Western District of Washington

Seattle – Stephen Baird, the former CEO of S-Ray, Inc., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Baird, 68, formerly of Bainbridge Island, Washington, defrauded investors by making false statements about S-Ray’s product development and falsely claiming the company had obtained FDA authorization to market a dental device. Baird is scheduled for sentencing by U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones on August 2, 2024.

Baird claimed S-Ray had developed an innovative ultrasound device that could take the place of X-rays, allowing dentists to quickly and safely image patients’ mouths. Baird falsely told investors that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had granted S-Ray “market clearance” to sell the device when, in fact, S-Ray never obtained FDA authorization to sell any device.

At a court hearing today, Baird admitted to engaging in a scheme to defraud S-Ray’s investors in connection with his promotion and sale of S-Ray stock. The Court will determine at a future hearing the amount of loss investors sustained and other facts relating to Baird’s fraudulent scheme.

Charging documents allege Baird’s scheme began in 2012 and defrauded some 200 investors of $10.75 million. The documents allege Baird told investors their funds would be used to bring a product to market, but Baird instead used at least 62% of the money – some $6.7 million – for his and his family’s personal expenses, including to purchase a luxury car and a house on Bainbridge Island.

Under the plea agreement, Baird agreed to pay restitution to investors and to forfeit property in amounts to be determined by the Court. The government agreed to recommend no more than seven years in prison.

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil securities fraud action against Baird and S-Ray in March 2022. On January 6, 2023, the Honorable John H. Chun issued an order that imposed civil penalties against Baird and S-Ray, held them liable for disgorgement of investment funds, and enjoined Baird from serving as an officer or director of certain companies and from participating in certain types of securities transactions.

The case is being investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Seth Wilkinson and Special Assistant United States Attorney Jessica M. Ly.

Seattle – U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman today announced the resolution of a False Claims Act qui tam matter alleging a Tacoma physician billed government insurance programs for medically unnecessary spinal surgeries. CHI Franciscan Health and St. Joseph Medical Center will pay $745,654 to resolve the matter and former Orthopedic Surgeon Kevin Schoenfelder will pay $197,054 to resolve the case.

“Unnecessary surgeries put patients at risk of medical complications,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “In this case we are concerned about protecting taxpayer funded health care, but even more concerned that patients may have needlessly suffered when enduring procedures that were more invasive than was necessary.”  

According to the settlement agreement, on May 21, 2018, Dr. Daniel Nehls filed a qui tam lawsuit alleging Dr. Schoenfelder had been performing medically unnecessary spinal surgeries, among other allegations. CHI resolved claims that the hospital billed for Dr. Schoenfelder’s performance of spinal surgery at more spinal levels than necessary and medically unnecessary spinal fusions at Tacoma’s St. Joseph Hospital. Dr. Scheonfelder resolved claims pertaining to his performance of allegedly medically unnecessary spinal surgeries. Between January 1, 2013, and June 30, 2018, these surgeries were billed to government health programs when they were not medically necessary. The surgeries were billed to Medicare, TRICARE, and Veterans Affairs. 

In resolving the case, neither the doctor nor the hospital and CHI Franciscan are admitting wrongdoing. Each is paying the government health programs the amount that was improperly billed and additional penalties. Additionally, Dr. Nehls, as the relator who reported the false claims, will receive 22% of the payments to the government health programs.

Dr. Schoenfelder retired in 2018 and surrendered his physician license in 2019.

“Health care providers who perform medically unnecessary procedures compromise the integrity of Federal health care programs and expose their patients to potential harm,” said Special Agent in Charge Steven J. Ryan of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “This outcome demonstrates that HHS-OIG along with our law enforcement partners will relentlessly pursue those who abuse taxpayer-supported health care programs.”

“Subjecting veterans to unnecessary medical procedures at the expense of the taxpayer will not be tolerated. Such activities put at risk VA’s ability to provide timely, quality healthcare within the local community,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Gregory S. Phelan of the VA Office of Inspector General’s Northwest Field Office. “The VA OIG will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to ensure the integrity of VA’s programs and services.”

“This settlement sends a message to doctors that patient safety and the integrity of our healthcare programs, including the Department of Defense's TRICARE program, are paramount,” said Bryan D. Denny, Special Agent in Charge of the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Western Field Office. “DCIS remains committed to working with its law enforcement partners in protecting the integrity of federal healthcare programs, which facilitates an environment for our healthcare providers to be truly focused on quality patient care and safety.”

The settlement resolved a lawsuit filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties known as relators to file suit on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. The qui tam suit is captioned United States ex rel. Daniel Nehls v. Catholic Health Initiatives et. al, C18-540-BHS.

The resolution of this case was handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Kayla Stahman and Nickolas Bohl.

Seattle – A 33-year-old resident of Sacramento, California was ordered detained today in U.S. District Court in Seattle on a misdemeanor charge of Assault in a special aircraft jurisdiction, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Breanna R. Mistler was arrested at Sea-Tac Airport when the Delta flight from Puerta Vallarta, Mexico arrived on May 1, 2024. Today, Magistrate Judge Brian Tsuchida ordered Mistler detained pending trial noting that the 2-year-old child victim was particularly vulnerable.

According to the criminal complaint, multiple passengers on the flight observed Mistler abuse the child. One reported that the child was in the window seat and Mistler in the aisle seat. The child woke-up Mistler, who then turned and allegedly kicked the child. At another point in the flight a witness reported Mistler allegedly shook the child “like a rag doll.” Despite interventions from passengers, Mistler allegedly persisted in the abuse.

Customs and Border Protection officers detained Mistler at the airport and noted bruises in multiple places on the toddler. The Port of Seattle Police and the FBI took over the investigation.

The child was cared for by a victim witness specialist. Child Protective Services (CPS) is involved with placing the child with a relative.

In ordering Mistler detained today at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac, Judge Tsuchida said he was concerned about the safety of the child “because (Mistler) had committed the assaults in front of so many people on a lengthy plane trip.” The Judge said he had an independent duty to protect the victim.

The next hearing scheduled in the case is a preliminary examination scheduled for May 16, 2024.

The charges contained in the misdemeanor complaint are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Carolyn Forstein. Assistant United States Attorney Mike Dion assisted with the detention hearing.

Seattle – The Justice Department joins its partners across the federal government, as well as people throughout American Indian and Alaska Native communities, in recognizing May 5 as National Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Awareness Day.  In recognition of MMIP Awareness Day, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced ongoing efforts to tackle the MMIP and human trafficking crisis in American Indian and Alaska Native communities, and other pressing public safety challenges such as the fentanyl crisis in Tribal communities.

“There is still so much more to do in the face of persistently high levels of violence that Tribal communities have endured for generations, and that women and girls, particularly, have endured,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “In carrying out our work, we seek to honor those who are still missing, those who were stolen from their communities, and their loved ones who are left with unimaginable pain. Tribal communities deserve safety, and they deserve justice. This day challenges all of us at the Justice Department to double down on our efforts, and to be true partners with Tribal communities as we seek to end this crisis.”

“As I meet with each of our 25 Tribes, safety in our indigenous communities is always top of mind. At every visit we hear how fentanyl is impacting tribal communities and the need to prosecute outsiders dealing drugs that put tribal members at risk,” said U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. “We are working to stop the flow of fentanyl and are working to build the law enforcement relationships that are critical if a tribal member goes missing. This outreach to our sovereign tribal partners is one of the most critical and rewarding parts of my job as U.S. Attorney.”

Justice Department Prioritization of MMIP Cases

Last July, the Justice Department announced the creation of the Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Regional Outreach Program, which permanently places 10 attorneys and coordinators in five designated regions across the United States to aid in the prevention and response to missing or murdered Indigenous people. The five regions include the Northwest, Southwest, Great Plains, Great Lakes, and Southeast Regions.

In the Northwest Region, Cedar Wilkie Gillette will serve as the MMIP coordinator working out of the District of Oregon. Wilkie Gillette is expanding her work from Oregon to the Northwest region. Wilkie Gillette will gather reliable data to identify MMIP cases connected to Northwest tribes; conduct outreach with tribal communities to assist in the creation and implementation of community action plans; coordinate with tribal, local, state, and federal law enforcement in the development of protocols and procedures for responding to and addressing MMIP cases; and promote improved data collection and analyses throughout the Northwest.

Adding to the Northwest MMIP team, Assistant United States Attorney Bree R. Black Horse was sworn in May 2, 2024, as the MMIP AUSA to lead regional efforts in addressing MMIP. Western Washington Tribal Liaisons J. Tate London and Michael Harder attended the ceremony on the Yakama Nation. AUSA Black Horse will work out of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Yakima.

The MMIP regional program prioritizes MMIP cases consistent with the Deputy Attorney General’s July 2022 directive to U.S. Attorneys’ offices promoting public safety in Indian country. The program fulfills the Justice Department’s promise to dedicate new personnel to MMIP consistent with Executive Order 14053, Improving Public Safety and Criminal Justice for Native Americans and Addressing the Crisis of Missing or Murdered Indigenous People, and the Department’s Federal Law Enforcement Strategy to Prevent and respond to Violence Against American Indians and Alaska Natives, Including to Address Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons issued in July 2022. 

 

Addressing Violent Crime and the Fentanyl Crisis in Indian Country

As noted in the joint response to the NIAC, research suggests that certain public safety challenges faced by many American Indian and Alaska Native communities—including disproportionate violence against women, families, and children; substance abuse; drug trafficking; and labor and sex trafficking—can influence the rates of missing AI/AN persons.

Further, fentanyl poisoning and overdose deaths are the leading cause of opioid deaths throughout the United States, including Indian county, where drug-related overdose death rates for Native Americans exceeds the national rate.

Therefore, federal law enforcement components are ramping up efforts to forge stronger partnerships with federal and Tribal law enforcement partners to address violent crime and the fentanyl crisis, which exposes already vulnerable communities to greater harm.  In the Western District of Washington federal, tribal, and state law enforcement worked together to arrest and prosecute drug dealers impacting tribal communities:

A Monroe man dealing heroin and fentanyl; A Bellingham man dealing fentanyl while armed; and a Maple Falls man was sentenced to six years in prison.

Accessing Department of Justice Resources

Over the past year, the Department awarded $268 million in grants to help enhance Tribal justice systems and strengthen law enforcement responses. These awards have also gone toward improving the handling of child abuse cases, combating domestic and sexual violence, supporting Tribal youth programs, and strengthening victim services in Tribal communities.

For additional information about the Department of Justice’s efforts to address the MMIP crisis, please visit the Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons section of the Tribal Safety and Justice website.

Click here for more information about reporting or identifying missing persons.

Seattle –A 45-year-old Vashon Island, Washington resident was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 20 years in prison for 21 federal felonies related to human trafficking and forced labor, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Jesus Ruiz-Hernandez, aka Christo Jesus Escobar Solares, was found guilty in January 2024 following a 13-day jury trial. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge James L. Robart said that after observing Ruiz-Hernandez through the trial he saw “a complete lack of respect for the truth.”

“For years, Jesus Ruiz-Hernandez lived a lie. He presented himself as the upstanding and hardworking owner of a successful landscaping business on Vashon Island. In reality, Ruiz-Hernandez was neither hardworking nor law-abiding,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “His business model was premised on enticing vulnerable persons from Mexico to come to the United States to work for his company – and then exploiting them by forcing them to work for him for little to no money while using their debts and immigration status to keep them tethered to him as his source of cheap labor.”

“The crimes committed here will leave a scar on the victims and the entire community that Ruiz-Hernandez conned into believing that he lawfully supported, that he was pursuing the American dream when he was in fact subjecting would be workers into a life of subjugation,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer, who oversees HSI operations in the Pacific Northwest. “I’m thankful for our task force partnerships that result in a resounding win in the fight against human trafficking and am especially grateful to both the Department of Justice and the Seattle Police Department, as it is through their key collaborations that these complex investigations are accomplished.”

Records filed in the case and testimony at trial revealed that Ruiz-Hernandez lured victims from his hometown of Vista Hermosa, Michoacan, with the promise of a better life for their families. In exchange, Ruiz-Hernandez required victims to put up collateral, including the temporary relinquishment of parental rights and interest in family properties. Ruiz-Hernandez, using smugglers he hired, brought the undocumented victims to the U.S. and then forced them to work for his company, Brothers Landscaping, on Vashon Island. He then charged the victims exorbitant fees for rent, food, and other expenses, housed them both in his home and worker properties and held ever increasing debts over their heads. 

In the spring of 2017, Ruiz-Hernandez used smugglers to bring an adult victim to the United States and then used force, threats of force, and physical violence to force the victim to work for him without pay. The jury found Ruiz-Hernandez committed aggravated sexual abuse against the victim. From 2018 until August 2021, Ruiz-Hernandez forced a second victim he had brought to the U.S. to work for him by threatening him with harm. The victim was also transported and harbored for financial gain. In all, Ruiz-Hernandez was convicted of exploiting the labor of seven people not legally in the U.S.

In asking for a sentence of more than 24 years in prison, prosecutors noted that the criminal conduct in this case had gone on for more than seven years and likely involved more than the seven victims. “Ruiz-Hernandez treated his victims as nothing more than commodities to earn him money. He either refused to pay them at all, claiming that they owed him for outrageously inflated amounts for rent and other expenses, or paid them well below what they had earned. He treated them as indentured servants, forcing them to perform unpaid labor both at his house and at the rental properties.”

Ruiz-Hernandez was also convicted of six counts of money laundering. Testimony revealed that Ruiz-Hernandez and his brothers had deposited over $1.5 million in checks from customers to their bank account between 2017 and 2022. Much of those funds were payment for the work done by the victims and others the defendant illegally brought to the U.S., trafficked, harbored, and exploited. Ruiz-Hernandez took steps to keep his name off corporate documents, financial records, numerous transactions, and hundreds of thousands of dollars of international wires to Mexico. Ruiz-Hernandez and his co-conspirators used some of that laundered proceeds to purchase two pieces of property on the island.

Following the trial on the human and labor trafficking counts, the jury determined that the properties on Vashon were purchased with laundered proceeds of his illegal scheme and ordered that the properties should be forfeited to the government.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Task Force Officer Megan Bruneau Zentner. Detective Zentner is with the Seattle Police Department, assigned to the HSI Task Force. Detective Zentner’s position is federally funded by the Department of Justice’s Enhanced Collaborative Model with a focus on investigating labor trafficking of foreign-born victims.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kate Crisham, Jehiel Baer, and former Assistant United States Attorney Jocelyn Cooney. Ms. Crisham is the Western District of Washington coordinator of efforts to stop human trafficking.

Seattle – This year the theme of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week is “How Would You Help: Options, Services, and Hope for Crime Survivors.” U.S. Attorney Tessa Gorman joined a panel at Seattle City Hall to discuss the work of our Victim Witness Unit to assist those who are impacted by federal crimes.

“Whether it is making sure a victim of sexual assault is supported while they confront their assailant in court, or ensuring a victim of a financial crime has the opportunity to seek restitution, our victim witness staff put people first,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “They are on the front lines of law enforcement, helping victims pick-up the pieces and move forward after devastating events. It is difficult work, and I salute those who are devoted to helping others, this week, and every week.”

U.S. Attorney Gorman was joined by King County Prosecutor Leesa Manion, the Supervisor of the Seattle City Attorney’s Office Domestic

Violence Unit Lorna Staten-Sylvester, Washington State Senate Deputy Majority Leader Manka Dhingra, and Sexual Violence Law Center Director Riddhi Mukhopadhyay.

The panelists discussed how victim services and advocacy have evolved over the last several years. U.S. Attorney Gorman highlighted efforts to get restitution for victims of crimes through our Financial Litigation Unit. Additionally, U.S. Attorney Gorman noted how our office collaborates with community-based victim support groups, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, and the City Attorney’s Office through organizations such as the anti-human trafficking group WashACT.

This year, for the first time, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is making Awards of Excellence to law enforcement partners who have made great contributions to our work and our district. The Victim Witness 2024 Excellence Award is being presented to National Park Service Special Agent Susannah (Sanny) Lustig. Special Agent Lustig is credited with “revolutionizing how the National Park Service responds to victims.” In fact, Special Agent Lustig has an additional role with the National Park Service as the Victim Assistance Program Manager. She is a Child Forensic interviewer and assists other law enforcement agencies in this role. The U.S. Attorney’s Office Victim Witness Unit noted that Agent Lustig does a top-notch job of supporting victims and trains others in the National Park Service on best practices for assisting victims. The award cites two federal cases where Agent Lustig was especially effective in victim support: U.S. v. Turrey and U.S. v. Chapman.

The award for Lustig and for other law enforcement officers will be presented next month.

Seattle – The former bookkeeper of a Mukilteo, Washington, flooring company was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to three years in prison for four counts of wire fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft, and one count of conspiracy, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Jodi Hamrick, who now resides near Memphis, Tennessee, was convicted following a five-day jury trial. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones said Hamrick “had a pattern and practice of defrauding employers… and continued her manipulation for personal gain.” Judge Jones noted Hamrick “was motivated by pure greed. There was no justification, no hardship, no financial need.”

According to records filed in the case and testimony at trial, Hamrick conspired with David M. Gluth, the co-owner of Gluth Contract Flooring, to steal from the company and defraud the silent partner who had put up the money for the business. In the jury trial, prosecutors detailed how Hamrick and Gluth carried out the scheme by embezzling more than $400,000 from the commercial flooring business. Between 2011 and 2016, Gluth and Hamrick raided the company accounts to pay for everything from a home mortgage, to luxury vacations, to Nordstrom bills.

The two not only raided company funds, they also defrauded financial institutions by taking out loans without the knowledge or permission of the company’s co-owner. The two used the company funds for a variety of personal expenses. The lies and deceit in this scheme involved forged signatures, forged documents, altered records, secret bank accounts, secret credit cards, false bookkeeping entries, and false statements in declarations and court filings. The evidence in the case included years of Skype instant messages between Hamrick and Gluth, showing the planning and execution of the fraud in minute detail.

Ultimately, the company co-owner had to go to court to try to get the truth about the embezzlement from the company. The flooring company went bankrupt in 2016, and the victimized business partner was left with nothing but debt.

In imposing the sentence requested by prosecutors, Judge Jones highlighted the fact that Hamrick had stolen from an earlier employer but was not prosecuted for that theft. “You didn’t learn from it, you used it as an opportunity to get an advanced degree in theft,” Judge Jones said.

Judge Jones will determine how much restitution Hamrick must pay at a hearing scheduled for June 21, 2024. Hamrick will be on supervised release following prison for three years.

Gluth was charged in November 2020, and pleaded guilty in January 2021. Gluth was sentenced in 2021 to two years in prison and agreed to a restitution figure of $325,000. 

The case was investigated by the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Dion and Special Assistant United States Attorney Jessica M. Ly.

Seattle – A 47-year-old Inglewood, California, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 16 months in prison for an email compromise scheme that stole more than $3.3 million from two companies involved in manufacturing ferries and engines for those ferries, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Leslie Redd III, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez noted the severe impact that the crime had on the victim businesses and their employees, causing employees’ pay to be delayed and cut, and threatening the businesses’ viability. 

According to records filed in the case, including the plea agreement, in October 2018, Redd entered a scheme with a co-conspirator in Pennsylvania and others. The scheme began when a malicious link was sent to an email address of an employee at the engine-building company. The link allowed the conspirators to gain access to the company’s email system and review various emails, including those transmitting invoices. The conspirators then posed as a billing executive at the engine manufacturing company and sent the boat-building company instructions to wire the payment funds to a specific bank account. The conspirators had set up a fake company and the account at a Pennsylvania bank specifically to receive these funds. The false emails indicated the engine-building company’s usual bank account was undergoing an audit and said that the engine-building company therefore needed to use a different bank than it had previously. 

On October 29, 2018, the boat builder paid the invoice for $3,316,730 by wiring the funds as directed by the fraudulent emails. The co-conspirator in Pennsylvania quickly forwarded $3,074,500 to bank accounts controlled by Redd and other co-conspirators. Of the ill-gotten funds, Redd kept $857,350 in accounts he controlled. Investigators were able to seize $420,817 from those accounts.

In the sentencing memo, prosecutors describe how Redd, forwarded more than $2,000,000 of the money that he had received to China to other co-conspirators – people whose names he did not even know. Judge Martinez expressed particular concern that American citizens would help foreign criminals defraud fellow Americans.

Redd will be on three years of supervised release following prison. He was ordered to pay $2,802,368.24 in restitution (the amount of the outstanding loss).

The case was investigated by the FBI Seattle Office Cyber Task Force.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Friedman and former Assistant United States Attorney Siddharth Velamoor.

Seattle – U.S. Attorneys Tessa M. Gorman and Vanessa Waldref today sent a letter to Washington State Sheriffs and Police Chiefs reminding them of their obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as well as Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.  The letter notes multiple complaints about law enforcement agencies in Washington State failing to provide communications aids or services to individuals with hearing, vision, or speech disabilities.

“We want to be sure law enforcement personnel in Washington comply with the law so that officers truly serve and protect all our residents,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Gorman.  “Interactions with law enforcement can be high stress and high stakes encounters – effective communication is critical in these moments to protect everyone involved.”

“To impart justice, law enforcement and prosecutors must ensure that victims, witnesses, and defendants are able to be heard,” stated U.S. Attorney Waldref.  “We value everyone’s voice, and we’re hopeful state and local leaders will continue to take the steps necessary to improve language access throughout the Evergreen state.” 

“We appreciate the U.S. Attorneys’ focus to assist and help local law enforcement to follow ADA compliance, rather than the use of litigation only.  We have the same goals and appreciate their partnership.”  Steven D. Strachan, executive director, Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC).

The letter to law enforcement cites recent ADA investigations regarding services for those who are deaf or hard of hearing.  In the last few years, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington has resolved a total of ten cases addressing communication with law enforcement officers and in correctional facilities. The complaints concern agencies and organizations across a broad geographic area: from southwest Washington to the Canadian border.

The office continues to receive and investigate communication-related Civil Rights complaints directly from individuals and referred by advocates such as the Northwest Justice Project.

In just the last month, DOJ finalized three voluntary settlements with the Everett Police Department, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office, and the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office over allegations they failed to provide services to accommodate individuals’ hearing disabilities. In February, DOJ finalized an agreement with the King County Sheriff’s Office to improve language access services for people who are Limited English Proficient. 

In hopes of preventing these civil rights violations, the letter provides resources for law enforcement such as best practices, frequently asked questions about the ADA, a specific ADA guide for law enforcement, and resources for improving communications with individuals with Limited English Proficiency. 

Assistant United States Attorneys Susan Kas of the Western District of Washington and Molly Smith of the Eastern District of Washington handle non-criminal Civil Rights matters for the U.S. Attorney’s Offices.

For more information on our Civil Rights and ADA work, please visit: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdwa/civil-rights

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Seattle – A 68-year-old Seattle real estate owner was indicted this week for tax evasion and making false tax returns, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Steven T. Loo is schedule for arraignment on May 2, 2024.

According to the indictment, Loo owned (in whole or part) and operated multiple businesses in western Washington and California. Several of the businesses owned real estate, and Loo hired property management companies to manage the properties. Loo had the property management companies send profits from the properties to two bank accounts he controlled. Loo spent this money for his benefit, or that of his family and friends. However, Loo did not declare that income -- over $4.8 million -- on his tax returns. Loo allegedly used a web of corporate entities and accounts to conceal the income from the IRS.

The indictment details eight properties owned by Loo via various limited liability companies (LLCs). The indictment alleges that income from the LLCs was funneled into bank accounts associated with two specific inactive entities that were established in Washington in 1999. Loo did not report this income to the IRS, nor did he file any forms that would account for this income for tax years 2015-2020. Loo allegedly told the property management companies how to label the funds sent to the inactive entities to make it appear they were fees for business services, when in fact they were profits that should be taxed as income. Loo failed to inform his tax return preparer of these funds that were income from his properties.

Loo is charged with six counts of tax evasion and six counts of making and subscribing to a false tax return.

Each count of tax evasion is punishable by up to five years of imprisonment. Making and subscribing to a false tax retuning is punishable by up to three years of imprisonment.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Mike Dion and Sean Waite for the Western District of Washington and Trial Attorney Regina Jeon of the Department of Justice Tax Division.

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Seattle – A federal grand jury in Seattle has indicted four people for a conspiracy to smuggle non-citizens across the northern border for profit, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. The group has been connected to two smuggling episodes in November and December 2023. The four named in the indictment were arrested Seattle, Chicago, and Santa Rosa, California. They will be transported to Seattle for arraignment in the weeks ahead.

According to a criminal complaint and the indictment, the four conspirators have been linked to two smuggling events involving eight different citizens of India. The defendants are charged with conspiracy to bring in and transport non-citizens for profit, eight counts of bringing a non-citizen into the U.S. at a place other than a designated Port of Entry and eight counts of attempted illegal transportation of a non-citizen for financial gain.

The defendants are: Rajat Rajat, 26, of Santa Rosa, California who was arrested in Chicago; Sushil Kumar, 35, of Santa Rosa, California; Bobby Joe Green, 67, of Santa Rosa, California; and Sneha, 20, a citizen of India who is in the U.S. on a student visa and goes by just her last name. She was arrested in Renton and released on an appearance bond.

According to records filed in the case, on November 27, 2023, a motion-activated camera caught multiple people jumping a fence near the Boundary Village Apartments. The fence is a quarter mile east of Peace Arch Park. Border Patrol agents near the apartments saw five people run to a white minivan. The vehicle was stopped by Border Patrol. Five citizens of India were in the van with Bobby Joe Green as the driver. The investigation revealed that Kumar and Rajat directed the non-citizens on where and how to cross the border, and that Rajat paid Green to transport the non-citizens from the border. Rajat asked for monetary payments from the non-citizens for being smuggled into the U.S.

Similarly, in December 2023, Rajat contacted three citizens of India in Peace Arch Park and allegedly directed them how to cross through the park and get into a car driven by Sneha. The car was stopped, and the non-citizens were interviewed. They indicated they had promised to make monetary payments to be smuggled into the U.S. Rajat was picked up near the border after Sneha and the three Indian nationals had been taken into custody.

All of the charges in the indictment are punishable by up to ten years in prison.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the U.S. Border Patrol.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jin Kim.

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Seattle – A 42-year-old Monroe, Washington resident was convicted today in U.S. District Court in Seattle of Conspiracy to distribute controlled substances following a week-long jury trial, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Humberto Garcia was arrested in December 2020 with seven other defendants tied to a drug trafficking ring distributing heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl throughout the Puget Sound region. The jury deliberated about two hours before reaching the guilty verdict. U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones scheduled sentencing for August 16, 2024.

According to records filed in the case and testimony at trial, Garcia’s car was searched on October 3, 2020, after drug ringleader Jose Luis Ibarra-Valle, 40, was pressuring Garcia to get him a firearm to kill a drug user who owed him money. No firearm was found, but Garcia had drugs hidden in a fake soda can in the car. A few weeks later, Ibarra-Valle was stopped returning from a drug run to California. In the car authorities found approximately 10,000 pills that contained fentanyl, more than eight kilograms of methamphetamine, and more than a kilogram of heroin. These drug amounts count towards Garcia’s conviction as part of the conspiracy.

Ibarra-Valle and the other coconspirators entered guilty pleas. Last year, Ibarra-Valle was sentenced to nine years in prison. The remaining coconspirators have been sentenced, with a range of sentences from time served, to over six years in prison. Garcia is the final defendant in this case and the only one who went to trial.

Over the course of the investigation law enforcement seized 16,000 suspected fentanyl pills, 30 pounds of suspected methamphetamine, and six pounds of suspected heroin.

In his closing statement, Assistant United States Attorney Michael Harder pointed to numerous wiretapped phone conversations between Garcia and drug supplier Ibarra-Valle. “They were setting up a working relationship,” Harder said, Garcia wanted to be “his right-hand man.”

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

The investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration in partnership with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, Whatcom Gang and Drug Task Force, Washington State Patrol, Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force, United States Border Patrol, Customs and Border Protection, Skagit County Interlocal Drug Enforcement Unit, the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, the Lake Stevens Police Department and Tulalip Police Department. 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Vince Lombardi and Michael Harder.

Seattle – U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman announced today that the Western District of Washington is one of seven districts that are adding a carjacking task force to focus efforts and resources on this important public safety threat.

“Our task force harnesses the resources of the FBI, ATF, the Seattle Police and Kent Police Departments. Prosecutors will look at all carjacking incidents in the district to see if federal prosecution is appropriate,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “Where adults are using juveniles to commit these crimes, we will explore significant federal penalties to hold the adults accountable.”

“The Justice Department has no higher priority than keeping our communities safe. We do so by targeting the most significant drivers of violent crime and by acting as a force multiplier for our state and local law enforcement partners. We’re seeing results — with violent crime declining broadly nationwide,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “Today, we are launching seven new carjacking task forces across the country to build on the success of task forces in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and Tampa, where available data shows that carjacking rates are now falling. When prosecutors, officers, agents, and analysts come together to crunch data, share intelligence, and apply best practices, we can make real progress in the fight against all forms of violent crime, including carjacking.”

“Addressing violent crime is a task that takes teamwork.” said Richard A. Collodi, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Seattle field office. “I am proud to join with our law enforcement partners in the Seattle area to protect the communities we all call home.”

In keeping with the department’s Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Violent Crime, the task forces represent a strategic enforcement priority for the department, focusing federal resources on identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the most significant drivers of violent crime.

Building on the initial efforts of and best practices learned from carjacking task forces in the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the District of Columbia, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the Middle District of Florida, the following offices in seven other districts are announcing the creation of carjacking task forces in their communities:

• District of Oregon
• Eastern District of Texas
• Northern District of Alabama
• Northern District of California
• Eastern District of Louisiana
• Southern District of Mississippi
• Western District of Washington

Carjacking and other violent crime task forces have proven to be an effective part of successful violent crime reduction strategies by focusing on significant crime drivers and taking violent offenders off the streets of our communities. For example, carjackings in Philadelphia declined by 31 percent from 2022 to 2023, and armed carjackings are down 28 percent in the District of Columbia this year to date compared to the same period in 2023. In Chicago, carjackings decreased 29 percent from the high in 2021 through the end of 2023.

The newly formed task forces will be led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices, FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, along with state, local and other law enforcement partners. At an initial kickoff meeting, the task force members will come together to outline how they will share and act promptly on information related to car thefts, carjackings and the recovery of stolen or suspect vehicles. The task forces will also collaborate on how to use federal sentencing enhancements for cases where adults use juveniles to commit carjackings, as well as working with state and local authorities to ensure the appropriate handling of juvenile suspects. The task forces will also assist state and local officials who wish to seek Justice Department grant funding for juvenile intervention and diversion resources.

 

Seattle – A couple from New York state are in custody tonight following their indictment for a nationwide bank fraud scheme, some of which was executed in Seattle, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Amber Towndrow, 35, and Darby Canfield, 34, were indicted by a Seattle federal grand jury on April 3, 2024. Towndrow is currently incarcerated for drug possession in New York. Canfield was apprehended in New York and is being transferred to the Western District of Washington for arraignment on the indictment.

“These defendants are alleged to have cunningly and systematically drained victim bank accounts and cashed them out before anyone could stop them,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “While they traveled the country committing this fraud, it was investigators here in Western Washington who put the information together to understand and to prosecute this significant fraud scheme.”

According to the indictment, Towndrow and Canfield acquired personal identifying information for a number of victims nationwide. In Western Washington, the two used that personal information to register businesses with the Washington Secretary of State. Armed with the business documents and false identification documents such as drivers’ licenses and passports, Towndrow would open business bank accounts at financial institutions where the victim already had a personal savings account. The bank system would link the new business bank account to the real customer’s bank account. The conspirators would then transfer money from the personal bank account to the business account. Towndrow would then use a business account debit card to purchase money orders and high value goods such as designer merchandise or electronics. Canfield and other conspirators would use various fake IDs to cash the money orders at locations such as Money Tree outlets.

The indictment details how Towndrow set up a business called “Smitty Consulting Inc.,” listed a Colorado victim as a registered owner, and opened the business bank account using a Seattle address. After the business account linked to the victim’s personal account, Towndrow transferred funds to the business account and used the business debit card to purchase 128 U.S. Postal Service money orders totaling $126,653. The money orders were made payable to various people the co-schemers could impersonate with their fake IDs. Canfield then cashed several of the money orders at various locations in the Seattle area.

The indictment alleges similar conduct regarding victims residing in Texas, Colorado, and New York. Some of the businesses were “registered” and used for fraud in Indiana, with others “registered” and used for fraud in Colorado. The investigation into the scope of the fraud continues.

In addition to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, the pair are charged with seven counts of bank fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft and three counts of money laundering.

Conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and bank fraud are punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Money laundering is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and aggravated identity theft is punishable by a mandatory minimum two years in prison consecutive to any other sentence imposed in the case.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Diplomatic Security Service, and the Seattle Police Department.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean Waite.

towndrow_and_canfield_indictment.pdf

Seattle – A 42-year-old King County man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 90 months in prison for unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Robby Lee Robinson was convicted in October 2023 following a four-day jury trial. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Tana Lin told Robinson, “You turned a car accident into a dangerous situation for all the people around you on that highway.”

“Mr. Robinson grabbed a gun and started shooting at another driver on a busy highway – conduct that could have killed or injured others,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “Despite prior convictions for illegally possessing firearms, he continues to get guns and is willing to use them. Then he lies about his conduct to police and on the witness stand. Such conduct merits a lengthy prison term.”

According to records filed in the case, just after 10:00 PM on November 8, 2022, a victim called 9-1-1 reporting that he had been involved in an accident and now the other driver was chasing and shooting at him. The incident occurred on the southbound lanes of Highway 18. After about five minutes, the driver was able to get away from the car Robinson was driving and reported to police that it appeared the car had exited the highway.

King County Sheriff’s deputies were able to locate the car with the shooter and followed it to Maple Valley where the driver, Robinson, finally stopped the vehicle and surrendered. In the car, police found two firearms, ammunition, and shell casings.

At trial, Robinson and his wife claimed the guns belonged to her and that Robinson did not know the guns were in the car. Robinson was alone in the car at the time of the incident. He testified that he felt threatened following the collision, and then described how he chased after the driver and repeatedly fired the gun he found on the floor of the car at the taillights of the other driver. The bullets broke a window on the victim car, and law enforcement recovered bullet fragments in the vehicle.

In asking for a nine-year prison sentence, prosecutors highlighted Robinson’s refusal to respect the law, and that he had committed this new crime while on supervised release. “Despite being convicted of this same offense (illegal firearms possession) and serving a 90-month sentence, Robinson was not deterred. He again possessed firearms and ammunition, and he again used them—this time to shoot at a random person driving on the road. The fact that no one was killed was sheer luck. And once again, Robinson sought to subvert the judicial process by committing perjury while testifying at trial and by suborning perjury by seeking to have his wife lie on his behalf to cover up his criminal conduct,” prosecutors wrote in their sentencing memo.

“Mr. Robinson knew he was prohibited from possessing firearms,” said ATF Seattle Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Blais. “Yet, he turned to a firearm and used it in an act of violence in this case. We will vigorously investigate all those who are prohibited from possessing firearms and yet still do so, especially when they use firearms in violent acts.”

“The King County Sheriff’s Office is working tirelessly to remove illegal firearms from our streets,” said King County Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall. “I’m grateful for the continued support we’ve received from the United States Department of Justice and other local law enforcement agencies to hold these individuals accountable for their dangerous actions. Together, we are working to make our communities and our residents safer.”

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, & Explosives (ATF), the Washington State Patrol, and King County Sheriff’s Office.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Stephen Hobbs and Rachel Yemini.

Seattle – The final defendant in a large drug trafficking ring was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 108 months in prison for trafficking drugs while armed with a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Juan de Dios Alcaraz-Mardueno was a drug redistributor and interstate transporter of heroin, fentanyl, and methamphetamine. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour remarked on the “dangerous nature of the drugs” the defendant trafficked and that he wasn’t deterred. “He continued this conduct even after contact with law enforcement,” Judge Coughenour said.

According to records filed in the case, the conspirators distributed large amounts of methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, and cocaine, smuggling the drugs into the U.S. from Mexico and then transporting them up the west coast for distribution in Pierce, King, and Snohomish Counties. The investigation and drug ring take-down on December 16, 2020, resulted in the seizure of 143 pounds of methamphetamine, 15 pounds of heroin, 35,000 fentanyl pills, 24 firearms, and $778,000. Drug ring leader Cesar Valdez-Sanudo, 36, was sentenced to 15 years in prison in January 2023. Valdez-Sanudo had buried large quantities of drugs and cash on his Arlington, Washington property.

Juan de Dios Alcaraz-Mardueno was identified and indicted as a member of the drug ring, but evaded capture until July 2022. By that time, he had been heard on another wiretap investigation, trafficking drugs for a different drug organization.

On February 5, 2020, agents stopped Alcaraz-Mardueno’s vehicle in Centralia, Washington. A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed approximately 12 kilograms of methamphetamine, 1.8 kilograms of heroin, and 162.4 grams of blue fentanyl pills. Investigators also found a loaded Walther PPQ 9mm handgun in the vehicle. The defendant admitted to possessing this gun to facilitate his drug trafficking in his Plea Agreement.

On September 15, 2023, Alcaraz-Mardueno pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute, and carrying a firearm in connection with a drug trafficking crime. The gun crime is punishable by a mandatory minimum five years in prison consecutive to any other sentence imposed in the case.

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

The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Tacoma Residence Office in partnership with Tahoma Narcotics Enforcement Team (TNET), Kent Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, SeaTac Police Department, Tacoma Police Department, Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force (SRDTF), the Skagit County Sheriff's Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). 

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Amy Jaquette and C. Andrew Colasurdo.

Tacoma – A Sumner, Washington man who lived under a false identity for more than 25 years, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to two counts of illegal disclosure of Social Security Number, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Roberto Adrian Manzano, 53, is scheduled for sentencing in front of U.S. District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright on July 11, 2024. Manzano was arrested on October 24, 2023.

According to the plea agreement, Manzano began living under a false identity no later than 2000. Using the false identity, Manzano took a job with a logistics company in Western Washington. On July 17, 2020, Manzano used someone else’s Social Security Number to apply for a Small Business Administration loan. On January 28, 2021, Manzano used the false identity and another person’s Social Security Number to apply for a Security Threat Assessment with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). In evaluating his most recent application, TSA Investigations noticed some conflicting information and referred the matter to the Diplomatic Security Service for investigation.

Manzano admitted in his plea agreement that he used the false identity to unlawfully vote in state and national elections since approximately 2004. Manzano admits that he falsely claimed to be a U.S. Citizen each time he voted illegally.

Both the prosecution and defense have agreed to recommend a five-month prison sentence. The court is not bound by the recommendation and Judge Cartwright can impose any sentence authorized by law.

Disclosure of a Social Security Number is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The case was investigated by the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) with assistance from the TSA.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean Waite.

Tacoma – A 42-year-old New Port Ritchey, Florida, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 20 years in prison for production of child pornography and interstate travel with intent to engage in a sexual act with a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Samuel Aaron Leonard was arrested July 2, 2020, in Vancouver, Washington, just outside the home of the 14‑year-old girl he had spent months enticing online for sexual abuse. Leonard communicated with the girl on a number of social media platforms and represented to the girl that he was 20 years old. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle said, “To damage a life as significantly as you have is far worse than any aggravated assault…. You have to understand that your victims have a life sentence.”

“This case is a parent’s nightmare: a predator lurking online who preys on their child remotely and then travels thousands of miles to further harm a minor child,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “The investigation revealed that the victim in this case was not the first harmed by Mr. Leonard. This sentence is designed to protect the community from further crimes.”

According to records filed in the case, Leonard contacted the girl via a social media platform around April 1, 2020. Over the next few months, Leonard communicated with the girl on various social media sites and sent her a cell phone so that they could communicate by text and telephone. Unbeknownst to the girl, Leonard had installed tracking and surveillance software in the phone so that he could monitor her location and read her texts and emails. Leonard turned the conversations with the girl to a sexual nature and convinced her to send various sexually explicit photos.

The girl’s guardians became aware of the communication and contacted police in late June 2020. Law enforcement immediately seized both phones that the teen had been using to communicate and had an undercover officer take over the communication. Analyzing the communications and the cell phone information, the investigation revealed that Leonard had traveled from Florida to the Vancouver area via bus and was within a short bike ride of the girl’s home. When the officer, posing as the girl, revealed that the girl’s guardian had taken the phone Leonard had sent to her, Leonard said he would get her a new one. Police surveilled Leonard as he took a newly purchased phone, hid it in a package, and tossed the package over the fence to the girl’s backyard. Leonard was arrested shortly afterwards.

A search of Leonard’s hotel room revealed that he had a number of items used to restrain someone, such as ten sets of flex cuffs and two sets of metal handcuffs, as well as duct tape and electrical tape. He also had various sex toys and lubricants. In the plea agreement Leonard admits that in 2018 he traveled to Oklahoma to sexually assault a 16-year-old. Leonard’s phone contained videos of that sexual assault.

In asking for a 20-year-sentence, prosecutors wrote to the court, “Leonard has demonstrated a pattern of using minors to satiate his sexual desires. He used manipulation and hidden technology to monitor and control (the victim), violating her trust and disrupting her life. A significant sentence is required to reflect the seriousness of the offense, promote respect for the law, and provide just punishment for the offense. Only a prolonged period of incarceration will protect the public from Mr. Leonard.”

Judge Settle ordered 20 years of supervised release to follow prison, saying,

“When someone violates children like you have, there will be grave consequences, long prison terms, so we can begin to curb the terrible scourge of sexual exploitation of children from our culture.”

Leonard will be required to register as a sex offender.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Vancouver Police Department, and Kalama Police Department.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kristine Foerster and Sean Waite with assistance from the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

Seattle – A 49-year-old Stanwood, Washington, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 121 months in prison for possession of heroin and fentanyl with intent to distribute, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Christerfer Frick was arrested in May 2021 following an investigation into drug dealing on the dark web. At the time of his arrest, Frick was on supervised release for a nine-year prison sentence for drug dealing. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Richard Jones said, “The fact that you immediately turned to drug dealing shortly after release from prison indicates the court needs to protect the community.”

“Mr. Frick delivered potentially deadly drugs to customers across the country, with little concern for the lives he damaged or destroyed,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “Indeed, he stored large amounts of deadly drugs in a home he shared with two small children, leaving them accessible to these children or their friends with potentially tragic consequences.”

According to records filed in the case, Frick spent 2020 and early 2021, storing and mailing drugs to customers who ordered via the dark web. Frick sought out a drug supplier and stored as much as 50 pounds of controlled substances at a time. While he placed the drugs in a safe in the garage, he did not lock the safe, leaving it open for anyone – including his wife’s two young children – to access. At the time law enforcement searched the residence there was 2.7 kilos of heroin and fentanyl in the safe.

Frick conspired with another defendant who ran the dark web sales site. Frick stored and delivered the drugs to customers, either in person or through the mail.

This is Frick’s third federal felony conviction. As prosecutors wrote in their sentencing memo, “Christerfer Frick has been on a crime spree that has lasted for over thirty years. He has dozens of convictions, including brandishing a firearm, eluding, escape, theft, harassment, forgery, counterfeiting, and drug trafficking. The only thing that has stopped Frick from committing crimes is custody…. After serving that nine-year sentence, Frick promptly sought out the dark web fentanyl and heroin network that led to the charges in this case.”

Due to the amount of drugs involved in this case, Frick faced a mandatory minimum ten years in prison, with additional time for violating his supervised release for the last prison sentence.

Following prison, Frick will be on five years of supervised release.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Investigation Service (USPIS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David Martin and Mike Dion.

Seattle – A 25-year-old Federal Way, Washington man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to Assault with Intent to Commit a Felony, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Desmond D. Bostick faces up to ten years in prison when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jamal N. Whitehead on July 18, 2024.

According to records filed in the case, on June 20, 2023, Bostick was seated in the last row of the plane on an Alaska Airlines flight from San Diego to Seattle. Bostick was in the aisle seat and the victim, who was a stranger to Bostick, was seated in the middle seat. Bostick allegedly repeatedly touched the victim on the thigh and grabbed her buttocks when she stood to allow the passenger in the window seat to exit the row. Bostick touched her buttocks a second time when the victim stood for the window seat passenger to return to his seat. In the plea agreement Bostick admits he touched the victim to arouse his sexual desire.

After the plane landed, the victim reported the conduct to the flight crew and law enforcement began its investigation. Bostick had left the airport and his location was unknown. The federal grand jury returned an indictment in the case on September 27,2023. Bostick was located and arrested by the FBI on February 9, 2024.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, both prosecution and defense will recommend a nine-month prison term. The recommendation is not binding on the court and Judge Whitehead can impose any sentence allowed by law.

This case was investigated by the FBI with the assistance of the Port of Seattle Police.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sean H. Waite and Kristine Foerster.

Tacoma – A 43-year-old Columbia, New Jersey man was arraigned today on an indictment charging him with conspiracy and thirteen counts of violating the Clean Air Act for his scheme to interfere with pollution control software on diesel trucks, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Jonathan Achtemeier entered pleas of not guilty to all counts. Trial is scheduled in front of U.S. District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright on June 10, 2024.

“Working with a laptop from the comfort of his own home, the defendant allegedly remotely tampered with pollution control systems to enable trucks nationwide to cause massive amounts of unlawful pollution.  His actions degraded the air in the Western District of Washington and nationwide in a manner that harms us all,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “I am grateful to the employee of a local company who came forward and exposed the fact that trucks in his company’s fleet had been altered by the defendant.”

According to the indictment, Achtemeier conspired with mechanics in garages and operators of truck fleets to disable the anti-pollution software installed on diesel trucks. Achtemeier allegedly disabled the software remotely by connecting to laptops he had provided to various coconspirators. Some of the coconspirators would pass the laptop on to others seeking to have the anti-pollution software disabled on their trucks. Once the laptop was hooked up to the truck’s onboard computer, Achtemeier could access it from his computer and delete the software designed to slow the truck if the pollution control device was missing or malfunctioning.  Achtemeier allegedly altered the software after the mechanic had removed the pollution control equipment or in coordination with that process.

Removing the pollution control equipment and disabling the software results in trucks polluting at 30 to 1,200 times the level of a truck with pollution control systems.  Tampering with pollution control software is a violation of the Clean Air Act.

Achtemeier charged as much at $4,500 per truck for work that often took him two hours or less. Achtemeier advertised his services on social media nationwide, doing business as Voided Warranty Tuning (VWT) or Optimized Ag. Between 2018 and 2021 his company took in more than $5 million in gross profits.

The coconspirators in this case have service garages or truck fleets in various areas of Washington. The trucks that were altered range from pick-ups such as a Dodge R3500 to Kenworth and Freightliner semi-trucks.

Conspiracy is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Violating the Clean Air Act is punishable by up to two years in prison per count and a $250,000 fine.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lauren Watts Staniar and Seth Wilkinson, and Special Assistant United States Attorney Karla Perrin.  Ms. Perrin is an attorney with the EPA.

achtemeier_indictment.pdf

Seattle – A 42-year-old Bellingham, Washington, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to eight years in prison for drug distribution and illegal firearms possession announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Adam Wisniewski is the fifth and final defendant to be sentenced in a case involving fentanyl distribution in Whatcom and Skagit Counties. Wisniewski pleaded guilty in February 2024 to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute, and two counts of illegally possessing firearms.

At today’s sentencing hearing Judge Lauren King noted Wisniewski’s criminal history saying, his life “had been somewhat of a revolving door of offenses and imprisonment.” Judge King recommended the Bureau of Prisons residential drug treatment program for Wisniewski to treat his addiction.

 In April 2022, investigators initially saw drug ring leader Enoc Martinez Lopez, aka “Victor,” 28, of Marysville, Washington, meeting with Wisniewski, at the Silver Reef Casino in Whatcom County.  Wisniewski was later arrested with more than 1,000 fentanyl pills, fentanyl powder and a firearm. Wisniewski was arrested a second time in June 2022 with two firearms and more fentanyl pills. 

In the course of the investigation law enforcement seized: 11.5 kilos of fentanyl pills, 2.8 kilos of fentanyl powder, 5.7 kilos of cocaine, 1.6 kilos of heroin and 8.7 kilos of crystal meth, more than $186,000 in cash and nine firearms.

In asking for an eight-year prison sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Stephen Hobbs wrote to the court, “Of particular concern is Wisniewski’s possession of firearms. After being caught by law enforcement with a gun, Wisniewski rearmed himself and – two months later – was in possession of two more firearms. As the Probation Officer notes, the combination of drugs and guns is especially deadly and Wisniewski’s persistence in possessing firearms is extremely concerning.”

The leader of the drug ring, Enoc Martinez Lopez, was sentenced to eight years in prison; Casey Landis, 41, of Bellingham, a drug distributor, was sentenced to seven years in prison. Drug distributor Jesse Witteveen was sentenced to six years in prison; drug trafficking associate Anthony Gunderson was sentenced to 41 months in prison.

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

The investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bellingham Resident Office (DEA), working with the Whatcom County Drug and Gang Task Force, the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, the Skagit County Interlocal Drug Enforcement Unit, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Bureau of Indian Affairs, Washington State Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force, the CBP Air & Marine Operations, the Lummi Police Department, the Everson Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephen Hobbs.

Tacoma – A 42-year-old Thurston County resident pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to making a threat against a Black federal employee at the Social Security office in Olympia, Washington, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Steven L. Veres was initially charged in July 2023, and will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle on June 25, 2024.

According to records filed in the case, on February 16, 2023, Veres and a companion went to the Olympia Social Security Office seeking a replacement Social Security card. When a Black Social Security employee told Veres that Veres lacked the proper paperwork to obtain a new Social Security card, Veres became irate, threatening to assault and, per some witnesses, kill the worker. Veres also repeatedly yelled racial slurs at the employee.

Veres pleaded guilty to Influencing a Federal Official by Threat. He also agreed to the application of the United States Sentencing Guidelines’ hate-crimes enhancement, which increases his offense level by three levels because he targeted the victim because of the victim’s perceived race or color.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, both sides will ask for a sentence of 30 months in prison. If the court accepts the plea agreement at the sentencing hearing, the recommendation will bind the Court.

As part of the plea agreement, Grays Harbor County will dismiss an unrelated prosecution against Veres for attempting to elude a police officer.

The case is being investigated by the Federal Protective Service.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Will Dreher, Jocelyn Cooney, and Elyne Vaught in coordination with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division.

Seattle – A 52-year-old Bellevue, Washington man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 77 months in prison for drug trafficking while illegally possessing a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Sanxay Heng Xayadeth was arrested September 6, 2023, after he sold drugs to a person working with law enforcement. Police searched his home and car that day and found dealer quantities of fentanyl pills, powder, and chunks, as well as cocaine. A Glock 19 semi-automatic pistol was found in his bedroom along with body armor.  Xayadeth is prohibited from possessing firearms due to prior convictions.

At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge James L. Robart said Mr. Xayadeth “has made a career out of selling poison. Fentanyl is causing one to two deaths a day in King County…. He demonstrates an indifference to the harm he does in the community.” Looking at Xayadeth’s long criminal history Judge Robart concluded, “Since age 21 it’s been a complete campaign of criminal conduct inflicted on the public.”

According to records filed in the case, since the age of 21, Xayadeth has served more than 23 years in prison. His first federal conviction was in 2005, for setting up an MDMA drug deal while armed with a 9 mm handgun. He had more drugs and multiple firearms at his residence and was sentenced to 10+ years in prison. In 2015, less than a year after being released from federal prison he was arrested with a stolen firearm and was sentenced to nearly eight years in prison.

In the current case, Xayadeth had been on supervised release for just over a year when he was identified as a significant drug dealer in King County. Following this prison term Xayadeth will be on four years of supervised release.

Xayadeth pleaded guilty in January 2024.

In asking for a sentence of more than six years in prison, Assistant United States Attorney Erika Evans noted the deadly toll of fentanyl on our community. “In 2023, the King County Medical Examiner’s office reported 1,091 confirmed overdose deaths related to fentanyl. In the first two and a half months of 2024 alone, there have been approximately 222 fentanyl-related deaths in King County. Fentanyl is estimated to be fifty times stronger than heroin. Even a tiny amount of fentanyl can kill. In 2023, the year Xayadeth committed his drug trafficking crimes, the King County Medical Examiner’s office said it struggled to store bodies partly due to the rise in fentanyl overdoses.”

The case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF).

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Erika Evans.

Seattle – A 27-year-old Santa Monica, California man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to five years in prison for his organized retail theft scheme that caused more than $664,000 in damage, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Jaylan Amir Thomas was arrested in May 2023. He pleaded guilty to wire fraud on December 5, 2023. At his sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez said Thomas “persisted in this crime spree after being arrested and charged in multiple jurisdictions.”

“Mr. Thomas recruited others to his criminal scheme, and thus altered the trajectory of their lives with criminal charges in various states,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “Despite advantages such as a stable home and college studies, Mr. Thomas chose fraud as his path and in the process created higher prices for consumers everywhere.”

According to records in the case, from March 2022, Thomas led a group that traveled the U.S., stopping at home improvement stores and renting two types of expensive construction equipment: jumping jack tampers and vibratory plate compactors valued between $1,500 and $2,000 each. Thomas used more than 150 fake IDs and dozens of fake telephone numbers to trick the stores into renting him the equipment. For each rental, he signed an agreement promising to return the machine on a specific date or pay a mounting fine. He acknowledged with each rental that failure to return the machine could lead to prosecution. Thomas paid small rental deposits with one of nine common debit cards, but he and a co-conspirator locked the accounts to prevent the stores from charging the card for the equipment. Thomas and others transported stolen goods in rental vans. He then sold the equipment on online marketplaces for about $700 per machine.

In all, Thomas and his crew stole more than 480 pieces of equipment from 190 home improvement stores in 23 states.

Thomas was ordered to pay $664,161.50 in restitution to the victim home improvement store.

Thomas was arrested four times in three different jurisdictions in relation to the scheme, but it did not deter him.  He would bail out of jail and continue the fraud.

The group stole multiple items of equipment from stores in Federal Way, Tacoma, Vancouver, Covington, Longview, Bothell, Everett, Redmond, and Seattle.

Asking for a 51-month prison sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Watts Staniar wrote to the court, “Organized retail crime like Thomas’ thefts has a significant impact on our communities: An analysis from the Retail Industry Leaders Association estimates Washington retailers lost $2.7 billion to organized retail crime in 2021. Forbes Advisor ranked Washington as the number one state impacted by organized retail theft based on six metrics. Organized retail crime raises costs for consumers and threatens the safety of stores and employees.”

Judge Martinez noted that organized retail theft has been on the rise since the pandemic and costs U.S. residents some $30 billion a year.

“Mr. Thomas's multi-state retail theft scheme not only resulted in substantial financial losses for retailers but also highlighted the complex and widespread nature of organized retail crime,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer, who oversees HSI operations in the Pacific Northwest. “This orchestrated fraud operation, underscores the critical need for collaborative efforts, including robust public-private partnerships, to combat such threats effectively. Homeland Security Investigations played a pivotal role in unraveling this intricate network, emphasizing the importance of coordinated efforts between government agencies and private businesses in safeguarding communities from the pervasive impact of organized crime.”

The investigation was led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lauren Watts Staniar.

Seattle – A 39-year-old Bellingham, Washington man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to ten years in prison for drug distribution and firearm crimes, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Daniel Faix was arrested in April 2023, and pleaded guilty in January to possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, unlawful possession of firearms, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Richard A. Jones said, “You were caught and charged, and returned to dealing drugs.”

“When Mr. Faix encountered law enforcement in late December 2022, he was carrying thousands of fentanyl pills, and drug proceeds,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “But one arrest didn’t stop him, and four months later a search of his RV home turned up thousands more pills and four guns he kept to protect his drug business. Spreading such poison in our community while illegally

possessing guns, and the defendant’s extensive criminal history, merits a ten-year-prison term.”

According to records filed in the case, Faix was one of six people charged federally in a months-long investigation of fentanyl dealing in Whatcom County. The ring was actively moving fentanyl from the Seattle area to redistributors in Bellingham. Law enforcement officers observed various drug transactions and interdicted the drug loads. In one instance, law enforcement was called to a mini-mart where two people involved with the drug ring overdosed on fentanyl and had to be revived and transported to the hospital.

In asking Judge Jones to impose the ten-year-sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Stephen Hobbs wrote to the court, “The Court is certainly aware of the dangers that these drugs – particularly fentanyl – pose to those who use them. And Faix must be aware of the harm caused by these drugs as his own life has been consumed and upended by drug use. Ultimately, Faix – for whatever reason – was willing to personally profit from the distribution of an addictive and often deadly controlled substance.”

One other member of the drug ring has been sentenced:  33-year-old Ahbdurman Ahmed of Seattle was sentenced in January 2024 to six years in prison. On Wednesday, defendant Natasha Parkhill, 38, of Bellingham, pleaded guilty and is scheduled for sentencing in July. Defendant Mohamed Abdirisak Mohamed, 35, of Seattle pleaded guilty in January and is scheduled for sentencing in June. Defendant Matthew Anderson, 35, of Bellingham, is scheduled for trial in July. Defendant Robel Sisay Gebremedhin, A/K/A Robel Sisay Gebremedhui, 41, of Burien, WA is being sought by law enforcement.

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

This investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Whatcom County Drug and Gang Task Force, with valuable assistance provided by the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, Washington State Patrol, and the Whatcom County Prosecutor’s Office.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephen Hobbs.

Seattle – A 32–year-old Des Moines, Washington woman was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 10 months in prison for her scheme to steal nearly $400,000 from her employer, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Trixie Dela Cruz was employed by a Renton, Washington company that administers employee benefits for employers nationwide. Within six months of her hiring and immediately after she had been promoted, Dela Cruz began her embezzlement scheme. Judge Lauren King sentenced Dela Cruz to three years of supervised release to follow the prison term, saying Dela Cruz had “abused the trust” of her employer with a scheme that “involved planning and continuous affirmative conduct.”

According to records filed in the case, Dela Cruz was hired by the company in October 202o and in March 2021, was promoted to Account Associate. In that role, she managed client accounts and approved claims for benefits. Using her access, she created a duplicate account for a deceased employee of one of the clients. She connected the profile to her own bank account and then submitted and approved 58 fraudulent claims totaling $397,942. Dela Cruz would activate the profile for the fraudulent claim and then deactivate it so no record would show up for her company.

In January 2022, the company discovered the fraud and dismissed Dela Cruz.  The company reimbursed the client for the fraudulent claims. Forensic analysis indicated Dela Cruz spent the money on gambling, cash application transfers to family and friends, and to pay for jewelry, travel, car payments and other shopping.

Judge King ordered full restitution to Dela Cruz former employer and its insurance company, which paid the bulk of the company’s losses.

The case was investigated by the FBI.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Jensen.

Seattle – A 38-year-old resident of Maple Falls, Washington was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to six years in prison for his role in distributing fentanyl and methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Jesse Witteveen was arrested November 1, 2022, when he fled at high speeds from law enforcement, tossing bags of drugs from the car. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Lauren King said, “Knowing what drugs have done to your life, you chose to perpetuate the cycle of drug addiction in others.”

According to records filed in the case, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bellingham Resident Office (DEA), working with the Whatcom County Drug and Gang Task Force identified a drug trafficking organization spreading large amounts of fentanyl and meth in Whatcom and Skagit Counties. Beginning in April 2022, law enforcement monitored various members of the drug conspiracy as they conducted their drug sales.

On November 1, 2022, law enforcement was surveilling Witteveen as he met with a drug supplier. They followed Witteveen, but since he was driving at a high rate of speed, surveillance was ended. A short time later, Whatcom County Sheriff deputies spotted the car near the town of Van Zandt and attempted to pull it over.  Witteveen began driving at a high rate of speed. A bag – later found to contain fentanyl and methamphetamine – was thrown from the car. A search of Witteveen’s home and car turned up turned up fentanyl pills, meth, multiple cell phones, firearms parts, and ammunition.

Overall, in this case law enforcement seized: 11.5 kilos of fentanyl pills, 2.8 kilos of fentanyl powder, 5.7 kilos of cocaine, 1.6 kilos of heroin and 8.7 kilos of crystal meth, more than $186,000 in cash and nine firearms.

The leader of the drug ring, Enoc Martinez Lopez, aka “Victor,” 29, of Marysville, Washington was sentenced to eight years in prison; Casey Landis, 41, of Bellingham, a drug distributor was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Witteveen was sentenced to four years of supervised release to follow prison, and Judge King recommended he be admitted to the Bureau of Prisons residential drug treatment program.

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

The investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Bellingham Resident Office (DEA), working with the Whatcom County Drug and Gang Task Force, the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, the Skagit County Interlocal Drug Enforcement Unit, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Bureau of Indian Affairs, Washington State Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force, the CBP Air & Marine Operations, the Lummi Police Department, the Everson Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephen Hobbs.

A federal jury convicted a former privacy consultant last week for a cyberstalking campaign in which he sent electronic messages and made social media posts threatening sexual assault and other violence against multiple victims.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Sumit Garg, 34, of Seattle, engaged in an extensive campaign of threats and sexually explicit messaging and posts about a woman who used to share an apartment with Garg’s spouse. Using personal information Garg accessed after he moved into the apartment with his spouse, Garg threatened and tormented the former roommate in violation of a court order. Garg also used his computer skills to threaten multiple people in the former roommate’s life, including her uncle, who represented her in obtaining a civil protection order; her current boyfriend; the Seattle police detective who investigated the threats; and the deputy prosecuting attorney in King County, Washington, who filed charges against Garg for his illegal stalking conduct. Garg used his computer skills to try to conceal who was sending the threats or making the posts. 

The jury convicted Garg of one count of conspiracy to engage in cyberstalking, three counts of cyberstalking in violation of a criminal order, and three counts of cyberstalking. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 25 and faces a mandatory minimum of one year in prison and a maximum penalty of 35 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman for the Western District of Washington; and Special Agent in Charge Glen Peterson of the U.S. Secret Service Seattle Field Office made the announcement.

The U.S. Secret Service investigated the case, with assistance from the Seattle Police Department.

Senior Counsel Anthony Teelucksingh of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Friedman for the Western District of Washington are prosecuting the case.

Seattle – A Seattle man previously employed as a privacy consultant was convicted today in U.S. District Court in Seattle of conspiracy to engage in cyberstalking, three counts of cyberstalking in violation of a criminal order, and three counts of cyberstalking, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Sumit Garg, 34, was Indicted in March 2021. He has been in custody at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac since that time. U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour scheduled sentencing for June 25, 2024.

According to records in the case and testimony at trial, in 2020, Garg began an extensive campaign of threats and sexually explicit messaging and posts about a woman who used to share an apartment with Garg’s wife. Using personal information Garg accessed after he moved into the apartment with his spouse, Garg threatened and tormented the former roommate.

In April 2020, the victim reported the harassment to police. Following this, Garg and his wife tried to make it appear that they too were harassment victims and made false police reports.

Garg also used his computer skills to threaten multiple people in the former roommate’s life, including her uncle who represented her in obtaining a civil protection order; her boyfriend; the Seattle Police Detective who investigated the threats; and even the Deputy Prosecuting Attorney who prosecuted Garg for his illegal stalking conduct. Garg used his computer skills to try to hide who was sending the threats or making the posts. The stalking campaign also grew increasingly violent, ultimately coming to include gruesome threats of rape, torture, and death. Over time, Garg’s stalking campaign involved thousands of emails sent from scores of accounts set up for the purpose of stalking.

At one point in his scheme, Garg was videotaped in the lobby of the victim’s new apartment building at the same time photos were taken and sent of that location to frighten the victim.

Garg enlisted his wife in the scheme – instructing her to send harassing emails to herself and others while he was jailed to make it appear someone else was doing the harassment campaign. He told his wife to destroy clothes he wore when he was in the lobby of the ex-roommate’s apartment building. His wife did send emails but did not destroy the clothes and ultimately cooperated with investigators.

In her trial testimony, Garg’s wife said she finally felt free to tell the truth when he was booked on federal charges and would not be returning to their home to abuse her verbally and physically.

In closing arguments, prosecutors told the jury, “The victims were terrified. They were worried for themselves, and they were worried for their families…the victims all suffered substantial emotional distress.”

Conspiracy to engage in cyberstalking is punishable by up to five years in prison. Cyberstalking in violation of criminal order is punishable by a mandatory minimum of one year and a maximum of five years in prison. Cyberstalking is punishable by up to five years in prison.

The case is being investigated by the United States Secret Service with assistance from the Seattle Police Department.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Friedman and Senior Trial Attorney Anthony V. Teelucksingh of DOJ’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section.

Seattle – A 41-year-old California man, who previously resided in Tacoma, Washington pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to wire fraud, for his scheme to steal more than $2 million from his employer, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. John Whisenant was arrested in July 2023. U.S. District Judge Lauren King scheduled sentencing for July 3, 2024.

According to records filed in the case, Whisenant worked in a variety of roles at the online used car sales company beginning in October 2018. About a year after he began with the company, Whisenant was promoted into a role where he had access to the company bank accounts and accounting software.

Beginning in about June 2019 and continuing until November 2021, Whisenant used his access to make 57 wire transfers totaling over $2 million into accounts he controlled. Whisenant disguised the transfers as legitimate business expenses in the company’s accounting software with a variety of false entries. Whisenant defrauded the company of $2,084,799. Whisenant then transferred the money to others and mixed it with other funds making it difficult to trace.

According to records in the case, Whisenant used some of the money for a lavish lifestyle. He bought luxury automobiles such as Porches and Mercedes. He spent $123,096 for a 2022 Audi E-Tron and bought a $98,100 Tesla. He rented luxury homes in Southern California and purchased two airline tickets to Paris at a cost of nearly $23,000 each.

The fraud on the company accounts was discovered when a bookkeeper began a more comprehensive review of the company’s financials in January 2022. Whisenant resigned abruptly in February 2022.

Prosecutors have agreed to recommend a seven-year prison sentence. Judge King is not bound by that recommendation and can impose any sentence allowed by law. Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Whisenant has agreed to make full restitution of $2,084,779.

The case is being investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean Waite.

Seattle – A 49-year-old Portland, Oregon man was sentenced last week to 25 years in prison for attempted enticement of a minor and possession of images of child sexual abuse, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Dirk Tichgelaar has been in custody since his arrest on January 25, 2020. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik ordered lifetime supervised release to follow the prison term.

“This defendant acted on his predatory impulse to harm a child – he traveled hundreds of miles thinking he would rape a 5-year-old. The child was fictitious, but his dark intentions were not,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “This is a long sentence, but a necessary one, to protect the community.”

According to records filed in the case, Homeland Security Investigations used an internet chat room known to be associated with the trade of images of child sexual abuse, to investigate child predators. Beginning in October 2019, Tichgelaar communicated with an undercover officer about his desire to rape young girls. The undercover officer pretended he had a 5-year-old daughter and Tichgelaar made detailed messages about his desire to rape the child.

Tichgelaar made arrangements to drive from Portland for the sexual abuse, bringing an “Elsa” costume with him as a present for the child. He was arrested when he arrived at the meeting location.

A court authorized search of his home resulted in the seizure of electronic devices including a thumb drive with multiple images of child sexual abuse. Tichgelaar is a registered sex offender due to a 2005 Oregon conviction for first degree sexual abuse.

"In safeguarding our communities' youth, including those as young as 5 years old, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) remains resolute in our mission to combat child exploitation. The recent sentencing of Tichgelaar exemplifies our unwavering commitment to utilizing every available resource to protect innocent children from predators,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer, who oversees HSI operations in the Pacific Northwest. “This case underscores the importance of our ongoing efforts to ensure a safer environment for our most vulnerable members and highlights the necessity of continued vigilance in combating child exploitation."

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

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Hampton with assistance from Oregon Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Sussman.

Tacoma – The co-owner of two businesses involved in diesel truck sales and service pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to violating the Clean Air Act, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Sean Coiteux, 50, admits he directed employees to tamper with federally-required pollution control hardware on hundreds of diesel trucks and with the trucks’ pollution monitoring systems.

Coiteux and his wife, Tracy Coiteux, 46, own Racing Performance Maintenance Northwest of Ridgefield, Washington, and a related Woodland, Washington, company, RPM Motors and Sales NW. Racing Performance Northwest also pleaded guilty to violating the Clean Air Act. RPM Motors and Sales pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act. Coiteux and both companies are scheduled for sentencing by U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle on June 24, 2024.

In the plea agreement, Coiteux admits that between January 2018 and January 2021, he directed employees to delete pollution control software and devices on diesel trucks it sold or serviced. Coiteux’ companies charged between $1,000 and $2,000 for this work. Over three years Coiteux’ companies did this work on approximately 375 diesel trucks, for $538,477 in fees.

“By removing required pollution control devices, the defendants caused their customers’ diesel trucks to spew pollutants into the air at a rate of up to 1,200 times the pollution caused by compliant trucks,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman.  “This conduct increased toxins in our environment that are linked to cancer, as well as pulmonary, neurological, cardiovascular, and immune system damage. The pollution causes particular harm to disadvantaged communities who live near freeways and other high traffic areas.”

According to records in the case, Coiteux directed his employees to modify legally required software that works to ensure the vehicle’s pollution remains within legal limits.  RPM Motors and Sales sometimes offered, as part of the sale of a truck, to remove the emissions control system after the customer purchased a truck.  Email and other electronic records document the conspirators’ purchase of equipment and software kits to remove the pollution control and reprogram the monitoring systems.  These modifications, which are known as “tunes” and “deletes,” are marketed to truck owners as improving vehicle power and performance. 

Tracy Coiteux, 46, remains charged in the case and is scheduled for trial on May 20, 2024.

In September 2022 service manager, Nick Akerill, 44, pleaded guilty in Clark County Superior Court to a Motor Vehicle Emission Control Systems Violation and was sentenced to serve on a work crew for 30 days.   

Each violation of the federal Clean Air Act is punishable by up to two years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Prosecutors have agreed to recommend no more than six months in prison for Coiteux.  Judge Settle is not bound by the recommendation and can impose any sentence allowed by law.

The case is being investigated by Environmental Protection Agency’s Criminal Investigation Division. 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Seth Wilkinson and Cindy Chang and Environmental Protection Agency Special Assistant United States Attorney Karla Gebel Perrin. 

Tacoma –A year-long undercover drug investigation led to a major drug seizure and two Vancouver, Washington arrests this week, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Juan Onofre Flores Carrillo, 48, and Jesus Daniel Valenzuela Ayala, 23, will make their initial appearance today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma charged with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances.

According to the criminal complaint, Flores Carrillo aka “El Cholo,” was identified in early 2023 as a significant fentanyl pill dealer in southwest Washington. Working with confidential informants, law enforcement made a series of significant drug buys from Flores Carrillo. In one instance Flores Carrillo sold an informant 3,000 fentanyl pills on another occasion he sold the informant a kilo of crystal methamphetamine. Twice Flores Carrillo sold high powered firearms.

In January and February 2024, law enforcement worked to identify the stash house where Flores Carrillo kept his drugs. Flores Carrillo continued to make drug sales of heroin as well as fentanyl. On March 13, 2024, Flores Carrillo agreed to sell 10,000 fentanyl pills. Shortly after he turned over the drugs he was arrested. Law enforcement executed the court authorized search warrant on the presumed stash house. Inside they found large amounts of drugs and an AK-47 style rifle with a grenade launcher attached.

The residence contained approximately seven pounds of fentanyl pills and 43 pounds of suspected methamphetamine. The AK-47 was wrapped as if for resale.

Valenzuela Ayala was the only occupant of the stash house and was arrested. Both men are citizens of Mexico who do not have legal status in the United States.

Conspiracy of distribute narcotics in the amounts in this case is punishable by a mandatory minimum ten years in prison and up to life in prison.

The charges contained in the complaint are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Vancouver Police Department, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigation Unit, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Zachary Dillon and Max Shiner.

Seattle – Two members of a transnational drug trafficking organization were sentenced to federal prison today for arranging the sale of more than 75,000 fentanyl pills, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Juan Manuel Lugo Enriquez, 21, and a citizen of Mexico, sold 2,000 fentanyl pills to an undercover agent near Bellingham. Then, Lugo Enriquez and Guillermo Vieyra Salas, 24, also a citizen of Mexico, arranged a second deal involving 75,000 pills. U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez sentenced Lugo Enriquez to 38 months and Vieyra Salas to 48 months in prison. Judge Martinez found troubling the large amount of fentanyl at issue here, particularly because fentanyl has become “a leading cause of death over the last couple of years.”

“Federal law enforcement is keenly focused on getting as much fentanyl as possible off our streets,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “Seizing more than 75,000 pills will save lives.”

According to records filed in the case, the case began with a tip that a Seattle-based member of the drug trafficking organization, later identified as Lugo Enriquez, was bringing bulk quantities of fentanyl pills into Western Washington from Mexico. Defendant Vieyra Salas was already on law enforcement radar, charged with a drive-by shooting where he fired 27 rounds from a car he was driving while carrying cocaine. He also has a pending cocaine trafficking charge in Skagit County.

Homeland Security Investigations undercover agents quickly set up drug deals – first for 2,000 pills with Lugo Enriquez and then for a large order of 75,000 pills with Lugo Enriquez, Vieyra Salas, and a third defendant. As Lugo Enriquez and Vieyra Salas waited for the third defendant to deliver the drugs, Vieyra Salas offered to sell the undercover agents more pills.

The third defendant arrived at a separate meeting place to deliver the pills and was arrested. Lugo Enriquez and Vieyra Salas were arrested over the following days.

The defendant who delivered the pills, Jaime Alonso Hernandez-Hernandez, 41, is scheduled for sentencing on June 7, 2024.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yunah Chung

Tacoma – A 45-year-old Nigerian citizen who defrauded U.S. COVID relief programs from his home in Canada, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 42 months in prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Sakiru Olanrewaju Ambali, was arrested in February 2023, in Frankfurt, Germany, as he traveled back to Canada from Nigeria. Ambali was detained in Germany and was extradited to the U.S. last August. At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Robert J. Bryan said, “It is clear that this involved a long series of serious fraudulent conduct.”  

“Mr. Ambali used the stolen identities of more than 630 American workers to fraudulently claim more than $1 million in pandemic unemployment benefits,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “The fraud created hardship for those who legitimately needed benefits and found someone had already filed a claim. This conduct, in the early days of COVID relief efforts, caused further disruption for thousands of people as Washington State stopped paying any claims for a time, while it tried to screen-out the fraud.”

According to records filed in the case, Ambali and codefendant Fatiu Ismaila Lawal, 45, used the stolen identities of thousands of workers to submit over 1,700 claims for pandemic unemployment benefits to over 25 different states, including Washington State. In total, the claims sought approximately $25 million, but the conspirators obtained approximately $2.4 million, primarily from pandemic unemployment benefits. As part of his plea agreement Ambali agreed to make restitution of $1,035,107.

The co-conspirators allegedly submitted claims for pandemic unemployment benefits to New York, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, California, Washington and some 19 other states. Using 13 Google accounts, they filed some 900 claims. The co-conspirators also allegedly established four internet domain names that they then used for fraud – creating some 800 different email addresses that were used for fraud.

Additionally, between 2018 and 2021, Ambali used stolen personal information of eight U.S. citizens to try to claim tax refunds totaling more than $40,000. The IRS detected the fraud and did not pay the refunds.

Ambali also attempted to use the stolen American identities for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) to defraud the Small Business Administration (SBA). The SBA caught most of the fraud and paid only $2,500. 

Ambali and his co-conspirators had the proceeds of their fraud sent to cash cards or to “money mules” who transferred the funds according to instructions given by the co-conspirators. They also allegedly used stolen identities to open bank accounts and have the money deposited directly into those accounts for their use.

In her memo asking for a five-year sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Cindy Chang noted that Ambali’s web search history indicates he continued his fraudulent scheme for nearly three years. “Amabli first searched for (the Employment Security) website on or about May 5, 2020, two days before his first fraudulent submission to ESD, and he most recently visited the page on February 20, 2023, the day before he was arrested and last had access to his devices.   In other words, it is possible that Ambali—who had never even stepped foot in the United States much less worked in Washington State—was defrauding ESD until the day before his arrest last year.”

Judge Bryan imposed five years of supervised release to follow prison. One condition is that he not enter the U.S. without permission from the Department of Homeland Security.

Co-defendant Fatiu Ismaila Lawal was arrested in Canada in February 2023 and is pending extradition.

The National Unemployment Fraud Task Force provided a lead on this case to the investigative team in Western Washington. The case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) and the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General (DOL-OIG). Also contributing to the investigation were Washington State Employment Security Division (ESD), the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and the Small Business Administration (SBA). 

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cindy Chang of the Western District of Washington. DOJ’s Office of International Affairs is assisting. 

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

The sentence in this case was updated on April 3, 2024

Seattle – A 62-year-old Seattle woman was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to home confinement with location monitoring as a condition of a 3-year term of probation for her scheme to steal nearly half a million dollars in COVID 19 benefits, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Danni Walker was indicted on six counts of wire fraud in July 2022. She pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in August 2023. Prosecutors sought a 21-month custodial sentence, while the United States Probation Office recommended a custodial sentence of 12 months and 1 day. At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Lauren King said, “this is a very serious offense” and noted the defendant’s use of pandemic relief funds for “lavish expenditures” that she “flaunted on social media.”

“This defendant took resources intended to help businesses struggling to stay afloat in the pandemic, and used them for a high-end car, luxury travel and shopping sprees and unsuccessful trading in cryptocurrency,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “Some businesses that needed loans did not get them, because Ms. Walker and others like her committed fraud on government programs.”

According to records filed in the case, between April 2020 and March 2021, Walker used false information to apply for and obtain $473,082 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans through the Small Business Administration. Walker submitted the applications on behalf of three different companies, only one of which was in operation, and none of which had the employees she claimed in her applications. Instead of using the PPP money for payroll and other legitimate business expenses, as intended by the program, Walker used it, among other things, to purchase a Jaguar coup; spent $34,000 on a luxury vacation to New York – including a Louis Vuitton shopping spree -; and invested unsuccessfully in cryptocurrency. She also gave large cash gifts to family and friends.

Walker also attempted to obtain two additional PPP loans through the Small Business Administration (SBA) totaling approximately $165,000. However, SBA caught the fraud and those loans were declined.

In asking for a 21-month prison sentence, prosecutors highlighted that Walker’s theft of tax dollars meant others did not get the financial support they needed. “This was a calculated and sophisticated offense…. Over a period of approximately 11 months, through six fraudulent PPP loan applications, Walker stole close to a half million dollars in pandemic relief funds. These funds could and should have been provided to businesses that actually qualified for them so those business could pay their employees and other approved business expenses– i.e., to stay afloat during a historic crisis,” Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Jensen wrote in her sentencing memo.

The case was investigated by the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General (SBA-OIG) and the FBI.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michelle Jensen and Sok Jiang.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form

Seattle – A 40-year-old Snohomish County man who is an enrolled member of the Tulalip Tribes was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to three years of probation, with intermittent confinement (3 days a week) for the first year of probation for involuntary manslaughter in connection with the February 2, 2020, crash that killed the sole passenger in his truck, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Danny Lee Simpson, Jr. pleaded guilty in October 2023. Prosecutors sought an 18-month custodial sentence, while the United States Probation Office recommended a 28-month custodial sentence.

According to records in the case, Simpson, his wife, and a mutual acquaintance had been drinking at a bar in Stanwood, Washington on February 1, 2020. After midnight, Simpson drove his truck, with the acquaintance as his sole passenger, to a gravel pit owned by his parents. Simpson had recently modified his truck, so it was suitable for off road use. Simpson had failed to check the braking system on the truck.

The sand and gravel pit was poorly lit and had a sheer 40-foot cliff face. Simpson knew about the cliff. The truck overheated and stalled. At about 1:15 in the morning, Simpson backed the truck off the sheer cliff. The truck landed upside down at the bottom of the cliff. The crash killed Simpson’s passenger – another member of the Tulalip Tribes. In his plea agreement, Simpson admitted he knew or could have reasonably foreseen that it was dangerous to drive under the influence of alcohol near the cliff face in a dark, wet, and poorly lit gravel pit.

Writing to the court, prosecutors highlighted the devastating impact on the victim’s family. “Simpson ended the life of a man who will never be able to play catch with his son, go to activities at his son’s school, or watch his son grow into manhood. Simpson selfishly took all this away from the victim, his son, and their family.”

The victim’s mother spoke at length at the sentencing hearing about the devastating loss that she, her family and the community have suffered because of Simpson’s actions. The victim’s father submitted a victim impact statement saying in part, “As his father, the pain I now endure is constant and paralyzing. My heart hurts, not only for myself, but for my grandson who will never know how much his father loved him.”

Simpson was ordered to pay restitution in an amount to be determined to the victim’s family.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the Tulalip Police Department.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys J. Tate London and Jocelyn Cooney. Mr. London and Ms. Cooney serve as Tribal Liaisons for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Washington.

Seattle – A 32-year-old citizen of Mexico pleaded guilty today to drug trafficking and firearms charges related to his distribution of narcotics at a Bellingham homeless encampment, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Rigoberto Vasquez-Martinez has been in federal custody since he was arrested on August 29, 2023, following a traffic stop near Brownsville, Oregon. Vasquez-Martinez will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Evanson on June 11, 2024.

 According to the plea agreement, Vasquez-Martinez lived in a fortified encampment within an area known as the “Walmart encampment” in Bellingham. Vasquez-Martinez admits having armed guards acting as security around the main structure where he stayed. The encampment is called the Walmart encampment because it stretches a half-mile east of Walmart.

Law enforcement has responded to a wide range of incidents at the encampment and received information that Vasquez-Martinez was a significant drug supplier to the area. While Vasquez-Martinez was under investigation, he was stopped in Oregon apparently returning from California where he had picked up a supply of drugs. When Vasquez-Martinez’ car was searched, law enforcement found more than seven kilos of fentanyl pills – more than 65,000 pills in all. Vasquez-Martinez admits he was on his way back to Western Washington to distribute the fentanyl. They also seized $3,000 in cash and multiple cell phones. On that same day, law enforcement searched a storage locker in Lynnwood registered to Vasquez-Martinez’ wife. In it they found three kilos of fentanyl powder, 300 grams of methamphetamine, approximately 1.9 kilograms of heroin, and a 9mm handgun and $46,000 in cash. Vasquez-Martinez admits that 9mm handgun was used in furtherance of his drug trafficking activities.

Finally, on August 31, 2023, law enforcement searched the compound where Vasquez-Martinez had been living. They seized more than $4,000 in cash and an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle. They also seized a sawed-off shotgun.

Due to the drug amounts and the possession of the firearms, Vasquez-Martinez faces a mandatory minimum ten years in prison. Both possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver and attempted possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute are punishable by a mandatory minimum five years in prison and up to 40 years in prison. Possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime is punishable by a mandatory minimum five years in prison to run consecutive to any other sentence imposed.

Both prosecutors and defense will recommend a ten-year sentence when Vasquez-Martinez is sentenced. Judge Evanson is not bound by that recommendation and can impose any sentence allowed by law.

The case was investigated by the DEA and the Whatcom County Sheriff's Office Gang and Drug Task Force (WGDTF).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda McDowell with assistance from Oregon Assistant United States Attorney Peter Sax.

Seattle –Brands LLC, has agreed to pay $989,438 to the United States to resolve allegations the company improperly obtained a Paycheck Protection Loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration. Docklight Brands develops and sells hemp derived products, and licenses certain marks for use in connection with state-licensed cannabis products. A False Claims Act qui tam lawsuit originally brought by relator Sidesolve LLC, alleged that the company was ineligible for the federal loan program because of its involvement with cannabis businesses that remain illegal under federal law.

According to the settlement, Sidesolve filed the qui tam case in September 2022, alleging that Docklight had falsely certified that it was eligible for a $494,719 Paycheck Protection Program loan. The Small Business Administration program allows the loan amount to be forgiven.

“Those seeking vital assistance from SBA’s pandemic response programs must comply with the requirements,” said SBA OIG’s Western Region Special Agent in Charge Weston King. “Today’s settlement sends a strong message of accountability. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s office and our law enforcement partners for their support and dedication to pursuing justice in this case.”

Under the terms of the settlement, Docklight has agreed to pay back double the amount of the loan, with the additional $494,719 as penalties. Under the qui tam statute, the relator receives a percentage of the settlement for bringing the false claims matter to the government’s attention. In this case Sidesolve LLC will receive $148,416.70 of the settlement funds.

The matter was handled for the United States Attorney’s Office by Assistant United States Attorney Matt Waldrop with investigative assistance from SBA-OIG.

Seattle – A 27– year-old citizen of Romania pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to conspiracy to transport those not legally in the United States, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman.  Daniel Andronache was arrested near Blaine, Washington on November 9, 2023, after he and a coconspirator picked up 12 people who had illegally crossed into the U.S. From Canada. Andronache is scheduled for sentencing by U.S. District Judge Lauren King on June 12, 2024.

“We are seeing a huge increase in human smuggling attempts across our northern border,” said U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman.  “As in this case, the conduct is unsafe, putting the lives of many at risk.  The Border Patrol and Homeland Security Investigation is working diligently to stop these smuggling schemes and interdict those being transported in a way that keeps everybody safe from harm.”

According to the plea agreement, Andronache flew from Omaha, Nebraska to Seattle on November 7, 2023, and obtained a white Ford Expedition in Tacoma.  Andronache and a coconspirator used the car to drive to Blaine, Washington. The men parked on a road near the international border.  Twelve Romanian citizens emerged from brush near the border and got into the car. The car only had seats for eight people, and there were 14 in the vehicle.  When Border patrol stopped the car, they found two children unrestrained in the trunk of the car, and another was unrestrained on the center console of the vehicle.  The youngest child in the car was under the age of three.

In his plea agreement Andronache admits he knowingly entered the conspiracy to transport the non-citizens so they could stay illegally in the U.S.

Those who entered the U.S. illegally were referred to immigration authorities for processing.

Conspiracy to transport non-citizens is punishable by up to ten years in prison.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Border Patrol and Homeland Security Investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda McDowell.

Seattle – A man who committed a series of mail vehicle and mail key thefts was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 41 months in prison for theft of government property, mail theft, illegal transactions on access devices, and illegally possessing a firearm, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Johny Mixayboua, 27, committed a string of mail theft incidents involving stolen postal vehicles, stolen postal keys, mail theft and associated crimes. The postal service had to halt deliveries in the zip code 98118 for about a week while investigators worked to track down and arrest Mixayboua. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Court by Judge Richard A. Jones said, “You had opportunities to look at your past and look at your future. You have failed to take advantage of the opportunities provided along the way to change your future…As you grow and mature, you will see all the years wasted engaged in criminal activity.”

“Mr. Mixayboua’s thefts caused widespread hardship – especially for the elderly and disabled who were suddenly forced to line up at the post office to get their mail,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “The theft of checks and credit cards caused harm to those hit with fraudulent charges. But even those who did not suffer theft were impacted. Individuals who relied on the mail for medication, medical supplies, food, and financial documents, were asked to physically come into the post office to pick up their mail because they had to shut down service due to the defendant’s actions.”

“Mail theft and identity theft remains a plague in our communities. Mixayboua’s thefts victimized numerous U.S. Postal Service customers throughout the Seattle area, but through our partnerships with local law enforcement and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, we were able to shut down this prolific mail thief,” said Inspector in Charge Anthony Galetti, “The U.S. Postal Inspection Service remains steadfast in our commitment to ensure the U.S. mail remains safe and secure for all members of our community.”

According to records in the case, on December 28, 2022, a U.S. Postal Service vehicle was stolen from the 6300 block of South Bangor Street in Seattle. In the vehicle was a postal key that is used to access the cluster mailbox units in the 98178 zip code. The key allows the postal worker to open the back of the cluster box to deliver mail to multiple households. Since the theft of the vehicle and postal key, there had been numerous reports of cluster boxes in zip code 98178 being opened and mail stolen.

Working with neighbors, the Postal Inspection Service was able to get door camera footage showing the person accessing the postal boxes. Neighbors reported credit cards being stolen and attempts being made to use them. Inspectors were able to review images from when the credit card attempts occurred and ultimately identified Mixayboua as the person stealing the mail and attempting to use the stolen credit cards.

Additionally, local law enforcement determined that vehicles used in a number of the mail theft incidents were reported stolen.

On January 17, 2023, two more Postal Service vehicles were stolen. One in the 3000 block of Beach Drive SW and a second one in the 3600 block of 57th SW. Both are in zip code 98116. Using doorbell camera footage from the block where one of the vehicles was recovered, investigators saw Mixayboua removing mail and parcels from the stolen postal vehicle and putting them in another vehicle. Again, law enforcement traced credit cards stolen from the mail and obtained surveillance footage that appears to show Mixayboua attempting to make purchases with the credit cards.

On January 30, 2023, a fourth postal vehicle was stolen – this time from the 2000 block of S. Columbian Way in Seattle. On March 28, 2023, a fifth postal vehicle was stolen from the 5700 block of S. 129th Ave. One of the people associated with the theft matched the description of Mixayboua. In late January and February, the mail theft incidents continued -- this time in the Snoqualmie, Washington area. The cluster boxes were opened with either a counterfeit or authentic postal key. Again, credit cards were stolen, and one was linked to images of Mixayboua making purchases at Target.

Throughout April, mail thefts continued from as far north as Lake Forest Park and as far south as southeast Seattle.

The postal service halted deliveries in zip code 98118 for about a week while investigators worked to track down and arrest Mixayboua.

Mixaboua apparently was living in a vehicle near a relative’s home. He was arrested after running from officers. Law enforcement found a Polymer unregistered firearm – known as a ‘ghost gun’ - that Mixayboua threw into the bushes while attempting to run away. Mixayboua is prohibited from possessing firearms due to multiple felony convictions in King County for auto theft, possession of stolen property, and bail jumping.

In asking for a 41-month prison sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Elyne Vaught wrote to the court, “Beginning in December of 2022 up to his arrest in May of 2023, the defendant, Johny Mixayboua’s full-time job was to use stolen postal keys to steal mail from the residents of King County, leaving a trail of financial and sentimental loss along the way. As the thefts increased, the United States Postal Service made the difficult decision to shut down mail service to an entire zip code, requiring residents, including the elderly and disabled, to physically come into the office to pick up their mail.”

This case was investigated by U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Elyne Vaught.

Seattle – Two defendants entered guilty pleas this week, to abusive sexual contact and to simple assault of a person under 16, connected to their conduct on aircraft flying into Seattle, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Both defendants are scheduled for sentencing in June 2024.

Today, Jack Roberson, 69, entered a plea of guilty to simple assault for his contact with a 15-year-old seated next to him on a July 2023 flight from Atlanta to Seattle.  According to records in the case, Roberson placed his hand on the 15-year-old victim’s thigh and slowly moved it up her thigh and under her skirt to her inner thigh. The victim reported to her guardian immediately and the defendant was taken into custody when the flight landed. Roberson faces up to a year in prison when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lauren King on June 5, 2024.

On Tuesday March 5, 2024, Duane Brick, 53, entered a guilty plea to abusive sexual contact.  Brick admitted that on March 20, 2023, on a flight from Phoenix to Seattle, he took the hand of the woman seated next to him and placed it on his crotch. The woman appeared to be asleep, and Brick reached under the woman’s shirt and touched her breast.  He admits he did it for his sexual gratification. Sentencing is scheduled in front of U.S. District Judge John H. Chun on June 10, 2024. Brick faces up to two years in prison.

Finally, this week a 38-yar-old Indian citizen was arraigned on a charge of abusive sexual contact for an assault on a teen sitting near him on an Emirates flight to Seattle. Abhinav Kumar was arrested when the flight arrived on Sunday February 18, 2024.  Today he pleaded “not guilty,” and trial before U.S. District Judge Jamal N. Whitehead is scheduled for May 6, 2024.

“The Western District of Washington continues to see an alarming increase in sexual abuse cases aboard aircraft,” said U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. “Last August we emphasized that we have zero tolerance for such assaults. Sadly, we continue to learn of new allegations and are investigating and charging those cases.”

The Assistant United States Attorneys prosecuting these cases are Sanaa Nagi, Jocelyn Cooney, Amanda McDowell, and Jin Kim.

These cases were investigated by the FBI, Port of Seattle Police, and U.S. Air Marshals.

Seattle – A 36-year-old Seattle semi-pro rugby player was arrested on an indictment charging him with nine counts of wire fraud. Shane Donovan Moore operated Quantum Donovan LLC – a Washington company Moore claimed was purchasing and operating cryptocurrency mining equipment. In fact, the indictment alleges the company never invested in such equipment and operated as a Ponzi scheme, with the investments from later investors being used to pay off earlier investors. Moore made his initial appearance on the indictment Monday morning.

“Cryptocurrency investors can fall victim to all the same fraud tactics as any investor. Mr. Moore used a ‘Ponzi scheme,’ – a fraud that has been around for decades - and uses new investor money to pay off older investors until the scheme collapses,” said U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. “So far investigators have identified 38 known victims but believe there could be many more. We urge any such investors to contact the FBI.”

“According to the indictment, between January 2021 and October 2022, Moore allegedly made fraudulent promises to obtain investor money. Moore claimed both verbally and in writing that the invested money would be used to purchase computers for a cryptocurrency mining operation. He told investors they would receive 1% of their investment daily based on the work of the mining machines. However, Moore never purchased the mining machines. He comingled the investor money with his personal accounts and used some of those funds to live a lavish lifestyle. Some of the funds were used to purchase cryptocurrency so that a portion of the funds could be sent to investors to lull them into believing the cryptocurrency mining operation existed.

An analysis of accounts controlled by Moore show he purchased more than $820,000 in cryptocurrency from crypto.com during the course of the scheme. Other records show Moore transferring more than $1 million in cryptocurrencies from his Coinbase account to other Coinbase accounts.

Moore recruited investors in Utah, Oregon, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Washington. Many of the investors are people he knew from his rugby activities.

Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the FBI.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brian Wynne.

Seattle – The leader of a wide-ranging fraud scheme that stole more than $3.3 million from federally funded pandemic assistance programs was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 5 years in prison for wire fraud and money laundering, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Paradise Williams, 29, personally received more than $2 million in fraudulent proceeds and spent the money on luxury cars, lavish trips, cosmetic surgery, jewelry, and designer goods. Overall, the fraud ring sought to steal more than $6.8 million, in pandemic benefits from nearly every major pandemic assistance program. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge John H. Chun said, “These were serious and terrible crimes. [Williams and her co-defendants] stole from programs designed to help members of their community during the pandemic.”

“Paradise Williams was relentless in her efforts to steal pandemic benefits throughout the entire duration of our national emergency, and it is unconscionable that she funded a life of luxury by stealing millions in taxpayer funds that should have prevented King County residents from being evicted in the winter,” said U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. “Combatting pandemic fraud is a priority for our district, and we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to hold individuals accountable for exploiting a national crisis.”

According to records in the case, from June 2020 to February 2022, Williams personally submitted over 125 fraudulent applications for the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program funds administered by King County, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Program, and Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act unemployment benefits. Williams enlisted over 50 associates, including her five codefendants, to obtain more than $3.3 million by posing as fake tenants, landlords, and small business owners in need of assistance. In submitting these applications, Williams, among other things, created falsified bank statements, tenant ledgers, and landlord attestations.

Upon receipt of the illegal funds, Williams and her associates methodically laundered the funds through cash withdrawals, wire transfers, and expensive luxury purchases. In addition to fraudulently obtaining over $700,000 directly from administrating agencies, Williams received more than $1.2 million in kickback payments from her associates for facilitating the fraudulent submissions.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Williams will pay restitution in the amounts of $2,791,241 to the U.S. Department of the Treasury and $512,730 to the U.S. Small Business Administration. The defendant will forfeit $2,023,104, the proceeds Williams personally obtained through the scheme. Williams will also forfeit a Lexus sedan and a Range Rover SUV that she purchased with the fraudulent gains.

Williams’ codefendants D’Arius Jackson, Tia Robinson, Rayvon Peterson, and David Martinez previously entered guilty pleas for their participation in the scheme. Judge Chun sentenced Jackson to three years in prison and Robinson to 18 months in prison. Martinez is scheduled for sentencing March 11, 2024, and Peterson is scheduled for sentencing March 18, 2024.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Small Business Administration’s Office of Inspector General.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cindy Chang.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form

Seattle- US Attorney Tessa M. Gorman and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer hosted an organized retail crime roundtable discussion on Thursday, February 29th. US Attorney Tessa Gorman and HSI Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer gave opening remarks to retailers to discuss their work in investigating, disrupting, and prosecuting organized retail crime. Representatives from Walmart, Lowe’s, Ulta, Rite-Aid, Walgreens, Safeway, Fred Meyer, and Target were among the attendees at the roundtable.

“We have seen organized retail crime become more and more common in the country, and in Western Washington,” said US Attorney Tessa Gorman. “Retail theft impacts retailers of all sizes and communities across our District. It leads to customers feeling unsafe, puts security guards at risks, and causes significant losses to retailers.  I am proud to partner with HSI, local law enforcement, and the retailers in Western Washington to put a stop to organized retail crime.”

“Organized retail crime does not only impact businesses, it undermines the well-being of our communities while threatening the safety and security of everyday people," said Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer, who oversees HSI operations in the Pacific Northwest. “Those who commit these offenses, regardless of if they are a part of a criminal organization or acting individually, will not be allowed to wreak havoc upon our private sector partners unchecked. This meeting is an important step in what I hope is a continued partnership with businesses throughout the Pacific Northwest to catch and prosecute organized theft groups that are conducting, promoting, and profiting off this dangerous activity.”

In March of 2023, the United States Attorney’s office indicted a pair for a retail theft scheme, in which both defendants plead guilty to wire fraud. According to the plea agreement, they worked collaboratively to steal more than $800,000 of equipment from a large retailer through the retailer’s rental service. They rented the equipment under false identities, and then sold it on secondhand retail sites like OfferUp and Facebook Marketplace. As of Mach 2023, the defendants had rented equipment from over 190 different store locations in 23 states under 150 names. This case was investigated by HSI.

Seattle – A 28-year-old Bellingham, Washington, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 12 years in prison for possession of child pornography and attempted enticement of a minor, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Clayton Harker was arrested in December 2022, when he arrived at a Bellingham hotel believing he was going to sexually assault an 8-year-old girl. The ‘girl’ in this case was fictitious and Harker had been communicating with undercover Homeland Security Investigation agents. 

At today’s sentencing hearing Judge Richard jones said, “The court finds these cases extremely troubling. Fictitious individual or not, you had a clear thought in your mind to act on your desires.”

According to records in the case, Harker came to the attention of law enforcement as they were investigating a different snapchat user who was pressuring young people for explicit images, claiming he wanted to pay them as “models.” Based on the communication between that subject and the person later identified as Harker, law enforcement began investigating his online activity. In November 2022, Harker began communicating with an undercover agent who claimed to have an 8-year-old niece Harker could molest. Harker not only communicated with that undercover agent, he also communicated with another agent who posed as the 8-year-old girl. Harker arrived at the hotel with materials to molest the child and video the assault. Harker was arrested before he even entered the hotel.

In asking the court to sentence Harker to 30 years in prison, Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Hampton noted that Harker told agents that he regularly solicited minors to send him sexually explicit imagery over the internet and would use threats and extortion when necessary to induce these children to send him that imagery. “Simply put, Harker has cut a swath of destruction across the lives of vulnerable minors whose only mistake was to cross paths with a predator. The threat he poses is real. And neutralizing that threat will require incapacitation through lengthy confinement followed by close supervision for the remainder of Harker’s life.”

Harker will be on 15 years of supervised release following prison and will be required to register as a sex offender.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) as part of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force based at the Seattle Police Department. The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office also assisted.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Hampton.

Seattle – A 21-year-old member of the Makah Tribe was indicted February 21, 2024, for involuntary manslaughter for the death of a friend in a car accident on a Pacific Ocean beach within the Makah Reservation, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Meric Soeneke is scheduled for arraignment in U.S. District Court in Tacoma on March 4, 2024.

According to records filed in the case, on December 21, 2023, Soeneke was driving at a high rate of speed on the ocean beach with three others in the vehicle. Soeneke had been drinking and was impaired. He was driving on the unlit beach in the dark when he hit a large tree that had fallen across the beach. Another Makah Tribal member, a 26-year-old woman, was killed in the crash.

Soeneke was originally charged in Tribal Court and released on bail. At his first federal court appearance a Magistrate Judge will determine whether there are conditions under which he can be released from federal custody.

Involuntary manslaughter is punishable by up to eight years in prison.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the FBI and the Neah Bay Public Safety Department.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jocelyn Cooney. Ms. Cooney serves as a Tribal Liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Washington.

soeneke_indictment.pdf

Seattle – A South King County man pleaded guilty last week in U.S. District Court in Seattle to multiple firearms offenses for his purchase of more than 100 firearms in a “straw purchaser” scheme, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Dion Jamar Cooper, 31, of Kent, Washington was arrested in April 2023, following an investigation by Seattle Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives. U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez scheduled sentencing for May 17, 2024.

“Mr. Cooper lied on purchase forms and then trafficked more than 100 firearms on the streets of our community.  He trafficked to those who are prohibited from possessing guns, because of their criminal history.  It is not surprising that more than two dozen of the firearms have been linked to crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “Congress has responded to the epidemic of gun violence with new laws targeting such “straw purchasing” and we are using them in this case.”

According to the criminal complaint, the investigation began in late January 2023, with the assault and attempted robbery of a woman in Rainier Valley. The victim was able to flee in her car. Police found a firearm in her vehicle that had been dropped by one of the assailants. A check of the firearm revealed it had been purchased by Dion Jamar Cooper on December 10, 2022. That recovery led the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) to check Cooper’s purchase history. Cooper had purchased 107 firearms since June 2021. On 24 different instances he purchased multiple firearms – sometimes four or more. Of the 107 firearms identified as being purchased in this scheme, 26 of the guns have been recovered and linked to crimes.

During March and April 2023, agents surveilled Cooper as he made arrangements to purchase additional firearms. Agents identified De’ondre Lamontia Phillips as the person who drove Cooper to the gun shops where he purchased the firearms. Phillips is prohibited from purchasing and possessing firearms due to convictions for distribution of heroin (2014) and convictions for illegal firearms possession and two counts of assault (2009). Surveillance of the two revealed Cooper turning the firearms over to Phillips who stored them in his residence.

Cooper pleaded guilty to two counts of making a false statement in connection with the acquisition of firearms, one count of straw purchasing firearms and one count of trafficking in firearms.  Phillips pleaded guilty last month to drug and gun possession crimes. He is scheduled for sentencing April 26, 2024.

Straw Purchasing of Firearms and Trafficking in Firearms are both punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Making a false statement in connection with a firearms acquisition is punishable by up to ten years in prison.

The case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) and the Seattle Police Department.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Todd Greenberg.

Tacoma –A 44-year-old former bank manager from Battle Ground, Washington, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 42 months in prison for Bank Fraud and Aggravated Identify Theft, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Brian Davie, a former branch manager at Wells Fargo, used unauthorized cash withdrawals, money transfers, and cashier’s checks to steal over $1 million. Davie targeted elderly and vulnerable customers. Eight victims have been identified. One woman had more than $566,000 stolen from her retirement accounts.

At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle said, “The wake of damage in this case is large. It involved multiple victims over some time... Our society depends on the trust of those who hold our finances.”

Davie worked for Wells Fargo in Battle Ground from March of 2014 until he was fired in June 2019. According to records in the case, Davie used his position as a manager at the branch to conduct unauthorized transactions. Davie had access to customer files containing information about bank account balances. Davie hid his criminal activity by repeatedly exchanging cashier’s checks until they were small enough to cash without triggering banking reporting requirements.

Davie continued undetected because he stole from elderly customers who might be less likely to closely monitor their account balances. Some of Davie’s victims had dementia or had limited English skills and did not understand banking transactions. In at least one case, Davie failed to file the paperwork to install a victim’s relative as a co-signer on the victim’s accounts. That failure prevented the relative from being able to monitor the account and detect the fraudulent transactions.

Davie deposited some of the stolen money in an account he created in the name of a relative’s business. He made some of the cashier’s checks payable to that relative or to the business account he created. Much of the money was withdrawn as cash.

In all, Davie embezzled S1,279,840 from victim accounts. Wells Fargo partially reimbursed victims for their losses.

Judge Settle will decide the amount of restitution Davie owes on March 18, 2024.

In asking for a four-year prison sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Zachary Dillon wrote to the court, “Bank fraud and aggravated identity theft cause devastating effects on their victims. It can often take years or even decades to undo the impact of identity theft and to untangle the impact it had on your finances and your credit score. Let alone the untold psychological damage it causes when you are unable to trust the government institutions that are designed to protect you. As a bank manager, Defendant knew better.”

This case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Wells Fargo investigation team.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Zachary Dillon.