance Town Center will show the PSA prior to each feature film during the upcoming month.
• DEA’s National Prescription Take-Back Day on Saturday, October 22, 2016

• DEA’s Red Ribbon Week Campaign, October 23-31, 2016

For logistical information, please contact Cynthia Velazquez, program director for Stay on Track Challenge of Tarrant County at [email protected]

# # #

DALLAS — Following a four-day trial before Chief U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn, a federal jury has convicted Latonya Carson, 42, of Dallas, on several federal offenses stemming from her role in a scheme to steal personal identifying information, use it to fraudulently obtain income tax refunds, and then launder those funds, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Specifically, Carson was convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit theft of public funds, access device fraud and wire fraud; three counts of aggravated identity theft; one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering; four counts of money laundering; and four counts of wire fraud.  The first conspiracy count carries a maximum statutory penalty of five years and a $250,000 fine.  The statutory penalty for each aggravated identity theft count is two years and a $250,000 fine.  The money laundering conspiracy count, each of the money laundering counts, and each wire fraud count carries a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $500,000 fine or twice the value of the property involved in the transaction, whichever is greater.  In addition, the superseding indictment includes a forfeiture allegation that would require Carson to forfeit eight pairs of Christian Louboutin shoes; one pair of Gucci booties, seven designer handbags, and more than $26,000 seized from two bank accounts.

The government presented evidence at trial that beginning in 2012, Carson and her coconspirators were involved in a scheme in which they filed false tax returns using stolen identities, some of which belonged to incarcerated individuals.  Carson and her coconspirators converted the tax refunds from debit/Green Dot cards, using shell company bank accounts, into cash and cashier’s checks used to purchase luxury vehicles that they then shipped to Nigeria. 

Between May 2012 and May 2014, the defendants and their conspirators paid $1,184,950 from these accounts to purchase used cars from wholesale dealer auctions in Dallas County, and between January 2012 and January 2015, the defendants and their conspirators exported approximately 204 used cars to Nigeria.

Five defendants were charged in the scheme.  Segun Edomwonyi, a/k/a “Benny O. Prince,” and Titalayo Idowu Olukoya remain fugitives.  Charges were dismissed against Ricardo Garth Solomon.  Smith Olsola Akin, 33, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering in May 2016, and is to be sentenced in January 2017.

The FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Secret Service and the Texas Department of Public Safety investigated.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Stokes and Camille Sparks.

# # #

FORT WORTH, Texas — Matthew Anthony Keller, 24, of Watauga, Texas, who, according to police reports, taught at Southwest High School in Fort Worth, Texas, appeared this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey L Cureton and pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography, announced John Parker, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.

Keller faces a statutory penalty of not less than 15 years and not more than 30 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine and a lifetime of supervised release. Keller has been in custody since his arrest in July 2016 on a related federal complaint.  He is scheduled to be sentenced on March 2, 2017, by U.S. District Judge Terry R Means.

According to documents filed in the case, the investigation began when a parent of a 15-year-old child (MV1) discovered a relationship between MV1 and Keller and notified a police department in Macomb County, Michigan.  The parent was further concerned because it was discovered that Keller planned to fly from Texas to Michigan and possibly meet with MV1 for a sexual encounter.

When a search warrant was conducted at Keller’s residence in Watauga, law enforcement seized a computer from his bedroom.  A forensic analysis of that computer revealed the presence of a sexually explicit video of the minor victim.

The matter was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”

ICE HSI, the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office, and the Macomb County Sheriff’s Office are investigating. Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Saleem is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

AMARILLO — A federal grand jury in Amarillo, Texas, returned a two-count indictment last week charging three men with the robbery of an Amarillo Credit Union, announced John Parker, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.

Raul Garcia, 27, Leonard Jovon Coulter, 28, and Richard Charles Cunningham, Jr., 38, are each charged with one count of credit union robbery, and one count of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. All three defendants are in custody.

According to the indictment, on September 23, 2016 Coulter and Cunningham entered the Education Credit Union, located at 1801 FM 2381 in Amarillo with firearms and took by force and intimidation money belonging to the credit union. Garcia remained in the vehicle as the getaway driver.

A federal indictment is an accusation by a grand jury and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.  Upon conviction, however, the robbery count carries a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.  The firearms offense carries a mandatory seven-year penalty and a $250,000 fine. 

The FBI, Amarillo Police Department, the Potter County District Attorney’s Office and the Potter County Sheriff’s Department were the investigating agencies.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Frausto is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

ABILENE, Texas — A Fort Worth, Texas, resident, Robert Blaine Harris, 50, was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor to 172 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in July 2016 to an indictment charging one count of enticement of a minor and aiding and abetting, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Harris has been in custody since his arrest in January 2016

According to documents filed in the case, beginning in December 2015, Harris engaged in a relationship with a minor, Jane Doe 1, using Skout, an online dating application.  Harris persuaded, induced, and enticed Jane Doe 1 and another 13-year-old female, Jane Doe 2, to engage in sexual activity.

On January 2, 2016, Harris acknowledged in a message that he knew both girls were “underage and I could get in really big trouble and that would ruin my life.”  In the early morning hours of January 2, 2016, Harris traveled to Abilene and picked up the two 13-year-old females and transported them to his residence in Fort Worth to engage in sexual activity.  The two juvenile females were recovered by law enforcement at Harris’ residence on January 9, 2016, after Harris called the Fort Worth police.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Project Safe Childhood (PSC) initiative.  PSC is a department initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children.  Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, tribal and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  Since FY 2011, the Department of Justice has filed 20,260 PSC cases against 19,111 defendants.  These cases include prosecutions of child sex trafficking; sexual abuse of a minor or ward; child pornography offenses; obscene visual representation of the sexual abuse of children; selling or buying of children; and many more statutes.  To learn more about PSC’s work, please visit: https://www.justice.gov/psc.

 U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), San Angelo Police Department, Abilene Police Department and Fort Worth Police Department investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Juanita Fielden was in charge of the prosecution.

 

# # #

DALLAS — Special agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) arrested nine defendants this week in connection with their roles in a $100 million health care fraud conspiracy perpetrated against TRICARE, the health insurance program for members of the military and their families. A tenth defendant surrendered to the FBI. The defendants, including doctors, pharmacy owners, and marketers were charged in a 35-count superseding indictment returned last week in Dallas and unsealed this afternoon, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

“Exhaustive investigative work by FBI and DCIS special agents and investigators not only led to today’s arrests, but to the identification and seizure of millions in assets that these defendants derived from their participation in this massive scheme that caused the TRICARE health insurance program—designed for our military personnel, veterans and their families—to suffer more than $100 million in actual losses,” said U.S. Attorney Parker.

“Today’s arrests helped to alleviate the burden on the American taxpayers from an organized group determined to commit fraud within the healthcare industry, principally, the TRICARE system,” said Acting SAC Michael A. Costanzi of FBI Dallas. “This joint effort by the Dallas FBI and DCIS is one of many successful law enforcement partnerships forged to dismantle healthcare fraud groups.

“The indictments and arrests in this investigation highlight another step forward by DCIS and its law enforcement partners to protect the integrity of the Department of Defense (DoD) health care program known as TRICARE,” said Special Agent in Charge Janice M. Flores, of the DCIS Southwest Field Office. “Fraud and abuse by pharmacies and medical providers that bill for compounded prescriptions and/or medications is a significant threat to the DoD health care system. With DoD’s limited resources and budgets, DCIS must continue to aggressively investigate fraud, waste and abuse to preserve and recover precious taxpayer dollars for our most vulnerable programs.”

The superseding indictment names the following defendants:

 

                        Dr. Walter Neil Simmons, 47, of Mesa, Arizona
                        Dr. William F. Elder-Quintana, 50, of El Paso, Texas
                        Jeffrey Eugene Fuller, 51, of Dallas, Texas
                        Andrew Joseph Baumiller, 37, of Dallas, Texas
                        Jeffry Dobbs Cockerell, 61, of Houston, Texas
                        Steven Bernard Kuper, 43, of Burleson, Texas
                        Ravi Morisetty, 42, of Irving, Texas
                        Joe Larry Straw, 46, of Frisco, Texas
                        Luis Rafael Rios, 50, of Killeen, Texas
                        Michael John Kiselak, 49, of Southlake, Texas

Defendants Fuller and Baumiller, the owner and President, respectively, of Trilogy Pharmacy, were detained pending pre-trial detention hearings set for this Thursday, October 20, 2016, at 2:00 p.m. before U.S. Magistrate Irma Carrillo Ramirez. The remainder of the defendants were released on bond.

Two additional defendants charged in the conspiracy, Richard Robert Cesario, 49, of Plano, Texas, and John Paul Cooper, 47, of Southlake, Texas, remain in federal custody on related charges outlined in a federal indictment returned in February 2016, following a finding by Judge Horan that “The evidence shows that witnesses told investigators that [Cooper] and his co-defendant Richard Robert Cesario stated an intent to do possible harm to any associates or employees who turned on them and flee to Costa Rica if prosecuted.”

The superseding indictment alleges that from approximately May 2014 to mid-February 2016, the 12 defendants conspired to run a scheme to defraud TRICARE in connection with the prescription of compounded pain and scar creams. The scheme involved the payment of kickbacks to TRICARE beneficiaries, payment of kickbacks to prescribing physicians, and the payment of kickbacks to marketers by the owners of compounding pharmacies.

Cesario and Cooper co-owned and co-operated CCMGRX, LLC, (CMGRX), a Texas limited liability company formed in September 2014 that had its principal place of business at 5050 Quorum Drive in Dallas. The ‘CMG’ in CMGRX stands for Compound Marketing Group. CMGRX primarily marketed compounded pain and scar creams to current and former U.S. military members and their families on behalf of various compounding pharmacies. CMGRX’s principle marketing tool was a sham medical study through which individuals were paid monetary compensation in exchange for obtaining compounded drugs with their TRICARE prescription benefits. Cesario served as CMGRX’s CEO and Treasurer and Cooper served as its President and Secretary. Neither had any medical, nursing or pharmaceutical licensing or education. CMGRX ceased operations in mid-2015, shortly after TRICARE announced changes to its coverage of compounded drugs. From October 2014 through June 2015, TRICARE paid more than $102 million for compounded drug prescriptions generated by CMGRX.

Defendants Straw and Kiselak led marketing groups for CMGRX that recruited military members and their families and offered them monetary compensation in exchange for obtaining compounded drugs with their TRICARE prescription benefits as part of CMGRX’s study. Defendant Rios, a marketer and patient recruiter in Straw’s marketing group, recruited hundreds of beneficiaries on and around Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas.

According to the superseding indictment, as part of their scheme to defraud, Cesario, Cooper, Straw, Rios, Kiselak and their coconspirators offered to pay, and did pay, TRICARE beneficiaries for obtaining and filling prescriptions for compounded drugs, principally compounded pain creams, scar creams, migraine creams, and vitamins. They disguised these payments to TRICARE beneficiaries as “grants” for participating in a medical study they referred to as a TRICARE-approved “Patient Safety Initiative” or “PSI Study” to evaluate the safety and efficacy of compounded drugs. In reality, the PSI Study was not approved by TRICARE, was not overseen by a qualified physician or medical professional, had no control group, and was not designed to gather any useful scientific data relating to the safety and efficacy of any drug. Its true purpose was to compile a list of TRICARE beneficiaries who had filled prescriptions so that Cesario, Cooper and their coconspirators could calculate how much to pay the beneficiaries.

To further disguise the source of those kickbacks to TRICARE beneficiaries, according to the superseding indictment, Cesario and Cooper directed the creation of a charity and funneled the payments to the beneficiaries through the charity. Kiselak introduced Cesario and Cooper to an individual who helped them create the “Freedom From Pain Foundation” and registered it as a tax-exempt charitable foundation. The foundation, however, was funded entirely by payments from Cesario and Cooper, or business accounts they controlled, and from November 2014 to June 2015, they paid approximately $2.8 million to the foundation, the majority of which was used to pay TRICARE beneficiaries and doctors.

Defendant Simmons served as the Chief Medical Officer for CMGRX and helped Cesario and Cooper create the PSI Study. Defendant Elder-Quintana worked as a contract physician with CMGRX., and Cesario and Cooper paid him to prescribe compounded drugs to TRICARE beneficiaries. Some of the payments were made directly to Elder, while others were made to Aztec Medicus, PLLC, a company he owned and controlled. Elder wrote thousands of prescriptions for compounded drugs to TRICARE beneficiaries who he never met in person and for whom he conducted only a cursory consultation via telephone. In an effort to disguise physician kickbacks, Cesario, Cooper and their coconspirators funneled some payments through the Freedom From Pain Foundation, under the false premise that the physicians were providing consulting services in connection with the PSI Study.

Trilogy Pharmacy, a compounding pharmacy in the TRICARE network, paid Cesario, Cooper, Straw, Rios, Kiselak and other CMGRX employees kickbacks in exchange for sending prescriptions for compounded drugs to Trilogy. Baumiller worked closely with Fuller, Cesario and Cooper to disguise these kickbacks as employee wages. Defendant Cockerell owned and operated 360 Pharmacy Services, a compounding pharmacy in the TRICARE network that was located in Webster, Texas. 360 Pharmacy paid kickbacks to Cesario and Cooper in exchange for sending prescriptions to them. Defendant Kuper owned and operated FW Medical Supplies LLC, a compounding pharmacy in the TRICARE network that was located in Burleson, Texas, that did business under the name Dandy Drug. Dandy Drug paid kickbacks to Cesario and Cooper in exchange for referring prescriptions to them. Defendant Morisetty owned and operated Dena Group, LLC, a compounding pharmacy in the TRICARE network that was located in Irving, Texas, and which did business under the name Alpha Pharmacy. Alpha Pharmacy paid kickbacks to Cesario and Cooper in exchange for referring prescriptions to them.

Each defendant is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, which, upon conviction, carries a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Cesario and Cooper are also each charged with 14 counts of payment and/or receipt of illegal remuneration. Each of the remaining defendants, with the exception of Simmons, is charged with at least one count of payment and/or receipt of illegal remuneration. The maximum statutory penalty, upon conviction for each of those counts is five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Restitution may also be ordered.

The superseding indictment also includes a detailed forfeiture allegation that would require the defendants, upon conviction, to forfeit to the U.S. any property traceable to the offense, including real estate in Plano, Frisco, Southlake, Dallas, and New Braunfels, Texas, and Jacksonville, Florida, s; funds in bank accounts and investment accounts; numerous vehicles; boats and recreational vehicles; numerous firearms; jewelry and artwork; and other various investments.

An indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury, and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Defense Criminal Investigative Service are investigating the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas Brasher is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — Austin Lawrence Siferd, 24, of Cleburne, Texas, was sentenced last week by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey to six months in federal prison, announced John Parker, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.

Siferd pleaded guilty earlier this year to an indictment charging one count of aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft.

According to documents filed in the case, in July 2015, Siferd knowingly aimed the beam of a laser at a Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) helicopter. Siferd aimed the laser at the helicopter while the helicopter was flying overhead. DPS was responding to reports that several commercial airlines had been hit with a laser in the same area that evening.

The FBI, Texas DPS and Johnson County Sheriff’s Office investigated.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Penley prosecuted.

# # #

           FORT WORTH, Texas — Oscar Melsan, 31, most recently of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, was sentenced last week by U.S. District Judge John McBryde to 240 months in federal prison, following his plea earlier this year to one count of conspiracy to possess a controlled substance with intent to distribute, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

 

           All 14 defendants in the conspiracy have been sentenced.

 

           Three defendants pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and were sentenced to the following:

 

            Miguel Antonio Martinez, 32, 232 months

            Bobbie Frie, Jr., 31, 340 months 

            Marcus Caldwell, 32, 235 months

 

            Six defendants pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and were sentenced to the following:

 

David Sheppard, 40, 235 months

Kendra Ward, 28, 220 months

Eric Overstreet, 28, 240 months

Jonathan Morris, 31, 180 months

Robert Baggott, 45, 188 months

Cecil Hindman, 51, 150 months

 

Two defendants, Susan Williams, 29 and Raymondo Acuna, 32, each pleaded guilty to one substantive count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, as charged in superseding informations and were each sentenced to 200 months.

 

Co-conspirator Hector Saldivar, 33, and lead defendant Cleto Tarin, 53 were convicted on two counts each of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance at trial in April 2016. Saldivar was sentenced to 400 months and Tarin was sentenced to 420 months.

 

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Wichita Falls Police Department conducted the investigation. 

 

# # #

FORT WORTH, Texas — A Fort Worth, Texas, man was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge John McBryde to 30 years in federal prison and 8 years of supervised release for child pornography offenses, announced John Parker, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.

Ronald Sweatt, 48, pleaded guilty, in May 2016 to one count of production of child pornography. 

According to the indictment, in June 2015 Sweatt persuaded a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct outside of the United States for the purpose of producing a video.

Officers with the Fort Worth Police Department executed a search warrant at Sweatt’s home on December 2, 2015 and seized numerous computer media items, including a laptop computer and external hard drive. A forensic examination revealed the video previously described. Sweatt agreed to be interviewed and admitting to living in Mexico for the last 15 years and that he moved back in June 2015. Sweatt also admitted to knowing the video that he produced and transported into the United States depicted a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct.  

The matter was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative, which was launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals, who sexually exploit children, and identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/ and click on the tab “resources.”

 

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Fort Worth Police Department investigated.  Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Saleem prosecuted.

 

# # #

DALLAS – U.S. Attorney John Parker announced today that Dallas County will receive $1,00,000 in grant funding as part of the federal government’s efforts to process sexual assault kits in law enforcement custody that have not been submitted to forensic laboratories.

The grant, announced by Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, is one of nine million dollar grants awarded last week by the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance and funded under the 2016 National Sexual Assault Kit Initiative. 

 “It is my fervent hope that this funding will help bring healing, hope and justice to those affected by the devastating crime of sexual assault,” said U.S. Attorney John Parker.

This annual award provides funding to support a community-based comprehensive approach to inventory and test previously unsubmitted kits.  The program also enables jurisdictions to assign personnel to pursue leads and criminal investigations based on evidence discovered through kit testing, as well as to develop evidence-based tracking systems and train law enforcement on sexual assault investigations.  Further, grantees can use the funds to conduct research on outcomes in sexual assault cases, and increase collection of DNA that may lead to identification of serial sex offenders.

 “Justice delayed is justice denied. We are thankful for the strong relationship with our federal partners,” said Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins. “This DOJ grant to test backlogged rape kits supports victims and promotes increased public safety for everyone.”

 “Reducing the backlog of untested sexual assault kits is a complex issue that requires a comprehensive, evidence-based and community-supported approach to resolve,” said Director Denise O’Donnell of the Bureau of Justice Assistance.  “These grants provide resources and improve processes to test kits, provide training to law enforcement personnel, and improve the justice system while providing justice and resolution to the victims of sexual assault.”

           

# # #

DALLAS – U.S. Attorney John Parker, of the Northern District of Texas, will launch National Community Policing Week by participating in several events in Dallas over a two-day period, October 3 - 4, 2016. Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch will travel to Dallas on Monday, October 3,2016 to hold a 21st Century Community Policing Youth Forum with U.S. Attorney Parker, students, officer cadets, and Jason Witten and Barry Church of the Dallas Cowboys known for their work to bring communities and law enforcement together.

Community policing is a public safety philosophy based on partnership and cooperation between law enforcement and the communities that they are sworn to protect.  At the center of community policing is the idea that all members of the community, both officer and civilian, have a stake in the safety of their neighborhoods where they live and work. 

“The selection of Dallas to launch National Community Policing Week is both an honor,” said U.S. Attorney John Parker. “We are fortunate to have some of the most proactive and thoughtful police leaders in the country in north Texas.  They have not only embraced building trust and mutual respect with their communities, but are eager to share their knowledge and experience with the Attorney General and others as part of this ongoing national conversation.” 

As part of the Obama Administration's commitment to building stronger relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve, the Department of Justice will lead nearly 400 events in support of community policing efforts around the country.  To further that effort, President Obama will designate the week of Oct. 2-8, 2016, as National Community Policing Week.  The week is also an extension of the Attorney General’s 12-city Community Policing Tour that highlighted collaborative programs and policing practices designed to advance public safety, strengthen police-community relations, and foster mutual trust and respect between law enforcement and citizens.  National Community Policing Week builds on President Obama’s efforts to engage with law enforcement and other members of the community to implement key recommendations from the 21st Century Policing Task Force report.

21st CENTURY COMMUNITY POLICING YOUTH FORUM ON FACEBOOK LIVE

WHO:            Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch

U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas

Director Ron Davis of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

Jason Witten of the Dallas Cowboys

Barry Church of the Dallas Cowboys                  

WHEN:          MONDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2016

2:30 p.m. CDT OPEN PRESS (Media Gather: 1:30 p.m. CDT//Final Access: 2:00 p.m. CDT)

DOJ FACEBOOK LIVE

WHERE:       Sunset High School

2120 W. Jefferson Boulevard

Dallas, TX 75208

NATIONAL NIGHT OUT EVENT WITH THE DALLAS POLICE DEPARTMENT

WHO:            Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch

U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas

Mayor of Dallas Mike Rawlings

Director Ron Davis of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services                

WHEN:         TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2016

5:30 p.m. CDT

OPEN PRESS

WHERE:       University of North Texas at Dallas

7300 University Hills Boulevard

Dallas, TX 75241

MEDIA AVAILABILITY

WHO:            Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch

U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas

Director Ron Davis of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

WHEN:          TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2016

6:20 p.m. CDT

OPEN PRESS

WHERE:       University of North Texas at Dallas

7300 University Hills Boulevard

Dallas, TX 75241

 

For more information on National Community Policing Week or the Community Policing Tour, please visit https://www.justice.gov/ag/community-policing-tour.

 

 

# # #

WASHINGTON – Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch will launch National Community Policing Week by traveling to Dallas on MONDAY, OCT. 3, to hold a 21st Century Community Policing Youth Forum with students,  officer cadets, and Jason Witten and Barry Church of the Dallas Cowboys known for their work to bring communities and law enforcement together.  The forum will also be featured on the Department of Justice Facebook Live page. 

 

“Strengthening the relationship between law enforcement officers and the communities we serve and protect is one of my top priorities,” said Attorney General Lynch.  “During National Community Policing Week, we will be hosting hundreds of events around the country designed to foster dialogue, promote cooperation, and help citizens and law enforcement officers get to know one another as partners in our shared efforts to build stronger, safer, and more just communities for every American.”

 

The following day, TUESDAY, OCT. 4, the Attorney General will join Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings at a National Night Out event led by the Dallas Police Department.  National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, better places to live.  Established in 1984 from a Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) grant, the goal of National Night Out is to build relationships with and between communities and law enforcement, to promote crime prevention efforts, and to send a message to criminals that neighbors are paying attention and are prepared to work together to keep each other safe.  Attorney General also attended National Night Out earlier in the summer during her visit to Detroit for the first Justice Forum.

 

Also while in Dallas, the Attorney General will also attend several meetings with rank-and-file officers, hold a roundtable discussion with local police chiefs, and pay respects to the families of those officers that tragically lost their lives in the line of duty last July. 

 

As part of the Obama Administration's commitment to building stronger relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve, the Department of Justice will lead nearly 400 events in support of community policing efforts around the country.  To further that effort, President Obama will designate the week of Oct. 2-8, 2016, as Community Policing Week.  The week is also an extension of the Attorney General’s 12-city Community Policing Tour that highlighted collaborative programs and policing practices designed to advance public safety, strengthen police-community relations, and foster mutual trust and respect between law enforcement and citizens.  National Community Policing Week builds on President Obama’s efforts to engage with law enforcement and other members of the community to implement key recommendations from the 21st Century Policing Task Force report.

 

For more information on National Community Policing Week or the Community Policing Tour, please visit https://www.justice.gov/ag/community-policing-tour.

 

21st CENTURY COMMUNITY POLICING YOUTH FORUM ON FACEBOOK LIVE

 

WHO:           Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch

U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas

Director Ron Davis of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

Jason Witten of the Dallas Cowboys

Barry Church of the Dallas Cowboys

                       

WHEN:          MONDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2016

2:00 p.m. CDT

OPEN PRESS (Media Gather: 1:30 p.m. CDT//Final Access: 2:00 p.m. CDT)

DOJ FACEBOOK LIVE

 

WHERE:       Sunset High School

                        2120 W. Jefferson Boulevard

                        Dallas, TX 75208

 

NATIONAL NIGHT OUT EVENT WITH THE DALLAS POLICE DEPARTMENT

 

WHO:           Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch

U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas

Mayor of Dallas Mike Rawlings

Director Ron Davis of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

                       

WHEN:          TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2016

5:30 p.m. EDT

OPEN PRESS

 

WHERE:       University of North Texas at Dallas

                        7300 University Hills Boulevard

                        Dallas, TX 75241

 

MEDIA AVAILABILITY

 

WHO:            Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch

U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas

Director Ron Davis of the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services

                       

WHEN:          TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2016

6:00 p.m. EDT

OPEN PRESS

 

WHERE:       University of North Texas at Dallas

                        7300 University Hills Boulevard

                        Dallas, TX 75241

 

NOTE: Time and location are subject to change for the events listed above.  An updated advisory with final times for each event will be issued at the beginning of next week.  Media inquiries regarding logistics should be directed to [email protected] and [email protected]. 

 

# # #

 

 

DALLAS — A Dallas man, Christopher Dewayne James, who admitted that he and his accomplices, David Ricks and Manuel Howard, committed armed robberies in Dallas in August 2015, was sentenced today by U.S. District David C. Godbey to serve 220 months (18 years) in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

James, 30, pleaded guilty in May 2016 to four counts of interference with commerce by robbery and one count of discharging a firearm during or in relation to a crime of violence.  Co-defendant Ricks, 23, also of Dallas, pleaded guilty in February 2016 to the same offenses and was sentenced in June 2016 to 190 months imprisonment. Co-defendant Howard, 19, also of Dallas, pleaded guilty in January 2016 to the same offenses and was sentenced in April 2016 to 120 months imprisonment.

According to documents filed in the case, the three committed armed robberies in Dallas at the following locations:

August 21, 2015 at 2:00 a.m.              7-Eleven store             11441 Shiloh Road

August 21, 2015 at 4:20 a.m.              Shell Station               2313 S. Buckner Blvd.

August 21, 2015 at 5:45 a.m.              7-Eleven store             5804 Abrams Road

August 23, 2015 at 2:40 a.m.              7-Eleven store             11441 Shiloh Road

All of these robberies were committed in essentially the same manner, James would pick the robbery location, drive Ricks and Howard to that location, Ricks and Howard would use loaded firearms to threaten and force the store clerks to comply with their demands, while James stayed in   the car as the getaway driver. 

During the August 23, 2015 robbery, Ricks and Howard ordered the two store clerks to the back of the store, and to lie on the floor on their stomachs. While in the process of searching the store clerks, Ricks punched one of the clerks in the face and Howard pistol-whipped the same clerk causing the gun to discharge and fire one shot.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Wirmani is prosecuting the case.

# # #

DALLAS — A federal grand jury in Dallas returned an indictment last week, charging Sunnyvale, Texas, resident, Jimmy Luis Briseno, with thirteen counts of preparing false and fraudulent income tax returns and one count of conspiracy, announced John Parker, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.

Special agents with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation (CI) arrested Briseno on those charges, and he made his initial appearance in federal court yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee Harris Toliver.

Briseno is charged in a 37-count indictment with tax fraud offenses along with co-defendants, Rene N. Barrera, Sr. of Del Rio, Texas, Mike Cano of Wylie, Texas and Christopher Lee DeLeon of Allen, Texas.  Barrera, Cano and DeLeon are also charged with multiple counts of preparing false and fraudulent income tax returns.  Each codefendant is also charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service, Treasury Department.  Cano and Deleon also made their initial appearance in federal court earlier his week before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee Harris Toliver.  Barrera was arrested on Monday in Del Rio, Texas and was detained by the U.S. Magistrate in Del Rio, Texas. 

According to the indictment, Briseno owned and operated Tax Genius, dba K&J Tax Service and Anchondo Tax Service, both located in Garland, Texas. Tax Genius also operated out of a used car dealership located on North Central Expressway in Richardson.  Cano, DeLeon & Barrera were employed as tax preparers with Tax Genius.  Briseno trained each co-defendant how to file false tax returns.

The indictment alleges that from January 2011 through April 2013, the four tax preparers filed at least 36 fraudulent tax returns resulting in a total tax loss of approximately $229,449. The false returns included false Education Credits and false items used to inflate and maximize the Earned Income Credit.

A federal indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury, and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.  Each of the tax offenses, upon conviction, carry a maximum statutory penalty of three years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.  Restitution may also be ordered.

Internal Revenue Service is investigating.  Assistant U.S. Attorney David Jarvis is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — Matthew Ring, 32, of Farmers Branch, Texas, charged with one count of damaging property of a reproductive health services facility plead guilty September 27, 2016, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee Harris Toliver, announced U.S. Attorney John R. Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

He faces 1 year imprisonment, $100,000 fine and not more than one year of supervised release. Sentencing is scheduled for January 30, 2017 before U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay. 

According to plea documents filed in the case, in the early morning hours of August 29, 2015, Ring drove to the Planned Parenthood on Beltline Road in Addison, parked nearby, put on a surgical mask to try to disguise himself, took out a crowbar/tire iron and walked to the Planned Parenthood where he smashed a window. Ring then fled the location in his vehicle and was later pulled over by Addison police officers and questioned. Ring admitted to smashing the window because he believed abortions were being performed at the facility.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Addison Police Department were involved in the investigation.

Deputy Criminal Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Lisa Dunn is prosecuting the case.

# # #

FORT WORTH, Texas – U.S. Attorney John Parker announced today that Safe City Commission, which provides programing and services as One Safe Place in Fort Worth, Texas, will receive $500,000 in grant funding as part of the federal government’s efforts to create safer neighborhoods through a sustained reduction in gang violence and gun crime. 

 

The grant, announced by Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, is one of seven half-million dollar grants awarded last week by the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance and funded under the 2016 Violent Gang and Gun Crime Reduction/Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program. 

 

“My office is committed to working side by side with the people who live in the neighborhoods, our partners at One Safe Place, and our partners in law enforcement to stop the destructive cycle of gun and gang violence that terrorizes our communities,” said U.S. Attorney John Parker.  “This grant funding significantly enhances that effort in Fort Worth by providing additional tools for success.” 

 

“As longstanding partners with One Safe Place in the effort to reduce violent crime in Tarrant County, we are extremely pleased the DOJ chose to fund their efforts to reduce gang and gun violence,” said Fort Worth Police Chief Joel Fitzgerald. “We are steadfast in our commitment to meaningful partnerships in the community to make Fort Worth the safest large city in America. This grant award will certainly bring us closer to that reality.”

 

“PSN has helped ensure a very effective collaboration between local, federal and community based partners, which has reduced gun and gang violence in Fort Worth,” said Ken Shetter, President of One Safe Place.  “Funding under the 2016 PSN Program will allow us to take this partnership to the next level, build on the knowledge and best practices that have already been developed, and target resources on hot spots for gun and gang violence.  We are particularly excited that the One Safe Place strategy addresses domestic violence as a significant contributor to gun and gang violence in the community.”

 

PSN is a nationwide commitment to reduce gang and gun crime in the U.S. by networking existing local programs that target gun and gang crime and providing these programs with additional tools for success.  PSN’s strategic approach brings more “science” into criminal justice operations by leveraging innovative applications of analysis, technology and evidence-based practices to improve performance and effectiveness while containing costs.  The Northern District of Texas PSN Task Force, led by U.S. Attorney Parker, uses partnerships, strategic planning, training, outreach and accountability to implement gang violence and gun crime enforcement, intervention and preventions strategies throughout the district.

 

One Safe Place will use the grant funds to initiate a multidisciplinary intervention in persistent hotspots in Fort Worth, targeting gang and gun violence through increased collaboration with partner agencies, analysis of related violent crimes, and the implementation of a flexible intelligence-led, problem solving approach.  Grant funds will also be used to develop a gang and gun violence prevention media campaign.

 

“Gang violence and gun crime are two of the most formidable obstacles we face in ensuring that every American lives in safe and secure communities,” said Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch.  “These vital grants give jurisdictions the resources they need to develop comprehensive, collaborative responses to the most serious and destructive crimes.  By combining more effective enforcement with closer cooperation, better data and expanded prevention initiatives, Project Safe Neighborhoods helps communities make meaningful strides towards ending violence, promoting peace, and restoring hope.”

                    

# # #

DALLAS, Texas – U.S. Attorney John Parker announced today that Metroplex Economic Development Corporation, which provides mentoring and transitional services to incarcerated adults in Dallas, Texas, will receive $1,000,000 in grant funding as part of the federal government’s efforts to support safe and successful community reintegration of adults who have been incarcerated. 

The grant, announced by Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, is one of four million dollar grants awarded last week by the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Assistance and funded under the 2016 Second Chance Act Comprehensive Community-Based Adult Reentry Program Utilizing Mentors Program. 

“Criminal justice reform is impossible without intelligently and honestly addressing the multi-faceted challenges even the most well-intentioned and highly motivated inmates face upon re-entry,” said U.S. Attorney John Parker.  “This grant addresses one of the most pressing public safety issues we face in this country.”

The Texas Offenders Reentry Initiative, “TORI,” through the Metroplex Economic Development Corporation, is an intensive 12-month case management program that offers six core services: employment, housing, education, family reunification, health care and spiritual guidance. The program helps former inmates transition to life outside the penal system, dramatically increasing chances for success and reducing the likelihood of recidivism. TORI has served more than 10,000 formerly incarcerated individuals. The U.S. recidivism rate is 67 percent of former prisoners re-arrested and 52 percent re-incarcerated within three years of release. The TORI program’s recidivism rate is at a low nine percent.

The goal of the Comprehensive Community-Based Adult Reentry Program Utilizing Mentors Program is to identify needs of incarcerated individuals, including, housing, employment, substance abuse, and mental health by trained mentors and create a reentry plan.        

# # #

LUBBOCK, Texas — A Las Vegas man, Jerry Ba Nguyen, who was a passenger on American Airlines flight 2542 early yesterday morning in route from Ontario, California, to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, which was diverted to Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport, has been charged in a federal criminal complaint with interference with a flight crew, announced U.S Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Nguyen made his initial appearance this morning in the 364th Judicial District Court before the Honorable William R. Eichman, II, in Lubbock and was detained pending a detention hearing to be set by U.S. Magistrate Judge D. Gordon Bryant, Jr.

According to the complaint, Nguyen, 24, knowingly interfered and attempted to interfere with the performance of the duties of a flight crew member and flight attendant, lessening their ability to perform their duties, by assaulting and intimidating the flight attendant and flight crew member by refusing to comply with instructions from flight attendants and attempting to forcibly enter the cockpit.

Nguyen came to the attention of the flight attendants as the plane was leaving the gate in Ontario, appearing agitated and walking toward the front of the aircraft as it prepared to take off.  Flight attendants were able to calm him down, and the plane departed.  After takeoff, however, Nguyen’s erratic behavior continued; he mumbled that the SIM card had been stolen from his phone and he made suicidal statements.  He also stated that the police were not his friends, and the U.S. government was responsible for the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Nguyen was asked to remain in his seat by the flight crew on multiple occasions, but refused.  Flight attendants were so concerned about his behavior that they recruited several passengers to assist with physically restraining Nguyen if it became necessary.

Upon final approach, Nguyen walked to the front of the aircraft and began banging on and kicking the cockpit door.  He was subdued by passengers at the request of the flight crew and then restrained with flex cuffs provided by the flight attendants,

The Captain declared an emergency and diverted the flight to Lubbock Preston Smith International Airport, where it landed safely.  Nguyen was removed from the plane and taken into custody

A federal complaint is a written statement of the essential facts of the offenses charged and must be made under oath before a magistrate judge.  The government has 30 days to present the matter to a grand jury for indictment.  A defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.   

The maximum statutory penalty, however, upon conviction, for the offense of interfering with a flight crew is 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Transportation Security Administration, the Lubbock Police Department and the Lubbock International Airport Police Department are investigating the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Haag is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — A Dallas man who admitted to his role in a conspiracy to commit several violent armed robberies in Dallas in 2014, Savalas Christopher Love, 32, was sentenced yesterday afternoon by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle to 147 months in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Love pleaded guilty in November 2015 to one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery and one count of using, carrying and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to, and possessing and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

Love’s coconspirators, Cedric Ray Jones, 27, and his brother, Damien Antoine Jones, 31, were sentenced earlier this month.  Judge Boyle sentenced Cedric Jones to 573 months and Damien Jones to 708 months in federal prison.  Each pleaded guilty late last year to one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, two counts of using, carry, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to, and possessing and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of, a crime of violence, and three counts of interference with commerce by robbery.

The FBI dubbed the robbers the “Bulls Cap Bandits,” as Cedric and Damien Jones wore Chicago Bulls caps during the robberies.  

According to documents filed in the case, from approximately May 28, 2014, through June 17, 2014, the three defendants conspired together to commit these armed robberies:

            May 28, 2014              AutoZone
                                                10418 Garland Road, Dallas

            June 2, 2014                AutoZone
                                                2842 South Buckner Blvd., Dallas

            June 12, 2014              Cash Plus Pawn
                                                9103 East R.L. Thornton Freeway, Dallas
                       

June 17, 2014              AutoZone
                                    9711 Plano Road, Dallas

During each of the robberies, Cedric and Damien Jones wore disguises and brandished firearms.  In a March 7, 2014, robbery of Cash Plus Pawn, Cedric and Damien Jones stole cash and two semi-automatic rifles, and then fled on foot.

In the May 28, 2014, and June 2, 2014, AutoZone robberies, Cedric and Damien Jones entered the store, brandishing the semi-automatic rifles, while Love remained in the vehicle as the “getaway driver.”  The three fled in Love’s vehicle.  Love knew they brandished firearms during the robbery.

On June 12, 2014, Cedric and Damien Jones, Love, and another individual traveled to the Cash Plus Pawn store on East R.L. Thornton Freeway in Dallas, in Love’s vehicle, with the specific intent to commit robbery.  Upon arriving in the parking lot, Damien Jones and the other individual exited the vehicle and approached the store’s entrance with firearms, but abandoned the robbery when confronted by a store employee.  They fled in Love’s vehicle.  Love knew they brandished firearms during the robbery.

In the June 17, 2014, AutoZone robbery, Cedric and Damien Jones traveled together in Love’s vehicle to the store with the intent to commit robbery.  Love traveled separately to the location with the specific intent to facilitating the commission of the robbery.  Love “cased” the store and reported the absence of security personnel to Damien Jones, knowing any information he provided would be used to facilitate the robbery and avoid detection and apprehension by police.  Cedric and Damien Jones then entered the store, brandishing semi-automatic rifles, and then fled the robbery in their vehicle.  Love knew they brandished firearms during the robbery.  During a subsequent chase with law enforcement, Cedric Jones operated the vehicle in a manner to avoid apprehension and created a substantial risk to other motorists on the roads.  During the pursuit, shots were fired in the direction of the pursuing officers to further avoid apprehension.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the Dallas Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Keith Robinson and Brian Poe were in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas and the Safe City Commission, which provides programing and services as One Safe Place in Fort Worth, Texas, is hosting a Smart on Crime-Connecting Resources Conference today in Arlington, Texas, at the Mac Bernd Professional Development Center, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker, of the Northern District of Texas.

Deputy Criminal Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Alex Lewis, of the Northern District of Texas, and Ken Shetter, President of One Safe Place, opened this conference this morning.  Other presenters at the conference included experts from various agencies and organizations who spoke on various aspects of the five principles of Smart on Crime.

At the direction of the Attorney General in 2013, the Justice Department launched a comprehensive review of the criminal justice system to identify reforms that would ensure laws are more fairy enforced and – in an era of reduced budgets – more efficiently.  Smart on Crime is a series of directives to U.S. Attorney Offices across the nation designed to redirect efforts and assets toward more measure, individualized examinations of both the crime and the criminal.

The five principles of Smart on Crime are:  1) prioritize prosecutions to focus on most serious cases; 2) reform sentencing to eliminate unfair disparities and reduce overburdened prisons; 3) pursue alternatives to incarceration for low-level, non-violent crimes; 4) improve reentry to curb repeat offenses and re-victimizations; and 5) improve reentry to curb repeat offenses and re-victimization.

This Smart on Crime conference brought together representatives from multiple federal, state, and local agencies who are involved in the fight against violent crime so they may develop strong relationships and engage in robust information sharing so that common goals can be achieved.

For more information about Smart on Crime, go to https://www.justice.gov/ag/attorney-generals-smart-crime-initiative

###

 

# # #

DALLAS – U.S. Attorney John Parker, of the Northern District of Texas, will participate in a symposium tomorrow, September 22, 2016, entitled, “When the Prescription Becomes the Problem: A Community Response to the Opiate Epidemic,” which is intended to mobilize community leaders and stakeholders to reduce opiate misuse and abuse in North Texas.  Keller Stay on Track Coalition is hosting the symposium that is being held at the Hurst Conference Center, 1601 Campus Drive, in Hurst, Texas, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

 

            National experts, including award-winning journalist Sam Quinones, author of Dreamland: The True Tale of America’s Opiate Epidemic, will address the heroin and opioid overdose death crisis in the U.S.  Other experts include, Dr. Don Teater, Medical Advisor for the National Safety Council; Leonard Campanello, Chief of the Gloucester, Massachusetts Police Department; and Dr. Kelly J. Clark, President Elect of the American Society of Addiction Medicine and Chief Medical Officer of Cleanslate Centers.  Others participating in the symposium will include federal and state representatives who will discuss medical, prevention, and treatment perspectives

 

            Of particular note, at noon tomorrow, U.S. Attorney John Parker will introduce Chasing the Dragon: The Life of an Opiate Addict, which is being featured as a lunchtime video documentary.  The film, a joint production by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, chronicles the ways drug abuse devastates the lives of users and their families.

 

Throughout the day, additional resources will be available from various sponsors including JP Health Systems, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth, MHMR Tarrant County, Enterhealth Ranch, Mesa Spring/Innovations, Starlite Recovery and Safe Communities America - Fort Worth.

 

Prescription drug abuse has long been a priority of the administration, and last week, President Obama proclaimed September 18-24, 2016, as Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness Week.  Throughout the week, officials with the Department of Justice throughout the country are participating in hundreds of events highlighting the importance of prevention, enforcement and treatment.

 

The Keller Stay on Track Coalition, a program of Challenge of Tarrant County, brings Keller community leaders and stakeholders together to address substance abuse prevention priorities, including prescription drug misuse and abuse in adolescents and young adults, underage drinking and binge drinking.

 

For more information about tomorrow’s symposium, go to http://challengetc.org/

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                       

           AMARILLO, Texas — A couple arrested earlier this year after a traffic stop in Carson County, Texas, and then found to have 3,825 grams of heroin in bundles in a suitcase in the cargo section of their vehicle, have been sentenced, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

 

On Tuesday, September 20, 2016, Carlos Castro-Noriega, 34, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to 63 months in federal prison.  Last month, Judge Fitzwater sentenced Cristina Melissa Gomez, 24, to 46 months in federal prison.  Each pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin and aiding and abetting.

 

According to documents filed in the case, on February 9, 2016, a Trooper with the Texas Department of Public Safety stopped a 2015 white Jeep Grand Cherokee rental vehicle, with a California registration, for speeding and driving in the left lane when not passing.  Gomez was the driver and Castro-Noriega was in the front passenger seat.  While speaking with Gomez, the Trooper observed several indicators of criminal activity and could smell burnt marijuana coming from the front of the vehicle. 

 

While conducting a probable cause search of the vehicle, the Trooper located eight bundles of a brownish-white powdery substance inside of a suitcase located in the Jeep’s rear cargo area.  Subsequent testing confirmed the substance as 3,825 grams of heroin.  The Trooper also located 18.2 grams of marijuana in the vehicle.

 

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Texas Department of Public Safety and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Taylor prosecuted.

           

           

 

DALLAS — During a week that the Department of Justice has designated as National Heroin and Opioid Awareness Week, in which it seeks to prevent new victims from succumbing to addiction and highlight its ongoing commitment to hold traffickers accountable, a federal grand jury in Dallas returned a superseding indictment charging John Christopher Ware, a/k/a “Little Chris,” with drug distribution conspiracy and firearm charges stemming from his operation of several “pill mills” in north Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Ware, 44, formerly of Dallas but now residing in Houston, and coconspirator Stanley James, Jr., 57, of Dallas and Houston, were each originally indicted in November 2015 on one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance (hydrocodone).  James, who is in custody, pleaded guilty in May 2016 to that indictment and is scheduled to be sentenced on December 15, 2016.  This week’s superseding indictment adds the offense of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to, and possessing and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime as to Ware.  Trial is set for November 28, 2016, before U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle.

According to the superseding indictment, Ware owned a series of clinics in north Texas and elsewhere that operated as “pill mills,” unlawfully distributing hydrocodone and other controlled substances.  For instance, Ware and James owned and operated Great Southwest Medical Clinic on Great Southwest Parkway in Dallas; Arlington Oaks Adult Medical Clinic on Billings Street in Arlington, Texas; and Redbird Family Medical Clinic on Camp Wisdom Road in Dallas.   Ware and James owned and operated these three medical clinics under an umbrella company, J.C. Rapha Medical Management Group, LLC.  

Sometime in mid-2014, Ware and James separated at least a part of their business interests, including interests in the Arlington Oaks and Redbird clinics.  In late July 2014, Ware and another individual formed AC Medical Management Group, LLC, to operate medical clinics.  Ware continued managing Arlington Oaks, but changed the clinic’s name to AC Medical Clinic and relocated it in November 2014 to East Arkansas Lane in Arlington, where he continued to own and operate it until it closed in May 2015.  From approximately March 2015 to October 8, 2015, Ware and others also owned and operated KSW Medical Management on Bolton Boone Drive in Desoto, Texas.

Hydrocodone is the generic name for a narcotic analgesic that is also sold under a variety of brand names such as Vicodin, Norco, and Lortab.  It is also referred to by the street names “hydros,” “vics,” “norcos,” and “tabs.”  When legally supplied by a licensed practitioner for a legitimate medical purpose in the usual course of professional practice, hydrocodone is used to combat moderate pain.  It is a controlled substance (narcotic) that is widely abused and it is frequently diverted from legitimate medical channels and distributed illicitly on the street for profit and abuse. 

The superseding indictment alleges that beginning as early as September 2013 and continuing to October 8, 2015, Ware conspired with others to distribute and dispense hydrocodone through Great Southwest, Arlington Oaks, Redbird, AC Medical Clinic, and KSW pill mills knowing that the prescriptions for the hydrocodone had not been issued for a legitimate medical purpose by a medical practitioner acting in the usual course of professional practice.  The superseding indictment further alleges that on approximately April 9, 2014, Ware knowingly used, carried, and brandished, or aided and abetted the use, carrying, or brandishing of a firearm (handgun) during and in relation to the drug trafficking crime of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.

A federal indictment is an accusation by a grand jury.  A defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.  If convicted, however, conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance (hydrocodone) carries a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $1 million fine.  The penalty for firearm offense, upon conviction, is not less than seven years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.  

Assistant U.S. Attorneys J. Nicholas Bunch and Myria Boehm are in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — A Dallas-area man who admitted to his role in transporting a substance that was represented to be cocaine on flights from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) was sentenced today to a lengthy federal prison sentence, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Moniteveti Katoa, a/k/a “Vince,” 53, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle to 188 months in federal prison following his guilty plea in January 2016 to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribute at least five kilograms or more of cocaine.  Moniteveti Katoa has been in custody since mid-July 2015 following a law enforcement operation, led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Dallas Police Department and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, in which numerous defendants were arrested on drug distribution conspiracy and related charges outlined in a federal superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Dallas the previous month.

That superseding indictment charged Moniteveti Katoa, and three others, Funaki Falahola, 34, Molitoni Katoa, 34, and Janelle Isaacs, 42, with the cocaine distribution conspiracy offense.  All four defendants have pleaded guilty to the offense.  Molitoni Katoa was sentenced last week to 90 months in federal prison.  Funaki Falahola is scheduled to be sentenced on October 20, 2016, and Janelle Isaacs is scheduled to be sentenced on December 1, 2016.  The statutory penalty for the offense is not less than 10 years and up to life in federal prison and a $10 million fine.

Funaki Falahola told undercover officers he had family members that could transport controlled substances via commercial airline. Funaki Falahola introduced Moniteveti Katoa to agents as his Uncle and family leader. Molitoni Katoa was also introduced as Falahola’s cousin and a person that could smuggle controlled substances into the DFW airport through his job at the cargo area at the DFW airport. Moniteveti Katoa’s wife, Janelle Isaacs, worked for American Airlines.

According to documents filed in the case, the four used their positions of employment at DFW, or contacted a person or persons who had a position or positions of employment at DFW, to bypass security in order to transport kilogram quantities of a substance that was represented to be cocaine, in what they did not know was an undercover law enforcement operation.  As part of the conspiracy, that ran from approximately April 18, 2013, through July 14, 2015, the substance that was represented to be cocaine was transported on commercial airlines flying from DFW to destinations in Las Vegas, Nevada; Newark, New Jersey; Phoenix, Arizona; Chicago, Illinois; Wichita Kansas; and San Francisco, California.

According to testimony at today’s sentencing hearing, Moniteveti Katoa told undercover agents in November 2014 that he had the DFW airport wired so well he could sneak a bomb into the airport if he wanted to.  In December 2014, agents asked Moniteveti Katoa if he would be willing to smuggle plastic explosives into the airport.  Moniteveti Katoa initially expressed concern about the possibility of the explosives exploding in an airplane.  After being told by undercover officers that they would not explode without a detonator, Moniteveti Katoa agreed to smuggle the explosives into the airport as he had done previously with the “cocaine.”  Moniteveti Katoa agreed to bypass security at DFW airport and then hand the explosives to another person for that person to fly the explosives on an airplane to another city.

Falahola introduced Moniteveti Katoa to the undercover officer who was interested in smuggling cocaine from DFW Airport.  He noted that Moniteveti Katoa had worked for American Airlines for 25 years and was a leader in the Tongan community.  Falahola advised the undercover officers that they could transport the cocaine to major U.S. cities as well as to Hawaii and New Zealand.  Moniteveti Katoa advised the undercover officer that he was willing to fly to locations in advance of smuggling the cocaine to conduct security checks. 

According to plea documents filed in his case, from September 2013 through May 2015, Moniteveti Katoa smuggled what he thought was cocaine on at least six flights from DFW Airport to Las Vegas, Newark, Chicago, Wichita, San Francisco, and Tempe, Arizona.

The FBI, Dallas Police Department and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation led the investigation with assistance from the Texas Department of Public Safety; the DFW Department of Public Safety; the U.S. Department of State; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Transportation Security Administration; the U.S. Secret Service; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations; and the Fort Worth, McKinney, Mesquite, and Plano Police Departments.

Assistant U.S. Attorney George Leal is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — Juan Vargas-Camacho, a/k/a “Ballecito,” 47, of Dallas, was sentenced yesterday afternoon by Chief U.S. District Judge Barbara M. G. Lynn to 151 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in April 2016 to one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

According to documents filed in the case, during the course of the investigation, law enforcement intercepted numerous communications between Vargas-Camacho and others who were distributing methamphetamine.  Vargas-Camacho’s supply source was co-defendant Aduato Olvera, 34, of Garland, Texas.  On several occasions Olvera delivered large quantities of methamphetamine to Vargas-Camacho, and in November 2014, law enforcement stopped Vargas-Camacho after he left Olvera’s business and seized 486.3 grams of methamphetamine from a black bag on the passenger side floorboard.

To date, Judge Lynn has sentenced six of the 41 defendants charged in the conspiracy:   Juan Aleman-Escamilla, 31, of Dallas, was sentenced to 168 months; Raul Torrres Zamora, 28, of Dallas, was sentenced to 63 months; Luis Lopez-Cruz, 33, of Oklahoma City, was sentenced to 78 months; and Jose Montes, Jr., 22, of Dallas, was sentenced to 188 months in federal prison.  Each pleaded guilty to their role in the methamphetamine distribution conspiracy that began operating in north Texas in approximately May 2014.

Most of the remaining defendants have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.  One is  set for trial on November 8, 2016.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Dallas Police Department. 

###

AMARILLO, Texas — Two men from Moore County, Texas, pleaded guilty yesterday afternoon to federal offenses stemming from their respective roles in a marijuana trafficking organization, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Manuel Rodrigues Reyes, 48, and Maximilliano Gonzales, 50, both of Cactus, Texas, each pleaded guilty yesterday afternoon before U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana.  Each faces a statutory penalty of not less than 10 years or more than life in federal prison and a $10 million fine.  Manuel Reyes, who had been on bond, was continued on pretrial release pending sentencing.  Maximilliano Gonzales has been in custody since his arrest in May 2016.  Both are scheduled to be sentenced on January 18, 2017.

According to plea documents filed in the case, from approximately August 2006 through November 2015, Adan Reyes, along with his brother Guadalupe Reyes, operated a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that trafficked multiple thousands of kilograms of marijuana from El Paso, Texas, to the Dumas, Texas, area, and then to locations primarily in the Midwestern U.S.  They transported the marijuana in various ways, including using vehicles and/or horse trailers with hidden compartments.  Marijuana was also sometimes hidden inside bone meal.

Adan Reyes led the DTO.  It employed people to transport as well as follow load vehicles from El Paso through the checkpoint, and from the checkpoints usually to the Dumas/Cactus, Texas, area, where the marijuana was warehoused at a ranch near Gruver, Texas.  From the ranch, Adan Reyes used pickup trucks to drive 500 to 1,000 pound loads of marijuana to customers in the Midwest, including locations in Dodge City, Kansas, and Kansas City and St. Louis, Missouri.  Proceeds from the marijuana sales were driven back to the ranch in Gruver.  Adan and Guadalupe Reyes shared the drug proceeds.  Different drivers were used to drive the money from Gruver to El Paso to deliver Adan Reyes’ share.

Manuel Reyes performed various tasks for the Reyes DTO, including assisting in tracking marijuana loads from El Paso to Cactus/Dumas, and he would ensure the loads made it to the ranch near Gruver, where he would assist in unloading it from vehicles arriving from El Paso and onto vehicles that would transport it to customers.  He also counted the drug proceeds that were returned to the ranch and ensured the drivers were paid.  On multiple occasions, he also transported cash proceeds from Cactus/Dumas to El Paso. 

Maximilliano Gonzales was a driver for the Reyes DTO.  He drove marijuana from the ranch in Gruver to customers and was paid for each load he transported.  He used a work truck with a welder containing a false compartment to transport the marijuana.

When law enforcement conducted a search at the ranch in February 2016, investigators located a white Ford truck with a welding machine mounted to the truck bed.  The welder contained a false compartment that housed packaging material, digital scales, and other items associated with marijuana trafficking.  There were also papers in the truck stating the vehicle was registered to, and insured by, Maximilliano Gonzales.  In addition, drug ledgers indicating payments to customers as well as payments to Manuel Rodrigues Reyes and Maximilliano Gonzales were found. 

Reyes was paid approximately $1,000 per week for his services in working for the Reyes DTO, thus earning at least $150,000 during his employment.  According to his plea agreement, Reyes agrees to forfeit $150,000 that represents a portion of the proceeds he obtained as a result of his criminal conduct.

Adan Reyes is currently being detained in the El Paso Division of the Western District of Texas where he is awaiting sentencing on charges related to his role in the Reyes DTO.  Guadalupe Reyes has pleaded guilty to similar charges and is currently on bond pending his sentencing hearing before Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater, scheduled for November 15, in the Amarillo Division of the Northern District of Texas.

The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Moore County Sheriff’s Office and the Cactus Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Long is in charge of the prosecution.       

                                                                                                                                                                         

AMARILLO, Texas — Marco Saucedo, 45, of Cactus, Texas, was sentenced this afternoon by U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to 48 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in June 2016 to one count of unlawful use of a communications facility, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Judge Fitzwater ordered Saucedo to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on November 1, 2016.

Saucedo’s co-defendant, Guadalupe Reyes, 49, of Etter, Texas, who pleaded guilty in June 2016 to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana, is scheduled to sentenced in mid-November.  Reyes faces a statutory penalty of not less than 10 years and up to life in federal prison and a $10 million fine.  He remains on bond.

According to documents filed in the case, in November 2014, officers with the Cactus Police Department responded to a weapon being discharged at a residence in Cactus that was owned by Guadalupe Reyes, and they determined that the individual who discharged the firearm was renting the property from Reyes.  After obtaining consent to search, officers found more than $130,000 in cash inside the residence, which the resident advised was cash that he, at the direction of Reyes and Saucedo, brought back the previous week from Wichita and Topeka, Kansas.

The resident further disclosed he had been working for Reyes for several months, transporting large amounts of marijuana from Amarillo and Fritch, Texas, to other states, such as Kansas and Ohio.  He would also transport large amounts of cash – proceeds from the sale of the marijuana – from those locations to the Cactus area, all at the direction of Reyes and Saucedo, who would pay him a set amount for each of the runs he made.

The resident indicated he had made approximately 10 trips to Wichita, Topeka, and Kansas City, Kansas, as well as to Toledo, Ohio, to deliver marijuana for Reyes, estimating that he had delivered approximately 8,000 pounds of marijuana while employed by Reyes.  He further stated that on at least four occasions, he had returned with approximately $400,000 in cash for marijuana he had delivered.  He further stated that Reyes instructed him to keep the money at the residence until it was retrieved by other, unnamed individuals.  The individual also stated that both Reyes and Saucedo had directed him to only use pre-paid cell phones when communicating with them or the buyers. 

In recorded conversations in November 2014, Reyes stated, among other things, that he was worried about law enforcement taking some of his properties.  According to Reyes’ plea agreement, he agrees to not contest the forfeiture of several of his real estate holdings in Moore County, including two car lots and several residential properties.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Moore County Sheriff’s Office and the Cactus Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Long is in charge of the prosecution.                    

# # #

FORT WORTH, Texas — A 48-year-old man, most recently from north Texas, Brian Dale Prim, was sentenced yesterday by Senior U.S. District Judge Terry R. Means to 120 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in May 2016 to an indictment charging one count of enticement of a minor.  Today’s announcement was made by U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

According to documents filed in the case, on approximately December 21, 2015, Prim responded to a Craigslist ad entitled, “Need some young company, I’m here?” The ad read, “I’m bored and looking to chill with some cool dude. I’m very young and cool.”  At the time, Prim did not know that an officer with the Fort Worth Police Department’s Crimes Against Children Unit was working in an undercover capacity at a motel in Fort Worth and had posted the ad.

Prim responded to the ad and asked the undercover officer, who he thought was a 13-year-old girl, to send him a picture.  The undercover officer sent a photo.  The conversation between Prim and the undercover officer posing as the 13-year-old continued to become more sexual and Prim provided his phone number to the undercover officer so “she” could text him.  Ensuing text messages, sexually graphic in nature, continued, and Prim asked if he could call. 

Prim called, and posing as the 13-year-old girl, another Fort Worth police officer answered the phone.  Prim and the undercover officer chatted, decided to meet, and Prim described the sexual acts he intended on doing with the 13-year-old.  Early on in the text messaging exchange, Prim was told that the 13-year-old girl lived in a Fort Worth motel.  Prim requested that the “girl” stay on the phone with him until he pulled in the driveway.  While on the phone, Prim stated he was wearing a hoody, gym pants, and a TCU ball cap.  Once he arrived at the hotel wearing the described clothing, the undercover officer gave Prim the room number.  After Prim parked, he knocked on the motel room door and was arrested.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Project Safe Childhood (PSC) initiative.  PSC is a department initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children.  Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, tribal and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  Since FY 2011, the Department of Justice has filed 20,260 PSC cases against 19,111 defendants.  These cases include prosecutions of child sex trafficking; sexual abuse of a minor or ward; child pornography offenses; obscene visual representation of the sexual abuse of children; selling or buying of children; and many more statutes.  To learn more about PSC’s work, please visit: https://www.justice.gov/psc.

The Fort Worth Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy Larson was in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — Rolando Minano, 48, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle to 78 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $665,962 in restitution, following his guilty plea in May 2016 to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Rolando Minano’s ex-wife, Martha Irene Collantes, 53, and his stepson, Carlos Arturo Pastor Collantes, 32, were sentenced in May 2016 to 12 months and just over 10 months, respectively.  Each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit theft of public funds.  Minano’s father, Francisco Minano Vargas, 73, and his mother, Santos Magdalena Toribio De Minano, 66, each pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony.  Francisco Minano Vargas was sentenced to serve a two-year term of probation.  Sentencing is set for November 17, 2016, for Santos Magdalena Toribio De Minano.

The investigation began when members of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service notified Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation that the owner of a private mailbox at a commercial mail receiving business in Garland, Texas, had received five Department of Treasury envelopes addressed in other people’s names.  The investigation revealed that all the envelopes contained refund checks.

Further investigation, according to documents filed in his case, showed that Rolando Francisco Minano ran a fraud scheme to obtain Department of the Treasury refund checks by making materially false and fictitious representations to the government.  The defendants obtained multiple Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN) in their names and others by submitting false Peruvian passports.  Rolando Francisco Minano notarized all of the ITIN applications, certifying the Peruvian passports were authentic.  Tax returns were then filed with the false ITINs and refunds were directed to be mailed to multiple addresses under the defendants’ control.  Once received, the checks were endorsed by defendants and deposited into bank accounts they controlled and opened in their true names.

For example, during the course of the conspiracy, the defendants deposited the following approximate amounts in fraudulently obtained U.S. Treasury checks, in the names of people other than themselves, into JP Morgan Chase bank accounts:  Rolando Francisco Minano, $19,932; Martha Irene Collantes, $148,091; Francisco Minano Vargas, $64,352; Santos Magdalena Toribio de Minano, $213,038; and Carlos Arturo Pastor Collantes, $59,104.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Wiley was in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS – U.S. Attorney John Parker, of the Northern District of Texas, will participate in a Prescription Town Hall meeting tomorrow evening, Tuesday, September 20, 2016, in Keller, Texas, concerning prescription drug abuse.  Entitled, “When the Prescription Becomes the Problem,” the presentation will be facilitated by Dr. Don Teater, the Former Medical Advisor for the National Safety Council.  The meeting is sponsored by Stay on Track Challenge of Tarrant County and the Keller Independent School District, and it is intended for all members of the Keller community.  It will be held at the Keller Education Center, located at 350 Keller Parkway.

Dr. Teater will begin the Town Hall with an overview of the prescription opiate epidemic.  U.S. Attorney Parker will then introduce a public service announcement (PSA) his office released earlier this year concerning the dangers of prescription drug abuse and ways parents can keep their children safe.  Next, there will be a panel presentation by experts from the law enforcement community, including the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Keller Police Department, as well as representatives from various health and social services field.      

Prescription drug abuse has long been a priority of the administration, and last week, President Obama proclaimed September 18-24, 2016, as Prescription Opioid and Heroin Epidemic Awareness Week.  Throughout the week, officials with the Department of Justice throughout the country will participate in hundreds of events highlighting the importance of prevention, enforcement and treatment.

U.S. Attorney Parker will also participate in a symposium on Thursday, September 22, 2016, also designed to raise awareness of the opiate epidemic.  The day-long symposium, “When the Prescription Becomes the Problem: A Community Response to the Opiate Epidemic,” is intended to help mobilize community leaders and stakeholders to reduce opiate misuse and abuse in North Texas.  It is being hosted by the Keller Stay on Track Coalition and is being held at the Hurst Conference Center, 1601 Campus Drive, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

In addition to U.S. Attorney Parker, the Thursday’s symposium will feature national experts including Dr. Teater and award-winning journalist Sam Quinones, author of Dreamland:  The True Tale of America’s Opiate Epidemic.  Others participating in the symposium will include federal and state representatives who will discuss medical, prevention, and treatment perspectives.

Both events are being sponsored by the Keller Stay on Track Coalition, a program of Challenge of Tarrant County.  It brings Keller community leaders and stakeholders together to address substance abuse prevention priorities, including prescription drug misuse and abuse in adolescents and young adults, underage drinking and binge drinking.

# # #

 

 

ABILENE, Texas — William David Harden, 65, formerly of Tye, Texas, was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge Reed C. O’Connor to 135 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in May 2016 to one count of enticement of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Harden has been in custody since his arrest on a federal indictment in August 2015.

According to documents filed in the case, from approximately May to July 2015, Harden engaged in a cell phone texting relationship with a female minor, under age 17, in which he knowingly persuaded, induced, and enticed her to engage in sexual activity with him.  Specifically, in early July 2015, Harden knowingly persuaded, induced, and enticed, and attempted to persuade, induce and entice this minor female to engage in sexual activity with him, suggesting to the minor female that by doing so, she could repay him for arranging to get a motel room where she could meet up with a friend.

At today’s sentencing hearing, Judge O’Connor also ordered that Harden forfeit his 2008 pickup truck that he used to transport this minor female and another minor to that motel.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Project Safe Childhood (PSC) initiative.  PSC is a department initiative launched in May 2006 to combat the proliferation of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation crimes against children.  Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, PSC marshals federal, state, tribal and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  Since FY 2011, the Department of Justice has filed 20,260 PSC cases against 19,111 defendants.  These cases include prosecutions of child sex trafficking; sexual abuse of a minor or ward; child pornography offenses; obscene visual representation of the sexual abuse of children; selling or buying of children; and many more statutes.  To learn more about PSC’s work, please visit: https://www.justice.gov/psc.

The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Abilene Police Department, and the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven M. Sucsy, of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Lubbock, Texas, was in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — Adrian Sanchez, 40, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey to 262 months in federal prison following his guilty plea in March 2016 to an Information charging one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

In addition, Judge Godbey ordered that Sanchez forfeit his residence on Perry Drive in West Tawakoni, Texas, as well as seven firearms that were seized by the government when they executed search warrants at his home and at a storage unit he rented.  Law enforcement found methamphetamine, drug ledgers, drug paraphernalia and firearms at both locations.  Sanchez has been in custody since his arrest on January 21, 2016, on a related federal criminal complaint.  He is subject to deportation upon completion of his sentence.

According to documents filed in the case, Sanchez admitted that from approximately 2015 until the date of his arrest, he knowingly and intentionally possessed with the intent to distribute and distributed 50 grams or more of methamphetamine.  On January 6, 2016, at a Walmart parking lot, Sanchez sold a witness one-fourth kilogram of methamphetamine for $2,250.  Later the same day, Sanchez sold the witness another one-fourth kilogram of methamphetamine for the same price.  Then, approximately two weeks later, after leaving his residence and then stopping at the storage unit he rented on Plano Road in Dallas, Sanchez met the witness at an AutoZone in Dallas and sold him/her one-half kilogram of methamphetamine for $4,500.

Sanchez advised the witness, according to the complaint filed in the case, that his neighbors were suspicious of his activities because he converted liquid methamphetamine to crystal methamphetamine at his home in West Tawakoni, and he believed they knew about his recrystallization laboratory because of the strong chemical odors associated with the methamphetamine conversion process.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, Hunt County Sheriff’s Office, Rockwall Police Department, Allen Police Department and Garland Police Department investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Suzanna Etessam was in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

SAN ANGELO, Texas — Following a one-day trial that began this morning before Senior U.S. District Judge Sam R. Cummings, a federal has jury convicted Jesse Huerra, 31, of San Angelo, Texas, on methamphetamine distribution and firearms charges outlined in a May 2016 federal indictment, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Specifically, the jury convicted Huerra on one count each of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine; possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; and being a convicted felon in possession of firearms. 

The government filed a notice of enhancement because Huerra has two previous “felony drug offenses.”  If the Court finds those convictions are final and valid, then, by statute, the Court must impose a life sentence without parole as to the methamphetamine count.  A sentencing date was not set. 

Huerra has been in custody since his arrest on July 13, 2016, when numerous defendants, most from the San Angelo area, were arrested in a joint Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) and the San Angelo Police Department.  Twelve defendants, including the drug trafficking organization’s leader, Rudolfo Ledesma Castaneda, Jr., 31, were charged in an indictment with various felony offenses stemming from their roles in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy that operated in San Angelo.  While Castaneda’s trial date is set for November 7, 2016, most defendants have pleaded guilty to their roles and are awaiting sentencing.

The government presented evidence at trial that on December 4, 2015, the San Angelo Police Department executed a search warrant at Huerra’s residence on Estella Drive in San Angelo.  After being advised of his constitutional rights, Huerra stated that he had methamphetamine in his dresser in the master bedroom and in the top bunk of his children’s bunk bed.  He also stated that he had pistols in the master bedroom closet. 

A search of Huerra’s residence yielded more than 1,500 grams of methamphetamine, three firearms (one with the serial number removed), and several items of drug trafficking paraphernalia.  A law enforcement witness testified that the street value in San Angelo for the methamphetamine was approximately $125,000.

The DEA, Texas DPS and the San Angelo Police Department are leading the investigation, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Department of Homeland Security Homeland Security Investigations, and the Tom Green County Sheriff’s Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeffrey Haag and John Eric Nickols are prosecuting the case.

# # #

DALLAS — Angelbert Evoulou was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsay to 57 months in federal prison following his conviction at trial in May 2016 on several offenses related to a stolen identity refund scheme, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

 Specifically, the jury convicted Evoulou of Conspiracy, Theft of Public Funds, Interstate Transportation of a Stolen Security, and Aggravated Identity Theft. 

The government presented evidence at trial that during the investigation of a stolen refund ring, an individual advised an undercover special agent with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation that he could sell him an IRS refund check of approximately $595,000.  After confirming the refund check was genuine and then arranging the purchase, two undercover agents met with Evoulou and three coconspirators at an IHOP restaurant in Dallas at 1:00 in the morning on May 16, 2013.  Evoulou and the coconspirators had flown in from Atlanta several hours earlier with the check.  At the restaurant, Evoulou pulled out a magazine in which he had concealed the check. To prove legitimacy of the refund check, he gave the undercover agent screen shots from an internal IRS data base showing details about the victim taxpayer. When two of the conspirators stepped outside to retrieve the purchase money to pay the undercover agents, IRS agents converged to arrest the participants.  Evoulou managed to elude arrest by exiting the restaurant with a group patrons of the restaurant. 

The other conspirators were arrested and charged with federal offenses to which they pleaded guilty and were sentenced.  Evoulou was subsequently identified, indicted, and arrested in March 2015.

IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Stokes and Camille Sparks prosecuted.

# # #

DALLAS — Farai Marunda was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge David C. Godbey to 110 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $3,519,925 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) following his guilty plea last year to one count of access device fraud, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

 According to the factual resume filed in the case, when officers with the Addison Police Department detected the odor of marijuana coming from a particular room at the Motel 6 on Belt Line Drive in Addison, Texas, Marunda spoke with the officers and gave them consent to search the room for marijuana.  While the officers spoke with others who were in the room, Marunda removed two debit cards from his wallet and hid them under a folded mat by the edge of the bath tub.  Marunda, according to the factual resume, also had a briefcase in the room, and in it officers found a small zippered case containing five thumb drives, two HP laptop computers, a T-Mobile hotspot device, six Visa debit cards in the names of six people, two blank Western Union Visa debit cards, a Wal-Mart receipt listing the purchase of a green dot moneypak prepaid card, and a listing that contained handwritten names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, addresses, email addresses, and credit card account numbers.

Pursuant to a federal search warrant for Marunda’s computers and hard drives, special agents with IRS Criminal Investigation found hundreds of computer files containing thousands of items of personal identifying information.  The devices also contained tax filing software with tax return filing information for tax years 2010, 2011 and 2012.

IRS Criminal Investigation and the Addison Police Department investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Stokes was in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — A federal grand jury in Dallas has indicted three Texas residents on various charges stemming from their involvement in a diamond investment scheme they ran from approximately March 2011 to November 2013, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Defendants Craig Allen Otteson, 64, of McKinney, Jay Bruce Heimburger, 58, of Dallas, and Christopher Arnold Jiongo, 55, of Houston, surrendered to federal authorities on Friday morning, September 9, 2016, and made their initial appearances that afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge David L. Horan.  Each was released on bond.

Specifically, the 10-count indictment charges each defendant with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and three counts of wire fraud.  In addition, Otteson and Heimburger are each charged with six counts of mail fraud.

According to the indictment, Otteson acted as the Managing Member and Chief Compliance Officer of Stonebridge Advisors, LLC, located on Belt Line road in Dallas.  Stonebridge Advisors was involved as the Managing Partner of Worldwide Diamond Ventures, L.P., located at 6029 Belt Line in Dallas, and it acted as the General Partner of Worldwide Diamond.  Heimburger acted as a Principal Partner of Worldwide Diamond, and he was also listed as the registered agent and Director of JBH Securities, Inc. located on San Rafael in Dallas.  JBH Securities was primarily involved in the business of providing investment advice.  Worldwide Diamond was primarily involved in the business of buying and reselling diamonds on the international market.  On October 1, 2013, Worldwide Diamond filed for bankruptcy in the Northern District of Texas.

According to the indictment, the defendants initially attempted to raise funds for their new business of purchasing and reselling diamonds by offering the sale of additional limited partnerships, in the minimum amount of $100,000, in Worldwide Diamond, but were unable to raise sufficient capital funds in this manner.  Then, in March 2011, defendants attempted to raise additional needed start-up funds by offering “Non-Recourse Promissory Notes” (diamond notes). The defendants hired three outside companies to market and sell the diamond notes to investors in Texas, Pennsylvania and California.  Each $50,000 diamond note had a nine-month maturity date and an 8% rate of return.

The indictment alleges that from approximately March 2011 through November 2011, Otteson, Heimburger and Jiongo defrauded their first round of investors when they fraudulently concealed material information from them, including how they used investor funds, and other information, which caused 57 investors to invest a total of $5,141,699 with Worldwide Diamond Ventures.

The indictment further alleges that from February 2012 through May 2013, Otteson and Heimburger defrauded the second round of investors when they fraudulently concealed material information from investors, including how they used investor funds and other information, which caused 20 new investors to invest a total of $1,333,000 with Worldwide Diamond Ventures.

Defendants promised investors that all investor funds would only be used to purchase and resell diamonds.  However, as part of the fraudulent scheme, the defendants concealed from investors that defendants used nearly $2.5 million of investor funds to make unauthorized loans to third parties.  As a result of the defendants’ investor fraud scheme, these 77 investors sustained a total loss of at least $4,922,811.

An indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury, and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty.  However, if convicted, the maximum statutory penalty for each of the counts charged in the indictment is 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.  The indictment also includes a forfeiture allegation that would require the defendants, upon conviction, to forfeit the proceeds obtained as a result of the offense.  Restitution could also be ordered.

This case is one of several felony prosecutions of bankruptcy-related crimes generated by the Bankruptcy Fraud Initiative in the Northern District of Texas.  Twenty defendants have been charged as part of that initiative; 16 were convicted, one resulted in a mistrial and three are pending trial.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is conducting the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney David Jarvis is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — Two Dallas men, Cedric Ray Jones, 27, and his brother, Damien Antoine Jones, 31, were sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle to lengthy federal prison sentences for committing several violent armed robberies in Dallas in 2014, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Cedric Jones was sentenced to 573 months, and Damien Jones was sentenced to 708 months in federal prison.  Each pleaded guilty late last year to one count of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, two counts of using, carry, and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to, and possessing and brandishing a firearm in furtherance of, a crime of violence, and three counts of interference with commerce by robbery.

Co-conspirator, Savalas Christopher Love, 32, pleaded guilty to the conspiracy count and one firearm count.  He is scheduled to be sentenced later this month.

The FBI dubbed the robbers the “Bulls Cap Bandits,” as Cedric and Damien Jones wore Chicago Bulls caps during the robberies.  

According to documents filed in the case, from approximately March 7, 2014, through June 17, 2014, the defendants conspired together to commit these armed robberies:

March 7, 2014  and June 12, 2014            Cash Plus Pawn, 9103 East R.L. Thornton Freeway, Dallas

May 28, 2014                AutoZone,            10418 Garland Road, Dallas

June 2, 2014                 AutoZone              2842 South Buckner Blvd., Dallas

June 17, 2014              AutoZone              9711 Plano Road, Dallas

During each of the robberies, Cedric and Damien Jones wore disguises and brandished firearms.  In the March 7, 2014, robbery of Cash Plus Pawn, they stole cash and two semi-automatic rifles, and then fled on foot.

In the May 28, 2014, and June 2, 2014, AutoZone robberies, Cedric and Damien Jones entered the store, brandishing the semi-automatic rifles, while Love remained in the vehicle as the “getaway driver.”  The three fled in Love’s vehicle.

On June 12, 2014, Cedric and Damien Jones, Love, and another individual traveled to the Cash Plus Pawn store on East R.L. Thornton Freeway in Dallas, in Love’s vehicle, with the specific intent to commit robbery.  Upon arriving in the parking lot, Damien Jones and the other individual exited the vehicle and approached the store’s entrance with firearms, but abandoned the robbery when confronted by a store employee.  They fled in Love’s vehicle.

In the June 17, 2014, AutoZone robbery, Cedric and Damien Jones traveled together in Love’s vehicle to the store with the intent to commit robbery.  Love traveled separately to the location.  Love “cased” the store and reported the absence of security personnel to Damien Jones.  Cedric and Damien Jones then entered the store, brandishing semi-automatic rifles, and then fled the robbery in their vehicle.  During a subsequent chase with law enforcement, Cedric Jones operated the vehicle in a manner to avoid apprehension and created a substantial risk to other motorists on the roads.  During the pursuit, shots were fired in the direction of the pursuing officers to further avoid apprehension.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the Dallas Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Keith Robinson was in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — A licensed pharmacist, Kumi Frimpong, who owned and operated the Cornerstone Pharmacy, located on Bolton Boone Drive in Desoto, Texas, has pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge stemming from his involvement in a “pill mill” operation, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Specifically, Frimpong, 56, of Dallas, who was the pharmacist in charge at Cornerstone Pharmacy, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to one count of conspiracy to illegally distribute oxycodone.  Frimpong also agreed to surrender $41,112 to the United States that constitute proceeds from dispensing oxycodone during the conspiracy.  He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a $1 million fine.  Sentencing is set for mid-December.

Frimpong admitted that during the conspiracy, which began in January 2013 and continued through July 2014, he and his co-conspirators distributed and caused to be distributed at least 40,000 30mg oxycodone pills in Dallas, and elsewhere that he dispensed based on prescriptions issued in the name and DEA registration number of co-conspirator, Dr. Richard Andrews of McAllen Medical Clinic. 

After their arrests in January 2016, Dr. Andrews and co-defendant pharmacists Frimpong and Ndufola Kigham were ordered to surrender their DEA registration numbers, preventing Dr. Andrews from issuing prescriptions for controlled substances and Frimpong and Kigham from dispensing controlled substances.  Frimpong and Kigham also surrendered their stock of controlled substances that they had at their pharmacies to DEA.   

A co-conspirator in the case, Muhammad Faridi, 40, who is not a physician but who was also a part owner of the McAllen Medical Clinic, pleaded guilty last month to the conspiracy.  He is scheduled to be sentenced on November 18, 2016.   

Twenty-four individuals were indicted by a federal grand jury in Dallas in February 2015 on offenses related to their participation in the prescription drug distribution conspiracy.  That indictment alleged that from at least May 2013 through July 2014, the defendants participated in a scheme to illicitly obtain prescriptions for pain medications, such as oxycodone and hydrocodone, and then distribute those controlled substances for profit.  As part of the conspiracy, individuals, often homeless or of limited means, were recruited and paid to pose as patients at medical clinics, including the McAllen Medical Clinic, to obtain prescriptions to fill those prescriptions at designated pharmacies.

Superseding indictments were returned in December 2015 and in January 2016, and a total of 31 individuals have now been charged.  Many of those defendants have pleaded guilty, and several have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from 30 months to 48 months in federal prison.

For instance, Earl Cain, 52, who pleaded guilty to unlawful use of a communication device, was sentenced last Friday to the statutory maximum of 48 months in federal prison.  The same day, Glenda Cane, 47, pleaded guilty to the same offense, and Ivery Meyers, 64, pleaded guilty to the conspiracy.  The prior week, on August 26, 2016, four defendants, Fahim Ahmed Khan, 55, Taneisha Nicole Nickerson, 29, Brandon Dunbar, 33 and Candis O’Shaea Lewis, 30, also pleaded guilty.

There may be additional guilty pleas in the coming weeks.  While a trial date of October 24, 2016, is currently set, Dr. Andrews filed a motion to continue trial yesterday.

This Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation is being conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Louisiana State Police, the Grand Prairie Police Department, the Dallas Police Department, the Houston Police Department, the Arlington Police Department, the Greenville Police Department, the Parker County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Marshal’s Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Diplomatic Security Service.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Walters is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

WASHINGTON – A Greenville, Texas, resident pleaded guilty today to one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo, head of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney John R. Parker for the Northern District of Texas. 

According to documents filed with the court, Lourdes Ramirez, 39, was a tax return preparer operating under the names TX ASAP Tax Services and Fiesta Tax Service in Greenville.  Ramirez admitted that from at least 2011 through 2014, she willfully prepared and filed individual income tax returns for clients that reported materially false information, including false business income and losses, false credits and false deductions in order to produce fraudulently inflated refunds.  Ramirez prepared approximately 1,163 tax returns and caused an intended tax loss to the United States of approximately $1,155,383.

Ramirez is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 21.  She faces a statutory maximum sentence of three years in prison, as well as a term of supervised release and monetary penalties.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Ciraolo commended special agents of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation and Trial Attorneys Melanie A. Smith and Alexander R. Effendi of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting this case with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney David Jarvis of the Northern District of Texas.

Additional information about the Tax Division and its enforcement efforts may be found on the division’s website.

# # #

DALLAS — Curtis Demond Johnson, who operated an income tax preparation business in Dallas, appeared in federal court this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renee Harris Toliver and pleaded guilty to one count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a fraudulent tax return, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

According to the factual resume filed in the case, from approximately 2010 to 2014, Johnson operated Inworks Tax Services, located in Galleria Tower Three on Noel Road in Dallas. 

From at least 2011 through 2013, according to the factual resume, Johnson willfully prepared, and caused to be filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), tax returns that were materially false.  Johnson routinely falsified or inflated or one more business deductions on Schedule C to create a business loss that offset legitimate wage income.  This produced an inflated refund to the client and a corresponding tax loss to the U.S.  His scheme also promoted additional clients and earned fees for Johnson.  In fact, during this time, according to the factual resume, income tax returns prepared and filed by Johnson that contained false and fraudulent Schedule Cs resulted in an estimated tax loss to the U.S. of $480,859.

Sentencing is set for December 22, 2016, before U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle.  Johnson faces a statutory maximum penalty of three years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.  He may also be ordered to pay restitution. 

IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Stokes is in charge of the prosecution.

# # #

DALLAS — A Fort Worth man, Alton Alexis, was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Judge Sidney A. Fitzwater to 16 months in federal prison, following his guilty plea in May 2016 to an Information charging one count of making a false statement under penalty of perjury, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas. 

Alexis, 58, must surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on October 18, 2016.

According to documents filed in the case, in January 2010, Alexis, on behalf of borrower NSAA Investment Group, signed a promissory note with One World Bank for a loan of approximately $3,744,050 to finance the construction of a movie theatre restaurant.  From early 2010 through early 2011, Alexis caused more than $2 million in loan proceeds to be disbursed from One World Bank to accounts in the name of BBA Construction Company and/or NSAA Investment Group.  Alexis later submitted three fictitious invoices to One World Bank which caused at least $245,000 of those loan proceeds to be fraudulently diverted to bank accounts he controlled.  Alexis then used these diverted loan proceeds to pay his personal debts. 

In May 2011, Alexis made a material false statement in a bankruptcy case, In re Alton Alexis and Althea Lynette Alexis, filed in the Northern District of Texas, when he filed an Amended Statement of Financial Affairs that falsely represented he had truthfully disclosed all income received in the two years immediately preceding the commencement of the case.  Instead of truthfully disclosing all income, Alexis fraudulently concealed the $245,000 of income, in the form of fraudulently diverted loan proceeds, he received in 2010.

According to testimony presented at today’s hearing, Alexis was involved in additional relevant conduct, to include:  he concealed a prior felony conviction when he applied for the One World Bank loan; he fraudulently diverted a total of $480,423 of One World Bank loan proceeds and used these loan proceeds for his mortgage payments, college and private school tuition, property taxes, and trips to England and Mexico, among other things; and he submitted two false IRS forms to One World Bank to conceal his receipt of these loan proceeds for his personal use and benefit.

This case is one of several felony prosecutions of bankruptcy-related crimes generated by the Bankruptcy Fraud Initiative in the Northern District of Texas.  This defendant is the 16th defendant convicted since August 2013 as part of that initiative. 

Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation investigated the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorney David Jarvis was in charge of the prosecution.

###