Southern District of Texas

HOUSTON – A 47-year-old Pennsylvania man has entered a guilty plea to charges related to a conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit Viagra and Cialis and for smuggling, trafficking and introducing the misbranded prescription drugs into interstate commerce, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Acting Special Agent in Charge Charles L. Grinstead of the Food and Drug Administration - Office of Criminal Investigations (FDA-OCI) and Acting Special Agent in Charge Sean McElroy of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

“The FDA regulates pharmaceuticals in the legitimate medical products supply chain to ensure that U.S. consumers have access to safe and effective medications,” said Grinstead. “Those who attempt to circumvent FDA’s regulation place the public’s health at risk. We will continue to defend the consumer’s right to medications that are safe, effective and properly labeled, rather than false, potentially harmful substitutes.”

Victor Lamar Coates, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to conspiring with convicted co-conspirator Martez Gurley, 41, of Napa, California, to traffic in counterfeit and misbranded Viagra and Cialis, and introducing those drugs in interstate commerce. Both drugs are prescription medications. Coates admitted to illegally distributing at least 10,288 counterfeit and misbranded tablets, including tablets he illegally imported directly from China. FDA, Eli Lilly and Company and Pfizer Inc. conducted testing on the counterfeit tablets which revealed the tablets did not contain the ingredients listed on the labeling. Some of the Viagra tablets contained the compound 2-MBT, an ingredient not part of authentic Viagra.

U.S. District Judge David Hittner accepted the plea today and set sentencing for Nov. 8, 2016. Gurley was convicted in June 2015 for his role in the conspiracy and is scheduling for sentencing Nov. 22, 2016.

Each faces up to five years in prison for the conspiracy and for introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce as well as up to three years for introducing misbranded drugs into commerce. FDA-OCI and HSI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Redlinger is prosecuting the case.

McALLEN, Texas ‐ A San Benito man falsely holding himself out as a Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) has been charged and arrested for aggravated identity theft and making false statements, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

Juan Manuel Perez, 35, turned himself in to authorities today. He is expected to make his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge U.S. Magistrate Judge Dorina Ramos at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow.

According to charges, Perez obtained employment with Cleveland Health Care LLC in McAllen in January 2015, falsely claiming to be an LVN. Perez presented a license number, but it allegedly belonged to another individual of the same name. Perez is not licensed by the Texas Board of Nursing and is not a LVN, according to the criminal complaint.

The charges allege that Perez posed as an LVN, conducted patient home visits and provided medical services from January 2015 through July 2016 while employed with Cleveland Health Care.  

The criminal complaint further alleges Perez had utilized the stolen identification to gain employment with various other area health care institutions including Harlingen Medical Center and Valley Baptist Medical Center.

If convicted of making false statements relating to health care matters, Perez faces up to five years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine. The aggravated identity theft charge carries a mandatory two‐year additional prison term, upon conviction, which must be served consecutive to any other prison sentence.

The Department of Health and Human Services‐Office of Inspector General, FBI and Health and Human Services Commission conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Swartz and Michael Day are prosecuting the case.

A criminal complaint is an accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.

A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 38-year-old Corpus Christi man who worked as a Santa Claus impersonator for 15 years has been ordered to prison for distribution of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Reynaldo Ramirez pleaded guilty in May 2016. 

Today, U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos sentenced Ramirez to 235 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by 20 years of supervised release.  He must also register as a sex offender.

At today’s hearing, the court heard testimony from an HSI agent who described the videos and images of child pornography Ramirez possessed, many of which depicted the sexual exploitation of infants, bondage and bestiality. The agent also testified that Ramirez had admitted to sexually assaulting a five-year-old child. The child’s mother also addressed the court and described the danger Ramirez posed to children.  

The case against Ramirez began after a detective with the Corpus Christi Police Department (CCPD) was able to successfully download various files containing child pornography from an IP address that was associated with Ramirez. As a result, Homeland Security Investigations was contacted to assist in the investigation (HSI).  

In December 2015, authorities executed a search warrant at Ramirez’s residence, at which time they seized several digital devices and discovered a Santa Claus costume. Upon questioning, Ramirez stated he had performed as Santa Claus for the past 15 years throughout the South Texas area. Agents also discovered several gifts addressed to children. 

Ramirez admitted he had been viewing child pornography for approximately six years. He told authorities he had downloaded more than 1,000 images of child pornography ranging in ages from toddlers to pre-teens. 

Ramirez was arrested on the federal charges in December 2015 and has been in custody since that time where he will remain pending his transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future. 

CCPD - Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and HSI conducted the investigation.  

This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hugo R. Martinez, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

HOUSTON – A 50-year-old Louisiana man has entered a guilty plea in relation to the September 2015 robbery of BBVA Compass Bank in Sugar Land, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Charles Wood, 50, of Farmersville, Louisiana, admitted he robbed the local bank and further acknowledged he robbed banks in four other states. 

On Sept. 14, 2015, Wood entered the BBVA Compass Bank located at 14121 North Southwest Freeway in Sugar Land. He pulled out a black BB gun from his jacket and displayed it to the teller, asking for a withdrawal of 20s, 50s and 100s. The teller complied.

A brief pursuit with law enforcement ensued which resulted in his apprehension a short distance from the bank.

At the time of the plea today, Wood also admitted to committing four additional bank robberies which occurred throughout the country. Those include the Feb. 18, 2015, robbery of U.S. Bank at 4140 John F. Kennedy Blvd. in Little Rock, Arkansas; the Aug. 11, 2015, robbery of Great Western Bank located at 3800 East 15th Street in Loveland, Colorado; the Aug. 15, 2015, robbery of American West Bank located at 1290 South West St. in Woods Cross, Utah; and the Aug. 27, 2015 robbery of Valley View Bank located at 8100 West 151st Street in Overland Park, Kansas.

U.S. District Judge Sim Lake accepted the guilty plea today and has set sentencing for Nov. 3, 2016, at which time he faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine. He will remain in custody pending that hearing.  

The FBI’s Bank Robbery Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Searle is prosecuting the case.

HOUSTON – A 58-year-old man who conspired to evade more than $3.3 million in federal fuel excise taxes has been ordered to federal prison after eight years on the run, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Special Agent in Charge Rick Goss of IRS-Criminal Investigation (CI) and Special Agent in Charge Christopher Brooks of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) criminal enforcement program.

Yousef Ishaq Abuteir was originally charged with the conspiracy on July 9, 2007. He pleaded guilty April 14, 2008. He was also charged and convicted in state court on charges related to the same scheme. However, prior to sentencing in both cases, he fled the country. Authorities issued a federal arrest warrant in February 2009, followed by an Interpol Red Notice. In 2014, Abuteir was located in Israel and subsequently extradited to the United States. 

Today, U.S. District Judge David Hittner ordered he serve 60 months in federal prison and ordered to pay $3,328,459 in restitution.

Abuteir is the sixth and final defendant to be sentenced on related fuel tax investigations. The original 2007 indictment charged Abuteir, Sidney Berle Baldon II and Tracy Dale Diamond with conspiring in a multi-million dollar fuel excise scheme executed in Texas and Louisiana between October 2001 and November 2003. The indictment alleged that the fuel excise tax scheme involved the acquisition of more than 13 million gallons of kerosene from Calcasieu Refinery in Lake Charles, Louisiana, without paying federal excise taxes. The defendants were able to avoid paying the excise tax by falsely stating the fuel was for export, as opposed to for on-road use. The kerosene was then allegedly trucked to Houston, where it was blended with middle distillate oil, a by-product of asphalt production.  The resulting blend was eventually sold to various retail gas stations in and around the Houston area, where it was sold to consumers as diesel fuel. The retail stations collected the federal diesel fuel excise tax from their customers at the filling pump.

“The defendant and his cohorts lined their pockets and scammed the American tax payers out of millions of dollars,” said Goss. “Today, justice is served and this defendant is finally going to prison.”

Baldon and Diamond subsequently pleaded guilty and, in 2009, were sentenced to 60 months in prison and 12 months and one day in prison, respectively. Additionally, they were also ordered to pay more than $3 million in restitution to the IRS.

In a related investigation, Assad Boulos, Talaat Boulos and Youssef Georges were charged in 2011 with a similar fuel excise tax scheme involving Calcasieu Refinery. The charging instrument alleged they and others obtained tax-free kerosene from Calcasieu during 2004 by falsely claiming the fuel would be used only for agricultural and other off-road uses. Instead, the kerosene was trucked to Houston, blended with other agents and sold at stations controlled by Assad Boulos and Talaat Boulos as diesel fuel. The stations allegedly involved in the fraud included Normandy Truck Stop, Cobra Shell, Channelview Conoco and Wayside Conoco. In 2013, Assad Boulos, Talaat Boulos and Youssef Georges pleaded guilty and received probationary sentences. Assad Boulos and Talaat Boulos were ordered to pay $650,000 in restitution to the IRS.   

In 2010, Abuteir had been added to the EPA’s Most Wanted List. His capture in Israel was the result of collaborative efforts on the part of the IRS-CI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Transportation, EPA, U.S. Marshals Service, Travis County District Attorney’s Office and the State of Texas Comptroller’s Agency. 

“This case shows that EPA and its law enforcement partners are committed to making sure that fugitives who break our environmental laws are brought to justice,” said Brooks. “The defendant’s actions jeopardized public health and the environment, and this sentence sends a strong message that those who fail to follow our clean air laws will be held accountable.”

IRS-CI and the EPA conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Magliolo prosecuted the case. 

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 37-year-old Aransas Pass man has been ordered to prison following his three convictions of sexual exploitation of a child, otherwise known as production of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. John Anthony Perez pleaded guilty in May 2016.

After a lengthy hearing that concluded late today, Senior US. District Judge Hayden Head sentenced Perez to 250 months federal prison on each count to run consecutively. The 750-month total sentence will also be followed by 20 years of supervised release during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the Internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender. Judge Head also ordered $150,000 in restitution to be paid to each victim for a total of $450,000.

Perez came to the attention of authorities after authorities learned of the sexual assault of three young children. The children were identified and confirmed the abuse. Perez was identified as the perpetrator and admitted to sexual assaulting the three children and taking sexual explicit photographs and videos of the abuse. Perez admitted his interest in child pornography started when he was deployed overseas with the U.S. Marine Corps.

At today’s hearing, the court heard testimony from a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agent. The agent described the additional videos and images of child pornography Perez possessed, many of which depicted the sexual exploitation of infants, bondage and bestiality. A psychologist who evaluated the children also told the court that Perez had first abused the young children when they were toddlers.

In March 2016, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Perez’s residence and seized various electronic devices.  Forensic examination led to the discovery of 37 videos and 189 images of Perez sexual assaulting three children. Authorities also discovered 494 other videos and more than 16,000 other images of child pornography.

Perez was arrested on the federal charges in March 2016 and has been in custody since that time where he will remain pending his transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The charges were the result of an investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations with the assistance of the Corpus Christi Police Department – Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hugo R. Martinez, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

 

The Justice Department filed a complaint today in the Southern District of Texas alleging that Harris County, Texas, violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to provide accessible polling places for voters with disabilities.  Many polling places in Harris County have architectural barriers – such as steep ramps and narrow doors – that make them inaccessible to voters who use wheelchairs or have mobility impairments, or voters who are blind or have vision impairments.

“Like all voters, individuals with disabilities deserve the opportunity to vote at their local polling place – where they can greet neighbors, meet candidates and discuss the issues in their community,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.  “But many voters with disabilities in Harris County lack equal access to this basic and most fundamental right.  Our lawsuit seeks to safeguard the right to vote and fulfill the ADA’s promise of equal opportunity for people with disabilities.”

“Access to voting for all eligible citizens is a priority in this district, partially evidenced by the recently created Civil – Civil Rights Section within our office,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.  “This division civilly enforces federal civil rights laws including the Americans with Disabilities Act, among many others.  We will continue to work with the Department of Justice and investigate and remedy such alleged violations to ensure all U.S. citizens are treated fairly and equally.”

The lawsuit seeks a court order that would require accessibility improvements to polling places in all future elections, training for poll workers to implement and maintain accessibility features at polling places as well as changes to the county’s polling place site selection process to ensure accessibility. 

Title II of the ADA prohibits public entities, such as Harris County, from discriminating against people with disabilities in their programs, services and activities.  With respect to polling places, public entities are required to select and use polling places that are accessible.  To read the department’s findings regarding Harris County’s polling places, see https://www.ada.gov/harris_county_lof.htm.  To learn more about ADA requirements for polling place accessibility or about the ADA and other laws protecting the rights of voters with disabilities, visit www.ada.gov/ta-pubs-pg2.htm.

Those interested in finding out more about the ADA can call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383 (TDD), or access the ADA website at www.ada.gov.  

Harris County Complaint

McALLEN, Texas – A 47-year-old U.S. citizen who had been residing in Mexico has entered a guilty plea to failure to appear, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

Lorena Salazar-Galvan was previously convicted of importing and possessing with the intent to distribute 79 pounds of marijuana.  In 1990, U.S. District Judge Ricardo H. Hinojosa sentenced her to 27 months in federal prison. She had been permitted bond throughout the court proceedings and was permitted to remain there pending surrender to the U.S. Marshals Service on Feb. 26, 1990.

She did not appear and a warrant was issued for her arrest. She was then also charged with failure to appear.

On May 26, 2016, She was apprehended as she attempted entry into the United States at the Pharr Port of Entry. 

Today, she pleaded guilty.

She has been in custody since her 2016 arrest where she will remain pending sentencing. Judge Hinojosa is presiding over this case as well and has set sentencing for Oct. 7, 2016. At that time, she faces up to five years in federal prison for failing to report to prison as well as $250,000 fine.

The U.S. Marshals Service conducted the investigation on the failure to appear matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Leonard is prosecuting the case.

HOUSTON – A 34-year-old man who recently resided in Spring, now of Royse City, has been ordered to federal prison for enticing a minor and the unlawful making of a National Firearms Act weapon, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Mark Duesterberg pleaded guilty April 8, 2016.  

Today, U.S. District Judge Alfred H. Bennett sentenced Duesterberg to 120 months of imprisonment on each count to run concurrently. He will also serve a 10-year term of supervised release during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the Internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender. 

On May 28, 2015, Duesterberg communicated with an undercover agent, an individual whom he believed was a minor female. In the course of the email and text messages, he persuaded, induced and attempted to entice the female child to have sex with him. He made arrangements to meet the minor female to engage in sexual activity. He was promptly arrested upon his arrival at the agreed upon location. At that time, agents discovered seven pipe bombs within his vehicle.  

The following morning, law enforcement traveled to Duesterberg’s Spring residence and conducted a search of the location. In the garage, they located 25 explosive bombs which he had not received prior permission to make. An expert later determined these were destructive devices and that the explosives within would propel metal, PVC and CPVC fragments at high velocities and in all directions. These explosives could cause property damage and would be capable of causing injury or death to persons near the explosion.  

Additionally, agents found more pipe and pipe caps consistent with the completed pipe bombs, a roll of pyrotechnic fuse, three one-pound containers of gun powder as well as other materials that are consistent with the construction of the pipe bombs in Duesterberg’s truck and home.  

Agents also located a gun safe in which they found An unregistered Romarm, model WASR-10/63, 7.62mm machine gun.  

A search of the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record indicated Duesterberg did not have a registration for the bombs or machine gun.  

He will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.  

Homeland Security Investigations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven T. Schammel and Kimberly Leo prosecuted the case.

LAREDO, Texas – A total of 11 people are in custody following an enforcement operation in two separate, but related cases involving a heroin trafficking conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

Those arrested include Alejandro Escobar-Becerra, 35, Francisco Garcia-Castro, 38, Vicente Vasquez, 45, Cynthia Veronica Castillo, 40, Ernesto Moreno, 44, Jose Ricardo Diaz, 42, Pedro Jorge Rodriguez, 29, Juan Jesus Luna, 31, Juan Erasmo Garcia, 41, all of Laredo. With the exception of Rodriquez, who was taken into custody in Catarina and made his initial appearance in Del Rio, all appeared this morning before U.S. Magistrate Judge Guillermo R. Garcia in Laredo. All have been detained pending further court proceedings. 

Also charged is Benito Reyna, 49, and Julio Santiago Gonzalez, 26, both also of Laredo. They were already in custody and are expected to appear in federal court in the near future.

A federal grand jury returned the indictments under seal June 21, 2016, alleging a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine. Some are also charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm. The indictments were unsealed upon the arrests yesterday.

Escobar, Castro, Elizondo, Vasquez, Reyna and Moreno are part of an indictment charging them with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine. Diaz, Rodriguez, Luna, Garcia and Gonzalez are alleged members of the Texas Mexican Mafia prison gang. Diaz is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin, while Rodriguez, Luna, Garcia and Gonzalez are charged with being felons in possession of firearms.

The joint investigation which started in 2013 identified some of the defendants as alleged members of a street level heroin and cocaine distribution organization. According to the charges, on March 14, 2014 Rodriguez, Luna, Garcia and Gonzalez were traveling to a nightclub to look for a person at the request of Diaz. However, Laredo Police Department officers stopped them and discovered three firearms in their possession, according to the indictment.

If convicted in the drug conspiracy, all face up to 40 years in prison and a possible $5 million fine. Rodriguez, Luna, Garcia and Gonzalez also face up to 10 years upon conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

The indictments were part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation named “Smokey’s Café.” The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Texas Department of Public Safety - Criminal Investigations Division conducted the investigation with assistance by the Laredo Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy Guardiola is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.

A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

BROWNSVILLE, Texas – Law enforcement officials have arrested 11 individuals alleging harboring and transporting of undocumented aliens within the country, announced U.S Attorney Kenneth Magidson.  

Those arrested included Manuela Cedillo-Hernandez, 59, Javier Aranda-Velez, 50, William Adam Leija, 25, Landsie Rubi Leija, 28, Christopher Vega, 31, and her associate Francisca Torres, 53, all of La Feria. Also arrested were Raquel Flores-Cedillo, 37, and Rogelio Gonzalez, 41, both of Brownsville; Bobby Joe Canales, 28, and Guadalupe Iracheta Obregon, 31, both of Alton; and Jorge Vidales, 39, of Harlingen. They are expected to make their initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ignacio Torteya this morning.  

A nine-count indictment was returned under seal on Tuesday July 26, 2016, and unsealed upon their arrests yesterday.   

The individuals are alleged to have operated a complex alien harboring scheme wherein they harbored smuggled undocumented aliens in exchange for monetary gain from the aliens or their families. Thereafter, the defendants allegedly provided the aliens with legal documents allowing them to assume an imposter identity and move northward from the Rio Grande Valley into the United States. The scheme is alleged to have taken place between March 2016 through the date of indictment. 

All are charged with one count of conspiracy and at least one count of alien harboring. If convicted, they face up to 10 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine for the conspiracy and a maximum of either five or 10 years for their respective underlying charges(s).  

The indictment also includes a notice of forfeiture for two residential properties - one in La Feria, and one in Harlingen. 

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) - Homeland Security Investigations conducted the four-month investigation with assistance from DHS - Enforcement Removal Operations, U.S. Marshals Service, Border Patrol, Department of State, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Cameron County District Attorney’s Office, Cameron County Sheriff’s Office, police departments in Brownsville, Harlingen and Mission. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Corley is prosecuting the case.  

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.

A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

HOUSTON – A 40-year-old undocumented immigrant found as a stowaway on a boat at the Port of Houston has pleaded guilty to illegal re-entry after deportation, announced U.S Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

Robinson Francisco Gonzalez-Martinez, a citizen of the Dominican Republic, has multiple convictions for drug possession and two convictions for grand theft of motor vehicles. He had been deported twice from the United States. 

On May 8, 2016, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers discovered Gonzalez-Martinez hiding in a ship at the Port of Houston.

Today, he admitted he is a previously convicted felon who illegally re-entered this county. He snuck on to a container ship in the Dominican Republic and was discovered after he jumped off of the vessel upon its arrival in the Port of Houston.     

“This arrest and conviction illustrates CBP’s ongoing commitment to intercept individuals intent on circumventing the immigration process to continue their criminal activity,” said CBP Director of Field Operations Judson W. Murdock II. “CBP will continue to take every opportunity to apprehend these individuals and coordinate for the proper action leading to their removal from our communities.”

U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt accepted the plea today and has set sentencing for Oct. 3, 2016. At that time, Gonzalez-Martinez faces up to 10 years in federal prison. He will remain in custody pending that hearing.

CBP conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Goldman is prosecuting the case.

HOUSTON – A federal jury has returned guilty verdicts on all 19 counts as charged against a Houston doctor for distributing oxycodone and hydrocodone, announced U.S. Atttorney Kenneth Magidson.

The jury deliberated for approximately eight hours before convicted Richard Arthur Evans, 71. He now faces up to life in prison. The jury heard testimony for 14 days from 15 witnesses, including other doctors who appeared as expert witnesses. The government presented more than 175 exhibits during the course of the trial.  

Co-defendant David Devido, 78, of Houston, pleaded guilty on the first day of trial. 

The two defendants conspired to distribute oxycodone and hydrocodone - controlled narcotic substances that are highly addictive and highly abused pain relievers. Both drugs are semi-synthetic opiates which can be only acquired legally by prescription and dispensed by a pharmacist. As a physician, Evans wrote prescriptions and Devido, a pharmacist, dispensed the drugs. Witnesses testified these pill are sold for approximately $40 each on the street.

The jury heard that Evans distributed these drugs outside the course of professional practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose. He saw patients from Louisiana and other states, prescribed oxycodone and hydrocodone products and directed patients to the pharmacy Devido had owned.

Some of the patients testified as to lax procedures at the clinic and the ease with which they were able to obtain prescriptions. Evans charged patients $200-$240 cash for an initial office visit, at which time they would obtain a first prescription. Refills are not permitted for narcotics. However, the jury heard that patients were told they could obtain a new prescription in 30 days without an office visit as long as the patient sent a money order to Evans for $200-$240. Patients were also told they could obtain a third prescription without an office visit as long as they again sent the payment to Evans.

Once the patients sent in their money orders, Evans and his staff delivered the prescriptions to Devido at Briargrove Pharmacy. Devido and his staff would then send these drugs through the U.S. mail and FedEx to patients in Louisiana and other states.       

The jury saw an undercover video depicting Evans signing off on prescriptions the nurse wrote without any examination or questioning of the patient. They also heard from a defense expert witness physician who testified he was surprised that more than 800 of the patients were from the Baton Rouge, Louisiana, area. The expert could only bring himself to say that a doctor who pre-signs prescriptions is practicing “poorly.”

As a result of the conspiracy, Evans prescribed and Devido dispensed approximately 1.6 million dosage units of oxycodone in a two-year-period. The jury heard that the total money attributed to the diversion scheme was approximately $2.4 million. 

The jury convicted Evans on one count of conspiracy, five counts of illegal distribution of narcotics, eight counts of mail fraud and five counts of money laundering. He could also be ordered to pay up to $5 million in fines. He faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison.

U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt presided over the trial and set sentencing for Oct. 17, 2016. Devido is set for sentencing Sept. 26, 2016. Both were permitted to remain on bond pending their hearings.  

The Drug Enforcement Administration, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Department of Health and Human Services and the Texas State Board of Pharmacy conducted the investigation, which was dubbed Operation Oxy Overload. Assistant U.S Attorneys Cedric L. Joubert and Quincy L. Ollison prosecuted the case.

HOUSTON - A 25-year-old Cypress man has been ordered to prison for more than 11 years following his conviction of distribution of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Jimmy Ortiz pleaded guilty Aug. 21, 2014.

Today, U.S. District Judge Keith P. Ellison, took into consideration type and number of images, his criminal history and handed Ortiz a total sentence of 135 months in federal prison. Ortiz was further ordered to pay $102,500 in restitution to two known victims and will serve the rest of his life on supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the Internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender. 

Indicted Jan. 30, 2014, Ortiz later appeared for a detention hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge George C. Hanks Jr. who found Ortiz to be a danger to the community and ordered he be detained.

The investigation revealed Ortiz was making child pornography available to others through the use of peer-to-peer software over the Internet. An FBI agent downloaded a video of child pornography from the files Ortiz was making available online. The video included two minor female children under the age of 12 performing oral sex on each other. Additionally, a FBI agent in Oklahoma also downloaded videos that contained child pornography from Ortiz. 

A search warrant was executed Sept. 27, 2013. At that time, agents seized computer media including external hard drives which led to the discovery of more than 1500 digital images and approximately 49 videos containing child pornography.

Ortiz will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The FBI Innocent Images Task Force conducted the investigation.             

This case, prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sherri L. Zack, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A 38-year-old resident of Mission has been ordered to prison for 120 months following his conviction of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Jose Manuel Ochoa pleaded guilty April 7, 2016.

Today, U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzalez Ramos sentenced Ochoa to 10 years in federal prison to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release.

On Dec. 18, 2105, Ochoa drove a motor vehicle into the Falfurrias checkpoint for a primary inspection, after which a service K9 alerted to the presence of contraband coming from the vehicle. Authorities performed an x-ray examination and soon identified  anomalies in the rear quarter panel. Eight bundles of methamphetamine were found inside, wrapped in foil and cellophane.  Laboratory analysis determined the drugs weighed 2.8 kilograms and had a purity level of 99%.

Ochoa will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be designated in the near future.

The Drug Enforcement Administration and Border Patrol conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Watt is prosecuting the case.

GALVESTON, Texas – A 51-year-old resident of Dickinson has been ordered to prison for nearly 20 years following his conviction of distribution, receipt and possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Richard Wayne Barton pleaded guilty Feb. 8, 2016.

Today, U.S. District Judge George C. Hanks Jr. took into consideration the fact that Barton created and administered a social media website where child pornography was made available, including images containing bondage, bestiality and children under the age of 12 engaged in sex acts. Barton received a sentence of 235 months in federal prison and was ordered to pay restitution to known victims. He was further ordered to serve 10 years of supervised release following completion of his prison term, during which time he will have to comply with numerous requirements designed to restrict his access to children and the Internet. He will also be ordered to register as a sex offender. 

The investigation revealed Barton was making child pornography available to others through the website he created and administered. Law enforcement executed a search warrant Feb. 19, 2015, at which time agents seized computer media including external hard drives which led to the discovery of more than 16,500 digital images and approximately 1,100 videos containing minors engaged in sexual activity.

A grand jury indicted Barton Sept. 17, 2015. He later appeared for a detention hearing and was found to be a danger to the community and ordered into custody. He has been and will remain there pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

This case was initiated based on a cyber-tip from a web domain hosting company. Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation.       

This case, prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sherri L. Zack, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A 29-year-old man has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction as a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Marcus Colunga, of Corpus Christi pleaded guilty April 7, 2016.

Today, U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzalez Ramos sentenced Colunga to 40 months imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised release.

In May 2015, law enforcement received a photograph of a Facebook posting showing an individual wearing a ballistic vest and holding an SKS rifle. They identified the individual as Colunga. With a prior felony conviction, he is prohibited by federal law of firearms.

During the investigation, agents recovered an SKS rifle and a stolen ballistic vest, later determined to be the same items Colunga possessed in the photograph.

In federal custody since his arrest, Colunga will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be designated in the near future.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation along with the Corpus Christi Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Watt prosecuted the case.

HOUSTON – A former correctional officer has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of sexual abuse of a ward, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. James Graves, 45, pleaded guilty May 2, 2016, admitting he engaged in a sexual relationship with two inmates while he was employed at the Federal Prison Camp (FPC) in Bryan. 

Today, U.S. District Judge Sim Lake ordered Graves serve a total sentence of 21 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by 10 years of supervised release. He was further ordered to register as a sex offender.

During the summer of 2014, Graves engaged in multiple sex acts with an inmate at FPC on more than one occasion. She reported the incidents to authorities and advised she believed he had done so with another inmate as well.

The second woman denied any sexual contact with Graves, but he ultimately admitted to the sexual encounters with both women while they were inmates under his control.  

The Department of Justice – Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Ruben R. Perez and Jill Stotts prosecuted the case.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 32-year-old local man has been convicted of transferring obscene material to a 14-year-old girl, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Brandon Guthrie, of Corpus Christi, entered his plea today before U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos.

During the hearing, the court heard that Guthrie met a 14-year-old female at a movie theater in Corpus Christi and began communicating with her via a messaging application. The minor’s parents discovered the communications and contacted the authorities. An undercover officer assumed control of the minor’s messaging account and continued to communicate with Guthrie, during which time Guthrie sent several videos of himself engaging in sexual explicit conduct. 

Judge Ramos has set sentencing for Nov, 1, 2016, at which time Guthrie faces up to 10 years in federal prison as well as a possible $250,000 fine. Upon completion of any prison term imposed, Guthrie also faces a maximum of life on supervised release during which time the court can impose a number of special conditions designed to protect children including sex offender registration. 

The charges are the result of the investigative efforts of the FBI and Corpus Christi Police Department—Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hugo R. Martinez, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A Corpus Christi taxidermist and hunting guide has been sentenced for violating the Lacey Act, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

Eric Martin Schmidt, 35, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jason B. Libby today. He was then ordered to pay a $2,500 community service payment to the Lacey Act Reward Fund and must serve five years of probation. Schmidt also abandoned more than 60 species of bird mounts that were illegally killed to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).

Schmidt was charged by a criminal information with one count each of violating the Lacey Act, ESA and MBTA. The Lacey Act prohibits any person from knowingly importing, exporting, transporting, selling or purchasing any wildlife that was taken, possessed, transported or sold in violation of any law, statute, regulation or treaty of the United States or foreign country. The ESA prohibits any person subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to engage in the trade of any wildlife contrary to the provisions of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). The MBTA prohibits any person, unless permitted by regulations, to pursue, hunt, take or capture any migratory bird included in the terms of the convention between the United States and other nations for the protection of migratory birds.

During the plea today, the court learned Schmidt is the owner of Alive Again Recreations, a taxidermy business he runs out of his residence in Corpus Christi. Schmidt is also the owner and operator of Global Game Birds (GGB). Through GGB, Schmidt offered hunting trips in Argentina, Peru, Scotland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to people with hunting opportunities for rarely seen species of birds.

In July 2011, Schmidt traveled from Corpus Christi to Peru and hunted approximately 30 indigenous birds including an Andean ruddy duck (Oxyura ferruginea) and a Torrent duck (Merganetta armata). At the conclusion of his hunting trip, Schmidt exported all 30 birds from Peru without an export permit.

In June 2012, Schmidt traveled to Argentina and returned to Corpus Christi with 18 birds he hunted in Argentina. Among the birds he killed and imported was one comb duck (Sarkidiornis melanotos), a species that is listed and protected under CITES.

In June 2013, Schmidt traveled to New Zealand and returned to Corpus Christi with 24 game and non-game birds he hunted in New Zealand. Among the birds he hunted, six were Pacific black ducks (Anas superciliosa) which are listed and protected under the MBTA.

FWS conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Hugo R. Martinez prosecuted the case.

HOUSTON – A former employee of Southwestern Energy Co. has been ordered to prison following her conviction of embezzlement, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Kendra Walker, 28, pleaded guilty to embezzling $452,025.56. 

Today, U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas found that Walker had obstructed justice and enhanced her sentence, ordering her to serve a total of 36 months in federal prison. In handing down the sentence, Judge Atlas noted that “this crime is inexcusable."

In an attempt to receive a more lenient sentence, Walker had claimed she was being treated at a hospice for a terminal condition and submitted a three-page report purportedly created by her hospice. However, the U.S. Attorney’s Office noticed that this report claimed Walker had been diagnosed with “stage 5” breast cancer, whereas stage 4 is regarded as the gravest stage by the National Cancer Institute.

The FBI investigated further and found the report Walker submitted to not be genuine. Further, Walker had never been a hospice patient. Walker also claimed to have been recently treated at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, but hospital representatives confirmed there were no records of her having been treated there. 

Walker had previously pleaded guilty to embezzling from her former employer, Southwestern Energy Co., where she had been employed in its accounts payable department. Starting in February 2014, Walker abused her position to access her employer’s accounts payable system and fraudulently changed vendor records to instead list her own bank accounts. She then caused Southwestern Energy Co.’s accounts payable system to pay invoices that, in reality, the vendors did not submit. Instead, these payments were transmitted into her bank accounts because Walker had changed the vendors’ bank account information. 

From February 2014 to February 2015, Walker embezzled $452,025.56.  As part of her sentencing, the court also ordered Walker to pay full restitution to Southwestern Energy Co. 

Walker was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The FBI investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Chu is prosecuting the case.

HOUSTON – A Houston man, already sentenced to 330 months for one bank robbery, just received another 319-month-term of imprisonment for his role in the armed robbery of a bank in The Woodlands in 2014, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

Keith Stephens, 28, pleaded guilty Feb. 26, 2016, to aiding and abetting bank robbery and brandishing a firearm in commission of a crime of violence related to the armed bank robbery of the Chase Bank on West Panther Creek in The Woodlands, on June 27, 2014. Today, U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon considered the role Stephens played in the robbery, the use of a gun in the offense, the way the victims were treated and amount of money taken. She also determined that Stephens had planned and organized the armed robbery. She sentenced him to 235 months for the bank robbery and a consecutive 84 months for the firearms charge.

Stephens was also convicted in the armed robbery of the JP Morgan Chase Bank located on South Fry Road in Katy on July 16, 2014. Last week, U.S. District Judge David Hittner ordered Stephens to serve a total of 330 months in federal prison for that crime.

In handing down the sentence today, Judge Harmon ordered Stephens’ term of imprisonment to be served consecutively to the previous sentence, resulting in a total of 649 months in prison, more than 54 years.

“Prosecutions of those involved in serial bank and armored car robberies will continue to be a priority for federal law enforcement and their state and local partners,” said Magidson. “The severe sentence handed down today should serve as a significant deterrent to others who participate in violent crimes that put life in jeopardy.”

On June 27, 2014, while Stephens waited outside as a lookout, Crystal Lashay Lewis, 23, of Houston, entered the bank and checked the interior for armed surveillance. Also acting as lookout was Zachary Loudd, 24, of Houston. Once Lewis had exited the bank, Stephens ordered Jerrell Devon James, 22, and Andrew Demon Holley, 23, both of Houston, to enter. 

They robbed the bank while wearing masks, gloves and carrying handguns. During the robbery, they also pointed their guns at employees and customers. After exiting with the stolen money, they drove a stolen pickup truck to a predetermined site where they abandoned the vehicle and entered an SUV driven by Randale Deshay Jackson, 29, also of Houston. Jackson drove the men to Stephens’ residence where the money was divided among them.

James, Loudd, Lewis and Holley, who also pleaded guilty to their respective roles in the robbery, are scheduled to be sentenced before Judge Harmon later this month.  

Jackson is charged in a separate case with the armed robbery of a pharmacy in Tomball on Sept. 11, 2014. 

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Celia Moyer and Richard D. Hanes are prosecuting the case.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - A local man has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of being a felon in possession of a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. A federal jury convicted Eligio San Miguel Mendez, 26, of Corpus Christi, on March 14, 2016.

Today, Senior U.S. District Judge John D. Rainey sentenced Mendez to 84 months imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised release. At the hearing, the court heard from an agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) who reported that while in custody, Mendez stated he planned to get another gun upon his release. In handing down the sentence, Judge Rainey stated that after hearing the testimony of the agent, he was “very concerned for the lack of respect for law enforcement.”   

In February 2015, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at the Corpus Christi residence of Mendez. During the search, officers discovered a stolen Glock 9mm semi-automatic pistol which was loaded with a 30-round extended magazine and several additional rounds of ammunition. Mendez, who has a previous federal firearms felony conviction, is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition. 

Mendez was arrested and taken into federal custody in June 2015 as part of Operation Rusty Hook, a coordinated effort by federal, state and local law enforcement to identify violent offenders, stop gun violence and protect the community.

Mendez will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

ATF and the Texas Department of Public Safety conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lance Watt is prosecuting the case.

A registered nurse was convicted today by a federal jury in the Southern District of Texas for participating in an $8 million Medicare fraud scheme involving fraudulent claims for home-health services.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas, Special Agent in Charge Perrye K. Turner of the FBI’s Houston Field Office, Special Agent in Charge C.J. Porter of the Department of Health and Human Services-Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG) Houston Regional Office and the Texas Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) made the announcement.

Ann Anyanwu, 53, of Harris County, Texas, was convicted of three counts of a scheme to defraud Medicare following a jury trial before U.S. District Judge Alfred H. Bennett of the Southern District of Texas.  Anyanwu is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 8, 2016.

According to the evidence presented at trial, from January 2012 through June 2015, Anyanwu and others executed a scheme to submit through Medpsych Home Health Care (Medpsych) approximately $8 million in false and fraudulent claims for home-health services to Medicare.  The evidence showed that beneficiaries for whom Medpsych billed Medicare did not receive home-health services, and many did not qualify for home-health services.

In addition, the evidence showed that Anyanwu created false medical records for nursing services – treatment that she never provided – and falsified other records of Medpsych to make it appear as if she provided nursing services when, in fact, she did not.

To date, two others have been charged for their roles in the scheme.  Precious Deshield, the former owner, director of nursing and administrator of Medpsych, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud for her role in the scheme.  Roland Johnson, the owner and operator of Medpsych, also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud.  Deshield and Johnson currently await sentencing before Judge Bennett.

The FBI, HHS-OIG and Texas MFCU investigated the case, which was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Texas.  Trial Attorneys William S.W. Chang and Scott P. Armstrong of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 2,900 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $8.9 billion.  In addition, HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, is taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), go to www.stopmedicarefraud.gov. 

HOUSTON – A Houston doctor has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction on five counts related to health care fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. A jury deliberated for approximately three hours following a three-day trial before convicting Dr. Warren Dailey, 68, on March 30, 2016, of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, two counts of false statements relating to health care matters, one count of conspiracy to pay and receive health care kickbacks and one count of payment and receipt of health care kickbacks.  

Today, U.S. District Judge David Hittner, who presided over the trial, handed Dailey a 63-month sentence. He was further ordered to pay restitution of $913,620. Dailey will also be required to serve a term of three years of supervised release following completion of the prison term.

At trial, the jury heard that from approximately 2009 through 2012, Dailey was a physician specializing in family practice in Houston and defrauded Medicare by authorizing Medicare beneficiaries for home health care when such services were not needed. The evidence at trial demonstrated Dailey conspired with a home health care owner here in Houston and agreed to sign Medicare authorization forms certifying services in exchange for a monthly flat fee from the home health owner. Dailey signed hundreds of authorization forms for beneficiaries that would falsely certify the patients were homebound, that home health was medically necessary and that the beneficiaries were under his care. Medicare paid the home health owner approximately $913,620 for home health services Dailey referred. 

Dailey will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.  

The charges are a result of the investigative efforts of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services -Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations and the FBI. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Blan and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tina Ansari prosecuted the case.

The former director of Baseball Development for the St. Louis Cardinals has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of accessing the Houston Astros’ computers without authorization, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson for the Southern District of Texas and Special Agent in Charge Perrye K. Turner of the FBI.  Christopher Correa, 36, of St. Louis, Missouri, pleaded guilty Jan. 8, to five counts of unauthorized access of a protected computer.

Today, U.S. District Judge Lynn N. Hughes for the Southern District of Texas, who accepted the guilty plea, handed Correa a 46-month-term of imprisonment.  In handing down the sentence, Judge Hughes noted the seriousness of the crime and how other baseball teams now must have tighter and more intrusive security.  “You have made it harder for them to live their lives,” Hughes noted.  Correa apologized and attempted to call his behavior reckless, but the judge corrected him.  “No, you intentionally and knowingly did these acts.”  Correa will also be required to serve a term of two years of supervised release following completion of the prison term and must pay $279,038.65 in restitution to the Astros. 

“We are grateful that the court agreed to our sentencing recommendation as it was based upon our evaluation of the seriousness of the crime and the actions of the defendant,” said U.S. Attorney Magidson.  “I am proud of the investigators and the federal prosecutor assigned the case who worked diligently to ferret out all the facts.  Today, justice was done.”

From 2009 to July 2015, Correa was employed by the St. Louis Cardinals and became the director of Baseball Development in 2013.  In this role, he provided analytical support to all areas of the Cardinals’ baseball operations.  Correa is no longer employed by the Cardinals organization.

The Astros and the Cardinals, like many teams, measured and analyzed in-game activities to look for advantages that may not have been apparent to their competitors.  To assist their efforts, the Astros operated a private online database called Ground Control to house a wide variety of confidential data, including scouting reports, statistics and contract information.  The Astros also provided e-mail accounts to their employees.  Ground Control and Astros e mails could be accessed online via password-protected accounts.

As part of his plea agreement, Correa admitted that from March 2013 through at least March 2014, he illicitly accessed the Ground Control and/or e-mail accounts of others in order to gain access to Astros proprietary information.

In one instance, Correa was able to obtain an Astros employee’s password because that employee has previously been employed by the Cardinals.  When he left the Cardinals organization, the employee had to turn over his Cardinals-owned laptop to Correa – along with the laptop’s password.  Having that information, Correa was able to access the now-Astros employee’s Ground Control and e-mail accounts using a variation of the password he used while with the Cardinals.

The plea agreement details a selection of instances in which Correa unlawfully accessed the Astros’ computers.  For example, during 2013, he was able to access scout rankings of every player eligible for the draft.  He also viewed, among other things, an Astros weekly digest page which described the performance and injuries of prospects who the Astros were considering and a regional scout’s estimates of prospects’ peak rise and the bonus he proposed be offered.  He also viewed the team’s scouting crosscheck page, which listed prospects seen by higher level scouts.  During the June 2013 amateur draft, he intruded into that account again and viewed information on players who had not yet been drafted as well as several players drafted by the Astros and other teams.

Correa later intruded into that account during the July 31, 2013, trade deadline and viewed notes of Astros’ trade discussions with other teams.

Another set of intrusions occurred in March 2014.  The Astros reacted by implementing security precautions to include the actual Ground Control website address (URL) and required all users to change their passwords to more complex passwords.  The team also reset all Ground Control passwords to a more complex default password and quickly e-mailed the new default password and the new URL to all Ground Control users.

Shortly thereafter, Correa illegally accessed the aforementioned person’s e mail account and found the e mails that contained Ground Control’s new URL and the newly-reset password for all users.  A few minutes later, Correa used this information to access another person’s Ground Control account without authorization.  There, he viewed a total of 118 webpages including lists ranking the players whom Astros scouts desired in the upcoming draft, summaries of scouting evaluations and summaries of college players identified by the Astros’ analytics department as top performers.

On two more occasions, he again illicitly accessed that account and viewed confidential information such as projects the analytics department was researching, notes of Astros’ trade discussions with other Major League Baseball teams and reports of players in the Astros’ system and their development.

The parties agreed that Correa masked his identity, his location and the type of device that he used, and that the total intended loss for all of the intrusions is approximately $1.7 million.

No other personnel associated with the Cardinals organization have been charged.

The FBI conducted the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Chu is prosecuting the case. 

HOUSTON – The former director of Baseball Development for the St. Louis Cardinals has been ordered to federal prison following his conviction of accessing the Houston Astros’ computers without authorization, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson and Special Agent in Charge Perrye K. Turner of the FBI. Christopher Correa, 36, of St. Louis, pleaded guilty Jan. 8, 2016, to five counts of unauthorized access of a protected computer.

Today, U.S. District Judge Lynn N. Hughes, who accepted the guilty plea, handed Correa a 46-month-term of imprisonment. In handing down the sentence, Judge Hughes noted the seriousness of the crime and how other baseball teams now must have tighter and more intrusive security. “You have made it harder for them to live their lives,” Hughes noted. Correa apologized and attempted to call his behavior reckless, but the judge corrected him. “No, you intentionally and knowingly did these acts.” Correa will also be required to serve a term of two years of supervised release following completion of the prison term and must pay $279,038.65 in restitution to the Astros.  

“We are grateful that the court agreed to our sentencing recommendation as it was based upon our evaluation of the seriousness of the crime and the actions of the defendant,” said Magidson. “I am proud of the investigators and the federal prosecutor assigned the case who worked diligently to ferret out all the facts. Today, justice was done.”

From 2009 to July 2015, Correa was employed by the St. Louis Cardinals and became the director of Baseball Development in 2013. In this role, he provided analytical support to all areas of the Cardinals’ baseball operations. Correa is no longer employed by the Cardinals organization.

The Astros and the Cardinals, like many teams, measured and analyzed in-game activities to look for advantages that may not have been apparent to their competitors. To assist their efforts, the Astros operated a private online database called Ground Control to house a wide variety of confidential data, including scouting reports, statistics and contract information. The Astros also provided e-mail accounts to their employees. Ground Control and Astros e‑mails could be accessed online via password-protected accounts.

As part of his plea agreement, Correa admitted that from March 2013 through at least March 2014, he illicitly accessed the Ground Control and/or e-mail accounts of others in order to gain access to Astros proprietary information.

In one instance, Correa was able to obtain an Astros employee’s password because that employee has previously been employed by the Cardinals. When he left the Cardinals organization, the employee had to turn over his Cardinals-owned laptop to Correa – along with the laptop’s password. Having that information, Correa was able to access the now-Astros employee’s Ground Control and e-mail accounts using a variation of the password he used while with the Cardinals.

The plea agreement details a selection of instances in which Correa unlawfully accessed the Astros’ computers. For example, during 2013, he was able to access scout rankings of every player eligible for the draft. He also viewed, among other things, an Astros weekly digest page which described the performance and injuries of prospects who the Astros were considering, and a regional scout’s estimates of prospects’ peak rise and the bonus he proposed be offered. He also viewed the team’s scouting crosscheck page, which listed prospects seen by higher level scouts. During the June 2013 amateur draft, he intruded into that account again and viewed information on players who had not yet been drafted as well as several players drafted by the Astros and other teams.

Correa later intruded into that account during the July 31, 2013, trade deadline and viewed notes of Astros’ trade discussions with other teams.

Another set of intrusions occurred in March 2014. The Astros reacted by implementing security precautions to include the actual Ground Control website address (URL) and required all users to change their passwords to more complex passwords. The team also reset all Ground Control passwords to a more complex default password and quickly e‑mailed the new default password and the new URL to all Ground Control users.

Shortly thereafter, Correa illegally accessed the aforementioned person’s e‑mail account and found the e‑mails that contained Ground Control’s new URL and the newly-reset password for all users. A few minutes later, Correa used this information to access another person’s Ground Control account without authorization. There, he viewed a total of 118 webpages including lists ranking the players whom Astros scouts desired in the upcoming draft, summaries of scouting evaluations and summaries of college players identified by the Astros’ analytics department as top performers.

On two more occasions, he again illicitly accessed that account and viewed confidential information such as projects the analytics department was researching, notes of Astros’ trade discussions with other Major League Baseball teams and reports of players in the Astros’ system and their development.

The parties agreed that Correa masked his identity, his location and the type of device that he used, and that the total intended loss for all of the intrusions is approximately $1.7 million.

No other personnel associated with the Cardinals organization have been charged.

The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Chu is prosecuting the case.

HOUSTON – Two individuals have been convicted for their role in a $2 million romance scam conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Kunle Mutiu Amoo, 48, and Lanre Sunday Adeoba, 61, both Nigerian citizens who resided outside the Houston area, each pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud.

The romance scam involved a scheme to defraud victims of money using false romantic overtures and false promises that the victims would be repaid. In this conspiracy, a member of the conspiracy posed as the manager of a construction company doing business in South Africa who needed the victim’s financial assistance to move $42 million in construction project proceeds from South Africa to the United States. The defendants posed as South African diplomats who were responsible for transporting the money into the United States and who also needed the victim’s financial assistance in order to transport the money.

As part of their pleas today, Amoo and Adeoba admitted they agreed and attempted to defraud this victim of $511,000.  

The overall conspiracy caused the victim a loss of $2 million.

According to the FBI, romance scams, also classified as confidence frauds, result in the highest amount of financial losses when compared to other internet-enabled crimes. In 2015 victims of confidence frauds reported financial losses of nearly 200 million dollars to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center, or IC3 website. If you think you've been victimized by a dating or other online scam, report it to www.ic3.gov.

U.S. District Judge Alfred H. Bennett accepted the guilty pleas and set sentencing for Sept. 22, 2016. At that time, each faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine. They both will remain in custody pending that hearing.

The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin R. Martin is prosecuting the case.

McALLEN, Texas – A former bank employee has surrendered to federal authorities following allegations she stole more than $1 million from customer accounts, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.    Cynthia Luna Rodriguez, 43, of Pharr, surrendered this morning and is expected to make her initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ronald Morgan at 10:00 a.m. today.    According to the criminal complaint, filed yesterday and unsealed today, Rodriguez worked at PlainsCapital Bank in Edinburg. Following her termination, employees discovered documents at her desk including a 1099 statement belonging to one of the victims, according to the allegations. The statement had allegedly been altered with whiteout over the address and interest earned sections and new information typed over them. The new address was actually a private mailbox that Rodriguez leased, according to the charges.   The criminal complaint alleges there were multiple accounts that had the address information changed. Those accounts allegedly had a significant number of unauthorized withdrawls.    Law enforcement executed a search warrant on Rodriguez’s private mailbox, at which time they discovered multiple mailings to account holders at her private mailbox address.    Further investigation revealed a large amount of unexplained money being deposited into some of Rodriguez’s accounts, corresponding with the time of the unauthorized withdrawls from the victim accounts, according to the charges. The victim accounts allegedly belonged to individuals who interacted with Rodriguez directly when she was employed at the bank. The complaint alleges the accounts primarily belonged to elderly individuals and to individuals living out of the country whom were not likely to regularly monitor their accounts. When account holders or their representatives came in to close their statements, Rodriguez would allegedly move money from another victim’s account to backfill the account about to be closed.    A forensic audit conducted by an outside accounting firm determined that approximately $1.3 million was taken from six victim accounts over an eight-year time span, according to the charges.     If convicted, Rodriguez faces up to 30 years in federal prison and a possible $1 million fine.   The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Leonard is prosecuting the case.   A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

McALLEN, Texas – A jury has found a former Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) task force officer/Mission Police Department investigator guilty of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and possession with intent to distribute cocaine, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. The federal jury sitting in McAllen convicted Hector Mendez, 46, this afternoon following a six-day trial and approximately three hours of deliberation.

During trial, the jury heard that Mendez conspired to steal approximately 14.9 kilograms of cocaine and stage a seizure of sham, or diluted cocaine, to cover the theft.

On July 25, 2012, Reynol Chapa, 42, of Mission, had received a quantity of cocaine at a residence in Mission. Shortly thereafter, Mendez arrived at Chapa’s residence and collected the bundles of cocaine. Mendez and Chapa had agreed the cocaine would be diluted or cut, then repackaged and staged for a seizure sometime later. The remaining cocaine would then be sold.

On July 28, 2012, a Ford Taurus was staged with the diluted bundles of cocaine in Mission. Mendez and other Mission Police Department officers seized the Taurus and drugs. Chapa made recorded calls to the person who had originally provided the drugs to conceal the fact that the cocaine had been cut and make it seem the bundles had been seized by law enforcement during the supposed transport.

Testimony of witnesses established that Mendez intentionally concealed facts about the seizure in DEA reports and statements to federal prosecutors, presented false statements to multiple judges in sworn court filings and intentionally altered transcripts of recorded calls in evidence.

U.S. District Judge Randy Crane presided over the trial and set sentencing for Sept. 27, 2016. At that time, Mendez faces no less than 10 and up to life on each count of conviction. Mendez was remanded to custody pending that hearing.

Chapa pleaded guilty and is set for sentencing Aug. 9, 2016.

The FBI, Department of Justice - Office of Inspector General (OIG), Department of Homeland Security – OIG and the DEA conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys James H. Sturgis and Kristen J. Rees prosecuted the case.

LAREDO, Texas – A federal jury sitting in Laredo has convicted a 40-year-old man from La Feria of attempting to entice a minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. The jury deliberated for approximately one hour before finding Daniel Melton guilty today.

During trial, the jury heard from a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) who testified she responded to a Craigslist posting Melton had placed. That post sought a “young teen that needs to be trained or has little experience.” The agent then engaged in sexually-explicit conversations with Melton for more than two weeks. During those conversations, he sent sexually-explicit pictures to the undercover agent and requested they be shown to a minor. 

Eventually, Melton agreed to meet the agent in Laredo for the purpose of engaging in sex with the mother and the minor daughter. Law enforcement arrested him upon his arrival in Laredo.

Melton admitted he posted the Craigslist advertisement and engaged in sexually explicit communications with whom he believed to be a real mother and minor daughter. He further acknowledged he likely would have had sex with the minor daughter had ne not been arrested.

U.S. District Judge George Kazen presided over the trial and will set sentencing at a later date. At the time of his sentencing,  Melton faces a minimum of 10 yeaars and up to life in federal prison and a possible $250,000 fine. He will remain in custody pending that hearing.

HSI investigated.

This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alfredo De La Rosa and Chris Howard, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

HOUSTON - Three Houston men have been handed significant sentences following their convictions related to the armed bank robbery of a Katy area Chase Bank in 2014, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Keith Stephens, 28, Keon Jackson, 28, and Duquam Mathis, 22, all of Houston, pleaded guilty Oct. 19, 2015, to bank robbery and discharge of a firearm in commission of a crime of violence.

Today, U.S. District Judge David Hittner considered their roles in the offense, the fact a gun was discharged, the way the victims were treated and amount of money taken. He then ordered Stephens to serve 210 months in prison for the bank robbery conviction and a consecutive 120 months for the firearms charge for a total of 330 months. Jackson and Mathis will serve respective terms of 97 and 70 months for bank robbery, each to be followed by a consecutive 10 years for total sentences of 217 and 190 months, respectively.

On Wednesday, July 16, 2014, Mathis and Jackson entered the JP Morgan Chase Bank located at 6810 South Fry Road in Katy with their faces covered and carrying firearms. Stephens was outside acting as a lookout. Inside, Mathis and Jackson jumped over the teller counter, threatened an employee at gun point and forced her to open the bank’s vault. They took the money, fired a shot and exited the bank. That shot ricocheted and almost hit a child. Mathis and Jackson were taken into custody and admitted to participating in the robbery.

Stephens was arrested at his home on July 31, 2014, after investigators identified him in connection with another bank robbery that occurred June 27, 2014. At the time of his arrest, officers secured a handgun they found in the kitchen as they made their way to the bedroom where Stephens had been hiding. The handgun was a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson with Winchester ammunition, later determined to be the same firearm discharged on July 16, 2014.

Stephens was identified as the one who planned and organized the Chase Bank robbery. He has also pleaded guilty to bank robbery and brandishing of a firearm in commission of a crime of violence in relation to the second robbery. He will be sentenced in that case on July 19, 2016, before U.S. District Judge Melinda Harmon.

The FBI and Fort Bend County Sherriff’s Office conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Houston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Celia Moyer and Richard D. Hanes prosecuted the case.

HOUSTON – A 67-year-old Willis woman has admitted she stole the identity of a deceased woman and used it for financial gain for nearly 20 years, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

Jerrie Mona Chesney pleaded guilty today to one count of theft of public money.

In the late 1980s, Chesney read in a local newspaper about the death of a woman who had lived in the Beaumont area. Chesney contacted woman’s family and was able to obtain her personal identification information under the guise that she was an old high school friend. However, Chesney had no prior knowledge this woman. Chesney also obtained additional personal information about the deceased woman from the local funeral home who handled the burial arrangements.

Chesney took the identifying information and obtained a Texas Driver’s License and a Social Security card using the deceased woman’s name as her own.

From approximately 1995 until 2014, Chesney obtained Social Security disability benefits and supplemental Social Security benefits utilizing the name of the deceased woman. She was also able to obtain Medicare benefits and food stamp benefits using the woman’s false identification information. As a result, she received approximately $388,000 in benefits from these programs.

U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal accepted the plea today and set sentencing for Oct. 16, 2016. At that time, Chesney faces up to five years in federal prison and a possible maximum fine of $250,000. She will remain on bond pending that hearing.

The Social Security Administration - Office of Inspector General investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Quincy L. Ollison is prosecuting the case.    

GALVESTON, Texas – A jury sitting in Galveston has returned guilty verdicts against a Galveston man on one charge of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors and four counts of sex trafficking of minors, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. The jury convicted Charles Devan Fulton Sr., 39, late yesterday following a six-day trial and approximately four hours of deliberation.

Co-defendants Charmell Latonya Potts, 31, Dominique Warner, 23, and Lawrence James Julian, 22, all of Galveston, previously pleaded guilty. 

The jury found Fulton engaged in a conspiracy with the others between June 1, 2014, through April 1, 2015, in which they engaged in conspiracy to recruit, entice and harbor minors to engage in sex trafficking. Fulton aka “Black” or “Blacc,” was the leader of the group and ordered Potts to post pictures of two of the identified minor victims in prostitution ads on line. Warner aka “Meathead,” Julian aka “Wolf” and Potts also drove the minor females to hotels where the minors would engage in commercial sex acts.

The jury heard that the minors engaged in hundreds of commercial sex acts over the course of the conspiracy. The victims testified at trial, as did Potts, that Fulton would keep the money the children earned performing commercial sex acts. The jury also heard that Fulton used force, threats of force, fraud or coercion against two of the victims. In addition, testimony revealed Fulton had sex with the victims knowing they were minors, that he provided them with drugs and he had no legitimate source of income.

Fulton attempted to convey his innocence and that police were just out to get him. The jury was not convinced and found him guilty on five counts.

Fulton faces up to life in prison and is set for sentencing in October 2016. He will remain in custody pending that hearing.   

The FBI and the Galveston Police Department investigated with the assistance of the Galveston County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sherri Zack and Julie Searle prosecuted the case. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A 31-year-old woman admitted she aided her sister in kidnapping two children from their Corpus Christi home, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Georgia Gregg pleaded guilty today, while her sister - Jada Gregg-Warren, 32 - and her sister’s boyfriend - Ivan Francisco Alvarez-Benavente, 26, pleaded guilty June 30, 2016.

The court heard that Gregg and Gregg-Warren, both of Corpus Christi, kidnapped the young children, ages five and four, from their residence on the night of Aug. 19, 2015. After the kidnapping, the two women travelled to McAllen with the children. Alvarez-Benavente, a Mexican citizen, followed them in a separate vehicle.

The Corpus Christi Police Department (CCPD) immediately disseminated an Amber Alert in pursuit of all three adults and the two children. As part of the alert, a Child Abduction Response Team was deployed with the assistance of the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service (USMS).

Authorities learned that Gregg returned to Corpus Christi while the couple and the children entered Mexico and stayed at a residence close to the Alvarez-Benavente family. Through a collaborative effort between the U.S. and Mexican authorities, the couple and the children were brought to the U.S. Dec. 16, 2015, at which time Gregg-Warren and Alvarez-Benavente were arrested.

Senior U.S. District Judge Hayden Head accepted the pleas and has set sentencing for Oct. 6, 2016. Both sisters face up to life in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine. Alvarez-Benavente faces up to 15 years and a possible $125,000 fine. 

All three have been and will remain in custody pending their sentencing hearing.

The charges are the result of the investigative efforts of the FBI, CCPD and the USMS. Assistant U.S. Attorney Hugo R. Martinez is prosecuting the case.

McALLEN, Texas - Two former elected members of the School Board of Donna and a private citizen who served as a middleman were sentenced today for accepting bribes in connection with a services contract held by the Donna Independent School District (DISD), announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson and Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Eloy Infante, 54, Elpidio Yanez Jr., 45, and Adrian Guerrero, 50, all from Donna, were sentenced to 46, 37, and 18 months, respectively. The defendants pleaded guilty in January 2016 to attempted interference with commerce by extortion. Infante and Yanez were both members of the Donna School Board when they committed the attempted extortion. U.S. District Judge Randy Crane imposed the sentences.

In connection with their pleas, the defendants admitted that from February to May 2015, they attempted to extort, and solicited and accepted bribes from, an individual whose company provided services to the DISD. Specifically, the defendants informed the individual that in order for his company to keep its services contract with the DISD, he needed to pay Infante and Yanez $10,000 each, they admitted. Both Infante and Yanez admitted they accepted partial payment of the bribes, and Guerrero admitted that he served as the middleman for one of the payments.

The FBI investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Leo J. Leo III Trial prosecuted the case along with Trial Attorney Monique Abrishami of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.     

Two former elected members of the School Board of Donna, Texas, and a private citizen who served as a middleman were sentenced today in the Southern District of Texas for accepting bribes in connection with a services contract held by the Donna Independent School District (DISD), announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.

Eloy Infante, 54, Elpidio Yanez Jr., 45, and Adrian Guerrero, 50, all from Donna, were sentenced to 46 months, 37 months and 18 months in prison, respectively.  The defendants pleaded guilty in January 2016 to attempted interference with commerce by extortion.  Infante and Yanez were both members of the Donna School Board when they committed the attempted extortion.  U.S. District Judge Randy Crane of the Southern District of Texas imposed the sentences.

In connection with their pleas, the defendants admitted that from February to May 2015, they attempted to extort, and solicited and accepted bribes from, an individual whose company provided services to the DISD.  Specifically, the defendants informed the individual that in order for his company to keep its services contract with the DISD, he needed to pay Infante and Yanez $10,000 each, they admitted.  Both Infante and Yanez admitted that they accepted partial payment of the bribes and Guerrero admitted that he served as the middleman for one of the payments.

The FBI investigated this case.  Trial Attorney Monique Abrishami of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leo J. Leo III of the Southern District of Texas prosecuted the case.     

LAREDO, Texas - Petra Del Bosque and Anita Arredondo, both 55 and from Zapata, have been sentenced following their convictions related to a long-running bank fraud scheme targeting Zapata National Bank (ZNB), announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Arredondo and Del Bosque pleaded guilty in February and January 2015, respectively.

Today, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo handed both women a 36-month prison sentence, each to be followed by five years of supervised release. The court also ordered they owe restitution in the amount of $615,681.15.

Judge Marmolejo found that neither defendant had been truthful with the court in accounting for the whereabouts of the remainder of the stolen money. Arredondo and Del Bosque had returned some money at the time of their arrests and later submitted expenditure reports to the court purporting to show how they had spent the remaining funds. However, Judge Marmolejo did not find their reports credible and there is nearly $200,000 in unaccounted for stolen funds.

Del Bosque is a former employee of Zapata National Bank (ZNB), while Arredondo worked for a Zapata-based construction company as a clerk in the accounts payable department and had responsibility for issuing company checks.

For two years, Arredondo issued numerous false company checks made payable to contractors who had not performed the work that was the alleged basis for the checks.

Arredondo admitted to endorsing the false checks by forging the signatures of the contractors and then delivering the checks to Del Bosque at ZNB. Del Bosque led ZNB bank tellers to believe she was cashing the checks on behalf of the contractors who were unable to come to the bank themselves and that she would deliver the funds from the cashed checks. However, she actually pocketed the money and split the proceeds of the fraud with Arredondo.

Both have admitted that the loss as a result of the scheme totals more than $800,000. 

Both were previously ordered into custody where they will remain pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The FBI investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) Robert S. Johnson and former AUSA Sanjeev Bhasker prosecuted the case.

HOUSTON – A Houston federal jury has returned guilty verdicts against four defendants on all counts as charged in a $6 million fraudulent Medicare billing scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Giam Nguyen, D.O., 46, of Houston, Benjamin Martinez, M.D., 35, of Dallas, Donovan Simmons, M.D., 43 of Austin, and Anna Bagoumian, 43 of Glendale, California, were convicted late yesterday following an eight-day trial and approximately 13 hours of deliberation.

The scheme involved fraudulent billing for diagnostic testing done at three different clinics from September 2008 to May 2010.  Patients were paid to come to the clinics and the clinics then billed for tests that were either not performed or not medically necessary.

Zavan Pogosyan, 38, of Glendale, California, managed three clinics in Houston located at 2110 Jefferson Street, 6892 Southwest Freeway and 2112 Pease. He hired Nguyen, who was the only doctor working at the clinics, according to testimony. Pogosyan hired Martinez and Simmons to travel to Houston once a month to review patient files at the clinic located on Pease Street.

Patients were brought to the clinics by recruiters/marketers like Frank Montgomery, 66, of Houston, who were paid by the clinics for each patient they delivered. Seryan Mirzakhanyan, 40, Edvard Shakhbazyan, 32, both of Glendale, California, paid the marketers for the patients as did Pogosyan and Bagoumian. 

Mirzakhanyan and Montgomery testified about receiving the cash payments. The court also heard that Bagoumian participated in shredding all of the patient and business records of the Jefferson clinic.

Some of the Medicare beneficiaries also testified as to being paid approximately $100 to go to the clinics. They had primary care physicians, but they reported that they were not referred to the clinics by their physicians nor did they receive any of the test results.

A law enforcement agent told the jury he reviewed patient files seized during the searches of the Pease and Southwest Freeway clinics and reported that 730 of the 1229 patients reported their chief complaint as back pain. Nevertheless, those patients were given ultrasounds of their kidneys, abdomens, thyroids, carotid arteries as well as allergy tests and anorectal tests. His testimony also revealed that not one of the files contained a plan of treatment or any indication that the test results were discussed with the patient.

Further, an expert witness told the jury that the anorectal manometry and EMG of the anal or urethral sphincter test results in the patient files were physiologically impossible and therefore could not have been done. He also said there was no medical justification in any of the files to do either of the tests.

The court also heard that Simmons had admitted being paid $40,000 for reviewing 20-30 patient files in less than four hours. Bagoumian received checks totaling $183,000 and cashed every one of them, according to testimony.  

Mirzakhanyan, Pogosyan, Shakhbazyan and Montgomery pleaded guilty prior to trial and await sentencing.   

Simmons and Bagoumian were found guilty of conspiracy to defraud Medicare, while all four were convicted of health care fraud. Nguyen, Martinez and Simmons were also found guilty of money laundering. Each of these convictions carry a maximum 10-year prison sentence. The jury convicted Bagoumian of conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks for which she faces another five years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Lynn N. Hughes presided over the trial and has set sentencing for Oct. 3, 2016. 

Multiple agencies conducted the investigation to include The Texas Attorney General’s Office – Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, IRS - Criminal Investigation, FBI, Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) Al Balboni and Special AUSA Rodolfo Ramirez prosecuting the case.

HOUSTON – Stanshelle Renique Gaul has been ordered to prison following her conviction for preparing false client tax returns, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Special Agent in Charge D. Richard Goss, of IRS - Criminal Investigation (CI). Gaul pleaded guilty in September 2015.

Today, U.S. District Judge Lynn N. Hughes handed Gaul a 24-month prison sentence. She was further ordered to pay $284,569 in restitution and will also be required to serve one year of supervised release following completion of the prison term.

Court documents show that Gaul included false deductions and credits in at least 59 client tax returns for tax years 2007 through 2010, which generated fraudulent refunds totaling approximately $284,569. The most egregious fraudulent refund was obtained in a 2009 tax return that claimed a business loss of $21,340 loss and a charitable contribution deduction of $21,300 without the client’s knowledge or consent. The fraudulent tax return also claimed a $1,200 dependent child care credit for children who were unknown to the client. This one tax return alone caused an estimated loss to the U.S. Treasury of $9,803.

Gaul was permitted to remain on bond pending the issuance of an order to surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be designated in the near future.  

The investigation leading to these charges was conducted by IRS-CI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jimmy Sledge Jr. is prosecuting the case.

McALLEN, Texas – Law enforcement has taken a 57-year-old La Joya man into federal custody on allegations that he pointed a laser at a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) helicopter, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

Juan Peralez was taken into custody late yesterday upon the filing of a federal criminal complaint. He is expected to make his initial appearance before U.S Magistrate Judge Peter Ormsby at 9:00 a.m. today.   

At approximately 1:00 a.m. on June 20, 2016, CBP agents in a helicopter were assisting Border Patrol (BP) agents in an area south of La Joya. The criminal complaint states that while in flight, the crew noticed the light of a green laser in the cabin. The pilot took evasive action and turned away in order to avoid being blinded by the laser, according to the charges.

Another member of the flight crew then guided agents on the ground to the source of the laser where a BP agent encountered Peralez allegedly aiming the laser at the helicopter. The criminal complaint alleges the laser had been aimed at the helicopter four separate times. 

According to agents with CBP Air and Marine, lasers are particularly hazardous when directed at aircraft. At a minimum, they create distractions for crews who routinely operate in the vicinity of power lines and towers. Lasers can also create temporary or permanent blindness. Further, since lasers can also be attached to weaponry, pilots will often take immediate evasive action which can also put them in harm’s way.

If convicted, Peralez faces up to five years imprisonment and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.

The arrest is the result of a joint investigation between Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI with the assistance of Texas Department of Public Safety and BP.  

A criminal complaint is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

HOUSTON – A federal grand jury has returned a total of seven separate indictments against individuals alleged to have filed multiple bankruptcy cases to prevent creditors from initiating foreclosure proceedings against their properties, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

The separate, but similar cases charge Hugo O. Parra, 43, of Cypress; Carmen P. Turner, 55, of Missouri City; LaTasha Riles, 47, of Huntsville; Leslie Nicole Breaux, 40, of Sugar Land; and Jermaine S. Thomas, 40, Angelina Gailey, 57, and Patrick Lee Gailey, 25, all of Houston. All are expected to appear before a U.S. magistrate judge in the near future.

The individuals are each charged with filing multiple bankruptcy cases to obtain an “automatic stay” from the bankruptcy courts which would prevent their creditors from initiating foreclosure proceedings against property for which they had outstanding loans.

Each defendant filed multiple bankruptcy cases to prevent a foreclosure proceeding by their creditors, according to the indictments. Each time a creditor would issue a “Notice of Foreclosure,” the defendants would allegedly file a bankruptcy case in order to obtain an automatic stay of the foreclosure. The charges allege that they would take no further action to abide by the requirements of the court to file additional documents and submit a payment plan to the court to pay their debts under the protection of the bankruptcy laws. Following a 45-day-period of no action by the defendants, their cases would be dismissed, according to the indictments.

The number of bankruptcy cases the defendants allegedly filed ranged from four within less than two hears to 12 over a five-year-period. 

The defendants did not make any payments to their creditors under a court approved payment plan, according to the charges. Additionally, each time a defendant filed a bankruptcy case, he/she allegedly failed to list all of the cases they had previously filed. They also signed each filing as being true and correct under penalty of perjury, according to the indictments.

Each person is charged with bankruptcy fraud-scheme to defraud and making false declarations under penalty of perjury. If convicted of either charge, they face up to five years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.

The FBI conducted the investigations with the assistance of the U.S. Trustee’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Quincy L. Ollison is prosecuting the cases.  

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

HOUSTON – A two-count federal indictment has been returned charging two Houston residents and one Mexican National in a cocaine conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

The indictment against Shuntel Coco, 44, and Christopher Williams, 43, both of Houston, along with Jesus Esquivel-Ayala, 37, a citizen of Mexico, was returned today. They were all originally charged by criminal complaint last month, after which Coco and Esquivel-Ayala were ordered into custody pending further criminal proceedings, while Williams was released on bond. They are all expected to appear before a U.S. magistrate judge on the indictment in the near future.

The three men are charged for their roles in a conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute approximately 40 kilograms of cocaine. According to the charges, Williams had leased a storage unit where Esquivel-Ayala was to deliver the cocaine. On May 26, 2016, Esquivel-Ayala delivered the 40-kilogram load to the storage unit to Williams who was receiving it on Coco’s behalf, according to the criminal complaint.

Esquivel-Ayala and Williams were arrested on site. Coco had been monitoring the progress of the delivery and transaction at a gas station/convenience store parking lot nearby and was also taken into custody.

They all face a minimum of 10 years and up to life in federal prison, if convicted. 

The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation with the Houston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan K. Best is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.
A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

HOUSTON – A 30-year-old New Jersey man has been ordered to prison following his conviction of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Christopher Curi, of Totowa, New Jersey, pleaded guilty Jan. 14, 2016.

Today, U.S. District Judge Sim Lake ordered him to serve 70 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by four years of supervised release.

On Feb. 21, 2015, Curi arrived at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston aboard a United Airline flight from Lima, Peru. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers conducted an inspection of Curi’s checked baggage and discovered several gel-like figurines, packages of powdered condiments, a bottle of liquor and picture frames. The figurines emitted an unusual order and appeared to be cracking. The figurines ultimately field tested positive for cocaine.

The packages of condiments were opened and found to contain a white powder which also turned out to be cocaine. In addition, there was cocaine secreted inside the picture frames and the bottle of liquor.

Curi will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation along with CBP. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stuart A. Burns prosecuted the case.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas – A Mexican citizen who had been living in Corpus Christi has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Rogelio Alfaro Carrillo, 27, pleaded guilty Feb. 4, 2016.

Today, U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos ordered he serve a total of 72 months in federal prison. He was further ordered to serve 10 years of supervised release following completion of his prison term. During the hearing, the court heard testimony from an agent with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) who testified that some of the images and videos depicted children as young as four years old engaged in sexually explicit conduct. Carrillo will also be ordered to register as a sex offender.

At the time of his plea, the court heard that officers with the Corpus Christi Police Department (CCPD), while using peer-to-peer software, were able to successfully download of various files containing child pornography from an IP address that was associated with Carrillo.

In August 2015, agents executed a search warrant at Carrillo’s residence, at which time they seized various electronic devices. Forensic analysis on those devices revealed more than 1,400 images and more than 20 videos of child pornography. Carrillo admitted having an sexual interest in children and having downloaded child pornography. 

Carrillo will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

HSI conducted the investigation with the assistance of CCPD - Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

This case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hugo R. Martinez, was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

HOUSTON – A federal judge has ordered Kenneth Robert Bruce to federal prison following his numerous convictions of willfully filing a false claim and impeding the IRS, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson along with Special Agent in Charge Rick Goss of IRS - Criminal Investigation (CI). A jury convicted Bruce on all counts as charged March 19, 2015, following a five-day trial and approximately 2.5 hours of deliberation.

Today, U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas, who presided over the trial, handed Bruce a 15-year-sentence and further ordered he pay more than $3.3 million to the IRS. He must also serve three years of supervised release following completion of the prison term. In handing down the sentence, Judge Atlas noted Bruce’s sophisticated scheme and that his relevant conduct  - his intended tax loss in the entire scheme - was between $65 million and $150 million.

During trial, the jury heard that Bruce prepared 26 false income tax returns or amended income tax returns claiming a total of more than $9 million in false income tax refunds. One return was for himself and 25 were for other taxpayers.

“Knowingly falsifying documents filed with the IRS is a serious crime,” said Goss. “This defendant not only created false income forms but used those forms to make fraudulent claims in excess of $9 million against the U.S. government. IRS-CI agents are committed to stopping this type of abuse of the tax system.” 

Bruce attached false IRS forms 1099-OID (Original Issue Discount) to the tax returns, falsely reporting the taxpayers had received huge amounts of income from OID and had all or nearly all of the false amounts of income withheld for federal income taxes.  The huge, false amounts of withholdings formed the bases for the claims for false claims for tax refunds.     

The jury also convicted Bruce on one count of corruptly endeavoring to obstruct and impede the administration of the Internal Revenue Code. 

Bruce was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The convictions were the result of an investigation by IRS - CI and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Charles J. Escher and Jim McAlister are prosecuting the case.    

HOUSTON – Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch and Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell announced today an unprecedented nationwide sweep led by the Medicare Fraud Strike Force in 36 federal districts, resulting in criminal and civil charges against 301 individuals, including 61 doctors, nurses and other licensed medical professionals, for their alleged participation in health care fraud schemes involving approximately $900 million in false billings. Twenty-three state Medicaid Fraud Control Units also participated in today’s arrests. In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is suspending payment to a number of providers using its suspension authority provided in the Affordable Care Act. This coordinated takedown is the largest in history, both in terms of the number of defendants charged and loss amount.     “As this takedown should make clear, health care fraud is not an abstract violation or benign offense – It is a serious crime,” said Lynch. “The wrongdoers that we pursue in these operations seek to use public funds for private enrichment. They target real people – many of them in need of significant medical care. They promise effective cures and therapies, but they provide none.  Above all, they abuse basic bonds of trust – between doctor and patient; between pharmacist and doctor; between taxpayer and government – and pervert them to their own ends. The Department of Justice is determined to continue working to ensure that the American people know that their health care system works for them – and them alone.”   “The largest multiple defendant takedown of those who were involved in large scale health care fraud against the USA sends a tremendous message to the public of our vigilance. Such wrongdoing will be uncovered and prosecuted,” said U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. “These cases are part of our continuing effort to combat greed in our health care system, not only in the Houston metropolitan area, but also in our other offices in South Texas. We are committed to a sustained effort to continue to root out health care fraud.”   In the Southern District of Texas (SDTX), the United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) and the Department of Justice Medicare Fraud Strike Force charged 22 individuals in 11 cases involving over $136 million in alleged fraud.   One of these defendants is a physician with the highest number of referrals to home health services in the SDTX. Houston physician John Ramirez, 62, has been charged with participating in separate schemes to bill Medicare for medically unnecessary home health services that were often not provided. He is charged with four counts of conspiracy to commit health care fraud. In this $18 million Medicare fraud scheme, Ramirez allegedly authorized home-health services for Medicare beneficiaries when such services were not medically necessary, not provided by the home health agency or both. Medicare paid over $15 million to numerous companies that submitted claims to Medicare using the fraudulent home health referrals from the physician, according to the indictment. Also charged in this case is Susana Bermudez, 49, of Houston, the owner of Milten Clinic in Houston. She was indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud for allegedly selling signed certifications to home health agencies. The agencies then would bill Medicare for purported home health services that were medically unnecessary, not provided, or both.   In a separate but related case, Ramirez, Ann Sheperd, 60, of Houston, and Yvette Nwoko, 27, of Houston, were indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and three counts of health care fraud. The charges stem from their alleged roles in an $20 million Medicare fraud scheme. Sheperd was the owner and operator of Amex Medical, while Nwoko was the manager. The indictment alleges Shepherd and Nwoko would make it appear as if Medicare beneficiaries qualified for home health services when, in fact, the beneficiaries did not need the services. Shepherd allegedly paid doctors to sign false certifications. In return, Shepherd and Nwoko would sell the certifications to home health agencies, according to the charges. These agencies would then bill Medicare for home health services that were not necessary, not provided, or both.   These cases are being jointly prosecuted by the USAO and the Strike Force.   In another case prosecuted by the USAO, Gwendolyn Arnetta Gibbs aka Gwendolyn Arnetta Guidry, 64, of Missouri City, and Justina Obumnador Uzowulu, 55, are charged in a 20-count indictment for their participation in a $15 million health care fraud conspiracy. Gibbs is the owner and operator of Daybreak Rehabilitation Center. The indictment alleges he paid kickbacks to Uzowulu, who operates a group home in Houston, who would then bring her residents to Gibbs’ partial hospitalization program for group therapy. Gibbs could then bill Medicare for treatment, according to the indictment. Gibbs is also charged with billing group therapy sessions under a doctor who no longer worked at Daybreak.    In McAllen, the owner of a Rio Grande Valley area durable medical equipment (DME) company and six others have been charged in a 16-count indictment for allegedly submitting false and fraudulent claims to Texas Medicaid for DME equipment that was not provided and/or was not authorized by a physician. Maria Garza, 41, of McAllen, is an owner of DME company Hacienda DME. Also charged were employees Bertha Lopez, 61, of Sullivan City, who served as a marketer and vendor for the company; Miriam Aguilar, 31, of Rio Grande City, a delivery driver and recruiter; and Nancy Rangel, 30, of Mission, who was a biller and recruiter. Veronica Cruz, 32, of Donna, Angelica Saenz, 44, of Mission, and Yolotzi Lara, 28, of Penitas, were charged for their roles as recruiters for Hacienda DME. According to the indictment, the defendants forged and/or caused others to forge the signatures of physicians on the required prescription forms. They also allegedly billed for larger, higher-paying sizes of pull-ups and diapers regardless of whether those sizes were needed or provided in order to receive higher reimbursements from Texas Medicaid. Further, the defendants also paid illegal kickbacks in exchange for patient information, according to the indictment.    Additionally, the Strike Force has returned seven additional indictments and informations in the SDTX, charging nine more defendants in cases involving over $80 million.   The operations announced today are part of the Health Care Fraud Prevention & Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), a joint initiative announced in May 2009 between the Department of Justice and HHS to focus their efforts to prevent and deter fraud and enforce current anti-fraud laws around the country. The Medicare Fraud Strike Force operates in nine locations and since its inception in March 2007 has charged over 2,900 defendants who collectively have falsely billed the Medicare program for over $8.9 billion.    Including today’s enforcement actions, nearly 1,200 individuals have been charged in national takedown operations, which have involved more than $3.4 billion in fraudulent billings. Today’s announcement marks the second time that districts outside of Strike Force locations participated in a national takedown, and they accounted for 82 defendants charged in this takedown.   The cases announced today are being prosecuted and investigated by U.S. Attorney’s Offices nationwide, along with Medicare Fraud Strike Force teams from the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and from the U.S. Attorney’s Offices of the Southern District of Florida, Eastern District of Michigan, Eastern District of New York, Southern District of Texas, Central District of California, Eastern District of Louisiana, Northern District of Texas, Northern District of Illinois and the Middle District of Florida; and agents from the FBI, DHHS-Office of Ispector General, Drug Enforcement Administration, Defense Criminal Investigative Service and state Medicaid Fraud Control Units.   The court documents for each case will posted online, as they become available, here: https://www.justice.gov/opa/documents-and-resources-june-22-2016-medicare-fraud-strike-force-press-conference.   An indictment or information is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence. A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.   ###

Federal, state and local authorities have arrested 15 individuals charged in connection with a drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracy occurring in South Texas, Central Texas and Oklahoma.

That announcement was made today by United States Attorney Richard L. Durbin, Jr., Western District of Texas; United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge William Cotter, San Antonio Division; and, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division. 

Those arrested include:

Name                                                                      Age                 Residence

Juan Villarreal-Arelis (aka “Juando”)                         43                    Mission, TX
Reymundo Villarreal-Arelis (aka “Mundo”)               45                    Mission
Jose Luis Villarreal-Gonzalez (aka “Nune”)               32                    Mission
Manuel Villarreal-Garcia                                          40                    Mission                       
Sergio Guadalupe Adame-Ochoa                             65                    McAllen, TX
Norma Leticia Villarreal-Garcia                                47                    Mission
Iza Corina Flores-Alanis                                          36                    Mission
Jovanna Villarreal-Diaz                                            37                    Mission
Raymundo Villarreal, Jr. (aka “Mundito”)                   23                    Mission
Gilberto Villarreal-Villarreal                                     27                    Mission
Juan Antonio Villarreal                                             24                    Mission
Jesus Jaime Andrade                                                37                    Mission
Denis Winn                                                              54                    Tecumseh, OK
Jose Luis Villarreal-Arelis (aka “El Cosas”)                57                    Mission
Nancy Isela Villarreal-Gonzalez                               51                    Mission

A nine–count federal grand jury indictment, returned in San Antonio in April and unsealed today, charges all of the defendants with conspiracy to commit money laundering. According to the indictment, since January 2000, the defendants have conspired to: (1) engage in financial transactions using proceeds derived from the importation, receiving, concealment, buying, and/or selling cocaine; and (2), transport or transmit monetary instruments to locations outside of the United States in an effort to conceal the source, ownership and control of proceeds derived from unlawful activity.

Sergio Guadalupe Adame-Ochoa is also charged with four counts of wire fraud affecting a financial institution.  According to the indictment, on multiple occasions beginning in 2006, Adame-Ochoa refinanced an almost $1.7 million note with Texas Regional Bank (formerly Border Capital Bank and McAllen National Bank) for the purchase of a property called Riverside Plaza in Mission.  The indictment alleges that Adame-Ochoa falsely represented to the bank that he had a non-taxable annual cash flow income in excess of $500,000. 

Raymundo Villarreal, Jr., Jesus Andrade, and Denis Winn are also charged with one count of conspiracy to structure transactions to evade reporting requirements.  The indictment alleges that beginning in 2011, the defendants purchased American Quarter Horses from an auction house in Oklahoma using drug proceeds collected in San Antonio.  The indictment specifically identifies six occasions in October and November 2011, where payments were made for horses.  Each payment was under $10,000 so as to avoid having to complete an IRS form 8300, which would have alerted the IRS and possibly raised suspicion about the source of the funds.

Juan Villarreal-Arelis, Reymundo Villarreal-Arelis, Jose Luis Villarreal-Gonzalez and Manuel Villarreal-Garcia are also charged with one count of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.  The indictment alleges that since January 2000, the defendants have conspired to possess and distribute cocaine. 

The indictment also seeks the forfeiture of twelve (12) real estate properties in Cameron and Hidalgo counties with an estimated value of $15 million.  The indictment also seeks a money judgment against the defendants in the amount of $30 million representing the alleged proceeds derived from their criminal enterprise.

Throughout this investigation, authorities have seized over 100 kilograms of cocaine.  Yesterday, authorities seized approximately $500,000 in farm equipment; approximately 20 vehicles; more than 60 firearms; over 30 horses; and, more than $50,000 in U.S. Currency.  

Yesterday, authorities arrested Sergio Adame-Ochoa in San Antonio and Denis Winn in Austin.  The rest of the defendants were all arrested in the McAllen/Mission, TX, area.  All of the defendants remain in federal custody awaiting detention hearings.

This investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Waco Treasury Task Force comprised of IRS-CI, Irving Police Department, Woodway Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety and the McLennan County Sheriff’s Office together with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s McAllen, San Antonio and Houston field offices and Homeland Security Investigations.  The United States Marshals Service in both the Western and Southern Districts of Texas assisted with yesterday’s arrests.

Upon conviction, the defendants face sentences of between ten years and life in federal prison on the drug conspiracy charge; up to 20 years in federal prison for the money laundering conspiracy charge; and, up to five years in federal prison on the structuring charge.

An indictment is merely a charge and should not be considered as evidence of guilt.  The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

HOUSTON – Four members of a crew allegedly responsible for 20 armed bank robberies in the greater Houston and San Antonio areas will remain in federal custody without bond pending further criminal proceedings, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson.

A federal grand jury returned the 15-count indictment May 25, 2016, against Eric Beverly, 27, Gregory Babers, 25, Julien Francis, 25, and Jerrick Hoskins, 26, all of Houston. They are charges with conspiracy to commit bank robbery and multiple counts of aiding and abetting bank robbery and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Authorities took Beverly into custody June 3, while Francis was arrested June 8. Babers and Hoskins were taken into custody June 9.

On June 10, all four defendants appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Hanovice Palermo for a detention hearing, after which it was determined that they should be held in custody without bond pending further criminal proceedings. During the hearing, evidence was presented indicating that the crew committed 20 take-over style robberies between July 25, 2014, and May 2, 2015. During the alleged crimes, two or more men wearing masks would enter the banks while at least one of them brandished a firearm. Inside, one or more of the men allegedly demanded money from employees at gunpoint, jumped over teller counters and would grab money from the teller drawers. It is alleged that the conspirators robbed three of the banks on more than one occasion.

Today, Judge Palermo issued detention orders indicating probable cause the crimes were committed. The court further found them to be a danger to the community.   

Each faces up to five years in prison if convicted of the conspiracy to commit bank robbery. For aiding and abetting bank robbery, they also face a maximum of 25 years in federal prison upon each conviction. In addition, they face a mandatory seven-year sentence for the first conviction of brandishing a firearm, plus 25 years for every subsequent firearm conviction which must be served consecutively to each other and to the other sentences. All 15 counts also carry a possible fine of $250,000.

The FBI Violent Crime Task Force investigated, which included agents and officers of the Harris County Sheriff’s Office and the  Houston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Carrie Wirsing and Jill Stotts are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence.

A defendant is presumed innocent unless convicted through due process of law.

The owner of multiple U.S.-based energy companies pleaded guilty today to foreign bribery and tax charges for his role in a scheme to corruptly secure energy contracts from Venezuela’s state-owned and state-controlled energy company, Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. (PDVSA).

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas, Acting Special Agent in Charge Sean McElroy of  U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) in Houston, and Special Agent in Charge Richard Goss of Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation’s (IRS-CI) Houston Field Office made the announcement.

Roberto Enrique Rincon Fernandez (Rincon), 55, of The Woodlands, Texas, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Houston to an information charging him with one count of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), one count of violating the FCPA and one count of making false statements on his 2010 federal income tax return.  U.S. District Judge Gray H. Miller of the Southern District of Texas accepted Rincon’s plea and imposed a personal money judgment against Rincon, who agreed to a forfeiture.  Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 30, 2016. 

Rincon was arrested on Dec. 16, 2015, after a grand jury in the Southern District of Texas returned an 18-count indictment against him and Abraham Jose Shiera Bastidas (Shiera), 53, of Coral Gables, Florida. 

According to admissions made in connection with Rincon’s plea, Rincon and Shiera worked together to submit bids to provide equipment and services to PDVSA through their various companies.  Rincon admitted that beginning in 2009, he and Shiera agreed to pay bribes and other things of value to PDVSA purchasing analysts to ensure that his and Shiera’s companies were placed on PDVSA bidding panels, which enabled the companies to win lucrative energy contracts with PDVSA.  Rincon also admitted to making bribe payments to other PDVSA officials in order to ensure that his companies were placed on PDVSA-approved vendor lists and given payment priority so that they would get paid ahead of other PDVSA vendors with outstanding invoices.  In his plea agreement, Rincon admitted that he willfully failed to report on his 2010 federal tax return over $6 million in foreign dividend income he received from a Venezuelan corporation he owned.

Rincon is the sixth individual to plead guilty as part of a larger, ongoing investigation by the U.S. government into bribery at PDVSA.  Shiera previously pleaded guilty before Judge Miller to one count of conspiracy to violate the FCPA and commit wire fraud and one count of violating the FCPA and is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 30, 2016.  In March 2016, Judge Miller also unsealed charges against four other individuals charged in connection with the ongoing investigation, including three foreign officials.  The foreign officials admitted that while employed by PDVSA or its wholly owned subsidiaries or affiliates, they accepted bribes from Rincon and Shiera in exchange for taking certain actions to assist companies owned by Rincon and Shiera in winning energy contracts with PDVSA.  The foreign officials also conspired with Rincon and Shiera to launder the proceeds of the bribery scheme, they admitted.  As part of their plea agreements, Rincon, Shiera and the other defendants all agreed to forfeit proceeds from their criminal activity.

ICE-HSI and IRS-CI are conducting the ongoing investigation, with assistance from the FBI.  Trial Attorneys Aisling O’Shea and Jeremy R. Sanders of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Deputy Chief John Pearson and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Johnson of the Southern District of Texas are prosecuting the case.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kristine Rollinson and Vincent Carroll of the Southern District of Texas are handling the forfeiture aspects of the case.

The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs and the Swiss Federal Office of Justice also provided assistance.  

Additional information about the department’s FCPA enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa.